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International Conference on Model-Driven Engineering and Software Development

MODELSWARD 2017: Model-Driven Engineering and Software Development pp 222–246Cite as

Generative versus Interpretive Model-Driven Development: Moving Past ‘It Depends’

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Part of the book series: Communications in Computer and Information Science ((CCIS,volume 880))

Abstract

Model-driven development practices are used to improve software quality and developer productivity. However, the design and implementation of an environment with which software can be produced from models is not an easy task. One part of such an environment is the model execution approach: how is the model processed and translated into running software? Experts state that code generation and model interpretation are functionally equivalent. However, a survey that we conducted among several organizations shows that there is a lack of knowledge and guidance in designing the execution approach. In this article we present the results of a literature study on the advantages of both interpretation and generation. We also show, using a case study, how these results can be utilized in the design decisions. Finally, a decision support framework is proposed that can provide the guidance and knowledge for the development of a model-driven engineering environment.

This work is a result of the AMUSE project. See https://amuse-project.org for more information. An earlier version of this work was published as Overeem and Jansen [1]. This article adds the motivating survey that we have conducted among sixteen organizations. The literature study is extended with literature published since the original study. The case study is expanded with more in-depth observations on the decision making process.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Some needed to be excluded due to confidentially issues or the lack of (technical) knowledge.

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Acknowledgements

This research was supported by the NWO AMUSE project (628.006.001): a collaboration between Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Utrecht University, and AFAS Software in the Netherlands. The NEXT Platform is developed and maintained by AFAS Software. Further more, the authors like to thank Jurgen Vinju, Tijs van der Storm, and their colleagues for their feedback and knowledge early on in the writing process. Finally we thank the team at AFAS Software for their opinions, feedback, and reviews.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Architecture and Innovation, AFAS Software, Leusden, The Netherlands

    Michiel Overeem

  2. Department of Information and Computing Sciences, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands

    Slinger Jansen & Sven Fortuin

Authors
  1. Michiel Overeem
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  2. Slinger Jansen
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  3. Sven Fortuin
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Correspondence to Michiel Overeem .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Twente, Enschede, The Netherlands

    Luís Ferreira Pires

  2. Siège du Groupe ESEO, Angers, France

    Slimane Hammoudi

  3. Malina Software Corp., Nepean, Ontario, Canada

    Bran Selic

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Overeem, M., Jansen, S., Fortuin, S. (2018). Generative versus Interpretive Model-Driven Development: Moving Past ‘It Depends’. In: Pires, L., Hammoudi, S., Selic, B. (eds) Model-Driven Engineering and Software Development. MODELSWARD 2017. Communications in Computer and Information Science, vol 880. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-94764-8_10

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-94764-8_10

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