Some UML Modeling Tools (as of April 2008)
Different UML tools have different features to meet different
needs of students and professionals, informal modelers and hard-core
modelers. All of the following UML tools have benefits and
costs (difficulty of learning and use, unreliability, etc. -- not
necessarily monetary costs). These are not
endorsements. Talk to colleagues about their experiences with
the tools, evaluate the tools before committing too much to them, and
manage your risks.
- Often, the most effective UML modeling tool is the
simplest: pencil and paper or a marker and whiteboard. A
camera phone is good for "digitizing" paper and whiteboard for
electcronic sharing.
- Wikipedia has a more comprehensive list of UML tools
- Microsoft Visio
- Visio is available to SE students under the Microsoft
Academic Alliance
- Go to the SE Department web site (http://www.se.rit.edu)
and navigate to Facilities > Software Vendor Alliances
- The built-in Microsoft UML stencil is
problematic. It is trying to build an underlying model and
metamodel that integrates with Visual Studio, but it forces you into
incorrect or inconvenient model notations.
- Instead, download
Pavel Hruby's UML 2.x Stencil and Template for Visio from
http://www.phruby.com/stencildownload.html
- It provides an effective diagramming stencil
without trying to build an underlying model
- Omondo UML is an Eclipse Plug-in
- ArgoUML is an open-source UML modeling tool
- Go to http://argouml.tigris.org/
- The Java Web Start version does not require that you
install ArgoUML on your machine (convenient to use in the SE labs)
- It currently (2008-04-03) supports UML 1.4, not 2.x
- Poseiden for UML is a commercial product based on the
ArgoUML base
- Visual Paradigm for UML
- BOUML
- StarUML
- There are numerous professional-quality tools with somewhat high learning curves, but powerful features
- IBM Rational Software Developer Platform family of
products
- Consider Rational Software Architect (including Modeler,
Rapid Application Developer, etc.)
- It is available for your use in the curriculum under
the Academic Initiative
- We also have training materials (courseware)
- Contact Scott Hawker
- Borland Together (http://www.borland.com/us/products/together/)
- Telelogic Tau (http://www.telelogic.com/products/tau/index.cfm)
- Telelogic Modeler is a free version
- Telelogic is now part of IBM Rational. The Telelogic tools focus on embedded systems.
- For Mac OS X,
- There are numerous other tools
- Let Scott Hawker know of your experiences with
them and we can update this page
- https://wiki.gnome.org/Apps/Dia
- LucidChart
-
http://www.umlet.com/
- http://violet.sourceforge.net