ACM Sigapp Applied Computing Review 

About: ACM Sigapp Applied Computing Review is an academic journal published by Association for Computing Machinery. The journal publishes majorly in the area(s): Computer science & The Internet. It has an ISSN identifier of 1559-6915. Over the lifetime, 307 publications have been published receiving 2628 citations. The journal is also known as: Association for Computing Machinery Special Interest Group on Applied Computing applied computing review & Applied computing review.

Towards integrated safety analysis and design

Abstract: There are currently many problems with the development and assessment of software intensive safety-critical systems. In this paper we describe the problems, and introduce a novel approach to their solution, based around goal-structuring concepts, which we believe will ameliorate some of the difficulties. We discuss the use of modified and new forms of safety assessment notations to provide evidence of safety, and the use of data derived from such notations as a means of providing quantified input into the design assessment process. We then show how the design assessment can be partially automated, and from this develop some ideas on how we might move from analytical to synthetic approaches, using safety criteria and evidence as a fitness function for comparing alternative automatically-generated designs.

Contextual understanding of microservice architecture: current and future directions

Abstract: Current industry trends in enterprise architectures indicate movement from Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA) to Microservices By understanding the key differences between these two approaches and their features, we can design a more effective Microservice architecture by avoiding SOA pitfalls To do this, we must know why this shift is happening and how key SOA functionality is addressed by key features of the Microservice-based system Unfortunately, Microservices do not address all SOA shortcomings In addition, Microservices introduce new challenges This work provides a detailed analysis of the differences between these two architectures and their features Next, we describe both research and industry perspectives on the strengths and weaknesses of both architectural directions Finally, we perform a systematic mapping study related to Microservice research, identifying interest and challenges in multiple categories from a range of recent research

Software cost estimation with fuzzy models

Abstract: Estimation of effort/cost required for development of software products is inherently associated with uncertainty In this paper, we are concerned with a fuzzy set-based generalization of the COCOMO model (f-COCOMO) The inputs of the standard COCOMO model include an estimation of project size and an evaluation of other parameters Rather than using a single number, the software size can be regarded as a fuzzy set (fuzzy number) yielding the cost estimate also in form of a fuzzy set The paper includes detailed results with this regard by relating fuzzy sets of project size with the fuzzy set of effort The analysis is carried out for several commonly encountered classes of membership functions (such as triangular and parabolic fuzzy sets) The issue of designer-friendliness of the f-COCOMO model is discussed in detail Here we emphasize a way of propagation of uncertainty and ensuing visualization of the resulting effort (cost) Furthermore we augment the model by admitting software systems to belong partially to the three main categories (namely embedded, semidetached and organic) and discuss key implications of this generalization and highlight its links with a generalized sensitivity analysis The experimental part of the study illustrates the approach and contrasts it with the standard numeric version of the COCOMO model

Domain analysis and framework-based software development

Abstract: Domain Analysis is the process that identifies the relevant objects of an application domain. The goal of Domain Analysis is Software Reuse. The higher is the level of the life-cycle object to reuse, the larger are the benefits coming from its reuse, the harder is the definition of a workable process. Frameworks are excellent candidates for Domain Analysis: they are at a higher level than code but average programmers can understand them.This paper presents the main features of Sherlock, a domain analysis process for the extraction of reusable frameworks, and discusses the impact that Sherlock has on the software process, in particular concerning reuse practices. Sherlock is based on both FODA and Proteus domain analysis techniques. The input of Sherlock is an informal description of the domain based on other domain applications, literature, user requirements, and interviews with domain experts. The output of Sherlock is a set of architectural models (the domain frameworks and patterns), taxonomies of permanencies and variabilities, objects models focusing on the common domain objects. The introduction of Sherlock in the software process requires the definition of new roles and has a valuable impact on reuse practices. We present in this paper a case study: the application of Sherlock at Thera S.p.A., a software company located in Brescia, Italy.

Dynamic analysis for reverse engineering and program understanding

Abstract: The main focus of program understanding and reverse engineering research has been on modeling the structure of a program by examining its code. This has been the result of the nature of the systems investigated and the perceived goals of the reverse engineering activities. The types of systems under investigation have changed, however, and the maintenance objectives have evolved. Many legacy systems today are object-oriented and component-based. One of the most prominent maintenance objectives is system migration to distributed environments, most notably the World Wide Web, for interoperation with other systems. This new maintenance objective has a great impact on the types of models expected as products of reverse engineering. As the traditional static software analysis techniques keep their valuable role in program comprehension, additional techniques, especially those focusing on run-time analysis of the subject systems, become equally important. In this paper, we focus on the analysis of the system's dynamic behavior, as it pertains to understanding the system's processes and uses. We give an overview of currently used dynamic reverse engineering techniques and identify some challenges yet to be tackled.