Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!uwm.edu!wuarchive!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!uakari.primate.wisc.edu!uflorida!travis!tom From: tom@ssd.csd.harris.com (Tom Horsley) Newsgroups: comp.object Subject: Re: OO vs. Information Engineering Message-ID: Date: 3 Sep 90 12:02:18 GMT References: <21730@grebyn.com> <5526@stpstn.UUCP> Sender: news@travis.csd.harris.com Organization: Harris Computer Systems Division Lines: 32 In-reply-to: cox@stpstn.UUCP's message of 2 Sep 90 17:08:41 GMT I don't claim to have read all the books on software engineering ever written, but I have read *a lot* of them. I kept reading them because I hoped that someday one of them would make sense, but mostly they continuously harp on the ``Lifecycle Model'' and ``Waterfall Diagrams''. Every time I read one of these books I come away thinking "What a load of ". Anyone who has ever been involved in a large project to develop new software (not just re-write the same old payroll system for a new client) knows that the so-called life cycle model bears about as much relationship to what really goes on in the software development process as Aristotle's description of how to make mice (by leaving some cloth and rice in a pot outdoors) bears to the actual life cycle of mice. I would not go so far as to call OOD a "silver bullet", but I recently read Grady Booch's new book "Object Oriented Design with Applications", and it is the first software engineering book I have read that ever made sense or seemed remotely relevant to the actual process of software development. It is a very well written book that does not scream at you like some dedicated OO fanatics do, but gives carefully reasoned arguments that clearly demonstrate the fallacy of the so-called life cycle, and demonstrates the superiority of OOD (without falling into the trap of claiming that OOD is the total solution to all problems). This is a book that should be read by anyone wondering why they should use OOD as well as OOD fanatics who think that OOD will solve all problems, end war, and cure cancer. -- ====================================================================== domain: tahorsley@csd.harris.com USMail: Tom Horsley uucp: ...!uunet!hcx1!tahorsley 511 Kingbird Circle Delray Beach, FL 33444 +==== Censorship is the only form of Obscenity ======================+ | (Wait, I forgot government tobacco subsidies...) | +====================================================================+