What tools do you use for designing software?
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Our last major project we used Enterprise Architect, our next one I'm going to use pencil and paper. We started with EA and after development started we found it was just too time consuming to keep the model up to date and in the end irrelevant. In the project there are about 300 objects but there is only really about 15 completely different *types* so it was a lot of work for little gain since all I really needed to know to code it was to take a prototype of each type of object then copy, paste and modify as appropriate. I also learned over the course of the project the value of being super consistent with naming and types of properties for each object. In the end it's best to identify rough groupings of objects by type and the properties they will have in common then go from there. Paper (well word processor or simple database) is just easier all around.
John Cardinal wrote:
In the project there are about 300 objects but there is only really about 15 completely different *types* so it was a lot of work for little gain since all I really needed to know to code it was to take a prototype of each type of object then copy, paste and modify as appropriate.
Copy-and-paste programming without being ashamed? :suss:
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digital man wrote:
pencil
Bah! Real men use pens. :-D
-- They don't really want you to play "Freebird". They're just heckling you!
Joergen Sigvardsson wrote:
Bah! Real men use pens.
Bah! REAL men use chisels so the design is done right the first time and lasts, thus the expression, "written in stone." ;P
_________________________ Asu no koto o ieba, tenjo de nezumi ga warau. Talk about things of tomorrow and the mice in the ceiling laugh. (Japanese Proverb)
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Joergen Sigvardsson wrote:
Bah! Real men use pens.
Bah! REAL men use chisels so the design is done right the first time and lasts, thus the expression, "written in stone." ;P
_________________________ Asu no koto o ieba, tenjo de nezumi ga warau. Talk about things of tomorrow and the mice in the ceiling laugh. (Japanese Proverb)
BAh! The really real men gnaw their designs into the hides taken from yesterdays game!
-- They don't really want you to play "Freebird". They're just heckling you!
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John Cardinal wrote:
In the project there are about 300 objects but there is only really about 15 completely different *types* so it was a lot of work for little gain since all I really needed to know to code it was to take a prototype of each type of object then copy, paste and modify as appropriate.
Copy-and-paste programming without being ashamed? :suss:
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digital man wrote:
pencil
Bah! Real men use pens. :-D
-- They don't really want you to play "Freebird". They're just heckling you!
That reminds me of a note my office-mate hung on our wall. "Real men test online" Our supervisor always looked at it with a bit of concern.
BW
Quick to judge, quick to anger, slow to understand.
Ignorance and prejudice and fear walk hand in hand.
-- Neil Peart -
BAh! The really real men gnaw their designs into the hides taken from yesterdays game!
-- They don't really want you to play "Freebird". They're just heckling you!
Joergen Sigvardsson wrote:
The really real men gnaw their designs into the hides taken from yesterdays game!
hah! that is "old school" REALLY new real men redesign their own DNA and pass the code on to their children to write the designs for them! ;P (this has all the earmarks of an endless argument) :laugh:
_________________________ Asu no koto o ieba, tenjo de nezumi ga warau. Talk about things of tomorrow and the mice in the ceiling laugh. (Japanese Proverb)
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BAh! The really real men gnaw their designs into the hides taken from yesterdays game!
-- They don't really want you to play "Freebird". They're just heckling you!
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pencil and paper.
I agree with that. I get through about half a dozen large bound pads every year with diagrams, notes, ideas, etc. It is so much easier (and more logicial IMO) to get a design worked out with pencil and paper and then translate it onto a computer than it is to think with a keyboard. But, amazingly, I have never had to sharpen my pencil in almost two years. I honestly do not know how that works, but it still writes with a good point. * * if anyone can shed some light on this mystery I would greatly appreciate it! And no it is not a Biro! :rolleyes: Where ideas need to be shared during design I fall back on whiteboards. I have a big one on the wall above my desk and two smaller ones (18x24 inches) that I keep behind my desk and hand out when something portable is needed. They give you the freedom and immediacy of paper with the convienience of an undo 'feature'.
Ðavid Wulff What kind of music should programmers listen to?
Join the Code Project Last.fm group | dwulff
I'm so gangsta I eat cereal without the milk -
When you already have your project figured out and you are at the stage where you need to start planning exactly how you are going to develop the software what tools do you find the most useful?
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I agree with that. I get through about half a dozen large bound pads every year with diagrams, notes, ideas, etc. It is so much easier (and more logicial IMO) to get a design worked out with pencil and paper and then translate it onto a computer than it is to think with a keyboard. But, amazingly, I have never had to sharpen my pencil in almost two years. I honestly do not know how that works, but it still writes with a good point. * * if anyone can shed some light on this mystery I would greatly appreciate it! And no it is not a Biro! :rolleyes: Where ideas need to be shared during design I fall back on whiteboards. I have a big one on the wall above my desk and two smaller ones (18x24 inches) that I keep behind my desk and hand out when something portable is needed. They give you the freedom and immediacy of paper with the convienience of an undo 'feature'.
