Bricks

Monday, 26 August 2002
Dependency diagrams are unnecessarily complex.

For example, take a look at steps OO development the steps of OO development.

  • It a quite a complex structure of boxes and lines, impossible to comprehend at first sight.
  • A fixed sequence should help.
    No matter how consistent the dependencies run from left to right, it remains tough to understand.
  • Arrows are of no assistance.
    They just make the picture more crowded, more complex.

Alternative: Stacked bricks

The alternative is amazingly simple: a tower of bricks.
  • The dependencies are crystal clear, taken in at a glance.
  • Each brick leans upon the ones below, a natural and fixed sequence.
  • No arrows required.
        Test        
      Code GUI   Code Methods   Code Data Access      
    Create Dummy Getters Define Interface Objects <-> Data layer    
  OO Modelling Physical DB Design  
GUI Design & Conceptual Modelling
Till next week,
Nut