The goal of this research is to provide a tool to unobtrusively introduce the design metrics D,, and Di into existing engineering practices. To that goal, different methods for visualizing the UML design metrics were explored. A small survey was conducted to determine which of the different visualizations is most attractive. The results of this survey were used to guide the design of the Design Metrics Visualization Plugin (Design MVP), which was developed as a plugin for the open-source UML tool Dia. This plugin allows for the calculation, and more importantly, visualization of the UML metrics during UML class diagram modeling. / Department of Computer Science

As the use of computer systems becomes more and more widespread in applications that demand high levels of dependability, these applications themselves are growing in complexity in a rapid rate, especially in the areas that require concurrent and distributed computing. Such complex systems are very prone to faults and errors. No matter how rigorously fault avoidance and fault removal techniques are applied, software design faults often remain in systems when they are delivered to the customers. In fact, residual software faults are becoming the significant underlying cause of system failures and the lack of dependability. There is tremendous need for systematic techniques for building dependable software, including the fault tolerance techniques that ensure software-based systems to operate dependably even when potential faults are present. However, although there has been a large amount of research in the area of fault-tolerant software, existing techniques are not yet sufficiently mature as a practical engineering discipline for realistic applications. In particular, they are often inadequate when applied to highly concurrent and distributed software. This thesis develops new techniques for building fault-tolerant software, addresses the problem of achieving high levels of dependability in concurrent and distributed object systems, and studies system-level support for implementing dependable software. Two schemes are developed - the t/(n-l)-VP approach is aimed at increasing software reliability and controlling additional complexity, while the SCOP approach presents an adaptive way of dynamically adjusting software reliability and efficiency aspects. As a more general framework for constructing dependable concurrent and distributed software, the Coordinated Atomic (CA) Action scheme is examined thoroughly. Key properties of CA actions are formalized, conceptual model and mechanisms for handling application level exceptions are devised, and object-based diversity techniques are introduced to cope with potential software faults. These three schemes are evaluated analytically and validated by controlled experiments. System-level support is also addressed with a multi-level system architecture. An architectural pattern for implementing fault-tolerant objects is documented in detail to capture existing solutions and our previous experience. An industrial safety-critical application, the Fault-Tolerant Production Cell, is used as a case study to examine most of the concepts and techniques developed in this research.

This thesis investigates the process of designing software from formal specifications, in particular, specifications expressed in the Z notation. The initial phases of software design have significant impact on software quality and the transition from formal specification to design is not clearly understood. There is often no visible or obvious connection between the specification and the finished design. It is possible to add traceability with either verification or refinement, but I wish to understand and guide the design process. Investigating the design of software from formal specifications highlighted possible relationships between parts of the specification and parts of the design. A design strategy is introduced, that combines software architectural styles and formal specifications to influence the generated design. The design process is architecturally-specific, but a template for instantiating the design process to a chosen architectural style is presented. Specializations of the template are presented for the ADT-based architectural style and the event-based architectural style. These specializations of the template produce an architecturally-constrained, specification-influenced design process. Providing an architecturally-constrained, specification-influenced design process enables the software designer to produce better quality software. The constrained design process allows the designer to focus on the difficult aspects of design: understanding the problem, choosing the best abstractions, and finding a suitable solution.

Thesis (M.Comp.Sc.-Res.)--University of Wollongong, 2007. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references: leaf 89-90.

Thesis (M.S.) -- University of Montana, 2008. / Title from author supplied metadata. Description based on contents viewed on July 6, 2009. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Computing, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2005. / Rick Kazman, Committee Member ; Colin Potts, Committee Member ; Mike McCracken, Committee Member ; Gregory Abowd, Committee Chair ; Spencer Rugaber, Committee Member. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.S.)--West Virginia University, 2004. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains x, 70 p. : ill. (some col.). Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 66-70).

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2008. / Title from title screen (site viewed Nov. 25, 2008). PDF text: xiii, 173 p. : ill. ; 2 Mb. UMI publication number: AAT 3315261. Includes bibliographical references. Also available in microfilm and microfiche formats.

Dissertation (Ph.D. in Computer Science) Naval Postgraduate School, March 1993. / Dissertation supervisors, Michael L. Nelson and Robert B. McGhee. Includes bibliographical references (p. 288-302).

Thesis (M.S. in Information Technology Management)--Naval Postgraduate School, March 2010. / Thesis Advisor: Cook, Glenn. Second Reader: Pfeiffer, Karl. "March 2010." Author(s) subject terms: Enterprise Architecture, Information Management System (IMS), Inter-agency Operation Center, Enterprise Service Bus, Software Architecture, Software Architecture Analysis, VIRT (Valuable Information at the Right Time), Quality Attribute, WatchKeeper. Includes bibliographical references (p. 59-62). Also available in print.