Time representation in software architecture : potential of views and viewpoints

Abstract

Architectural design decisions almost invariably come with consequences. To understand the consequence better, a software architect would need to have a good understanding of the temporal trade-offs of the design decisions such as, the impact time has on the design decisions, and the impact the design decisions have with time in the future. Since many design decisions- including the intertemporal ones- come with tradeoffs, we want to understand if architectural design decisions made in the current software architecture process effectively conceptualize, capture, and represent the intertemporal design decisions. Also, this research aims to understand the potential of architectural views and, viewpoints in capturing and representing the intertemporal design decisions.

The research finds that though the current architectural process captures and represents intertemporal design decisions, the methods used in the process are predominantly textual with no framework or standards. Also, it is found that often the goal towards economic sustainability, as in getting the product out in a shorter time overshadows the sustainability from an IT perspective, as in making the design decisions with the least IT debt. Lastly, the research finds that the views and viewpoints have a good potential to provide a way to conceive, capture and, represent the intertemporal design decisions and their tradeoffs.