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RESEARCH PRODUCT

A comparative review of CASE shells: A preliminary framework and research outcomes

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Abstract Because of rigidity and weak support of the user's native methods and methodologies in existing CASE tools, there is a growing need for customizable CASE tools (CASE shells). The nature of CASE shells is different from ordinary CASE tools supporting a fixed set of methods. With CASE shells, organizations can define tools to support their own methods, instead of choosing a tool that supports them. Existing CASE shells have different features and architectural principles that make them appropriate for different tasks. Obviously, a framework for comparing them is needed. In this paper we develop one such framework. It takes into account different tasks in customization and the effectiveness of carrying out these tasks. We apply the framework to compare three CASE shells. We use the SMARTIE method as an example of some characteristics of current CASE shells, and suggest some future research directions.