A Scala Embedded DSL for Combinatorial Optimization in Software Requirements Engineering

The goal of the presented work is to provide support for software requirements engineering domain experts in modeling combinatorial optimization problems that arise in requirements prioritization and release planning. A Domain-Specific Language (DSL), called reqT/CSP, is presented that integrates constraints modeling with requirements modeling. The DSL is embedded in the object-functional Scala programming language. The DSL is demonstrated using principal examples of priority ranking and release planning. Benefits, limitations and future work are discussed

Eighth International Workshop on Requirements Engineering—Foundation for Software Quality (REFSQ’02)

International audienc

Teaching programming to young learners using Scala and Kojo

This paper presents an approach to teaching programming and abstract thinking to young learners using Scala and Kojo. Kojo is an open source IDE for the Scala programming language. The approach is based on Scala APIs for turtle graphics and functional pictures, a process of interactive exploration and discovery, and structured learning material that guides learners. The approach encourages playful self-learning of basic programming principles such as sequential execution, repetition, primitives, composition, abstraction, parametrized abstraction, and nested abstractions. It also includes tools to help children read and understand programs. Results from the use of Kojo and Scala in the teaching of young learners in Sweden and India are presented, along with a discussion of experiences and future development

Are the perspectives really different? Further experimentation on scenario-based reading of requirements

Perspective-Based Reading (PBR) is a scenario based inspection technique where several reviewers read a document from different perspectives (e.g. user, designer, tester). The reading is made according to a special scenario, specific for each perspective. The basic assumption behind PBR is that the perspectives find different defects and a combination of several perspectives detects more defects compared to the same amount of reading with a single perspective. The paper presents a study which analyses the differences in perspectives. The study is a partial replication of previous studies. It is conducted in an academic environment using graduate students as subjects. Each perspective applies a specific modelling technique: use case modelling for the user perspective, equivalence partitioning for the tester perspective and structured analysis for the design perspective. A total of 30 subjects were divided into 3 groups, giving 10 subjects per perspective. The analysis results show that: (1) there is no significant difference among the three perspectives in terms of defect detection rate and number of defects found per hour, (2) there is no significant difference in the defect coverage of the three perspectives, and (3) a simulation study shows that 30 subjects is enough to detect relatively small perspective differences with the chosen statistical test. The results suggest that a combination of multiple perspectives may not give higher coverage of the defects compared to single-perspective reading, but further studies are needed to increase the understanding of perspective differenc

A Market-driven Requirements Engineering Process - Results from an Industrial Improvement Programme

In market-driven software evolution, the objectives of a requirements engineering process include the envisioning and fostering of new requirements on existing packaged software products in a way that ensures competitiveness in the market place. This paper describes an industrial, market-driven requirements engineering process which incorporates continuous requirements elicitation and prioritisation together with expert cost estimation as a basis for release planning. The company has gained a measurable improvement in delivery precision and product quality of their packaged software. The described process will act as a baseline against which new promising techniques can be evaluated in the continuation of the improvement programme

Requirements engineering in open innovation: a research agenda

In recent years Open Innovation (OI) has gained much attention and made firms aware that they need to consider the open environment surrounding them. To facilitate this shift Requirements Engineering (RE) needs to be adapted in order to manage the increase and complexity of new requirements sources as well as networks of stakeholders. In response we build on and advance an earlier proposed software engineering framework for fostering OI, focusing on stakeholder management, when to open up, and prioritization and release planning. Literature in open source RE is contrasted against recent findings of OI in software engineering to establish a current view of the area. Based on the synthesized findings we propose a research agenda within the areas under focus, along with a framing-model to help researchers frame and break down their research questions to consider the different angles implied by the OI model

Exploring Software Product Management decision problems with constraint solving - opportunities for prioritization and release planning

Decision-making is central to Software Product Management (SPM) and includes deciding on requirements priorities and the content of coming releases. Several algorithms for prioritization and release planning have been proposed, where humans with or without machine support enact a series of steps to produce a decision outcome. Instead of applying some specific algorithm to find an acceptable solution to a decision problem, we propose to model SPM decision-making as a Constraint Satisfaction Problem (CSP), where relative and absolute priorities, interdependencies, and other constraints are expressed as relations among variables representing entities such as feature priorities, stakeholder preferences, and resource constraints. The solution space is then explored with the help of a constraint solver without humans needing to care about specific algorithms. This paper discusses advantages and limitations of CSP modeling in SPM and gives principal examples as a proof-of-concept of CSP modeling in requirements prioritization and release planning. A discussion of further research on constraint solving in SPM is also given

Cost and benefit analysis of quality requirements in competitive software product management: a case study on the QUPER model

In market-driven product development, it is important that the software product is released to the market at the right time, and offers higher quality than the competitors. In release planning, the allocation of development effort in investments into product enhancements, functions are competing with quality requirements for limited resources. In addition, it is important to find the right balance between competing quality requirements. In this paper, we present an industrial evaluation of the benefit and cost views in the QUality PERformance (QUPER) model. The results indicate that the model is relevant in the release planning process, and that the combination of the benefit and cost views provides a clear picture of the current market situation