Modeling features in aspect-based product lines with use case slices: An exploratory case study

Abstract

A significant number of techniques that exploit aspects in software design have been proposed in recent years. One technique is use case slices by Jacobson and Ng, that builds upon the success of use cases as a common modeling practice. A use case slice modularizes the implementation of a use case and typically consists of a set of aspects, classes, and interfaces. Work on Feature Oriented Programming (FOP) has shown how features, increments in program functionality, can be modularized and algebraically modeled for the synthesis of product lines. When AspectJ is used in FOP, the structure of feature modules resembles that of use case slices. In this paper, we explore the relations between use case slices modeling and FOP program synthesis and describe their potential synergy for modeling and synthesizing aspect-based product lines. © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2007.