Author:
Hermann Kaindl
Affiliation:
Vienna University of Technology, Austria
Keyword(s):
Crosscutting concerns, Aspects, Requirements.
Related
Ontology
Subjects/Areas/Topics:
Aspect-Oriented Software Development
;
Aspects
;
Paradigm Trends
;
Requirements Elicitation and Specification
;
Software Engineering
;
Software Engineering Methods and Techniques
Abstract:
Addressing the issue of crosscutting concerns within a software system, the notion of an aspect has been introduced, first for so-called Aspect-Oriented Programming (AOP) and then, more generally, for Aspect-Oriented Software Development (AOSD). Unfortunately, this notion is used with two different meanings: one as a synonym for “crosscutting concern”, and the other as a means to deal with a crosscutting concern within the software. Later, this notion has been carried over to so-called Aspect-Oriented Requirements Engineering (AORE). This raises questions about the meaning(s) of an aspect in this context, and about the relationship of this notion in AORE and the same notion in AOP. We try to answer these questions and argue to define an aspect as a means to deal with crosscutting concerns, and not as a synonym of “crosscutting concern”. Most importantly, an aspect in AORE is not necessarily related to an aspect within the software.