What do you mean by COTS? Finally, a useful answer

The use of the "COTS" acronym can be a convenience, but it can also lead to confusion. The authors propose a mechanism that clarifies communication about components, improves understanding of how components are used in particular systems, and sheds light on evaluation strategies. The method separates attributes along different axes of interest, locating each component in a graphical space with different axes of interest and multiple points of interest. Given the need for better understanding of component-based systems and their growing importance, the value of such a mechanism could outweigh the increased effort of using it.