CRUISE: using interface hierarchies to support software evolution

To facilitate the maintenance activity, the author proposes a representation scheme for the structural evolution of software that is based on a notion of hierarchies of interfaces. Such a notion enforces a distinction between design artifacts and implementation artifacts and allows a linkage to be maintained between the two. As the software system evolves, interface alterations can be analyzed to determine whether the linkages are still valid or not. The author believes that such a notion provides a rigorous basis for technical aspects of version control and configuration management