Mission Oriented Architectural Legacy Evolution	Model Oriented Reengineering Process for Human Computer Interface

Tool Description

Purpose:

The MORPH toolset supports a process for reengineering the user interfaces of character-oriented interactive legacy systems to WIMP-style (Windows, Icons, Menus, and Pointers) graphical user interfaces.

Description:

MORPH identifies user basic user interaction tasks and associated attributes from legacy code by applying static program understanding techniques, including control and data flow analysis, and pattern matching. The resulting model can then be used to transform the abstractions in the model to a specific graphical widget toolkit.

The MORPH reengineering process consists of three steps:

1. Detection - Analyzing source code to identify the user interface components in the legacy system.
2. Representation - Building a model of the existing user interface from the detection step.
3. Transformation - Manipulating, augmenting, and restructuring the resulting model to allow forward engineering to a graphical environment.

Status:

This prototype toolset is currently under development. The initial version of the control flow analyzer, data flow analyzer, and rule-based detection engine are currently being completed (using the Refine tools). The knowledge base used in the transformation step is completed (implemented in the CLASSIC knowledge representation).

The MORPH method is currently being validated by applying it to a series of legacy applications, including a small pilot database application, and scalability validation on larger programs such as WELTAB III.

Operating System Dependencies:

MORPH currently runs on Solaris, and processes C programs.

Platform Dependencies:

The tools are being developed and tested on a Sun SPARC platform (SPARC-20)

COTS Dependencies:

The Software Refinery (Refine languge and Refine-C), Motif 1.2, tcl 7.6, tk 4.2p2, and the CLASSIC knowledge representation and tools (from AT&T Bell Labs).

Documentation:

MORPH Product Brochure (HTML Web Page)
MORPH Product Brochure (Download for Adobe Acrobat)

Documentation is not yet publicly available, but will be when the first version of the prototype is completed.

Point of Contact:

Melody M. Moore

Last modified: 14 August 1999