Pragmatic Thinking and Learning

Beware the Tool Trap

There has been much written on the role of tools, formal models, modeling, and so on, in software development. Many people claim that UML and model-driven architecture (MDA) are the future, just as many people claimed that RUP and CMM process models were the salvation of the industry.

But as with all silver-bullet scenarios, people soon found out that it just ain’t that easy. Although these tools and models have their place and can be useful in the right environments, none of them has become the hoped-for universal panacea. Worse yet, the misapplication of these approaches has probably done far more damage than good.

Interestingly enough, the nursing profession had similar problems with regard to the use of tools and ...