A proverb is "a brief, memorable saying that expresses a truth or belief, such as 'a friend in need is a friend indeed'" (Hirsch, Kett, and Trefil as quoted in http://www.bartleby.com/59/7/proverb.html).

After reading the "Capability Maturity Model" (http://resources.sei.cmu.edu/library/asset-view.cfm?assetID=11955) please discuss the following "Process Proverbs" from Paulk:

The "What-Not-How" Principle: The CMM does not mandate how the software process should be implemented; it describes what characteristics the software process should have. Capability vs. Performance: The CMM focuses on building the process capability of an organization; the process performance of individual projects is correlated but not identical. Organizational Improvement: The CMM is a model for organizational improvement. It is not tuned to improving individual projects or helping a project that is in trouble. Comprehensiveness: The CMM does not address all the important factors that impact success. Excluded topics include capable people, systems engineering, and powerful tools.

At a minimum please consider:

The "truth" that the proverb is meant to illustrate.

Whether or not (based on observation, experimentation or personal opinion) the proverb is "true."

In what way the proverb is or is not important to you as a student of programming and to the software development community in general.

Link to "Capability Maturity Model" : http://resources.sei.cmu.edu/library/asset-view.cfm?assetID=11955

Below is a sample write up of the first proverb from the professor. Please follow same format for all 4 proverbs above. Thank you!

The What-Not-How Principle

What truth is it meant to illustrate?

I feel like this "proverb" is meant to say that no one is telling you how to build your programs, it's just telling you what characteristics are important to make a program successful.

Is this proverb "true"?

I believe it is. There are many ways to create a program and, while the program may work well and be useful, things like documentation are important, as are the steps outlined in the Optimizing level of the CMM: improving processes by monitoring feedback.

How is/isn't this proverb important to you as a student or to the development community in general?

A well-organized and documented program is always best for all parties involved, whether you're building onto an existing program/process or looking at documentation to learn how something works. Processes that are well-defined make it easier for developers to fix problems that may arise in the future