From Vaporware to Software: The Relational Avionics Planning Tool for Operational Requirements (RAPTOR)

摘要

At the 1997 Joint Avionics Weapons Systems conference (JAWS 97) the author presented a paper entitled 'Do You Dare Reuse Software Without Extensive Testing.' That paper defined the Air Force's new technology planning activity, the Air Force Modernization Planning Process (AFMPP), and the need for information systems that could support that activity. It described one such information system, RAPTOR, that was created by the author through software reuse and discussed the resulting pluses and minuses of a reuse approach. Finally, it laid out plans for future enhancements to both the existing information system and the tools used for application development. This paper happily reports and assesses the progress that has been made in the RAPTOR development since JAWS 97. It will cover the rational for RAPTOR's development, present details on RAPTOR's main features, discuss traps and pitfalls encountered during the development and how to avoid them, and finally, present a look-ahead to the next generation RAPTOR. One of the major events in the RAPTOR development was to scrap its FoxPro implementation and replace it with a version implemented in Microsoft Access and Visual Basic 5. The rational for replacing this development environment is discussed along with near-term and far-term benefits realized as a result of the change.