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Understand the metrics, models, and methods behind modern engineering. Clear definitions, practical examples, and a closer look at what the numbers actually mean.
Terms beginning with P
140 termsPolicy simulation
Policy simulation is a model-routing or gateway concept used to manage policy enforcement for AI requests. It describes a distinct decision, control, interface, or observation point between an application and one or more model providers.
Model routing and gatewaysPolicy validation as code
Policy validation as code is a release engineering and DevOps concept for controlling how software changes are prepared, introduced, or understood.
DORA and DevOpsPolicy-based routing
Policy-based routing is a model-routing or gateway concept used to manage policy enforcement for AI requests. It describes a distinct decision, control, interface, or observation point between an application and one or more model providers.
Model routing and gatewaysPortability debt
Portability debt is a software maintenance concern describing a condition that can make future changes, verification, operation, or ownership harder. Its practical importance depends on supported behavior, rate of change, and the consequences of delay.
Code quality and technical debtPortability testing
Portability testing is a software testing or test-design practice used to gather evidence about a defined risk, behavior, boundary, or operating condition. It makes the question under test explicit, identifies the inputs and observations that matter, and gives a team a repeatable basis for deciding whether the result is acceptable.
Code quality and technical debtPortfolio capacity
Portfolio capacity is a concept used in software delivery planning to describe a condition, relationship, estimate, or decision about engineering work.
Flow and capacity planningPosition bias
Position bias is a defined lens for examining AI system behavior with a stated task, evidence, and interpretation rule.
Evaluations and benchmarksPosition embedding
Position embedding is a language-model concept about context selection and limits. It names a mechanism, representation, prompting pattern, decoding control, or context behavior that can change how an AI system processes input and produces output.
LLM fundamentalsPosition interpolation
Position interpolation is a language-model concept about evaluation design and failure analysis. It names a mechanism, representation, training practice, or operational behavior that can change how an AI system processes input and produces output.
LLM fundamentalsPost-deployment monitoring
Post-deployment monitoring is a software delivery concept used to describe a specific event, interval, control, or operating condition in the path from source change to production behavior. A useful definition names the boundary, unit, and decision the measure supports.
DORA and DevOpsPostmortem
A postmortem is a written review of an incident that records what happened, how systems and people responded, what the impact was, and which improvements should follow. A blameless postmortem focuses on system conditions rather than individual fault.
Reliability and observabilityPotential outcomes
Potential outcomes is a statistical or measurement concept used to describe, compare, or interpret engineering data. Its meaning depends on the unit of analysis, data-generating process, and question being asked.
Measurement and experimentationPower analysis
Power analysis is a statistical or measurement concept used to describe, compare, or interpret engineering data. Its meaning depends on the unit of analysis, data-generating process, and question being asked.
Measurement and experimentationPractical significance
Practical significance is a statistical or measurement concept used to describe, compare, or interpret engineering data. Its meaning depends on the unit of analysis, data-generating process, and question being asked.
Measurement and experimentationPre-review checklist
Pre-review checklist is a practical concept in a pull-request workflow that shapes how people examine, discuss, own, or integrate a proposed change.
Code reviewPrecision
Precision is a defined lens for examining AI system behavior with a stated task, evidence, and interpretation rule.
Evaluations and benchmarksPreference model
Preference model is a language-model concept about evaluation design and failure analysis. It names a mechanism, representation, training practice, or operational behavior that can change how an AI system processes input and produces output.
LLM fundamentalsPreference rate
Preference rate is a defined lens for examining AI system behavior with a stated task, evidence, and interpretation rule.
Evaluations and benchmarksPrefill decode disaggregation
Prefill decode disaggregation is the serving concept concerned with prefill decode disaggregation during AI inference.
Inference performancePrefill phase
Prefill phase is the serving concept concerned with prefill phase during AI inference.
Inference performancePrefix cache
Prefix cache is the serving concept concerned with prefix cache during AI inference.
Inference performancePrefix-constrained decoding
Prefix-constrained decoding is a language-model concept about context selection and limits. It names a mechanism, representation, prompting pattern, decoding control, or context behavior that can change how an AI system processes input and produces output.
LLM fundamentalsPreregistration
Preregistration is a statistical or measurement concept used to describe, compare, or interpret engineering data. Its meaning depends on the unit of analysis, data-generating process, and question being asked.
Measurement and experimentationPreview environment
Preview environment is a release engineering and DevOps concept for controlling how software changes are prepared, introduced, or understood.
