Design Principles
The following principles guide every architectural decision in ATON.
1. Everything is an Artifact
Every engineering object is represented as an artifact.
Requirements, tasks, models, reviews, tests, risks, projects and documents all share the same foundation.
2. Relationships are First-Class Citizens
Relationships are explicit engineering knowledge.
They have semantics, history, versioning and lifecycle.
3. Everything is Versioned
Every artifact and every relationship evolves over time.
History must never be lost.
4. Knowledge over Documents
Documents are views.
Knowledge is the source of truth.
5. Git is the Source of Truth
Git provides immutable history, branching and collaboration.
ATON builds on Git instead of replacing it.
6. Human-Readable Persistence
Engineering knowledge should remain understandable without ATON.
Whenever possible, persisted data should be readable by humans.
7. Keep the Kernel Small
The kernel provides only fundamental engineering services.
Everything else belongs in capabilities.
8. Capabilities build on the Kernel
Requirements Management, Modeling, Testing, Project Management and AI are capabilities.
They never redefine kernel concepts.
9. API First
Every capability must be accessible through stable APIs.
User interfaces are consumers of the same services.
10. AI Augments Engineers
AI supports engineers.
Engineering decisions always remain under human control.
11. Open by Design
Open formats.
Open standards.
Open architecture.
Whenever possible, avoid vendor lock-in.
12. Simplicity over Complexity
Simple concepts scale better than complex frameworks.
Architecture should be understandable before it becomes powerful.