On Criteria for Module Interfaces.

While the benefits of modular software development are widely acknowledged, there is little agreement as to what constitutes a good module interface. Computational complexity techniques allow us to evaluate algorithm time and space costs but offer no guidance in the design of the interface to an implementation. Yet, interface design decisions often have a critical effect on the development and maintenance costs of large software systems. In this paper we present criteria that have led us to simple, elegant interfaces. These criteria have been developed and refined through repeated practical application. We present the criteria in detail and illustrate their use with concrete examples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]