EXPLORATIVE UML MODELING - Comparing the Usability of UML Tools

Martin Auer, Ludwig Meyer, Stefan Biffl

2007

Abstract

UML tools are used in three main ways: (1) to exploratively sketch key system components during initial project stages; (2) to manage large software systems by keeping design and implementation synchronized; and (3) to extensively document a system after implementation. Professional tools cover (3) to some extent, and attempt to cover (2), but the vast number of languages, frameworks and deployment procedures makes those tasks all but impossible. By aiming at these two goals, tools must enforce formal UML language constructs more rigorously and thus become more complicated. They can become unsuitable for (1). This paper looks at explorative modeling with the leading UML tool Rational Rose and the open-source sketching tool UMLet. We define usability measures, assess both tools’ performance for common UML design tasks, and comment on the consequences for the application of UML tools.

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Paper Citation


in Harvard Style

Auer M., Meyer L. and Biffl S. (2007). EXPLORATIVE UML MODELING - Comparing the Usability of UML Tools . In Proceedings of the Ninth International Conference on Enterprise Information Systems - Volume 3: ICEIS, ISBN 978-972-8865-90-0, pages 466-473. DOI: 10.5220/0002351804660473


in Bibtex Style

@conference{iceis07,
author={Martin Auer and Ludwig Meyer and Stefan Biffl},
title={EXPLORATIVE UML MODELING - Comparing the Usability of UML Tools},
booktitle={Proceedings of the Ninth International Conference on Enterprise Information Systems - Volume 3: ICEIS,},
year={2007},
pages={466-473},
publisher={SciTePress},
organization={INSTICC},
doi={10.5220/0002351804660473},
isbn={978-972-8865-90-0},
}


in EndNote Style

TY - CONF
JO - Proceedings of the Ninth International Conference on Enterprise Information Systems - Volume 3: ICEIS,
TI - EXPLORATIVE UML MODELING - Comparing the Usability of UML Tools
SN - 978-972-8865-90-0
AU - Auer M.
AU - Meyer L.
AU - Biffl S.
PY - 2007
SP - 466
EP - 473
DO - 10.5220/0002351804660473