Abstract
The development of open source brings new thinking and production modes to software engineering and computer science, and establishes a software development method and ecological environment in which groups participate. Regardless of investors, developers, participants, and managers, they are most concerned about whether the Open Source Ecosystem can be sustainable to ensure that the ecosystem they choose will serve users for a long time. Moreover, the most important quality of the software ecosystem is sustainability, and it is also a research area in Symmetry. Therefore, it is significant to assess the sustainability of the Open Source Ecosystem. However, the current measurement of the sustainability of the Open Source Ecosystem lacks universal measurement indicators, as well as a method and a model. Therefore, this paper constructs an Evaluation Indicators System, which consists of three levels: The target level, the guideline level and the evaluation level, and takes openness, stability, activity, and extensibility as measurement indicators. On this basis, a weight calculation method, based on information contribution values and a Sustainability Assessment Model, is proposed. The models and methods are used to analyze the factors affecting the sustainability of Stack Overflow (SO) ecosystem. Through the analysis, we find that every indicator in the SO ecosystem is partaking in different development trends. The development trend of a single indicator does not represent the sustainable development trend of the whole ecosystem. It is necessary to consider all of the indicators to judge that ecosystem’s sustainability. The research on the sustainability of the Open Source Ecosystem is helpful for judging software health, measuring development efficiency and adjusting organizational structure. It also provides a reference for researchers who study the sustainability of software engineering.
Highlights
The Open Source Ecosystem (OSE) is an interconnected, interrelated whole formed by open source participants in accordance with a certain organizational approach, through an Internet-based public technology platform for development activities and the production of open source software [1].After proposing the concept of OSE, it attracted a large number of researchers to study the various fields of OSE, including the composition, structure, characteristics and health
Sustainability has become a topic of considerable concern to ecologists
A large number of discussions on “sustainability” or “sustainable development” appear in the literature on number of discussions on “sustainability” or “sustainable development” appear in the literature on ecology, economy and society. These discussions mainly focus on their theoretical level, and generally ecology, economy and society
Summary
The Open Source Ecosystem (OSE) is an interconnected, interrelated whole formed by open source participants in accordance with a certain organizational approach, through an Internet-based public technology platform for development activities and the production of open source software [1]. It is necessary to construct a universal Evaluation Indicator System and measurement method, which can provide reference for researchers aiming to study the goals related to ecosystem sustainability, such as improving ecosystem activities, assessing the health status of ecosystems, and identify weaknesses in the ecosystem allows the ecosystem manager to take management measures as soon as possible. According to the indicators, the measurement model and method of open source ecosystem sustainability are established. The indicator weight of open source ecosystem sustainability is measured by analyzing the information contribution value contained in the indicators, and the Sustainability Assessment Model is proposed to comprehensively evaluate the sustainability of the OSE, providing companies, participants and managers with a basis for collaborative development decision-making.
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