Software reuse metrics for object-oriented systems

Abstract

The importance of software measurement is increasing leading to development of new measurement techniques. Reusing existing software components is a key feature in increasing software productivity. It is one of the key elements in object-oriented programming, which reduces the cost and increases the quality of the software. An important feature of C++ called templates support generic programming, which allows the programmer to develop reusable software modules such as functions, classes, etc. The need for software reusability metrics is particularly acute for an organization in order to measure the degree of generic programming included in the form of templates in code. This research addresses this need and introduces a new set of metrics for object-oriented software. Two metrics are proposed for measuring amount of genericty included in the code and then analytically evaluated against Weyuker's set of nine axioms. This set of metrics is then applied to standard projects and accordingly ways in which project managers can use these metrics are suggested.