Future Directions for CAPE-OPEN interfaces

11 APRIL 2013

Feedback on session
held Sep 18, 2012, Lyon, France

Following the discussion session held at the European Annual Meeting last September, the CO-LaN Management Board (MB) has now reviewed the feedback provided. Our conclusions and next steps are documented below.

The MB will provide feedback on progress at the next European meeting (Lyon, 18/19th September 2013), but welcomes contributions or comments from all members at any time.

Our thanks to everybody who participated in the session, your contributions were extremely valuable and will help shape the direction for CO-LaN and CAPE-OPEN in the years to come.

Malcolm Woodman
President
11th April 2013

CONSULTANCY SERVICE
CO-LaN will proceed with the Consultancy Service, as presented in Lyon. The general feeling is that such a service will be valuable to (in particular) the smaller suppliers, although the service itself will be open to everyone.

Full details of the terms of the Service will be published shortly, along with the first call for requests for support via the Service.

COMMUNICATION
The feedback from the session was very strongly in favour of communication via modern methods, e.g. web seminars and webcasts rather than by live on-site presentations & workshops.

The MB is fully in agreement with this, and is therefore taking the following actions:

  1. Identify suitable cost-effective solutions for CO-LaN to deliver both web seminars and webcasts, rather than relying on solutions provided by the members
  2. Schedule a web seminar for the launch of the Consultancy Service
    (but not necessarily using the CO-LaN provided solution)
  3. Develop a short (15 minute) webcast giving an introduction to the CAPE-OPEN standards. This will not only be valuable in its own right, but will provide significant insight into the best ways of providing subsequent material

CAPE-OPEN OBJECT MODEL (COOM)
The feedback from the meeting was mixed. Some attendees were strongly in favour, whilst others were far less enthusiastic. The strongest message was that if CO-LaN proceeds with the development of a CO Object Model, then it must be compatible with the current COM interfaces, i.e. use of the new COOM will not require wholesale re-writes of existing interfaces.

Given the reservations, the MB has therefore asked the Methods & Tools SIG to do the following:

  • Develop a low-cost cut-down prototype (Proof-of-Concept) to demonstrate the principles and understand better the issues around compatibility with existing interfaces (to be delivered by end 2013)
  • Subject to results of prototype, develop the specification for the full Object Model and a plan for development (2014)

CO-LAN FUNDING MODEL
The MB is recommending that there is no change in the funding model, i.e. only full members will pay for the membership of CO-LaN.