Usage-based chunking of Software Architecture information to assist information finding

One of the key problems with Software Architecture Documents (ADs)2 is the difficulty of finding information required from them. Most existing studies focus on the production of ADs or Architectural Knowledge (AK)3, to allow them to support information finding. However, there has been little focus placed on the consumption of ADs. To address this, we postulate the existence of a concept of “usage-based chunks” of architectural information discoverable from consumers' usage of ADs when they engage in information-seeking tasks. In a set of user studies, we have found evidence that such usage-based chunks exist and that useful chunks can be identified from one type of usage data, namely, consumer's ratings of sections of ADs. This has implications for tool design to support the effective reuse of AK.