iStarTool

General Information

Tool Name

iStarTool

Version

0.3

Group

Laboratório de Engenharia de Requisitos CIn-UFPE

Date Tool Template Last Updated

24/05/2011

Web page (if available)

http://portal.cin.ufpe.br/ler/Projects/IStarTool.aspx

Main Purpose of the Tool

Modelling organizational requirements using the i* framework.

i* framework supported

Yu PhD Thesis and iStarWiki.

Availability of the tool

• (X) For i* modelling only
• ( ) For development only
• ( ) Both

If not available, please specify expected date of availability:

Programming Language

JAVA, OCL

Platform Requirements

Windows

Other technology needed

None

Current state of the tool

Under development

Ongoing work

Syntax checker.
Improve draws of the tool.

i* Modelling Suitability

1. Does the tool allow SD modelling?

Yes

2. Does the tool allow SR modelling?

Yes

3. Does the tool allow working with SD & SR models jointly?

No
If so, please specify how (i.e., by means of expandable elements).
At moment we are working in a parser to change the tool view.

4. Does the tool allow the construction of the models graphically?

Yes
If so, please specify how (i.e., dragging and dropping the elements into a drawing page).
By click in the object and click in the target panel.

5. Does the tool allow the construction of the models textually?

No
If so, please specify how (i.e., filling a dependency table).

6. Describe how the elements are modelled and their flexibility (i.e., the elements can be moved and reordered).

The elements can have its positions changed.
The tool allows organizing the diagram by a GMF function, or by manually drag-and-drop.

7. Describe how the dependency links are modelled and their flexibility (i.e., dependencies are modelled with straight lines that can not be redirected).

The links can be customized by drag-and-drop of control points.
The links can be auto organized by a GMF function.

8. Does the tool allow automatic organization of the elements?

Yes

9. Other modelling facilities provided by the tool:

• Sample Online Syntax Checker
• Complex Offline Syntax Checker
• It can push an element into or move it from an expandable element

10. Does the tool check SD models?

Yes, there are two types of syntax checkers: offline and online checkers.
If so, please specify how (i.e., the tool checks if all the SD dependencies are assigned).

11. Does the tool check SR models?

Yes, there are two types of syntax checkers: offline and online checkers.
If so, please specify how (i.e., checks if the SR links are correctly stated).

12. Other checks provided by the tool (i.e., cross validation between SD and SR models).

No

13. Does the tool allow working with two or more models at the same time?

Yes

14. Does the tool allow to group models in projects?

No

15. Does the tool allow working with two or more projects at the same time?

No

16. What are the other functionalities that the tool provides?

Export the graphics as XML.

Usability

17. Rate the understandability of the user interface

• ( ) Internal use
• (X) Ready for public use
• (X) Has been used publicly

If it is not ready for public use, mark one or more of the following:

• ( ) not in English
• ( ) writing not polished
• ( ) poor usability (colours, ...)
• ( ) others: please specify

Expected date for public use (if any):

18. Rate the quality of the user manual

• ( ) Inexistent
• (X) Internal use
• ( ) Ready for public use
• ( ) Has been used publicly

If user manual for internal use, mark one or more of the following:

• ( ) incomplete
• ( ) obsolete
• (X) not in English
• ( ) writing not polished
• ( ) others: please specify

Expected date for public use (if any):

19. Does the tool provides i* learning facilities?

Yes
If so, explain which ones (i.e., methodological guidance).
Because the syntax checker alert the user about the common errors by using popup.

20. Does the tool provide any examples for the users?

No

21. Rate the difficulty of installing the tool

• (X) Copy files and initializing paths
• ( ) Copy files
• ( ) Executable installation file provided

Maturity of the Tool

22. Rate the maturity of the tool from the user point of view:

• (X) Under Development
• ( ) Prototype
• ( ) Ready for public use
• ( ) Has been used publicly

If not for public use, mark one or more of the following:

• (X) incomplete
• (X) occasional testing
• (X) non-exhaustive testing
• ( ) non-persistent data
• ( ) poor efficiency
• ( ) not portable
• (X) others: please specify

The interface can be improved

Expected date for public use (if any):

23. Has the tool been used for any case study?

Yes
If so, specify which ones.
The tool was used by a team of UFPE’s students in the SCORE 2011 (Student Contest On Software Engineering, http://score-contest.org/2011/)

24. Has the tool been tested in large models?

Yes

25. Has the tool any drawback when working with very large models?

Yes
If so, which ones?
The tool gets slow as the model gets big even though there is no upper bound for the size of a model.

26. Which is approximately the maximum size of the model (in terms of actors and dependencies) the tool has been used for?

Approximately 150 elements.

Extensibility and Interoperability

27. Does the tool allow importing files?

No
If so, specify import data formats (i.e., XML, text file, pictures of the graphical representation...)

28. Does the tool allow exporting files?

Yes
If so, specify import data formats (i.e., XML, text file, pictures of the graphical representation...)
Images: .gif, .bmp, .jpeg, .jpg, .svg, .png.

29. Does the tool allow importing/exporting the data through an XML format?

Yes
If so, link to the DTD for the XML format if available.

30. Is the architecture of the tool published?

Yes
If so, where?
In Santos, B. S. IStar Tool - Uma proposta de ferramenta para modelagem de i*. Dissertação (Mestrado) - Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Centro de Informática, Brasil, 2008. Available in http://portal.cin.ufpe.br/ler/Our%20Publications/Dissertations/BarbaraSantos2008.pdf (in Portuguese)

31. Does the tool allow the addition of other elements outside the i* framework of the tool?

No

32. New functionalities can be added to the tool by means of:

• (X) PLUG-IN
• (X) Open-Source code
• (X) import & export XML
• ( ) NONE

33. Rate the maturity of the tool from for open development:

• (X) Under Development
• ( ) Prototype
• ( ) Ready for public development use
• ( ) Has been used for public development

If not for public development use, mark one or more of the following:

• ( ) incomplete code
• ( ) no help provided
• ( ) non-persistent data
• (X) non-exhaustive testing
• ( ) poor efficiency
• (X) not portable
• ( ) no development installation facilities provided
• ( ) others: please specify

Expected date for public development use (if any):

34. Is there any internal documentation for programmers?

No
If so, enumerate the facilities provided

• ( ) Requirements specification and design decisions available
• ( ) Interface conventions
• ( ) Code conventions
• ( ) Full commented code
• ( ) Examples
• ( ) others: please specify