On the Transition from Computation Independent to Platform Independent Models
Milan Karow, Andreas Gehlert, Jörg Becker, Werner Esswein · Journal of the Association for Information Systems · 2006
The Model Driven Architecture (MDA) describes software development based on models on different levels of abstraction.The development process is outlined as a sequence of model transformations which add specific details to the software models with each subsequent step.The OMG MDA guide refers to the computation independent model (CIM) as the highest level of abstraction.It can therefore be considered as the designated means for analysis in MDA software development projects.However, this model type is disregarded by most MDA methodologies and tools, which start their transformation process on the level of platform independent software models (PIM).This paper investigates the role and nature of the CIM, especially focussing on development processes for management information systems.We argue that an automatic translation from CIM to PIM is theoretically not feasible.To provide evidence for our claim, we evaluate existing transformational approaches that address the transition from models as real world perceptions to software designs.Lastly, we support our arguments by extending the traditional software development view by decision theory aspects during the design phase.