The document discusses the complex challenges in software development, emphasizing that traditional methodologies have not fully resolved issues like cost overruns and malfunctions. It introduces Agile practices, particularly Scrum, as modern 'silver bullets' to enhance software quality through team collaboration, small deliverable phases, and continuous feedback. The text concludes that while Scrum can improve project outcomes, successful software development also relies on motivated teams and effective methodologies.

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Eduardo Hernández Rangel
Tammy Chapman
Advance Writing
December 13, 2015
Is Scrum the New Silver Bullet?
Computer software is essentially intangible, abstract, changeable and extremely
difficult to build causing excessive schedules, over cost and malfunction in their operation.
Too many methodologies, frameworks, tools and paradigms have been developed to reduce
the complexity in its constructions, but until this moment many of them have not been
successes. Agile approaches have appeared to resolve the issues and promising to improve
the way the software is built minimizing the impact of schedules, over cost and increase the
caliber. Splitting up large projects into smaller deliverables predictable supported by the
manageable project team commitment as it was the new silver bullet.
Due to the complexity, high costs of production and flawed developed products, the
software industry declared the software crisis looking for tools, methodologies,
programming languages that help to minimize schedules, costs and flaw products.
According to Brooks, projects software are capable of becoming a monster and causing
horror, because he point out, “of all the monster who fill the nightmares of our folklore,
none terrify more than werewolves, because they transform unexpectedly from the familiar
to horror. For these, we seek bullets of silver than can magically [control the software]”.
With this similitude about werewolves, Clearly Brooks said, there is no silver bullet that

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kill the monster because of the essence of software is complex. According to Partridge,
after too many years and even tough enormous endeavors in science and technology that
the state has not changed so much. Thus the software crisis remains in force, although to a
lesser extent, but small bullets have been discovered.
Breakthroughs in tools, programming languages, methodologies improve the way
software is built. But, the real silver bullet comes from cultural change (Cox). The cultural
changes that permit change new ways of thinking, focus on processes, methodologies and
quality instead on technology. Technology is important, but more important is to be aware
about the quality and how to be use processes, and methods to make better software. Most
important changes, firstly were ideas to do something better, easily and different; this was
possible because the courage, endeavor and persistent of somebody. In other words the
most important technological breakthroughs have been due to the desire to change and
improve the world. The software industry is obligated to build better software, in all
aspects, and should encourage to use tools, methods and of course, agile processes but
above all awareness about the importance about quality.
Agile paradigms for developing software projects are one of the new silver bullets
that can slay, or at least hurt nastily, the evil. Agile software development processes are a
blend of industry’s best practices and it is supported by a self-managed team project. The
principles about agile practices is to split the project into small pieces that can be managed
and forecast about timing and effort. Of course, to estimate correctly the time and effort the
team must to have the enough competences to do the assigned tasks and the customer must
totally committed. Xion says, “Helping the project development team and the customer
work together closely to assign priority to requirements according to the importance [of

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them]”. Another important consideration about reducing cracked products is to prevent and
correct errors as soon as possible with functional deliverables put on production
environments each certain defined time. Agile paradigms have become the next silver
bullet that increases the project success when it is applied consciousness in software
development projects.
Scrum is used worldwide because it helps produce software projects more
manageable. Software engineers around the world have used this agile software
development methodology because of the good quality levels are achieved in relation to
time-effort ("Fujita and Revetria"). The quality is maintained through communication
between the project team, manager and the client as well as the transparency that exists in
the entire project during its progress; they are visible in each working cycle. Even when,
Scrum is an agile framework for building better software project, it can blend with others
industry best practices to strengthen the way to make software.
Scrum framework, one of the most important candidates to avoid the software’s
transformation to evil. In order to increase the guarantee to build more successful projects
Scrum is the bullet, blend the team, manager and customer and conform a self-managed
team that takes decisions about the project. Dividing and prioritizing the customer’s
business needs into usage packages, built each defined box-timing. Preparing all the
necessity for changes during the software development makes possible to reduce no useful
functionality. “Respond to requirement changes in ‘real-time’ without waiting milestone”
(Xion) is the base of Scrum to respond to this user need. Best practices, tools and most
importantly a self-managed team with enough knowledge is the key to shut the werewolves
and never more expect a horror transformation.

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Using the Scrum framework does not assure that the project was successful. Tools
and motivated self-managed project team gives a hail of bullets that undoubtedly more than
one hurts the evil, making possible build better software, software that do what we expect
to do.

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Works Cited
Brooks, P., Frederick. "No Silver Bullet Essence and Accidents of Software
Engineering." Web. 06 December 2015.
Fujita, H. Revetria, R. "New Trends in Software Methodologies, Tools and
Techniques." Amsterdam, Netherlands: IOS Press. Google Books. Web. 07
December 2015.
Partridge, D. "Engineering Artificial Intelligence." Norwood, New Jersey: Intellect Books.
Google Books. Web. 10 December 2015.
Xion, J. "New Sofware Engineering Pardigm Base on Complexity Science." NewYork:
Springer. Google Books. Web. 10 December 2015.