Q&A: OMG member talks up UML 2.0

The Object Management Group (OMG) is in the process of voting on whether to approve Unified Modeling Language (UML) 2.0, the latest version of this specification for model-driven development. InfoWorld Editor at Large Paul Krill talked about the subject with Bran Selic, IBM Distinguished Engineer and co-chairman of the OMG task force on UML 2.0.

InfoWorld: Why should we be excited about UML 2.0?

Selic: Well, UML 2.0 is actually the first major revision of UML, and I guess the big reason to be excited is that it’s based on this idea of model-driven development. It’s essentially a standard that’s been revamped to better support that whole concept of models taking primacy in software development.

InfoWorld: OK, so when you say model-driven development, why is this better than the way things have been done?

Selic: There are many different flavors of model-driven development, but all are based on this common theme, where it’s like parallel themes. One is working at a higher level of abstraction so that you’re closer to the problem domain, and modeling languages give you that ability to work above the technology, so to speak. And the other aspects of it that is significantly better is the automation side of it and the fact that you start using computers to help bridge the gap from a [mere] level of abstraction down to the implementation.

InfoWorld: How prevalent is model-driven development these days? 

Selic: Well, I’d say it’s certainly growing. It’s strongly somewhere between 10 to 15 percent right now of the development market, but that’s just my estimate. Of course you can imagine I would see a lot of customers that are interested in model-driven development. But [this estimate is also from] talking to our field folks and so on.

InfoWorld: What is the status of the vote on UML 2.0?

Selic: We’ve finalized the spec, which is a phase that was necessary because the spec is originally [published] but was never implemented, so it’s necessary to go through this finalization phase where people raise issues. And we completed that in early November and now it’s undergoing vote in the OMG and it’s going well. I haven’t heard of a single dissenting vote.

InfoWorld: When will you have the final results?

Selic: The final results I believe come in [after this] six- to eight-week period. So it’ll probably be just before [the holidays]. And then after that is an official rubber-stamping by the board of directors of the OMG, which should be somewhere in mid-January.

InfoWorld: There are companies such as Borland that are already selling products that support UML 2.0. So if the products are already out there then what’s the real significance of adopting the specification if people are implementing it already?

Selic: By the way, IBM of course is also supporting it, but basically what happened in all of those cases, or at least most of those cases, I can’t say all of them, is that the standard was updated to follow the changes that we produce. All of the people you mention were actually involved with the finalization. The products were evolving as the standard was evolving. Most of them, certainly [our product], is up to date, because ours is basically generated from the standards and it’s literally automatically generated from the standards.