Predictability is the degree to which a correct prediction or forecast of a system’s state can be made, either qualitatively or quantitatively.
In the study of human–computer interaction, predictability is the property to forecast the consequences of a user action given the current state of the system.
In software development, stakeholders might need to predict:
- cost and effort required to change or enhance parts of the system
- the accuracy by which results can calculated
- the resources the system needs to operate
- the behaviour of the system when installed or used within different environments (like operating-systems etc.)