Agent-Based Architecture Modelling for Interactive Systems

Abstract

A software architecture is an organisation of computational elements and the description of their interactions. Although specialists still argue about a precise definition of this concept, it is widely recognised that software architecture designs can no longer simply emerge from craft skills. The increasing complexity and size of software systems require sound engineering principles and frameworks to formally structure the design process into multiple but consistent perspectives. Possible perspectives on software architectures include the functional partitions of the system, the structural view in terms of components and connectors, the dynamic coordination model (Abowd & Bass 1994). All of these representations should be the result of an explicit design rationale. They should be analyzable, communicable, and maintainable.