The visual variables in UML
Yosser El Ahmar, Xavier Le Pallec, Sébastien Gérard · 2018
This paper presents results of an empirical research study of the Unified Modeling Language (UML) actual state of practice. It reports on a quantitative analysis of > 3500 UML diagrams related to open source projects in GitHub. The aim of the study is to shed light on the use of the visual variables (i.e., color, size, brightness, texture/grain, shape and orientation) in UML, with a particular focus on the practices of women in such usages. The theoretical perspective of the study is to explore the usefulness of the visual variables in UML. These latter are highly significant in reducing the cognitive load of human beings, when effectively employed. We conclude by discussions of the obtained results and commenting on the role of women in the projects involving visual variations in their diagrams.