Patterns: Implementing Self-Service in an SOA Environment

Chapter 5. Product mappings and product overview 95

5.4.6 Team development

Rational Application Developer provides clients for ClearCase® and CVS. Using

a version control mechanism allows multiple members of a team to work on an

application by checking out files from a repository, updating them and checking

them back in.

Rational ClearCase is a software configuration management (SCM) product that

helps to automate the tasks required to write, release, and maintain software

code. Rational ClearCase offers the essential functions of version control,

workspace management, process configuration, and build management. By

automating many of the necessary and error-prone tasks associated with

software development, Rational ClearCase helps teams of all sizes build high

quality software.

Concurrent Version System (CVS) is a simple open-source software

configuration management (SCM) system. CVS only implements version control.

CVS can be used by individual developers as well as by large, distributed teams.

5.5 Rational Software Architect

Rational Software Architect contains the features found in Rational Application

Developer, plus features that appeal to software architects. Rational Software

Architect is a design and development tool that leverages model-driven

development with the Unified Modeling Language (UML) for creating

well-architected applications and services.

5.5.1 Rational Unified Process guidance

You can access process guidance content and features directly in the Rational

Software Development Platform to guide you and other team members in your

software development project. A configuration of the Rational Unified Process®

(RUP®) platform is provided with topics on software development best practices,

tool mentors, and other process-related information.

5.5.2 Model-driven development

Model-driven development (MDD) is the concept of using models as the basis of

application development. One approach to model-driven development, called

Model Driven Architecture (MDA), is in the process of being defined by the

Object Management Group (OMG). MDA defines development using UML

models at different levels of abstraction. Transformations are used to take a

96 Patterns: Implementing Self-Service in an SOA Environment

model at one level and transform it to a model at a different level. You can see

the Model Driven Architecture (MDA) standards at:

http://www.omg.org/mda

Rational Software Architect provides full support for MDD with UML 2 modeling,

transformations, code generation from models, and patterns. As a part of the

model-driven development support, Rational Software Architect also supports

the current principles of Model Driven Architecture (MDA).

Transformations

A transformation converts elements of a source model to elements of a target

model. For example, the source and target model can be text files, code models

or UML models. When the source and target models are both UML models, the

transformation usually converts the elements from one level of abstraction to

another. You can apply a transformation to an entire model or a subset of model

elements in a model to generate output such as code.

Rational Software Architect comes with the following set of transformations

򐂰 Business Tier Transformations

– UML→ EJB Business Tier

򐂰 Integration Tier Transformations

–UML→ EJB Integration Tier

–UML→ EJB UML

򐂰 Presentation Tier Transformations

–UML→ IBM Portlet (JSF)

򐂰 RSA Transformations

– EMF Deployment → UML2

–UML→ EMF Deployment

–UML→ C++

–UML→ EJB

–UML→ Java

Additional transformations may be available on the Web.

Patterns

Rational design patterns capture frequently used or complex structures and

processes for reuse. They are used to integrate repeatable software design

solutions into UML 2.0 models. Rational patterns are a type of transform.