A holistic architecture assessment method for software product lines

The success of architecture-centric development of software product lines is critically dependent upon the availability of suitable architecture assessment methods. While a number of architecture assessment methods are available and some of them have been widely used in the process of evaluating single product architectures, none of them is equipped to deal with the main challenges of product line development. In this paper we present an adaptation of the Architecture Tradeoff Analysis Method (ATAM) for the task of assessing product line architectures. The new method, labeled Holistic Product Line Architecture Assessment (HoPLAA), uses a holistic approach that focuses on risks and quality attribute tradeoffs – not only for the common product line architecture, but for the individual product architectures as well. In addition, it prescribes a qualitative analytical treatment of variation points using scenarios. The use of the new method is illustrated through a case study.