Quality models to design software architectures

We address the problems related with the construction of quality software systems. A generally accepted claim is that the evaluation and control of each stage of development in a well-defined process will improve the overall quality of the final software product. In particular, we are interested in the early analysis and design stages, where the architecture of the system is an intermediate product. Several approaches are discussed, where quality models are established in order to determine the influence of the system non-functional characteristics, as part of the software initial requirements, on the final software system. These characteristics affect mostly the software system structure or architecture. The main goal is to discuss three important approaches based on quality models: ISO 9126, Dromey and ABAS (Attribute-Based Architectural Styles), and establish several criteria or points of comparison.