Unified Modeling Language

• Grady Booch's methodology for describing a set of objects and their relationships
• James Rumbaugh's Object-Modeling Technique (OMT)
• Ivar Jacobson's approach which includes a use case methodology

Martin Fowler, in his book UML Distilled, observes that, although UML is a notation system enabling people to communicate about a model, it is developed from methodologies that also describe the processes in developing and using the model. While there is no one accepted process, the contributors to UML all describe somewhat similar approaches and these are usually described along with tutorials about UML itself.

Among the concepts of modeling that UML specifies how to describe are: class (of objects), object, association, responsibility, activity, interface, use case, package, sequence, collaboration, and state. Fowler's book provides a good introduction to UML. Booch, Rumbaugh, and Jacobson all have or soon will have published the "offficial" set of books on UML.

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More resources from around the web: - Rational Software, now part of IBM, provides a UML Resource Center. - Iconix offers an illustrated (if brief) paper about UML. - Softpro offers a number of books about UML .

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