Context Centralised Method for Software Architecture: A Pattern Evolutionary Approach
Ziyad Alshaikh, Clive Boughton · 2008
Abstract. Context plays an important role in various analysis and design meth-ods in software engineering, and is typically exemplified within data flow dia-grams and (sometimes) design patterns. However, we believe that context within software engineering has been largely limited to identifying system boundaries for the scoping of work. In this paper we introduce an approach where the no-tion of context plays a central role during the analysis, architecture and design phases of software development, providing greater meaning and understanding. Accordingly, we provide a definition of context and how it relates to require-ments, architecture and design and then propose a method of requirements elici-tation/analysis based on context and its inherent properties for reducing ambigu-ity, increasing understanding and enabling greater communication. We extend the ideas to include the building of architectures and designs based on context-pattern evolution. 1