Robert Glass authors a regular column in IEEE Software Magazine. He often questions the merits of open source software and other software development approaches. In the 1970s he began looking objectively at each new software fad and fancy, from the structured approaches to object orientation to agile methods, to see if there was research support for the impressive claims of these methods. He describes himself as a "contrarian by nature" and is the proud owner of a certificate that states he is the "premier curmudgeon of software practice." Standing up in front of advancing software steamrollers is his specialty, and is an activity he has pursued throughout his long and accomplished professional life.
