Classification Framework for Business Components

Components and component-orientation is often depicted as the next step after object orientation. A huge number of proposals and implementations of component models, frameworks, and standards are available nowadays, leading to many different definitions of the term software component. Additionally, often the terms component, object, object framework – to mention only the most evident are not clearly distinguished. Moreover, if a component is defined, the definitions often vary. To achieve a clear understanding what the core features of a software component are, we provide a classification framework to classify each of the proposed models, frameworks, or standards. The goal of this classification is to obtain a consolidated and clear definition of what a component constitutes. As our focus lies in the application of components in the business application domain, we also clearly indicate the differences and additional characteristics of business components to generic software components. In addition, we extend the classification framework. This extended classification framework serve as a basis for the characterization of existing component-oriented approaches in the business domain like Enterprise JavaBeans, SanFrancisco, or SAP Business Objects. Component-orientation is actually enlisted to solve the core problems of software development, like reuse, better integration of legacy systems, or software complexity. Thus, often leading to improper use of the term componentoriented. The extended classification framework allows identifying any lack of properties of a given approach that claims to be component-oriented.