Towards a symbiosis between aspect-oriented and component-based software development

In this paper we present a novel approach, called FuseJ, for achieving a symbiosis between aspect-oriented and component-based software development. We build on previous research that proposes a new aspect-oriented programming language tailored for the component-based field, called JAsCo. Although JAsCo provides us with some nice results, we argue that a symbiosis between aspects and components is essential. To achieve this symbiosis, we describe the first steps towards a new component model, where both aspects and components are described in the same base component language. Each component is equipped with a number of homogeneous gates that allow accessing a particular feature. An application is assembled by interconnecting these gates, using explicit connectors, which contain the fall expressive power for specifying crosscutting communication. As crosscutting behavior is specified as regular components, aspects and components can not be differentiated and a true symbiosis has been obtained.