Ðavid Wulff What kind of music should programmers listen to?
Join the Code Project Last.fm group | dwulff
I'm so gangsta I eat cereal without the milkDavid Wulff wrote:
But, amazingly, I have never had to sharpen my pencil in almost two years. I honestly do not know how that works, but it still writes with a good point.
Theories:
- You aren't pressing hard enough...
- You're using the eraser end. The sketches are all in your head...
- You have a secret admirer, who thinks that pencil sharpening is the way to your good graces...
- "Pencil gnomes" (call an exterminator, they spread disease...)
- It's just a hard pencil. #2's generally wear fairly quickly, but if you don't mind lighter marks a harder lead will last longer.
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It appears that everybody is under the impression that I approve of the documentation. You probably also blame Ken Burns for supporting slavery.
--Raymond Chen on MSDN
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When you already have your project figured out and you are at the stage where you need to start planning exactly how you are going to develop the software what tools do you find the most useful?
Paper and ink. For me, ink is key - if i'm able to easily edit my designs, i'll never stop revising them.
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It appears that everybody is under the impression that I approve of the documentation. You probably also blame Ken Burns for supporting slavery.
--Raymond Chen on MSDN
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Rob Caldecott wrote:
I am a big fan of FreeMind[^]
same here. at least for the initial brain-storm. After that we do a cumbersome breakdown using UML that represents the exact same hierarchal structure, but someone else prefers it. :)
_________________________ Asu no koto o ieba, tenjo de nezumi ga warau. Talk about things of tomorrow and the mice in the ceiling laugh. (Japanese Proverb)
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When you already have your project figured out and you are at the stage where you need to start planning exactly how you are going to develop the software what tools do you find the most useful?
amymarie3 wrote:
What tools do you use for designing software
A large hammer.
cheers, Chris Maunder
CodeProject.com : C++ MVP
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amymarie3 wrote:
What tools do you use for designing software
A large hammer.
cheers, Chris Maunder
CodeProject.com : C++ MVP
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When you already have your project figured out and you are at the stage where you need to start planning exactly how you are going to develop the software what tools do you find the most useful?
Hi, I use simple A3 drawing paper and a pen in combination with a plastic Flow Chart Symbols card. http://www.shoplet.com/office/limages2/STD977111_1_1_240.jpg[^]
With friendly greetings,:) Eric Goedhart Interbritt
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Our last major project we used Enterprise Architect, our next one I'm going to use pencil and paper. We started with EA and after development started we found it was just too time consuming to keep the model up to date and in the end irrelevant. In the project there are about 300 objects but there is only really about 15 completely different *types* so it was a lot of work for little gain since all I really needed to know to code it was to take a prototype of each type of object then copy, paste and modify as appropriate. I also learned over the course of the project the value of being super consistent with naming and types of properties for each object. In the end it's best to identify rough groupings of objects by type and the properties they will have in common then go from there. Paper (well word processor or simple database) is just easier all around.
John Cardinal wrote:
we found it was just too time consuming to keep the model up to date
Ya, I typically don't bother with that. I've found that EA will do just about everything and then some. Trouble is I don't need to do most of that stuff. I use it for the basic modeling stages like use cases, interaction and business rule stuff. I use it again for class design and database design - just the basics though. It's great for working out interactions and dependencies. After that, I print out big pictures of the models, dump out what I need and start making it work. I rarely go back and update anything unless there's some weird design issues I need resolve. Cheers, Drew.
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When you already have your project figured out and you are at the stage where you need to start planning exactly how you are going to develop the software what tools do you find the most useful?
Humm, I got a Tablet PC using: Design: MindJet Mind Manager (Work with ink); OneNote; PowerPoint; Alias Sketch Book (One of the best Table PC application); Photoshop; Code: Enterprise Architect Visual Studio 2005. ....
(define Email (lambda () elacroix@devmesh.com)) Im not a church numeral im a free variable
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you debug? Bryce
--- To paraphrase Fred Dagg - the views expressed in this post are bloody good ones. --
Publitor, making Pubmed easy. http://www.sohocode.com/publitorOur kids books :The Snot Goblin, and Book 2 - the Snotgoblin and Fluff
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When you already have your project figured out and you are at the stage where you need to start planning exactly how you are going to develop the software what tools do you find the most useful?
At the risk of getting lynched - MS One Note 2007. It's a handy & straightforward way for me to organise ideas. In the end it all depends on what works for the way you work.
It wasn't me, It was the Others. It was the Others, Not Me.
