Feature oriented model driven product lines

Model Driven Development (MDD) is an emerging paradigm for software construction that uses models to specify programs, and model transformations to synthesize executables. Feature Oriented Programming(FOP) is a paradigm for software product lines where programs are synthesized by composing features. Feature Oriented Model Driven Development (FOMDD) is a blend of FOP and MDD that shows how programs in a software product line can be synthesized in an MDD way by composing models from features, and then transforming these models into executables. A case study on a product line of portlets, which are components of web portals, is used to illustrate FOMDD. This case reveals mathematical properties (i.e., commuting diagrams) of portlet synthesis that helped us to validate the correctness of our approach (abstractions, tools and specifications), as well as optimize portlet synthesis. These properties expose the nature of metaprograms for program synthesis (i.e., synthesis is a metaprogram combining primitive operations that form a geometry). We exploit this to synthesize metaprograms, which when executed, will synthesize a target program of a product-line. Specifically, we elaborate on the generation of metaprograms (not programs) from abstract specifications. This is the core of GROVE: the GeneRative metaprOgramming for Variable structurE approach. Variability of synthesis is also considered. Nonetheless, the ultimate envision is a structural theory behind program synthesis.