Towards Automated Change Propagation; the value of traceability

This position paper presents a framework for helping us think about moving towards automatic change propagation for software engineering artefacts. Beginning with the notion of traceability, we offer a categorisation that includes two dimensions of change propagation - that of notification, and that of implementing the actions arising from notification. Using this categorisation, we then introduce the abstract idea of value derived from change propagation and use artefact granularity as a further parameter to help us explore issues therein. Finally, as well as balancing our discussions of value with considerations of cost, we briefly describe an ongoing EU funded project called OPHELIA that intends to adopt this framework as a vehicle for moving towards synchronisation in a distributed, heterogeneous development environment.