PloneGov as an Open Source Product Line

Abstract

PloneGov.org is a recent community aiming at providing open-source software to local and regional governments. It gathers IT specialists from local and regional governments from Belgium, France, Switzerland, Spain and Argentina, supported by IT SMEs. Open-source communities are not used to think of development in terms of software product lines (SPLs), relying instead on the flexibility provided by source code modifications. However, if variability is not planned and managed,there is a risk that the consistency of the software deteriorates with many adaptations to local uses. We present preliminary plans to counteract this risk, and questions that we will have to address