UML Xtra-Light: How to Specify Your Software Requirements (SIGS: Managing Object Technology) [Paperback]

Milan Kratochvil (Author), Barry McGibbon (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0521892422 | ISBN-13: 978-0521892421 | Publication Date: November 18, 2002 | Edition: 1st

Business managers often find it impossible to communicate business objectives and specify their software requirements to technical members of staff. This beginner's guide to the Unified Modeling Language (UML) - the standard for documenting software designs - teaches readers to communicate with software developers in a more focused, effective way. It describes the basic diagrams of the UML modeling notation and shows how they are used to specify requirements in an unambiguous way. When applied on a project, the risk of failure through unclear requirements is removed. If you are a non-technical person with a stake in the success of a software project, this book is for you. Milan Kratochvil has worked as an IT-consultant, instructor and writer in methodology for nearly twenty-five years, focusing on areas where IT and business intersect. Barry McGibbon is a principal consultant for Princeton Softech.

Editorial Reviews

Book Description

If you are a non-technical person with a stake in the success of a software project, this book is for you. Business managers often find it impossible to communicate business objectives and specify their software requirements to technical members of staff. This beginner's guide teaches readers to communicate with software developers in a more focused, effective way. It describes the basic diagrams of the UML modeling notation and shows how they are used to specify requirements in a unambiguous way. When used on project, the risk of failure through unclear requirements is removed.

Product Details

• Paperback: 124 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press; 1st edition (November 18, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521892422
• ISBN-13: 978-0521892421
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 6.5 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #578,781 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #76 in Books > Computers & Technology > Programming > Software Design, Testing & Engineering > UML

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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Essential UML information for managers, December 20, 2002

By 

Charles Ashbacher (Marion, Iowa United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: UML Xtra-Light: How to Specify Your Software Requirements (SIGS: Managing Object Technology) (Paperback)

Effective communication between people is a very hard task, independent of the subject. When the information is imprecise and the languages are different, there is a lot of literal and figurative hand-waving and assumptions based on context. Many studies have shown that one of the major problems in software development is the difficulty that managers and developers have in communicating business needs and goals. The managers think in and speak manager-speak and the developers generally communicate in geek-speak. Since it is the responsibility of the managers to give the direction, it is reasonable to expect them to learn enough of the language of the developers to communicate the goals. The primary language of software development is now the Unified Modeling Language or UML.
UML is a large and complex language, but the fundamentals can be learned in a short time. The purpose of this book is to explain the basics of UML in a form that managers can understand. Presented in the style of a study of businesses, the words used are those of managers rather than developers. After reading the book, any manager will be much more effective in their ability to describe the purpose of the software that is to be built. However, developers with an interest in learning UML should look elsewhere.
Unclear and ambiguous software requirements cost the software industry billions of dollars every year. The one hundred pages of this book can help you substantially reduce your costs, provided you take the time and effort to understand the contents. In the new atmosphere of cost reductions, no manager of a software project can afford to ignore such a high level and rapid Return On Investment (ROI).