Visualizing requirements: modelling the user's routine
S. Armstrong · 2000
This paper assumes the viewpoint of a developer faced with the problem of understanding what each of the potential users of a software system does. Can each of the user's tasks be recorded in such a way that will help us produce a useful and usable software system? One response is to model. Unfortunately, you will need a set of models since each model has its own strengths and weaknesses. In particular, one sort of model is unlikely to be sufficiently expressive to capture everything you need. The paper considers a way of using the diagrams incorporated in the Unified Modeling Language (UML) that might just help that developer get to grips with the above problem. It is not intended to be a complete solution-there are “no silver bullets”. It is intended to make sure that an agreed scenario can be followed throughout the development of a software system. As the UML's reference guide states, models are used “to capture and precisely state requirements and domain knowledge so that all stakeholders may understand and agree on them” (www.omg.org). In effect, a sub-theme of this paper is traceability. (3 pages)