Statistical analysis of the geometric de-eutrophication software-reliability model

A detailed statistical analysis of the Moranda geometric de-eutrophication software-reliability model, which appears to be a particular case of a class of general models with proportional failure rates, is given. Statistical inference on the unknown parameters is discussed. The distribution of the maximum-likelihood estimator of the main parameter provides exact confidence intervals and a novel reliability-growth test. Explicit estimators based on a least-squares method are proposed. The model is satisfactorily applied to real software error data. The geometric de-eutrophication model presents interesting theoretical and practical aspects. It is conceptually well founded and the parameters, which have useful practical interpretation, can be estimated by methods which provide prediction with good statistical properties