Design Guidance through the Controlled Application of Constraints

We seek to facilitate development of high quality software designs and architectures by using rigorous process definitions to guide application of the complex structure of relations and constraints that define well-formedness. We identify various types of constraints and demonstrate specific instances of these types. We endorse the value of maintaining the integrity of these constraints by reacting to their violation with diagnostics and remedies. The sheer number and diversity of these constraints, however, indicates the desirability of a mechanism for controlling the scope and effect of their enforcement. Thus, we propose to use proactive process specifications to control the enforcement of, and reaction to, the various constraints. This will result in a process driven system that supports designers and architects by guiding them through orderly development and rework processes, disciplined by the application of constraint enforcement at the right times and in the right ways. Th...

• Type: Conference
• Year: 2000
• Where: IWSSD
• Authors: Aaron G. Cass, Leon J. Osterweil
• Keywords: IWSSD 2000, Process Definition, Rigorous Process Definitions, Software Engineering, Various Constraints