| IRI-2007 :: SSW 2007 Workshop | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The 2nd IEEE International Workshop on Software Stability at Work (SSW 2007)
August 13-15, 2007 Theme
Current Problems There is a little doubt that the field of software engineering, like any other engineering fields, has helped us to make our lives what they are today. With software systems controlling more equipment and also becoming an integral part of more of our lives, the field of software engineering is quickly turning in to an indispensable field. However, unlike many other engineering fields, the products that are produced through the process of software engineering are largely intangible. Also, software products are unlikely to remain stable over a long period of time, unlike the products of other engineering fields.
In the hardware field, failure rates of a given product always start on a high note, then drop to a low, and then climb high again. Very early in a hardware product's lifecycle, one can notice several problems in the product. As these problems are fixed and standardized, the failure rate of the hardware products drops to its low level. However, as hardware gets old and worn out, the ensuing physical deterioration often causes the hardware to fail. In other words, the hardware wears out rapidly and the failure rate starts rising again.
Software programs, on the other hand, are not subject to the same degree of wear and tear that a piece of hardware undergoes. There are absolutely no environmental factors that can cause a software program to break. Software is a special set of instructions, or a complete recipe, for a piece of hardware to follow and obey. There are no moving parts in a software system. There is nothing in software that can physically deteriorate. Software is not supposed to wear out. Unfortunately, it does in reality. Innumerable authors and workers in the field of software engineering have identified this peculiar problem. However, the software engineering techniques as outlined by many software-engineering authors are yet to achieve a good amount of stability in software projects.
This underlying problem is more than just an ordinary inconvenience for software engineers and users. The reengineering process that is required to alter these software products does not come without a price. It is not uncommon to hear of these reengineering projects, costing hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars to developers. This does not even take into account the invaluable time that is always wasted by this continual reengineering process.
Software defects and “deterioration” are caused by many changes in software. Many of these changes cannot be simply avoided. However, these changes can definitely be minimized. Currently, when a small change is to be made to a software program, the entire program will also need to be reengineered. It does not matter, if the change required is due to new emerging technology or a small change in clientele. This reengineering process is ridiculous and unbelievable. The core purpose of the software product has not changed and will never. Then, why must the entire project be reengineered to incorporate a small change?
This workshop will examine software stability with respect to three central questions: "How can we engineer software systems that are stable over time?," "What are the approaches and ways of making software systems stable over time?" and "What is the role of object-oriented technology in the issue of software stability over time?"
Workshop Challenges
The workshop will also address pattern languages’ challenges and later debate several issues that are related to the following questions. We also want researchers, framework developers, and application developers to discuss and debate the following questions related to:
I. Accomplishing Software Stability Challenges:
II. Impact Challenges:
III. Killer Applications:
Paper Format and Submission People interested in participating in this workshop are requested to submit a short position paper (3-5 pages) or a regular workshop paper (limited to 6-15 pages, double spaced, including figures), representing views and experiences that are relevant to the discussion topic of the workshop and, possibly, answering some of the questions raised above. The papers can be submitted electronically at http://www.sis.pitt.edu/~iri07. The title page must include a maximum 150-word abstract, five keywords, full mailing address, e-mail address, phone number, fax number, and a designated contact author. Papers will be selected depending on their originality, quality and relevance to the workshop. All submitted papers will also be evaluated according to its originality, significance, correctness, presentation and relevance. Please follow the instructions given on the web page. Camera Ready manuscripts must be submitted, following IEEE conference proceedings style and guidelines. We also encourage authors to present novel and fresh ideas, critique of existing work, and practical studies.
Each accepted paper must be presented in person and live, by the author or one of the authors. To foster and promote, lively and productive discussions, each author is encouraged to present open questions to the forum and one or two main statements for discussion at the workshop. Submissions must be either MS-Word or RTF formats (please, DO NOT compress files).
Depending on the total number and spread of contributions, the scope may be narrowed down to ensure an effective communication and information sharing. Accepted position papers will be distributed to the participants before the workshop and will also be made generally available through the WWW and FTP. Accepted papers will be published in the Proceedings of the 2007 IEEE International Conference on Information Reuse and Integration (IEEE IRI-07). At least one of the authors of each accepted paper must register as a full delegate in the workshop, to get the paper published in the Proceedings of IEEE IRI 2007. Best papers selected in the workshop will be published in online Journal of International Journal Of Patterns (IJOP).
Important Dates:
Workshop Chairs
Program Committee |
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| Rami Bahsoon, Aston University in Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom | |
| Chia-Chu Chiang, University of Arkansas, Little Rock, USA | |
| M.E. Fayad, San Jose State University & vrlSoft, Inc., Silicon Valley, USA | |
| João Miguel Fernandes, Universidade do Minho, Braga, Portugal | |
| Pilar Herrero, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Spain | |
| Hoda Hosny, The American University in Cairo, Egypt | |
| Dae-Kyoo Kim,Oakland University, USA | |
| Tokuro Matsuo, Yamagata University, Japan | |
| Flavio Oquendo, University of South Brittany, France | |
| Michael Oudshoorn, Montana State University, USA | |
| Elke Pulvermueller, University of Luxembourg, Luxembourg | |
| Srini Ramaswamy, University of Arkansas, Little Rock, USA | |
| Shasha Wu, Spring Arbor University, USA |