A comparison of three agent-oriented software development methodologies: MaSE, Gaia, and Tropos

Agent oriented software development is new research area in the field of software engineering. It is a promising approach for developing applications in complex domain. In recent years, multiple agent-oriented methodologies were introduced. However, it is difficult to select a methodology for a specific project, and their application is still limited due to their lack of maturity and standardization. Comparing some prominent agent-oriented methodologies and evaluating their strengths and weakness plays an important role in improving them. This paper presents a comparison and evaluation of three prominent agent-oriented methodologies: MaSE, Gaia, and Tropos. It is perfomed based upon a framework which addresses four major areas: concepts and properties, modelling techniques, process, and pragmatics. The results are discussed and presented.