What middleware for network centric operations?

The main intent of this paper is to address the issue of middleware in network centric operations. To this end, we characterize a set of Information Technology capabilities that such a middleware should implement. Afterwards, we will discuss the design and architectural aspects of these capabilities. This will lead us to an efficient and practical decision support system that we call a digital cockpit. The latter is essentially a multi-tier IT platform that provides a plethora of services such as: data and service integration, monitoring, analysis, and process optimization. Moreover, the platform uses advanced display mechanisms to render the information in a structured and navigational representation that offers the possibility to drill down into the details. A significant subgoal of the paper is to discuss the quality attributes of such an NCO middleware. Finally, we present the results of an implementation of the aforesaid platform architecture.