Exercise 3: A Fifth Phase — Code Review Complete — Possible Solution ==================================================================== SETUP ------------------------------ 'Code review complete': (0.97, 1.03) RESULTS (all five phases) ------------------------------ Initial concept: 252 - 4000 (3748 hours wide) Requirements defined: 501 - 1999 (1499 hours wide) Design complete: 671 - 1498 (827 hours wide) Implementation underway: 900 - 1100 (200 hours wide) Code review complete: 970 - 1030 (60 hours wide) Narrowing factor, Initial concept -> Code review complete: 62.7x WHY THIS WORKS AS AN ANSWER ------------------------------ Extending the chapter's own progression by one more phase continues the exact same pattern: the range keeps narrowing, from a 3,748-hour spread down to just 60 hours - a 62.7x tighter range than the earliest phase, well beyond the chapter's own reported 18.7x at "Implementation underway." This makes the shape of the cone concrete at its narrow end: by the time code review is complete, the true effort is essentially known (a 60-hour range against a 1,000-hour true value is a 6% margin), which makes intuitive sense - almost nothing about the work remains undone or undiscovered at that point. The whole point of the cone's own shape is that this narrowing isn't optional or skill-dependent; it's a direct, structural consequence of how much of the actual work has already been completed by the time the estimate is made.