Assessing Object-Oriented Application Framework Maturity : A Replicated Case Study
Michael Mattsson, Jan Bosch · 1999
Object-oriented application frameworks present one of the most successful approaches to developing reusable assets in industry, but developing frameworks is both difficult and expensive. Framework generally evolve to maturity through a number of iterations due to the incorporation of new requirements and better domain understanding. Since changes to frameworks have a large impact due to the effects on the applications build based on the asset, it is important to assess the maturity of a framework. Bansiya [3, 4] presents an approach to assessing framework maturity based on a set of design metrics and formulates four statements. In this paper, we present the results of a replicated case study of the framework maturity assessment approach. Our study subject consists of four successive versions of a proprietary black-box application framework. Our findings partly support the statements formulated in the original study, but differ in some places. The differences are discussed and explanations and argumentation provided.