1261989
A Classification and Comparison Framework for Software Architecture Description Languages
Software architectures shift the focus of developers from lines-of-code to coarser-grained architectural elements and their overall interconnection structure. Architecture description languages (ADLs) have been proposed as modeling notations to support architecture-based development. There is, however, little consensus in the research community on what is an ADL, what aspects of an architecture should be modeled in an ADL, and which of several possible ADLs is best suited for a particular problem. Furthermore, the distinction is rarely made between ADLs on one hand and formal specification, module interconnection, simulation and programming languages on the other. This paper attempts to provide an answer to these questions. It motivates and presents a definition and a classification framework for ADLs. The utility of the definition is demonstrated by using it to differentiate ADLs from other modeling notations. The framework is used to classify and compare several existing ADLs, enabling us, in the process, to identify key properties of ADLs. The comparison highlights areas where existing ADLs provide extensive support and those in which they are deficient, suggesting a research agenda for the future.
37328
Reuse of off-the-shelf components in C2-style architectures
Reuse of large-grain software components offers the potential for significant savings in application development cost and time. Successful component reuse and substitutability depends both on qualities of the components reused as well as the software context in which the reuse is attempted. Disciplined approaches to the structure and design of software applications offers the potential of providing a hospitable setting for such reuse. We present the results of a series of exercises designed to determine how well “offthe-shelf” components could be reused in applications designed in accordance with the C2 software architectural style. The exercises involved the reuse of two user-interface constraint solvers, two graphics toolkits, a World Wide Web browser, and a persistent object manager. A subset of these components was used to construct numerous variations of a single application (thus an application family). The exercises also included construction of a simple development environment for locating and downloading a component off the Web and incorporating it into an application. The paper summarizes the style rules that facilitate reuse and presents the results from the exercises. The exercises were successful in a variety of dimensions; one conclusion is that the C2 style offers significant reuse potential to application developers. At the same time, wider trials and additional tool support are needed.1 Index Terms -software reuse, architectural styles, messagebased architectures, component-based development, graphical user interfaces (GUI).
18036474
Anomaly Detection in Concurrent Software by Static Data Flow Analysis
Algorithms are presented for detecting errors and anomalies in programs which use synchronization constructs to implement concurrency. The algorithms employ data flow analysis techniques. First used in compiler object code optimization, the techniques have more recently been used in the detection of variable usage errors in dngle process programs. By adapting these existing algorithms, the sane classes of variable usage errors can be detected in concurrent process programs. Important classes of errors unique to concurrent process programs are also described, and algorithms for their detection are presented.
16705552
On the role of software architectures in runtime system reconfiguration
Society's increasing dependence on software-intensive systems is driving the need for dependable, robust, continuously available systems. Runtime system reconfiguration is one aspect of achieving continuous availability. We present an architecture-based approach to runtime software reconfiguration, highlighting the beneficial role of architectural styles and software connectors in facilitating runtime change. We conclude by describing the implementation of our tool suite, called ArchStudio, that supports runtime reconfiguration using our architecture-based approach.
7115274
An infrastructure for the rapid development of XML-based architecture description languages
Research and experimentation in software architectures over the past decade have yielded a plethora of software architecture description languages (ADLs). Continuing innovation indicates that it is reasonable to expect more new ADLs, or at least ADL features. This research process is impeded by the difficulty and cost associated with developing new notations. An architect in need of a unique set of modeling features must either develop a new architecture description language from scratch or undertake the daunting task of modifying an existing language. In either case, it is unavoidable that a significant effort will be expended in building or adapting tools to support the language. To remedy this situation, we have developed an infrastructure for the rapid development of new architecture description languages. Key aspects of the infrastructure are its XML-based modular extension mechanism, its base set of reusable and customizable architectural modeling constructs, and its equally important set of flexible support tools. This paper introduces the infrastructure and demonstrates its value in the context of several real-world applications.
