Multi-agent applications in a context-aware global software development environment

Abstract

The need for skilled workers, the improving communication facilities, growing applications complexity, software development time and cost restrictions, and also the need for quality and accuracy are part of the new scenario where global software development was introduced. However, it has brought new challenges such as: communication, coordination and culture. Context information could help participants to be aware of events occurring and so improve their communication as well as their interactions. This paper presents a multi-agent mechanism for processing context information, as well as a mechanism for allocation of human resources. It is also introduced a framework to encapsulate some functionality required by a knowledge-based multi-agent system. © 2012 Springer-Verlag.