Terminology: Difference between software interface, software component, software unit, software modu

Posted by JamieH on Stack Overflow See other posts from Stack Overflow or by JamieH
Published on 2009-07-29T22:52:34Z Indexed on 2010/04/09 4:03 UTC
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component

|

module

|

interface

I see these terms used quite a lot between various authors, but I can't seem to fix upon definitive definitions.

From my POV a software interface is a "type" specifying the way in which a software component may be used by other softare components.

But what exactly a software component is I'm not entirely sure (and it seems no-one else is either). Same goes for software unit, and software module, although I suspect that a software unit is a smaller, ahem, unit than a component, and a software module has something to do with packaging.

I hope this is not deemed (and downvoted) as frivulous, as I have serious intent in the asking.

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