scope:

This recommended practice presents four contexts for a computing system tool's interconnections that offer insight into the operational problems of interconnecting computing system tools with their environment. This recommended practice establishes recommended collections of standard contextual attributes describing relationships between a computing system tool and its organizational deployment, its human user, its executable platform, and its peer tools. The values of these contextual attributes are references to organizational, industrial, and professional standards.

This recommended practice describes interconnections that need to be understood and evaluated when buying, building, testing, or using Computer-Aided Software Engineering (CASE) tools. CASE tools are developed for use in creating computing systems. By assisting users to reach a clear understanding of the context of operation for a computing system tool, this recommended practice contributes to the effective implementation and application of computing system tools.

This recommended practice does not describe the processes of evaluating, acquiring, or adopting CASE tools. This recommended practice is limited to the technical aspects of CASE tools. It does not include issues in the management, marketing, or training domains.