Integrated Computer Aided Software Engineering Research Articles

Knowledge Management of Software Productivity and Development Time

In this paper, we identify a set of factors that may be used to forecast software productivity and software development time. Software productivity was measured in function points per person hours, and software development time was measured in number of elapsed days. Using field data on over 130 field software projects from various industries, we empirically test the impact of team size, integrated computer aided software engineering (ICASE) tools, software development type, software development platform, and programming language type on the software development productivity and development time. Our results indicate that team size, software development type, software development platform, and programming language type significantly impact software development productivity. However, only team size significantly impacts software development time. Our results indicate that effective management of software development teams, and using different management strategies for different software development type environments may improve software development productivity.

CMIN - a CRISP-DM-based case tool for supporting data mining projects

This paper introduces CMIN, an integrated computer aided software engineering (CASE) tool based on cross-industry standard process for data mining (CRISP-DM) 1.0 designed to support carrying out data mining projects. It is “integrated” in the sense that it supports all phases of a process. A general overview of how CMIN works is presented first, including a treatment of processes, templates and project management. CMIN´s capacity for easily and intuitively monitoring projects is highlighted, as is the manner in which CMIN allows a user to increase knowledge regarding using CRISP-DM or any other process defined in the CASE tool through the help and information presented in each step. Next, it is shown how CMIN can bind new data mining algorithms in runtime (without the need to recompile the tool) to support modelling tasks (based on a Workflow) and evaluate data mining projects. Finally, the results of two evaluations of the tool, some conclusions and suggestions for future work are presented.

A learning database system to observe malfunctions and to support network planning

This paper presents a learning database system that can accommodate malfunction observations. Consequently, such observations may be expressed in structured patterns to support network planing which is one of the important network management functions. The underlying system monitors the network protocol tables in order to discover interesting patterns. To achieve this purpose two learning techniques are used. The first technique is empirical and it focuses on data samples by selecting specific fields and subsets of records using structured query language (SQL). Then data abstraction is carried out and interesting characteristics are extracted. The second technique exploits an explanation_based learning (EBL) procedure to obtain operational rules. In this case the domain (network) knowledge is formally expressed and only one training example is analyzed in terms of this knowledge. Thus, the system is capable of discovering various operational patterns, provide sensible advices, and support the network planning activity. Since the monitoring database utilizes a relational model, an integrated computer-aided software engineering (I-CASE) is used throughout the requirement identification, analysis and design phases. Accordingly, the quality of the database system as an engineering product has been achieved. Moreover, the open database connectivity (ODBC) approach is employed in order to provide an efficient interface that allows a client application to access a variety of distributed data sources in addition to its local database.

An Examination of Some Software Development Effort and Productivity Determinants in ICASE Tool Projects

Integrated computer-aided software engineering (ICASE) tools and their effect on software development effort and productivity have gained interest in recent research. This research studies the applicability of function points and technical complexity factor as software development effort estimators for ICASE projects. In addition, the effect of three factors--ICASE tool type, systems development method, and ICASE tool experience--on software development productivity is studied. ICASE-based software projects from Texas Instruments and Electronic Data Systems were used in this empirical research. Function points accounted for 74 to 82 percent of the variance in software development effort. Technical complexity factor, however, had only a small indirect effect on software effort. While software productivity differences between the ICASE tool types could not be confirmed, productivity was significantly higher for the rapid application development method in comparison with the productivity associated with the traditional systems development life cycle method. Higher levels of ICASE tool experience were associated with significant increases in software productivity.

A framework for characterization of the degree of integration of software tools

Software tool integration and integrated environments for software project development, i.e., integrated computer aided software engineering (CASE), have become important mechanisms for producing software in an effective and efficient manner. This article is not a presentation of another such environment or a description of another technique for integration. Rather, it presents a categorization of degrees of tool integration and integrability. It is useful to identify the level of integration or integrability before any problems caused by an inappropriate level of integration can be overcome. This categorization is qualified by three parameters: granularity, coherence, and harmony. These parameters can be applied to each component of a typical programming environment, i.e., to a project information base, software development tools, and user interface. Combinations of values of these parameters form a continuum of levels of levels of integration from loose to tight.

Integrated support for software reuse in Computer-Aided Software Engineering (CASE)

The success and acceptance of reuse tools and libraries depends on their integration into existing software development environments. However, the addition of large libraries of reusable components to software design databases only exacerbates the problem of design data management. Object-oriented databases originated to meet the requirements of design data management that relational databases could not satisfy. This paper describes a semantic data model for an object-oriented database supporting an integrated Computer Aided Software Engineering environment (CASE). The data model promotes reuse by providing objects that match program design requirements to existing components in the reuse library.

Modelling of I-CASE Platform

The two most widely discussed concepts in solving problems of implementation of disassociated computer-aided software engineering (CASE) toolsets are I-CASE (integrated CASE) and C-CASE (component CASE). Although C-CASE is a technologically more advanced concept, its practical realisation is far away yet. Meanwhile, the I-CASE concept offers immediate results to the organizations investing in implementation of CASE toolsets. The article examines an experimental implementation of the I-CASE concept for forward and reverse engineering in the form of the I-CASE Platform, with emphasis on interfaces between toolsets through the central repository. The I-CASE information model is used to analyse the role of the central repository, the global and toolsets' views, dependencies, and connections on the levels of subject areas and meta-data objects.

Reuse and Productivity in Integrated Computer-Aided Software Engineering: An Empirical Study

Growing competition in the investment banking industry has given rise to increasing demand for high functionality software applications that can be developed in a short period of time. Yet delivering such applications creates a bottleneck in software development activities. This dilemma can be addressed when firms shift to development methods that emphasize software reusability. This article examines the productivity implications of object and repository-based integrated computer-aided software engineering (ICASE) software development in the context of a major investment bank's information systems strategy. The strategy emphasizes software reusability. Our empirical results, based on data from 20 projects that delivered software for the bank's New Trades Processing Architecture (NTPA), indicate an order of magnitude gain in software development productivity and the importance of reuse as a driver in realizing this result. In addition, results are presented on the extent of the learning that occurred over a two-year period after ICASE was introduced, and on the influence of the link between application characteristics and the ICASE tool set in achieving development performance. This work demonstrates the viability of the firm's IS strategy and offers new ideas for code reuse and software development productivity measurement that can be applied in development environments that emphasize reuse.

Implementing a Corporatewide Information Strategy Through CASE

A new technology has emerged in recent years to assist in modeling all facets of a business enterprise and in the design and development of information systems. This technology, computer-aided software engineering (CASE), has caused much confusion in the IS community about its exact purpose. This article provides a detailed definition of CASE, distinguishes between CASE and integrated CASE (ICASE), and provides several strategies for ICASE implementation.