On the Integration of Web Modeling Languages : Preliminary Results and Future Challenges

The Unified Modeling Language (UML) is considered as the lingua franca in software engineering. Despite various web modeling languages having emerged in the past decade, in the field of web engineering a pendant to UML cannot be found yet. In the light of this “method war” the question arises if a unification of the existing web modeling languages can be successfully applied in the style of UML’s development and thus promote Model-driven Web Engineering (MDWE). In such a unification effort we defer the task of designing a “Unified Web Modeling Language”. Instead, we first aim at integrating three prominent representatives of the web modeling field, namely WebML, UWE, and OO-H, in order to gain a detailed understanding of their commonalities and differences as well as to identify the common concepts used in web modeling. This integration is based on specifying transformation rules allowing the transformation of WebML, UWE, and OO-H models into any other of the three languages, respectively. To this end, a major contribution of this work is the languages’ definitions made explicit in terms of metamodels, a prerequisite for model-driven web engineering for each approach. Furthermore, the transformation rules defined between these metamodels besides representing a step towards unification also enable model exchange.

[1]  Jean Bézivin,et al.  Technological Spaces: An Initial Appraisal , 2002 .

[2]  G. Karsai,et al.  Tool Integration Patterns , 2003 .

[3]  Stefano Ceri,et al.  Model-driven development of context-aware Web applications , 2007, TOIT.

[4]  Nora Koch,et al.  Modelling Adaptivity with Aspects , 2005, ICWE.

[5]  Olga De Troyer,et al.  Using ORM to Model Web Systems , 2005, OTM Workshops.

[6]  Luciano Baresi,et al.  W2000: A Modelling Notation for Complex Web Applications , 2006, Web Engineering.

[7]  Nora Koch,et al.  Integration of Business Processes in Web Application Models , 2004, J. Web Eng..

[8]  Santiago Meliá,et al.  The WebSA Approach: Applying Model Driven Engineering to Web Applications , 2006, J. Web Eng..

[9]  Vicente Pelechano,et al.  Conceptual Modelling of Web Applications: The OOWS Approach , 2006, Web Engineering.

[10]  Manuel Wimmer,et al.  Bridging Grammarware and Modelware , 2005, MoDELS Satellite Events.

[11]  Stefano Ceri,et al.  Designing Data-Intensive Web Applications , 2002 .

[12]  Irene Garrigós,et al.  A Structured Approach to Personalize Websites Using the OO-H Personalization Framework , 2005, APWeb.

[13]  Cristina Cachero,et al.  Conceptual Modeling of Device-Independent Web Applications , 2001, JISBD.

[14]  Frank Budinsky,et al.  Eclipse Modeling Framework , 2003 .

[15]  Stefano Ceri.  Process Modeling in Web Applications , 2005, OTM Conferences.

[16]  Gustavo Rossi,et al.  Model-Based Web Application Development , 2006, Web Engineering.

[17]  Emilia Mendes,et al.  Web Engineering: Theory and Practice of Metrics and Measurement for Web Development , 2005 .

[18]  Antonio Vallecillo,et al.  MDWEnet: A Practical Approach to Achieving Interoperability of Model-Driven Web Engineering Methods , 2007, MDWE.

[19]  Jean Bézivin,et al.  On the unification power of models , 2005, Software & Systems Modeling.