2246366
Architectural support for trust models in decentralized applications
Decentralized applications are composed of distributed entities that directly interact with each other and make local autonomous decisions in the absence of a centralized coordinating authority. Such decentralized applications, where entities can join and leave the system at any time, are particularly susceptible to the attacks of malicious entities. Each entity therefore requires protective measures to safeguard itself against these entities. Trust management solutions serve to provide effective protective measures against such malicious attacks. Trust relationships help an entity model and evaluate its confidence in other entities towards securing itself. Trust management is, thus, both an essential and intrinsic ingredient of decentralized applications. However, research in trust management has not focused on how trust models can be composed into a decentralized architecture. The PACE architectural style, described previously [21], provides structured and detailed guidance on the assimilation of trust models into a decentralized entity's architecture. In this paper, we describe our experiments with incorporating four different reputation-based trust models into a decentralized application using the PACE architectural style. Our observations lead us to conclude that PACE not only provides an effective and easy way to integrate trust management into decentralized applications, but also facilitates reuse while supporting different types of trust models. Additionally, PACE serves as a suitable platform to aid the evaluation and comparison of trust models in a fixed setting towards providing a way to choose an appropriate model for the setting.
8708437
Deep Surrender: Musically Controlled Responsive Video
In this paper we describe our responsive video performance, Deep Surrender, created using Cycling ’74’s Max/MSP and Jitter packages. Video parameters are manipulated in real-time, using chroma-keying and colour balance modification techniques to visualize the keyboard playing and vocal timbre of a live performer. We present the musical feature extraction process used to create a control system for the production, describe the mapping between audio and visual parameters, and discuss the artistic motivations behind the piece.
13628358
Interference-Free Insertion of a Solid Body Into a Cavity: An Algorithm and a Medical Application
This article presents a novel algorithm for efficiently computing an interference-free insertion path of a body into a cavity and shows its practical use in the insertability analysis of custom orthopedic hip implants. The algorithm is designed to handle tightly fit, very complex three-dimensional bodies requiring fine, complex, coupled six-degree-of-freedom motions in a preferred direction. It provides a practical method for efficiently handling the geometric complexity of tight-fit insertions. The algorithm computes an insertion path consisting of small interference-free body motion steps. It formulates local, linearized configuration space constraints derived from the shapes and computes suc cessive motion steps by solving a series of linear optimization problems whose solution corresponds to the maximum allowed displacement in a preferred direction satisfying the constraints. It either finds a successful insertion path or a stuck conftgura tion. We demonstrate the algorithm with EXTRACT, a program for analyzing the insertability of cementless custom orthopedic hip implants. EXTRACT computes interference-free insertion paths for tightly fit implant and canal shapes described with 10,000 facets to an accuracy of 0.01 inch in 30 minutes on a workstation. It has been successfully tested on 30 real cases provided by a medical equipment manufacturer.
18366069
Multi-modal Interface for Fluid Dynamics Simulations Using 3-D Localized Sound
Multi-modal capabilities can be added to a simulation system in order to enhance data comprehension. We describe a system for adding sonification capabilities to a real-time computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulator. Our system uses Max/MSP modules to add sonic properties to CFD solutions. The enhancements described in this paper allow users to locate sound sources in a 3---D environment using stereo auditory cues to identify data features.
16509438
A High-Performance Flexible Architecture for Cryptography
Cryptographic algorithms are more efficiently implemented in custom hardware than in software running on general-purpose processors. However, systems which use hardware implementations have significant drawbacks: they are unable to respond to flaws discovered in the implemented algorithm or to changes in standards. In this paper we show how reconfigurable computing offers high performance yet flexible solutions for cryptographic algorithms. We focus on PipeRench, a reconfigurable fabric that supports implementations which can yield better than custom-hardware performance and yet maintains all the flexibility of software based systems. PipeRench is a pipelined reconfigurable fabric which virtualizes hardware, enabling large circuits to be run on limited physical hardware. We present implementations for Crypton, IDEA, RC6, and Twofish on PipeRench and an extension of PipeRench, PipeRench+. We also describe how various proposed AES algorithms could be implemented on PipeRench. PipeRench achieves speedups of between 2x and 12x over conventional processors.
2410576
Using Music to Interact with a Virtual Character
We present a real-time system which allows musicians to interact with synthetic virtual characters as they perform. Using Max/MSP to parameterize keyboard and vocal input, meaningful features (pitch, amplitude, chord information, and vocal timbre) are extracted from live performance in real-time. These extracted musical features are then mapped to character behaviour in such a way that the musician's performance elicits a response from the virtual character. The system uses the ANIMUS framework to generate believable character expressions. Experimental results are presented for simple characters.