The EternalS Roadmap – Defining a Research Agenda for Eternal Systems - Trustworthy Eternal Systems via Evolving, Software Data and Knowledge - page 136

This is the context into which future research must deliver and take into account
that systems need to adapt to changes in user requirements and application
domains.
Much research in software engineering have been focused on improving soft-
ware quality and automating the maintenance process to reduce software costs
and mitigate complications associated with the evolution process. Despite all
the effort expended in this area, these are still high cost and effort activities,
software still continues to be unreliable, and software bugs can wreak havoc on
software producers and consumers alike. The EternalS group has identified a
number of key disciplines that they believe can make a very positive contribu-
tion to advancing research against this background. These include Variability
Management through Software Product Line Engineering, Software Lifecycle,
Adaptation and Time awareness through Model Centric and Driven Design, and
Machine Learning as an enabler for the evolution and selfadaptability of soft-
ware.
2 Technology Roadmap
The possibilities of technology are often analysed in an isolated manner by those
with expert knowledge exclusively in that field. These forecasters tend to trace
straight lines into the future, that project the present, assuming that the current
context is perennial and fundamentals are invariant and durable. They generally
forget about inevitable disruptions such as major scientific breakthroughs or
game changing technology. These would appear to be likely and expected, if the
forecasters considered the larger picture, not only of their specific area of study,
but also taking into account the entire landscape.
Any engineered products, including software, should be viewed from a business
perspective, not just from a technological one. Of particular interest are:
- Proven and emerging business models: software as a product, software as a
service, mobile applications ecosystems, open source;
- The intersection of software engineering with the software business: business
perspectives on technologies such as cloud computing, requirements engi-
neering and software architecture;
- Outsourcing: long-term economic implications, new models;
- The software business in public administrations: strategies and approaches
for maximizing the public value of software;
- Public support for the software business: initiatives at the government level
to stimulate or shape the software business, including standards and speci-
fications;
- The software-intensive product: the evolving business context as software
increasingly replaces hardware in products, ranging from regulatory implica-
tions in safety- critical environments (e.g., health, automotive) to the impact
on market positioning as new powerfully featured, software-driven products
blur the distinction between traditional segments.