Object Oriented Software Engineering   View all facts   Glossary   Help

subject > representation > coding technique > diagram > UML diagram > class diagram

class diagram
subject			fact

class diagram	can contain symbols for classes, associations, attributes, operations, generalizations
	can generate an infinite number of instance diagrams
	has definition A UML diagram that primarily indicates classes and the associations between those classes
	describes the data found in a software system
	has part OCL statement in a class diagram
	is an important tool for requirements analysis and design of object oriented software systems
	is a subtopic of 5.1 - What is UML?
	is a kind of UML diagram
	may show attributes and operations contained in each class by dividing a class box into three smaller boxes: the top box contains the class name, the middle box lists the attributes, and the bottom box lists operations.
	may show that a class has no attributes or operations by showing an empty box
	shows the services offered by components and the main data to be stored
UML diagram	see also Unified Modelling Language
diagram	has advantages it conveys or summarizes complex concepts or mechanisms more easily than other techniques
	has problems can be hard for users to interact with or interpret not usable by blind people it can be expensive to program diagram drawing software
	should have a label if its meaning is not obvious, using a caption or pop-up label that appears when the user moves the mouse over it

Kinds of class diagram :

• informal class diagram (7 facts)
• system model class diagram (3 facts)