Why attend ICCBSS?

Organizations are relying more and more on the successful integration of commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) software to keep development and maintenance costs low and keep pace with technological advances. Familiarity with COTS products or experience with component-based systems isn't enough to ensure the success of COTS-based software systems projects.

Software developers, procurers, and researchers must be ready to provide the acquisition, management, and technical strategies that contribute to the success of COTS-based software systems. Vendors must be ready to find success in this environment.

This conference will feature presenters with practical experience acquiring, building, maintaining, supplying, and managing COTS-based software systems. Presentations, tutorials, and panel sessions will use case studies, reports, and lessons learned to help attendees learn how to anticipate and address the challenges of a COTS-based software systems project.

Come to ICCBSS to exchange practical solutions with experts and develop your own expertise.

Why focus on the challenges of using COTS software components in large-scale systems?

The principles and practices that are applicable to component-based systems may address many aspects of systems built with COTS software products, but they fail to address some of the critical aspects of such systems.

In COTS-based software systems, developers and integrators have no direct control over the content of a COTS software product. They cannot specify how it should interact with other components or other COTS products; they cannot specify its interfaces or behavior. They cannot examine the internals of COTS software directly but must deduce them by observing the software's behavior. Business drivers for COTS vendors are focused on increasing their market share (which also includes getting new product releases to market as quickly as possible) but not necessarily on the needs of your specific system. Developers and integrators cannot control how fast or what new features are added to COTS products. These differences create new challenges such as:

how to select the set of COTS software to use
how to define an architecture that allows the system to evolve efficiently for years in the face of constantly changing COTS software
how to define requirements that get optimal leverage from COTS software products but accomodate their constantly changing nature
how to sustain partnerships between vendors and acquirers

Who should attend this conference?

This conference will bring together practitioners and researchers who have experience with building, maintaining, and managing COTS-based software systems. This includes vendors and those from commercial industry, government, and academia.

The conference will be of interest to engineers and project managers responsible for acquiring, building, and maintaining COTS-based software systems as well as software engineering researchers who are investigating issues related to such systems and vendors who are creating products for use in such systems.