Trusted Components

Using "off-the-shelf" software components in mission-critical applications is not yet as commonplace as in desktop applications. Opposite to electronic components, there is a lack of methods and quality estimates in the software domain which makes it difficult to build trust into software components. While electronic devices have sets of measures characterizing their quality (reliability, performances, use-domain, speed scale), no real consensus exists to measure such quality characteristics for software components. A second problem is the software component expected capability to evolve (addition of new functionality, implementation change) and to be adapted to various environments.Trusted components are reusable software elements equipped with a strong presumption of high quality, based on a combination of convincing arguments of various kinds: technical (e.g. Design by Contract, thorough and meaningful testing, appropriate programming language, formal proofs), managerial (e.g. systematic process based on CMM or similar), social (e.g. reputation of the components' authors).The idea of trusted components was introduced in an IEEE Computer article of May 1999 and earlier presentations in the same journal (Object Technology column). A first Trusted Components workshop was held at Monash University (Melbourne, Australia) at the end of TOOLS PACIFIC 1999 on November 28, 1999.The purpose of this workshop is to set up a forum where interested people can share their point of view on the idea of trusted components and identify research directions to help the industry move towards this goal.