Software Internationalization: Crosscutting Concerns across the Development Lifecycle

Many of the requirements of Globalized (Internationalized ) software that have a crosscutting impact are scattered through the entire software. The impact of these requirements presents many challenges that manifest themselves throughout the software development lifecycle. Inherent properties of crosscutting requirements, such as scattering (where their support is scattered across multiple classes) and tangling (where their support is tangled with elements supporting other requirements), reduce the reusability, extensibility, and traceability of the software artifacts . Scattering and tangling are evident in the design and code of internationalized software and must be addressed fully. To remove scattering and tangling properties, developers must first identify and then separate the design and code of crosscutting behavior into independent modules or components. This paper discusses two important issues; when developers should identify and document crosscutting requirements; and where it should be handled throughout the software lifecycle.