4.Visually Model software

Models are simplifications of reality; they help us to understand and shape both a problem and its solution, and to comprehend large, complex systems that we could not otherwise understand as a whole. A large part of the Rational Unified Process is about developing and maintaining models of the system under development.

The Unified Modeling Language (UML) is a graphical language for visualizing, specifying, constructing, and documenting the artifacts of a software-intensive system. It gives you a standard means of writing the system's blueprints, covering conceptual items such as business processes and system functions, as well as concrete items such as classes written in a specific programming language, database schemas, and reusable software components. While it provides the vocabulary to express various models, the UML does not tell you how to develop software. That is why Rational developed the Rational Unified Process, a guide to the effective use of the UML for modeling. It describes the models you need, why you need them, and how to construct them. RUP2000 uses UML version 1.4.