This book describes current best practices in software engineering. It begins with an overview of current issues and in particular the engineering of large, complex software-intensive systems. It presents software engineering as an important part of the solution to the "software crisis," enabling developers to deliver software systems on time, within budget, that meet their requirements and the needs and expectations of the users. The activities of the software life cycle - requirements engineering, design, coding, validation, verification, testing, and maintenance - are discussed in the context of conventional and innovative life cycles. Methods used in software engineering, such as object-oriented development, structured development, and formal methods, are presented. The book then describes the roles of project management, quality assurance, configuration management, standards, metrics, and the software process. Finally, emerging technologies and the education of software engineers are discussed.