COTS and Open Systems
Patricia Oberndorf · 1998
in government systems. Each monograph will focus on a particular topic, for example: the types of systems that will most benefit from a COTS approach; guidelines about the hard tradeoffs made when incorporating COTS products into systems; recommended processes and procedures for integrating multiple commercial products; upgrade strategies for multiple vendors' systems; recommendations about when not to use a commercial approach. Since these issues have an impact on a broad community in DoD and other government agencies, and range from highlevel policy questions to detailed technical questions, we have chosen this modular approach; an individual monograph can be brief and focused, yet still provide sufficient detail to be valuable. About this Monograph This monograph offers a practical rather than theoretical approach to the issues of COTS and open systems. While there are several potential issues with COTS and open systems that need to be considered when making actual