Developing domain knowledge through the reuse of project experiences

ABSTRACT

Software development is no longer a homogenous field. Software is being developed for an increasingly diverse set of applications and user populations, each with different characteristics and development constraints. As a consequence, researchers and practitioners have begun to realize the importance of identifying and understanding the characteristics and special development needs of application domains. This paper presents a method for developing and refining knowledge about application domains by creating a repository of project experiences. Subsequent projects can then benefit from these experiences by locating similar projects and reusing the knowledge accumulated in the repository. We develop a framework for a system to capture relationships between development projects and resources for developing software, including process models, methods, technologies, and tools. We then show how this information can be reused to improve the productivity and quality of software development efforts.

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INDEX TERMS

Primary Classification:
  D. Software
  D.2 SOFTWARE ENGINEERING
      D.2.m Miscellaneous
          Subjects: Reusable software**

General Terms:
Theory