Book excerpt: Software engineering requires specialized knowledge of a broad spectrum of topics, including the construction of software and the platforms, applications, and environments in which the software operates as well as an understanding of the people who build and use the software. Offering an authoritative perspective, the two volumes of the Encyclopedia of Software Engineering cover the entire multidisciplinary scope of this important field. More than 200 expert contributors and reviewers from industry and academia across 21 countries provide easy-to-read entries that cover software requirements, design, construction, testing, maintenance, configuration management, quality control, and software engineering management tools and methods. Editor Phillip A. Laplante uses the most universally recognized definition of the areas of relevance to software engineering, the Software Engineering Body of Knowledge (SWEBOK®), as a template for organizing the material. Also available in an electronic format, this encyclopedia supplies software engineering students, IT professionals, researchers, managers, and scholars with unrivaled coverage of the topics that encompass this ever-changing field. Also Available Online This Taylor & Francis encyclopedia is also available through online subscription, offering a variety of extra benefits for researchers, students, and librarians, including: Citation tracking and alerts Active reference linking Saved searches and marked lists HTML and PDF format options Contact Taylor and Francis for more information or to inquire about subscription options and print/online combination packages. US: (Tel) 1.888.318.2367; (E-mail) [email protected] International: (Tel) +44 (0) 20 7017 6062; (E-mail) [email protected]