Metrics for analyzing variability and its implementation in software product lines: A systematic literature review

El-Sharkawy, Sascha; Yamagishi-Eichler, Nozomi; Schmid, Klaus

doi:10.1016/j.infsof.2018.08.015

Cited by 55 publications

(52 citation statements)

References 10 publications

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“…We also plan to analyse and visualize the evolution of the variability implementation patterns in large projects over time and discern new ones. For this reason, we aim at exploiting other software metrics [18]. We also expect to study other properties than symmetry that come from Alexander's theory of centers, aiming to better identify how they could help in understanding large software projects and their variability, such as using the property of good shape to identify the symmetry at the statement level.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Based on this definition, to identify variability in terms of vps with variants, we have to determine the local symmetries in the structure of reusable code assets. For example, the variability in Listing 1 has two local symmetries that can be abstracted as: vp_Shape (lines 1-5) with variants v_Rectangle (lines 6-25) and v_Circle (lines [26][27][28][29][30][31][32][33][34][35][36], and vp_Draw (lines 16-24) with variants v_drawCoordinates (lines [17][18][19][20] and v_drawPoint (21-24). The first vp resembles the symmetry in inheritance, while the second one the symmetry in overloading.…”

Section: Identifying Variation Points With Variantsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In order to give more insight into the variability of a targeted system, we decided to calculate its identified number of vp-s with variants. Interestingly a recent literature review on metrics in SPL engineering shows that the number of vp-s is a useful metric for analyzing variability and its implementation in code [18]. It is used to measure the total number of #ifdef-blocks when preprocessors are used to implement the variability.…”

Section: The Identified Number Of Vp-s With Variantsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Identifying and Visualizing Variability in Object-Oriented Variability-Rich Systems

Tërnava

Mortara

Collet

2019

Proceedings of the 23rd International Systems and Software Product Line Conference - Volume A

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In many variability-intensive systems, variability is implemented in code units provided by a host language, such as classes or functions, which do not align well with the domain features. Annotating or creating an orthogonal decomposition of code in terms of features implies extra effort, as well as massive and cumbersome refactoring activities. In this paper, we introduce an approach for identifying and visualizing the variability implementation places within the main decomposition structure of object-oriented code assets in a single variability-rich system. First, we propose to use symmetry, as a common property of some main implementation techniques, such as inheritance or overloading, to identify uniformly these places. We study symmetry in different constructs (e.g., classes), techniques (e.g., subtyping, overloading) and design patterns (e.g., strategy, factory), and we also show how we can use such symmetries to find variation points with variants. We then report on the implementation and application of a toolchain, symfinder, which automatically identifies and visualizes places with symmetry. The publicly available application to several large open-source systems shows that symfinder can help in characterizing code bases that are variability-rich or not, as well as in discerning zones of interest w.r.t. variability. CCS CONCEPTS• Software and its engineering → Software product lines; Object oriented development; Reusability. KEYWORDSIdentifying software variability, visualizing software variability, object-oriented variability-rich systems, tool support for understanding software variability, software product line engineering

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Identifying Variation Points With Variantsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: The Identified Number Of Vp-s With Variantsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Identifying and Visualizing Variability in Object-Oriented Variability-Rich Systems

Tërnava

Mortara

Collet

2019

Proceedings of the 23rd International Systems and Software Product Line Conference - Volume A

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“…Recently, [13] has presented a systematic literature review on metrics for specifically analyzing variability and its implementation in software product lines, considering literature published up to 2018. They found 147 metrics, from which 57 are variability model metrics.…”

Section: Measures For Software Product Lines and Variability Managementmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Analyzing how feature models of the systems evolve is important. Therefore, some of the metrics compiled in [13] address measurements on data obtained from the use of each feature in the configurations of each customer in real deployments.…”

Section: Measures For Software Product Lines and Variability Managementmentioning

confidence: 99%

Applying Feature-Oriented SoftwareDevelopment in SaaS Systems: RealExperience, Measurements,and Findings

Pedreira¹,

Silva‐Coira²,

Places³

et al. 2019

JWE

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Distributing software as a service (SaaS) has become a major trend for web-based systems. However, this software distribution model poses many challenges. One of them is feature variability, that is, some features of the system may be required by some users, but not by all of them. In addition, variability is more complex than just including or excluding a feature, since different types of relationships may exist between features. The implementation of this variability, and the parametrization and configuration of the system can be complex in this context, so the development process of a SaaS system must adequately address variability management. In this paper we present an experience applying feature oriented software development (FOSD) in the context of SaaS web-based systems development. We present a real experience in the development of a web-based system for managing home care services for dependent people. The article describes the problem of variability management in this domain, and the feature model of the system. Finally, we present an empirical evaluation of the feature model of the system based on data obtained from its real deployment after two years of use. The empirical evaluation was based on state-of-the-art measures for variability management, and revealed relevant insights for software development in this context. Keywords: feature oriented software development, feature oriented domain analysis, variability management, software as a service, feature model metrics.

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Metrics in automotive software development: A systematic literature review

Vogel

Knapik

Cohrs

et al. 2020

J Software Evolu Process

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Software is an integrated part of new features within the automotive sector, car manufacturers, the Hersteller Initiative Software (HIS) consortium defined metrics to determine software quality. Yet, problems with assigning metrics to quality attributes often occur in practice. The specified boundary values lead to discussions between contractors and clients as different standards and metric sets are used. This paper studies metrics used in the automotive sector and the quality attributes they address. The HIS, ISO/IEC 25010:2011, and ISO/IEC 26262:2018 are utilized to draw a big picture illustrating (i) which metrics and boundary values are reported in literature, (ii) how the metrics match the standards, (iii) which quality attributes are addressed, and (iv) how the metrics are supported by tools. Our findings from analyzing 38 papers include a catalog of 112 metrics of which 17 define boundary values and 48 are supported by tools. Most of the metrics are concerned with source code, are generic, and not specifically designed for automotive software development. We conclude that many metrics exist, but a clear definition of the metrics' context, notably regarding the construction of flexible and efficient measurement suites, is missing.

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Metrics for analyzing variability and its implementation in software product lines: A systematic literature review

Cited by 55 publications

References 10 publications

Identifying and Visualizing Variability in Object-Oriented Variability-Rich Systems

Identifying and Visualizing Variability in Object-Oriented Variability-Rich Systems

Applying Feature-Oriented SoftwareDevelopment in SaaS Systems: RealExperience, Measurements,and Findings

Metrics in automotive software development: A systematic literature review

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