FAIME: An object-oriented methodology for application plug-and-play

We present FAIME, an object-oriented methodology for application interoperation and plug-and-play, The goal of application interoperation is to make two independently developed applications work with each other. Overlapping databases need to be synchronized. Tasks started in one application may need to be continued/completed in another application. The goal of application plug-and-play is to make an application interoperate with multiple competing applications that have similar functions. The FAIME methodology helps users to focus on the essential problems of application interoperation and plug-and-play, while providing tools to overcome accidental obstacles. FAIME also provides a set of tools to capture analysis knowledge for application interoperation and reuse them for plug-and-play. Executable objects are generated to overcome accidental difficulties such as different operating systems, communication middleware, and databases. FAIME is designed especially to accommodate legacy applications of various degrees of openness, and FAIME has been successfully implemented in the area of manufacturing enterprise applications.