Donald Firesmith
Encyclopedia
Donald G. Firesmith is an American software engineer
, consultant, and trainer at the Software Engineering Institute
(SEI).
in 1975 and his M.A. in Mathematics from Arizona State University
in 1977. He also studied one year at Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich.
Firesmith started working in the computer business as a software developer in 1979 and has been quality engineer, configuration manager, and data manager for Computer Science Corporation in the US, Germany, and Switzerland. From 1984 to 1988 he was an OO methodologist at Magnavox Electronic Systems Corporation. And from 1988 to 1995 he was President of Advanced Software Technology Specialists, a small consulting and training company. From 1994 to 1997 he has been an acquisition editor and editor and chief of Reference Books at SIGS Books. And further he was a Senior advisory software engineer at StorageTek, where he worked as a technical leader, requirements engineer, and software architect, Chief architect Lante Corporation, which specialized in producing eMarketplaces, and Chief architect for the North American Business Unit of Cambridge Technology Partners.
Since 2003 he is a Senior Member of the Technical Staff at the Software Engineering Institute
(SEI) where he works in the Acquisition Support Program helping the United States Government acquire software-intensive systems.
The OPEN approach to software development is founded on situational method engineering (SME). This is a means by which a software development team can construct a method and process that is appropriate for their own particular situation or circumstances. Fragments of methods, conformant with an international software engineering metamodel standard such as ISO/IEC 24744
and stored in a repository, are individually selected and the method composed from these method fragments. The SME approach is based on research by many groups worldwide – results from a recent conference are published.
(MFESA). This framework consists of the following:
Software engineer
A software engineer is an engineer who applies the principles of software engineering to the design, development, testing, and evaluation of the software and systems that make computers or anything containing software, such as computer chips, work.- Overview :...
, consultant, and trainer at the Software Engineering Institute
Software Engineering Institute
The Carnegie Mellon Software Engineering Institute is a federally funded research and development center headquartered on the campus of Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. SEI also has offices in Arlington, Virginia, and Frankfurt, Germany. The SEI operates...
(SEI).
Biography
Firesmith received his B.A. in Mathematics and German from Linfield CollegeLinfield College
Linfield College is an American private institution of higher learning located in McMinnville, Oregon, United States. As a four-year, undergraduate, liberal arts and sciences college with a campus in Portland, Oregon, it also has an adult degree program located in eight communities throughout the...
in 1975 and his M.A. in Mathematics from Arizona State University
Arizona State University
Arizona State University is a public research university located in the Phoenix Metropolitan Area of the State of Arizona...
in 1977. He also studied one year at Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich.
Firesmith started working in the computer business as a software developer in 1979 and has been quality engineer, configuration manager, and data manager for Computer Science Corporation in the US, Germany, and Switzerland. From 1984 to 1988 he was an OO methodologist at Magnavox Electronic Systems Corporation. And from 1988 to 1995 he was President of Advanced Software Technology Specialists, a small consulting and training company. From 1994 to 1997 he has been an acquisition editor and editor and chief of Reference Books at SIGS Books. And further he was a Senior advisory software engineer at StorageTek, where he worked as a technical leader, requirements engineer, and software architect, Chief architect Lante Corporation, which specialized in producing eMarketplaces, and Chief architect for the North American Business Unit of Cambridge Technology Partners.
Since 2003 he is a Senior Member of the Technical Staff at the Software Engineering Institute
Software Engineering Institute
The Carnegie Mellon Software Engineering Institute is a federally funded research and development center headquartered on the campus of Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. SEI also has offices in Arlington, Virginia, and Frankfurt, Germany. The SEI operates...
(SEI) where he works in the Acquisition Support Program helping the United States Government acquire software-intensive systems.
Method Engineering (ME) and Open Process Environment and Notation (OPEN)
Firesmith is a co-founder with Brian Henderson-Sellers and Ian Graham of the international OPEN Consortium. Firesmith was the principal developer of the OPEN Modeling Language (OML). Firesmith is the founder of the The OPEN Process Framework Repository Organization and the developer of its large repository of free, open-source, reusable method components.The OPEN approach to software development is founded on situational method engineering (SME). This is a means by which a software development team can construct a method and process that is appropriate for their own particular situation or circumstances. Fragments of methods, conformant with an international software engineering metamodel standard such as ISO/IEC 24744
ISO/IEC 24744
ISO/IEC 24744 Software Engineering — Metamodel for Development Methodologies is an ISO standard for software engineering metamodelling for development methodologies...
and stored in a repository, are individually selected and the method composed from these method fragments. The SME approach is based on research by many groups worldwide – results from a recent conference are published.
Method Framework for Engineering System Architectures (MFESA)
Firesmith is the primary developer of the Method Framework for Engineering System ArchitecturesMethod Framework for Engineering System Architectures
The Method Framework for Engineering System Architectures is a method engineering framework based on situational method engineering, which provides a method for developing appropriate, project-specific system architecture engineering methods...
(MFESA). This framework consists of the following:
- Ontology defining the key concepts of system architecture engineering and their relationships
- Metamodel defining the foundational abstract supertypes of method components for engineering system architectures including architectural:
- Work products including architectures and architectural representations such as models and documents
- Work units including activities, tasks, and techniques for producing the work products
- Producers including architects, architecture teams, and architecture tools that perform the work units to produce the work products
- Repository of free, open-source, reusable method components for creating situation-specific system architecture engineering methods
- Metamethod for creating situation-specific system architecture engineering methods by selecting appropriate method components from the repository, tailoring them as appropriate, and integrating them to form the new architecture engineering method
Publications
He is the author of several technical books in system and software engineering as well as numerous technical articles, conference papers, and tutorials A selection:- 1993. Object-Oriented Requirements Analysis and Logical Design: A Software Engineering Approach, John Wiley & Sons, ISBN 0-471-57807-X
- 1995. The Dictionary of Object Technology: The Definitive Desk Reference, Cambridge University Books, ISBN 0-13-373887-6, with Edward M. Eykholt
- 1998. OPEN Modeling Language (OML) Reference Manual, Cambridge University Books, ISBN 1-884842-75-5, with Brian Henderson-Sellers and Ian Graham
- 1998. Documenting a Complete Java Application using OPEN, Addison-Wesley Longman, ISBN 0-201-34277-4, with Scott Krutsch, Marshall Stowe, and Greg Hendley
- 2001. The OPEN Process Framework, Addison-Wesley Longman, ISBN 0-201-67510-2, with Brian Henderson-Sellers
- 2008. The Method Framework for Engineering System Architectures, Auerbach Publication, ISBN 978-1-4200-8575-4, with Peter Capell, Dietrich Falkenthal, Charles B. Hammons, DeWitt T. Latimer IV, and Tom Merendino
External links
- SEI Home Page of Donald Firesmith
- The OPEN Process Framework Repository Organization
- Firesmith's Personal Website with list of (and links to) his publications