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[Jabberwocky]

Nobody asked for your opinion dimwit.

I am so sorry - I should have said rabid.

[TheMonkey]

UML is a modelling tool. It is synonymous to schematics in electronics engineering. It is a simple language-independant communication tool for modelling and visualising systems.

It's an attempt to move software into an engineering discipline, like others such as mechanical engineering and electronics.

Don't forget that "designing" software is relatively new and it takes many decades to formalise something. Look at how many years it has taken to formalise electronics for example.

We might see something "standardised" by the time we're dead.

As for practical use, I use it for everything. It tends to let me see a crock before it hits the system so I can beat my subordinates around a bit until they submit...

[stackpole]

And since they've just taken all the lead out of solder, none of it will work anyway.

Fecking EU.

I hear they are going to ban the use of electricity too.

[Francko]

UML is a modelling tool. It is synonymous to schematics in electronics engineering. It is a simple language-independant communication tool for modelling and visualising systems.

It's nothing new. All developers used to have their own analysis model. Problem is that it was either mental or written in some personal obscure way. So now it will be much easier for the other developers in the team to understand what the others are doing and for future developers to have a track of what was done. UML doesn't pinpoint too much, just as much as ITIL, it sets out a framework and leaves quite a lot of freedom in the interpretation of the rules. It won't tell you that you need to go from A to B and then F to Z, it just tells you that you have to go from A to Z, how, it's up to you (of course, you have to streamline consistently otherwise your model would be evidently self-failing). Now, I am just waiting until the most backward discipline will realise that it also needs to be approached in a more scientific way: management. And then there will be less bullsh1tters and more competent people who can formalise processes and design workflow and dynamic simulations with a minimum of possible quantitative analysis.

And to answer your questions, AtW, yes, you can use UML for management too. There was a discipline called object-oriented project management with UML but that is, of course, limited to object-oriented architectures. Besides, RUP inherits the main features of UML and focuses on activity-based costing so that you can add business analytical capabilities to an otherwise purely technical analysis. As you see the process has already started, the bullsh1tters, the most common segment of the current IT panorama, have their days numbered. Who is going to bring the bottle of champagne to celebrate?

[AtW]

It seems to me that this UML, ITIL, UTWHAtever is just a job creation scheme for the managers who do not really add value.

[Francko]

It seems to me that this UML, ITIL, UTWHAtever is just a job creation scheme for the managers who do not really add value.

Well, look at the bright side, would you rather prefer them spending countless hours in useless meetings or would you rather have them doing proper work? Who brings more value is a pointless exercise. But would you imagine if developers would use their time in meetings discussing how polyphormism can be used to make cherry jams?

[AtW]

Every senior developer should be able to self manage project - the less "interconnects" the faster, cheaper and more reliably the system operates. The only thing managers might be useful for is to facilitate things with external people - generally developers have got poor social skillz, so this is when some nice girl in mini skirt would be helpful to get required info from 3rd parties easily.