Abstract
For the past two years, the author has been working to create a handbook of software architecture (www.booch.com/architecture) and will continue to work on it for another two to three years. The handbook's primary goal is to codify the architecture of 100 interesting software-intensive systems, presenting them in a manner that exposes their essential patterns and permits comparisons across domains and architectural styles. In this ongoing column, Booch will share some of his experiences as he continues his research. © 2006 IEEE.