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As noted in the Introduction, the term business rules means different things to dif-
ferent people. The term can be used so widely that it becomes meaningless. For
instance, the author has seen the following stated as a business rule in an investment
partnership:
The portfolio shall earn no less than 10% a year.
Simply saying that this is a rule does not bring it any closer to happening, though
a lot of people might wish it would. It is also very difficult to imagine a foolproof
way that such a “rule” could be implemented. Of course, it is not really a rule, but a
goal or a target.
There is similar confusion about business rules engines. If a term such as busi-
ness rules engine is “hot,” then it will be used more frequently by anyone who feels
that ...