Pyhtonic UML was 'Re: How to actually write a program?'

[Neil Benn]

Ville Vainio wrote:

>
>There should really be a pythonic alternative to UML.
>
<snip>
Hello,

          I've not commented about my original UML post because I didn't 
want to start a row about UML.  However I do like your idea of a simpler 
cleaner UML to allow to go back and forth without needing a full blown 
UML case tool.  The thing I really like about this is that you could 
write this and easily convert it into your source code (if round-trip 
engineering yanks your chain) or to XMI so it can be exported/imported 
from/to other systems.  I'm gonna have a go at writing one of my designs 
(sequence is easy - class would be more difficult) down in a pure way to 
see if I can get it to be readable, clean and obvious.

    On the XP side, sorry but I do think that the two really do go hand 
in hand - every XP programmer will have an overall idea of how the 
system works (on paper or in head), if it is a team of programmers then 
you will have a design written down somewhere (or how do you all work 
together).  In addition, every UML 'round-trip' enthusiast will have 
some tests in their code - it may not be as rigorous as XP but they will 
have tests.

    To my mind the best solution is to have both systems - trying to 
understand a large 'enterprise' class system without UML can be a real 
pig.  If I have the class diagram(s) with supporting sequence diagrams 
then I can easily work out how it all fits together.  If I have the 
tests written for me then I can run the tests for each module of the 
system and investigate the behavior under the various conditions as laid 
out in the requirements specification.

    One other thing about XP, tests are also excellent for the 
maintainability of code, running the tests on all code in your source 
repository (at midnight, when else!!) and reporting back the errors 
really allows you to keep a hold on your body of source code.

    Anyway my new laptop with an English (read British, the pound - 
currency - sign is proudly sitting above the 3 where it should be!) 
keyboard has just turned up so I'm gonna have a play!!

Cheers,

Neil

-- 

Neil Benn
Senior Automation Engineer
Cenix BioScience
BioInnovations Zentrum
Tatzberg 47
D-01307
Dresden
Germany

Tel : +49 (0)351 4173 154
e-mail : benn at cenix-bioscience.com
Cenix Website : http://www.cenix-bioscience.com