Summary

Visual modeling is a way of thinking about problems using models organized around real-world ideas. Models are useful for understanding problems, communication, modeling enterprises, preparing documentation, and designing programs and databases. Modeling promotes better understanding of requirements, cleaner designs, and more maintainable systems. Notation plays an important part in any model—it is the glue that holds the process together. The Unified Modeling Language (UML) provides a very robust notation, which grows from analysis into design.

A successful development project satisfies or exceeds the customer's expectations, is developed in a timely and economical fashion, and is resilient to change and adaptation. The development life cycle must promote creativity and innovation. A well-managed iterative and incremental life cycle provides the necessary control without affecting creativity. In an iterative and incremental development life cycle, development proceeds as a series of iterations that evolve into the final system. Each iteration consists of one or more of the following process components: business modeling, requirements, analysis, design, implementation, test, and deployment.