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As demands on functional and non-functional objectives of computer systems
have continued unabated for the last 30-years, so has the size of the
resultant systems. They have become extremely large, consisting of scores of
distributed and parallel software, hardware, and communications components.
In addition, they increasingly interface with a large number of external
devices, such as sensors and actuators. Large (and certain small) systems
also tend to be complex because of the number of interconnections between
their components tends to be large and complicated. As users are placing
increasing importance on such non-functional objectives as availability,
fault-tolerance, security, safety, and traceability, the operation of a
complex computer system is also required to be ``non-stop'', ``real-time'',
adaptable, and dependable in a graceful degradation sense. It is typical that
components of such systems evolve over time, that their logical and physical
interconnections change, and that the operational semantics of the system
change accordingly, often leading to increased system complexity. Other
factors that may also affect complexity are geographic distribution of
processing and databases, humans in the loop, and unpredictability of
system reactions to unexpected sequences of external events.
We thus define the engineering of complex computer systems as all activities
pertinent to specifying, designing, prototyping, building, testing, operating,
maintaining, and evolving of complex computer systems. While in the past,
relatively non-complex ``traditional'' systems sufficed for most computer
control applications, the new and emerging demands of applications and the
evolution of computer architectures and networks now essentially ``force''
systems to be complex, given our current understanding how to engineer these
systems. Complex computer systems are found in almost every industry. These
include industrial process control, aerospace and defense, transportation and
communications, energy and utilities, medical and health, commercial data
processing, and others. Unfortunately, the current state-of-the-art in
research and technology has clearly fallen far behind the requirements of
industrial, commercial and government complex computer systems.
The
IEEE
Computer Society
created the Technical Segment Committee on Engineering of Complex
Computer Systems (TSC on ECCS) in November 1993.
The TSC on ECCS is endorsed by the Technical Committees
(TCs) on Distributed Processing, Multimedia Computing, Parallel Processing,
Real-Time Systems, Security and Privacy, and Software Engineering,
and the Task Force (TF) on Engineering of Computer-Based Systems.
The TSC on ECCS is also endorsed by GI/GMA Technical Committee on
Real-Time Systems, IFAC COMPUT and its six related Technical Committees,
and various industrial and government organizations.
Responding to a strong need and significant interest from
a number of international communities of practitioners, engineers and
academics in ECCS-related products and services, TSC on ECCS serves to give
leadership to the development and on-going monitoring of a set of
appropriate IEEE CS activities (conferences, tutorials, publications,
periodicals, curricula and standards) to strengthen the society itself and,
to have a significant and lasting effect on international industrial
and government decision-making in the engineering of complex computer systems.
The TSC on ECCS has already identified and through the TCs initiated
a number of efforts.
Two Education Subcommittees (Academic Education, and Industrial and
Continuing Education) have started. These two Subcommittees will work
to define and fascilitate curricula, materials and publications to provide
adequate ECCS educational means for engineering and computer science
students and professionals.
Work is under way on a new annual IEEE conference --- the International
Conference on Engineering of Complex Computer Systems (ICECCS).
The first conference is planned for November 1995 and will take place in
Florida, USA.
ICECCS'95 is expected to be sponsored by a number of
IEEE TC/TFs, drawn primarily from those that endorsed the TSC.
The second conference will take place in Europe/Middle East, in
November 1996. The ICECCS conference series will be particularly
receptive to new research, technology and product activities of
interest to practitioners, engineers and academics in the ECCS area.
The TSC on ECCS seeks to fascilitate special issues of existing
periodicals, tutorial publications and other publications in the
ECCS area.
A newsletter, circulated electronically and by mail, has been
started.
To receive the newsletter electronically, send e-mail to
hinchey@cis-gw.njit.edu
,
with ``subscribe'' in the subject field.
To make inquiries, please send a note to the same account.
To receive the newsletter by conventional mail, send your name
and full mailing address to the TSC on ECCS newsletter editor:
Mike Hinchey
Computer & Information Science
New Jersey Institute of Technology
University Heights
Newark, New Jersey 07102 USA
E-Mail: Hinchey@cis-gw.njit.edu
World-Wide Web pages for the TSC and its newsletter have also been
established. Current and back issues of the newsletter, and other material
relevant to the TSC on ECCS can be accessed vie:
http://www.cl.cam.ac.uk/IEEE-TSC-ECCS/eccs.html
In addition, an anonymous ftp has been set up as
ftp.cl.cam.ac.uk
.
Login as ``anonymous'' and use your complete email address (e.g.
``Hinchey@cis-gw.njit.edu'') as password.
The TSC files can be found in the directory ``~/IEEE-TSC-ECCS''.
The directory will be used for storing various TSC on ECCS
material for public dissemination.
Chairs and Endorsing Organizations
- Alexander Stoyenko (Chair, TSC on ECCS)
- Elliot Chikofsky (Chair, TC on SE)
- Wolfgang Halang (Chair, GMA/GI WG on RT)
- Mike Hinchey (Newsletter Editor, TSC on ECCS)
- Tadao Ichikawa (Chair, TC on MM)
- Jonah Lavi (Chair, TF on ECBS)
- Phillip Laplante (Chair, Subcommittee on Education, TSC on ECCS)
- Leo Motus (Chair, IFAC COMPUT)
- Viktor Prasanna (Chair, TC on PP)
- Jack Stankovic (Chair, TC on RTS)
- Joe Urban (Chair, TC on DP)
- Terry Vickers Benzel (Chair, TC on SP)
Current Complete List of Volunteers
We also maintain a complete list of volunteers.
The TSC on ECCS wants to hear from anyone and everyone with an interest in
this exciting technical area, or in any of the listed activities. All such
parties are cordially invited to contact the TSC on ECCS chair at the
following address:
Prof. Alexander Stoyenko
Real-Time Computing Laboratory
Computer & Information Science
New Jersey Institute of Technology
University Heights
Newark, New Jersey 07102 USA
(201) 596-3366 (office) (201) 596-5777 (fax)
E-mail: alex@vulcan.njit.edu
The IEEE TSC on ECCS Electronic Newsletter is a collection of
very useful information on the IEEE TSC on ECCS and various
contributions related to Engineering Complex Computer Systems.
We also maintain a WWW Edition of our newsletter.
Copyright © 1995
H.T.G. Weffers.
All rights reserved.
Permission to republish this electronic document is granted
provided that it is republished in its entirety with no additions,
deletions or modifications. Any use or sale for
profit is strictly prohibited.
Last updated and
validated
on Tue 11 April 1995.
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