A Domain Analysis Method for Evolvable Software Product Line Architectures

Domain analysis (DA) is a core activity in engineering product lines that identifies and documents common and variable characteristics of the products in a given domain. Existing DA methods do not differentiate between common and stable aspects of the products in a domain. Consequently, resultant domain models can be difficult to evolve and maintain. In this paper, we present the concept of Stability-Oriented Domain Analysis method, a DA method that extends the conventional concepts of commonality and variability to develop evolvable yet stable domain models. The method is demonstrated and its main activities are explained.