Excellent Studies on Software Quality

The studies measure the impact on quality that common software engineering practices have: Exploding Software-Engineering Myths By Janie Chang 11/2009 at Microsoft Research.
Found via InfoQ.

1. it is very nice to have real studies and data. Too often, we heard only claims that Software engineering practice X or Y is THE best practice. At best there are 3 successful projects to back up the claims or some niche cases where THE best practice works.
   
   It demonstrates alas that Software engineering is still very young ! I even think that the subject is so large that it doesn't make sense to consider it as a whole. You would not compare how you build an Airbus to how you build a scooter.
   
   
   
2. The Influence of Organizational Structure On Software Quality is revealing ! 10 pages from early 2008 : a must read !