VR-SDLC: A Context-Enhanced Life Cycle Visualization of Software-or-Systems Development in Virtual Reality

As systems grow in complexity, so does their associated lifecycle and with it the need to manage the various elements, relations, and activities involved in the Software (or Systems) Development Life Cycle (SDLC). Various notations for system, software, or process modeling have been specified, such as the Systems Modeling Language (SysML), Unified Modeling Language (UML), and Business Process Model and Notation (BPMN) respectively, yet due to their target system and two-dimensional (2D) diagram focus, they are ill suited for visualizing a comprehensive contextualized view of the entire systems engineering or software engineering lifecycle. To address lifecycle modeling, the Lifecycle Modeling Language (LML) utilizes a relatively simple ontology and three primary diagrams while supporting extensibility. Yet lifecycle comprehension, analysis, collaboration, and contextual insights remain constrained by current 2D limitations. This paper contributes our Virtual Reality (VR) solution concept VR-SDLC for contextualized holistic visualization of SDLC elements, relations, and diagrams. Our prototype implementation utilizing LML demonstrates its feasibility, while a case study exhibits its potential.