Learning UML

Documents

A UML document is a grouping of sections about a common subject, including any non-UML diagrams, textual documents, and other supporting information. UML documents are models. For example, the English language groups sections into documents, such as this book. A model is a representation of a system. For example, all the figures in this chapter and their supporting textual documentation are a model of the project management system. The elements that make up a model are known as model elements. For example, any element used on the diagrams in this chapter, with any supporting documentation necessary for communicating about that element, forms a model element.

The relationship between models, architectural views, and diagrams is similar to the relationship between databases, views, and queries. A database houses data, views organize subsets of the data into meaningful information, and queries extract subsets of the information. A model element is similar to a data element in the database, view elements are similar to data elements used within views, and diagram elements are similar to data elements used within queries. This establishes a general scheme or approach for how the UML is organized and how it allows us to communicate.

Because the UML is a language and not a methodology, it does not prescribe any explicit steps for applying models to develop a system given its requirements, but any methodology may generally address the models in association with these architectural ...