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>Mike;
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>I like to use the Toyota model. This is an interesting company in the automobile industry. In fact the Toyota Production System is the model of the industry. That is why General Motors joined a venture at this location 16 years ago - the first of it's kind in America. It combines a product with employees and customers for a quality product.
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>Did you know that Toyota is the 3rd best seller in the United States? They talk about "the big three" American car manufacturers. We have a backlog and this plant has not laid off one person since it opened it's doors. Very unlike the rest of the industry. There are hundreds of models of automobiles manufactured and sold in the United States. Toyota has 6 of the top 16 models produced in this country, according to J.D. Powers, who rates this industries quality.
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>The software industry needs quality and should find a means to approach this topic.
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>Tom

Tom,

While on analogies, had the motor car industry developed at the same speed over the last 100 years or so as has the computer industry in the last 25 years, a Rolls Royce would cost about $12 and given you about a million miles per gallon.

I think software development and cars are completely different ball games. By and large (and I am not talking of hole in the wall software companies) the computer industry does strive to give a certain level of service which is really incomparable to the service your car dealer/mechanic gives you. Just compare these scenarios;

1. Car stops working having run out of petrol. You simply go and fill it up and move on. You won't be calling the manufacturer and saying '...but you did'nt tell me that petrol runs out'. Apply that to a hard disk drive running out of space, and a common user is straight on the phone to the manufacturer saying '... but you did'nt tell me I was going to run out of disk space'.

2. Take your car for servicing or repair, you probably have to book weeks in advance and listen to absolute crap from you dealer/mechanic about how busy they are, and why the car cannot be delivered to you within 3 days of handing it in. And you ask about the courtesy car (which happens to be in your service agreement) for the 3 or so days its at the dealer/mechanics. Oh! Sorry we don't have a type A saloon which we are supposed to give you as contracted at the moment. It should be here in the next 6 hours. Please wait and you shall have it. If you don't wish to wait, there's this two door 1992 model car-x which is held together by its paint. So buddy, its Hobson's choice. Can you seriously apply this to the computer industry?

I am not knocking your idea about a software standards committee, (I am sure there are) on lines of J D Powers, however, what applies to the car industry need not apply to the computer industry.