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From: charlie@genrad.com (Charlie D. Havener)
Newsgroups: comp.software-eng
Subject: CASE - The Emperor has no clothes on!
Keywords: CASE rubbish
Message-ID: <37538@genrad.UUCP>
Date: 8 Jun 90 14:03:47 GMT
Sender: news@genrad.UUCP
Lines: 39

There has been a lot of talk about CASE tools in this group lately.
The questions seem to be where can I get one and how is Brand X
slightly better than Brand Y. It seems to me the real question is
'Are Structured Design CASE tools worth investing time, effort and money in?'
I have tentatively formed my decision. The answer is NO!

Recently I have done a lot of reading on CASE tools, experimented with
CADRE's TeamWork and IDE's StP ( Software Through Pictures $5k to $20k per seat ),
read much of the Hatley-Phirbhai text, and played with EasyCASE ( The $200
PC formerly ShareWare Product ).  I have also learned C++, taken courses in Object
Oriented Design and Analysis ( e.g. a seminar by Ed Berard ), read the Peter Coad
& Ed Yourdon text "Object-Oriented Analysis", and read parts of the new Grady-Booch
text "Object Oriented Design with Applications".

The message I get and believe is that Object Oriented analysis, design and implementation
via a supportive languge is superior in all ways to the old structured analysis approach.
It seem to me the vendors of these old case tools are blowing all the smoke and fog they can
to protect their lucrative markets which depend on management Fear, Uncertainty and Doubt.
The CASE vendors are happy as can be when one of their employees gets an article published
that, in effect, says 'Don't worry - Structured Analysis works just fine with objects', while
all the independent authors are saying it is completely orthogonal to Object Oriented techniques
and has very little if any use what-so-ever. Maybe it can be used to help implement some
complex method ( or member function ) of an object but other than that - forget it.

A quote from the Coad/Yourdon text, "Computer-Aided Software Engineering (CASE) -- it's hard
to believe that such simplistic software tools are getting so much attention these days.
....  a less sexy but more accurate name would be CADC - Computer Aided Drawing and Checking."

The government loves paper - these tools help you create a monument of paper. There are
some tools for Object Oriented approaches available ( e.g. Semaphore Tools, Andover Mass. )
but one of the nice thing about Objects is that you can do fine with no CASE tools at all.
The CRC ( Class Responsibility Collabortators ) method is one that uses 4 by 6 index
cards and it seems well on it's way to becoming a standard technique.

I've said enough. If anyone can provide a substantive rebuttal I would like to hear it.

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These opinions are mine alone - I do not speak for GenRad on this subject
charlie@genrad.com      508-369-4400 x3302     GenRad Inc. Concord Mass.