Evaluating Software Reuse Alternatives: A Model and Its Application to an Industrial Case Study

  • Authors:
  • Amir Tomer;Leah Goldin;Tsvi Kuflik;Esther Kimchi;Stephen R. Schach

  • Affiliations:
  • IEEE;IEEE;IEEE;-;IEEE Computer Society

  • Venue:
  • IEEE Transactions on Software Engineering
  • Year:
  • 2004

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Abstract

We propose a model that enables software developers to systematically evaluate and compare all possible alternative reuse scenarios. The model supports the clear identification of the basic operations involved and associates a cost component with each basic operation in a focused and precise way. The model is a practical tool that assists developers to weigh and evaluate different reuse scenarios, based on accumulated organizational data, and then to decide which option to select in a given situation. The model is currently being used at six different companies for cost-benefit analysis of alternative reuse scenarios; we give a case study that illustrates how it has been used in practice.