As you explored the resources, you learned how IT professionals use different modeling tools and techniques to better understand the design of a system. One of the most prominent modeling tools is a Unified Modeling Language (UML) activity diagram. A UML activity diagram for a soon-to-be designed system is like the architect’s blueprint for coding the solution; it illustrates the workflow of a system. Due to their complex nature, UML activity diagrams are often developed through collaboration between the system analyst and the development team. These diagrams are high level and can easily be understood by members of a project team who do not have as much technical experience, such as stakeholders and project managers. For this module’s discussion, you and your peers will reflect on UML activity diagrams.
In your initial post, answer the following questions:
- Based on what you’ve already learned about system design and analysis, as well as the software development life cycle, discuss in what phase you think a UML activity diagram should be created.
- Why is it important to develop a UML activity diagram prior to the developers writing the code for a system?
- How can you see these diagrams being helpful to you as a future developer or IT professional on a project team?
- (Optional) What’s the relationship, if any, between use case diagrams and UML activity diagrams?
In your responses to your peers:
- Discuss whether you agree or disagree with the claims that your peers make.
- Reflect on what could happen if the system solution acts differently than what is shown in the UML activity diagram.
post 1
Filippo Lussana posted Jul 12, 2021 10:56 PM
Based on what I have learned about system design and analysis, I believe that a UML activity diagram should be created during the system analysis phase. “The overall objective of the systems analysis phase is to understand the proposed project, ensure that it will support business requirements, and build a solid foundation for system development” (Tilley & Rosenblatt, 2016). Since the system analysis phase provides information regarding the system, including its requirement and guidelines for the developers, I think the UML activity diagram is also part of this phase as it shows actions and events that will take place in the system.
It is important to develop a UML activity diagram prior to the developers writing the code for a system because, in that way, the development team will have a better understanding of how the system works. “Sequence diagrams, state transition diagrams, and activity diagrams are dynamic modeling tools that can help a systems analyst understand how objects behave and interact with the system” (Tilley & Rosenblatt, 2016). System analysts will provide developers with different diagrams to support the development of the system. In the case of the UML activity diagrams, if developers don’t have a clear overview of the actions and the connection between the events for the project, then there may be issues during the development process, which will require time to fix and code again.
I think that these diagrams will be helpful to me either as a developer or IT professional while working on a project team because they will have an impact on the overall development process of a system. The diagrams will help me understand each system’s requirements and functionalities so that it will be easier for me to collaborate and communicate with the other team members or write the necessary code instead of adding unnecessary or wrong functions and objects to the system.
References
Tilley S., & Rosenblatt H. J. (2016). Systems Analysis and Design. [MBS Direct]. Retrieved from https://mbsdirect.vitalsource.com/#/books/9781305533936/
post 2
Kiersten Dyer posted Jul 13, 2021 8:55 AM
Creating a UML activity diagram would be beneficial to construct during the analysis phase. UML activity diagrams help to lay the groundwork for the direction of the project. Interviews and other research would be used to aid in building this diagram, which gives a clear and logical picture of what the project intends to accomplish. “A complex enterprise application with many collaborators will require a solid foundation of planning and clear, concise communication among team members as the project progresses.” (SmartDraw, n.d.) Creating a UML activity diagram before developers write the code for the system ensures that the project is accomplishing its goals. It gives the developers a blue print to work from that lays out the logistics and gives a solid guide for the code development. As an IT professional, this diagram would be extremely helpful in offering a visual of the organization of the proposed system. This visual would give clear and organized understanding of the process and structure of the project. Drawing out the logistics with a UML activity diagram allows those without a technical background to have a clearer picture of the system goals and design as well. “Visualizing user interactions, processes, and the structure of the system you’re trying to build will help save time down the line and make sure everyone on the team is on the same page.” (SmartDraw, n.d.)
Use case diagrams are a part of UML activity diagrams. “In UML, use-case diagrams model the behavior of a system and help to capture the requirements of the system.” (IBM, n.d.)
References
IBM. (n.d.). Use-case diagrams. https://www.ibm.com/docs/en/rsar/9.5?topic=diagrams-use-case
SmartDraw. (n.d.). UML diagram. https://www.smartdraw.com/uml-diagram/
0 comments