Topic: Average price for one line of code? (Page 1 of 1)

I have a recollection that sometimes you can put a pricetag per line of different types of code.
I know I've seen an example of it somewhere but I can't find it.
Anybody have a clue?

Just for fun I thought I'd do an alternative pricemodel on our latest project.
A fairly large e-commerce site with very heavy user interaction and just as configurable like any software that you can find in any colorful box in the store.

For fun I totalled the lines of code, html, css, javascript and php for the whole site (excluding the database design) and found that we (2 ppl) have averaged appr 27 lines of working code per hour including javadoc-style documentation and bugfixes. We ended up at 24.834 lines of code and comments, most of it objectoriented php or pure presentation code.

Now I know that many lines does not naturally equals a good thing, but there is a reason for it.
Unfortunatley the site isn't released yet so I can't show you, but I'll be back on that.

So, does anyone have an idea on how you price per line of code?
/Dan

{cell 260}
-{ a vibration is a movement that doesn't know which way to go }-

[This message has been edited by DmS (edited 09-05-2003).]

I'm now reading a book on Software Engineering. They say that LOC (Lines Of Code) is a very bad measurement for determining cost. Consider the following....

The following table provides rough estimates of the average number of lines of code required to build one function point in various programming languages:


Programming Language: LOC per Functional Point (average)
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Assembly Language: 320 LOC
C: 128 LOC
COBOL: 106 LOC
FORTRAN: 106 LOC
Pascal: 90 LOC
C++: 64 LOC
Ada95: 53 LOC
Visual Basic: 32 LOC
Smalltalk: 22 LOC
Powerbuilder: 16 LOC
SQL 12 LOC
------------------------------------------------------------------


What is a Function Point? You ask?
I'm not sure, but from what I can tell it is a count of all the things the software is capible of doing. This is a better measure of how to charge because if you write something is a wordy language (I.E. Cobol) as opposed to a language in which the programs can be written quickly (I.E. Perl) you more lines of code for the same level of functionality. So if you write it in Cobol you will be inheritly ripped off by the company. If you charge the comany by the hour, they will not know what is taking so long and will inheritly feel ripped off. Where as if you charge them based on functional points, they will know what they are being charged for, and you can tell them what is taking so long, but they will not be charged more for it.

There is a figure in the book that tells you how to calculate the functional points of a program but I as of yet don't understand it. I can give you the title of the book, it's very good (and complex I'm afraid).

Software Engineering A Practitioner's Approach by Roger S. Pressman

It is calculated based on the number of user inputs, user outputs, user inquiries, files, external interfaces, that the program has.

Well I hope this helped, I'm only just learning this stuff myself.





- Biggie

- Face the Present
- AIM: MASKKKK

01001101011000010111001101101011011010110110101101101011

quote:

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just for fun I thought I'd do an alternative pricemodel on our latest project

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and

quote:

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Now I know that many lines does not naturally equals a good thing, but there is a reason for it.

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Seem to preclude the need for this info:

quote:

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They say that LOC (Lines Of Code) is a very bad measurement for determining cost. Consider the following....

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DL, always fun to see your thoughts on the screen before you think them

Maskkkk (darn that's a lot of "k")

The project is paid for and everything, I just wanted to see the outcome if there was a model for price per line of code.

On the other hand, in that sort of pricing it seems natural that code that requires few lines to create a lot will be more complicated to learn and use, thus priced higher.
A fact like that would even things out quite well.

I'm not in any way suggesting that HTML should be priced the same per LOC as C++.

And yes, we do price projects by taking the required functionality, break it down into pieces and calculate how much time it will take roughly to create that functionality in the chosen language, then add time to "glue" it all together, tests, administration and much much more before we give a quote to the client.
This method does demand that the client can specify what they want, so we usually take a day to interview the client, then a day or two to put together a specification. As the client and we are in agreement on the functionality, then we work out a quote.

That way we often can set clear limits on what's agreed for the fixed price and what will be billed by the hour.
/Dan


{cell 260}
-{ a vibration is a movement that doesn't know which way to go }-

[This message has been edited by DmS (edited 09-08-2003).]