Software reuse: is it delivering?

A panel discussion is presented to examine the evidence, pro and con, that software reuse is delivering. Verifiable and repeatable increases in software quality and productivity in field settings are used as criteria for the success of reuse. Reusability is defined as a technology that can be of significant value to software development and maintenance. A scale to evaluate whether reuse is delivering is outlined. The scale is ordinal, with five being the best possible rating. The three respondents, from Germany, Japan, and the US, discuss how reuse, as defined, is delivering in their parts of the world