XML-based Variant Configuration Language

XVCL (XML-based Variant Configuration Language) is a general-purpose mark-up language for configuring variants in programs and other types of documents. We can apply XVCL to configure variants in a variety of software assets such as software architecture, program code, test cases, technical and user-level program documentation or requirement specifications. In fact, XVCL can be used for managing variants in any domain that can be represented as a collection of textual documents.

XVCL is more than a language for configuring variants. It is accompanied by a methodology and supported by a tool ? an XVCL processor. The XVCL methodology tells you how to discover the variant-structure of the solution for your application domain and for the types of variants you want to address. The XVCL processor automates what are often the most error-prone parts of program construction, allowing you to entirely focus on the essential novelty of your problems, work requiring your creativity.

XVCL is a scripting language that allows you to specify how to systematically and reliably modify programs at variation points in order to accommodate specific variants into programs. You use XVCL commands to mark variation points in your program. To facilitate effective reuse, you split your program into generic, adaptable fragments, called x-frames. Each x-frame is instrumented with XVCL commands to permit automatic customization and evolution. You organize x-frames into a hierarchy that forms an adaptable architecture for your product line.