A Just-In-Time Architectural Knowledge Sharing Portal

In recent years, management of architectural knowledge has become a more prominent theme in software architecture research. Although various specialized tools have been proposed for use in the architecting process, observations show that architects in industry have yet to meet a tool environment that matches their knowledge needs. In order to discover what architectural knowledge needs architects have, we conducted a study in a large organization. In this study we discovered that architects are especially in need for 'just-in-time architectural knowledge'. To fulfill this need we designed and implemented an architectural knowledge sharing portal. Our portal's integrated functionality supports architects in their decision-making process, by providing easy access to the right architectural knowledge at any given point in time.