Architectural Description

Abstract

The main issues identified in the area and which were selected for discussion are listed below:

• Basic models for product line descriptions (PLDs)

  • what are the first class description components?

  • how is ‘form’ described?

  • how is the rationale for the architectural elements/decisions described?

  • is the architectural instance description (AID) language different from PLD language?

• Generic Descriptions

  • when and how do you move from the business domain to the solution domain?

  • what are the language structures to describe

    • shared architectural elements

    • product specific architectural elements

  • how are the architectural instance descriptions (AIDs) instantiated or derived from the PLDs

• Use of PLDs

  • what forms of analysis are supported

    • behavioural

    • non-functional

  • how well does the PLD support project planing for architecture based software development

    • at the PLD level

    • at the AID level

• Evolution of PLDs/AIDs

  • how is the relationship between the PLD and AIDs managed?

  • how do you maintain consistency between

    • the evolved PLD and the derived AIDs

    • the PLD and the evolved AIDs

    • evolved PLD and evolved AIDs

  • how are the dependencies between architectural drivers and PLD managed (ie, how is the rationale evolved and maintained)