Handbook CMU/SEI-97-HB-001 January 1997 C4 Software Technology Reference Guide —A Prototype Michael Bray, Lockheed Martin Maj David Luginbuhl, USAF, Air Force Office of Scientific Research Kimberly Brune, SEI William Mills, Lockheed Martin David A. Fisher, SEI Robert Rosenstein, SEI John Foreman, SEI Darleen Sadoski, GTE Capt Mark Gerken, USAF, Rome Laboratory James Shimp, E-System Jon Gross, SEI Edmond Van Doren, Kaman Sciences Capt Gary Haines, USAF, AFMC SSSG Cory Vondrak, TRW Elizabeth Kean, Rome Laboratory Unlimited distribution subject to the copyright. Software Engineering Institute Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213 This report was prepared for the SEI Joint Program Office HQ ESC/AXS 5 Eglin Street Hanscom AFB, MA 01731-2116 The ideas and findings in this report should not be construed as an official DoD position. It is published in the interest of scientific and technical information exchange. FOR THE COMMANDER (signature on file) Thomas R. 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Table of Contents Foreword to the First Edition iii 1 Introduction 1 1.1 Background 1 1.1.1 Scope 1 1.1.2 Vision 1 1.1.3 Goal 2 1.1.4 Limitations/Caveats 2 1.1.5 Target Audiences 4 1.2 Using the Document 5 2 Taxonomies 7 2.1 Overview and Purpose 7 2.1.1 General Taxonomy Structure 7 2.1.2 Using the Taxonomies 8 2.2 Application Taxonomy 9 2.2.1 Introduction 9 2.2.2 Graphical Representation 10 2.2.3 Textual Representation 16 2.2.4 Taxonomy-Based Directory to Technology Descriptions 19 2.3 Quality Measures Taxonomy 29 2.3.1 Introduction 29 2.3.2 Graphical Representation 30 2.3.3 Textual Representation 34 2.3.4 Taxonomy-Based Directory to Technology Descriptions 36 3 Technology Descriptions 43 3.1 Defining Software Technology 43 3.2 Technology Categories 44 3.3 Template for Technology Descriptions 45 3.4 The Technology Adoption Challenge 51 3.5 Alphabetical List of Technology Descriptions 59 References 391 Glossary 393 Appendix A Submitting Information for Subsequent Editions 407 Appendix B User Feedback 409 Appendix C Scenarios of Use 411 Keyword Index 417 CMU/SEI-97-HB-001 i ii CMU/SEI-97-HB-001 Foreword to the First Edition This inaugural edition of the C4 Software Technology Reference Guide1 marks the completion of an 11-month project undertaken by the Software Engineering Institute (SEI) and industry participants for the United States Air Force acquisition community. It includes the latest avail- able information on approximately 60 software technologies. Even though this initial version tends to have a narrow customer focus, our hope is that this guide, with future editions, will become a common knowledge base and a valuable reference for the software engineering community. To our knowledge, no other document exists that provides this type of software technology information in one place. Because software is a constantly-changing field, we are seeking sponsors, partners, and com- munity participation to expand this document and publish descriptions of software technology on at least an annual basis. The long-term goal is a continuously growing and evolving Web- based reference guide of software technologies. This goal can only be reached with active participation and direct support from the broad software community. Please refer to Appendi- ces A and B for details on how to contribute. The document was developed as a cooperative effort among the SEI, six defense contractors, and three Air Force organizations. Project members were physically co-located during various intervals of the project, and also worked from geographically dispersed locations. Defense contractors and Air Force personnel authored technology descriptions and main- tained/evolved the taxonomies and taxonomy-based directories. The SEI members estab- lished overall project direction, wrote various technology descriptions and sections, and integrated and edited the document extensively. We functioned as a cooperative team of in- dividual contributors with a goal of technical accuracy and credibility. Team members were: SEI Kimberly Brune David Fisher John Foreman Jon Gross Robert Rosenstein Defense Contractors Michael Bray, Lockheed Martin William Mills, Loral (Lockheed Martin) Darleen Sadoski, GTE James Shimp, E-Systems Edmond Van Doren, Kaman Sciences 1. We have used other names for the document during earlier phases of the project. These include the Software Technology Roadmap and the Structured Survey of Software Technology (SSST). CMU/SEI-97-HB-001 iii Cory Vondrak, TRW Air Force Capt Mark Gerken, Rome Laboratory Capt Gary Haines, AFMC SSSG Elizabeth Kean, Rome Laboratory Maj David Luginbuhl, Air Force Office of Scientific Research In addition, other individuals contributed to the document by writing and/or reviewing technol- ogy descriptions. These contributions are acknowledged in the specific technology descrip- tions. Development The project entailed an intense data collection and writing effort by the authors. Because of the tight project schedule, the project team initially took an “opportunistic” approach to soft- ware technology topic coverage: The authors focused on software technologies in their areas of expertise, in areas where technical experts were accessible, and in areas where abundant supporting material existed. Topics selected were of significant interest to our targeted user community and/or were emerging technologies getting a lot of attention in the software com- munity. Data collection approaches included the following: • literature search and the World Wide Web • previous studies, surveys, technical assessments, forecasts • program briefings from DARPA, NSF, ATP, NIST, and many others • interviews with researchers and technology developers in industry, government, and academia • broad-based solicitation of written input Each software technology description went through a rigorous review process which often in- cluded outside area experts. For the structure of the document, the Physician’s Desk Refer- ence (PDR), published by Medical Economics, provided us with a valuable model for overall organization. We referenced it often in the early days of the project. To ensure the develop- ment of a quality product, we also organized two formal outside reviews of the entire docu- ment. The first review team primarily focused on the technical validity and content of the document, while the second review team provided an executive management perspective on the utility of the document. Recommendations from these reviews were taken into consider- ation as we fine-tuned the document for this prototype publication. We greatly appreciate the time and valuable input of the following review team members. Their insightful critique and recommendations significantly improved the quality of this initial publi- cation. iv CMU/SEI-97-HB-001 Review Team #1 Participants Dr. William L. Scherlis, Review Team Chair, Carnegie Mellon University Ms. Christine Anderson, PL/VTQ Dr. David J. Carney, Software Engineering Institute Dr. John B. Goodenough, Software Engineering Institute Lt. Col. Mike Goyden, SSSG/SMW Col. Richard R. Gross, PhD, USAF, Defense Information Systems Agency Lt. Col. J. Greg Hanson, PhD, HQ USAF/SCTS Dr. Larry G. Jones, Software Engineering Institute Mr. Mark H. Klein, Software Engineering Institute Maj.George Newberry, SAF/AQRE Ms. Linda M. Northrop, Software Engineering Institute Lt. Col. Chris Ruminski, ESC/SRG Dr. Howard E. Shrobe, Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Mr. John Willison, CECOM, Center for Software Engineering Review Team #2 Participants Dr. Harold W. Sorenson, Review Team Chair, The MITRE Corporation Mr.