DORA and DevOpsPrimitive obsession
A code smell in which domain concepts are represented by generic primitives instead of meaningful types.
Code quality and technical debtPrioritization
Prioritization is a way to organize, support, or evaluate software work so that teams can make useful progress with less avoidable friction. It is most valuable when connected to a concrete outcome and the local conditions of the team using it.
Developer productivityPrioritization framework
Prioritization framework is a concept used in software delivery planning to describe a condition, relationship, estimate, or decision about engineering work.
Flow and capacity planningPriority class
Priority class is a concept used in software delivery planning to describe a condition, relationship, estimate, or decision about engineering work.
Flow and capacity planningPriority queue
Priority queue is a model-routing or gateway concept used to manage policy enforcement for AI requests. It describes a distinct decision, control, interface, or observation point between an application and one or more model providers.
Model routing and gatewaysPriority routing
Priority routing is a model-routing or gateway concept used to manage policy enforcement for AI requests. It describes a distinct decision, control, interface, or observation point between an application and one or more model providers.
Model routing and gatewaysPrivacy evaluation
Privacy evaluation is a defined lens for examining AI system behavior with a stated task, evidence, and interpretation rule.
Evaluations and benchmarksProbabilistic delivery date
Probabilistic delivery date is a concept used in software delivery planning to describe a condition, relationship, estimate, or decision about engineering work.
Flow and capacity planningProcess debt
Process debt is a software maintenance concern describing a condition that can make future changes, verification, operation, or ownership harder. Its practical importance depends on supported behavior, rate of change, and the consequences of delay.
Code quality and technical debtProcessing time
Processing time is the serving concept concerned with processing time during AI inference.
Inference performanceProduct backlog
Product backlog is a concept used in software delivery planning to describe a condition, relationship, estimate, or decision about engineering work.
Flow and capacity planningProduct discovery
Product discovery is a way to organize, support, or evaluate software work so that teams can make useful progress with less avoidable friction. It is most valuable when connected to a concrete outcome and the local conditions of the team using it.
Developer productivityProduct-engineering collaboration
Product-engineering collaboration is a way to organize, support, or evaluate software work so that teams can make useful progress with less avoidable friction. It is most valuable when connected to a concrete outcome and the local conditions of the team using it.
Developer productivityProduction change volume
Production change volume is a software delivery concept used to describe a specific event, interval, control, or operating condition in the path from source change to production behavior. A useful definition names the boundary, unit, and decision the measure supports.
DORA and DevOpsProduction evaluation
Production evaluation is a defined lens for examining AI system behavior with a stated task, evidence, and interpretation rule.
Evaluations and benchmarksProduction readiness
Production readiness is a software delivery concept used to describe a specific event, interval, control, or operating condition in the path from source change to production behavior. A useful definition names the boundary, unit, and decision the measure supports.
DORA and DevOpsProduction release event
Production release event is a release engineering and DevOps concept for controlling how software changes are prepared, introduced, or understood.
DORA and DevOpsProductivity baseline
Productivity baseline is a developer productivity concept that helps teams understand productivity baseline in the context of software delivery.
Developer productivityProductivity dimensions
Productivity dimensions is a developer productivity concept that helps teams understand productivity dimensions in the context of software delivery.
Developer productivityProductivity measurement framework
Productivity measurement framework is a developer productivity concept that helps teams understand productivity measurement framework in the context of software delivery.
Developer productivityProductivity trend
Productivity trend is a developer productivity concept that helps teams understand productivity trend in the context of software delivery.
Developer productivityProductivity variance
Productivity variance is a developer productivity concept that helps teams understand productivity variance in the context of software delivery.
Developer productivityProgressive delivery
Progressive delivery is a software delivery concept used to describe a specific event, interval, control, or operating condition in the path from source change to production behavior. A useful definition names the boundary, unit, and decision the measure supports.
DORA and DevOpsPrompt cache savings
Prompt cache savings is cost avoided when repeated context is served from an eligible cache. It gives teams a way to name, measure, or reason about an economic property of an AI workload without treating raw usage as proof of value.
Token costs and AI ROIPrompt caching
Prompt caching reuses processing associated with previously supplied prompt content, often a matching prefix, to reduce repeated input work. It differs from response caching, which returns a stored answer instead of generating a new one.
Inference performancePrompt compilation
Prompt compilation is a language-model concept about generation behavior and sampling. It names a mechanism, representation, prompting pattern, decoding control, or context behavior that can change how an AI system processes input and produces output.
LLM fundamentals