MSK Software Development

If you have defined an attribute of type you might be surprised to see, how UMLDesigner is initializing the string variable:


aString := OrderedCollection new


Strange, isn’t it? Well the reason comes from UcmAttributeModel>>generateSmalltalkInitializationOn: writer

Here one can read, that all attributes with a collection type should be initialized in that way … and is actually defined in that way …

Another way to change this behaviour is to change the definition of UmlString within the Kernel Model and deletes the “Refinements” of protocol and throw away “Collection” (its a pretty hard way to find out the correct way to do it …)

To do a right configuration is a hard work. Therefore a new configuration, which NOW should (!) work under 7.52 and 8.00:

umldesigner-800-05

Here is a new distribution file of the UMLDesigner. I’ve changed the configuration maps in a way, that 7.52 and 8.0 Beta1 are supported:

umldesigner

Due to the fact, that the VA8.0 Beta 1 is out, here is a new configuration map with the UMLDesigner Tool with updated requirements and some patches for looking up pixmaps, icons on all directories defined by the resource path.

UMLDesigner

When I talked to other Smalltalkers in the past I more or less got the answer, that source code generation is bad programming style. Yes, with metaprogramming this is fine, but generating code from models - no, that’s not state of the art.

I still thinks, that this is a big problem for the community. Perhaps the Smalltalkers have a good IDE and lots of productivity, but other IDEs offer source code wizards and they use source generators very often. They win lots of productivity - and we could do it much better !

UMLDesigner is now about 10 years old and its GUI is perhaps not very nice, but it does it work. Using this tool also shows, that all the Smalltalk systems on the market simply lack support for interfaces and what other systems are offering.

VASmalltalk users should think about this - and also look at other Smalltalk IDEs. Especially ObjectStudio seems to be (for some years now) a step ahead of their friends ….

Here are some very interesting books about SourceCode Generation

• Wiley, “Software Factories” from Greenfield, Short, Cook and Kent
• Manning, “Code Generation in Action” from Herrington
• APress, “Code Generation in Microsoft .NET” from Dollard
• Hanser, “Einfach Generieren” from Michael + Susanne Klar