New writing, Sweden and a new Linked In group

Hi, everyone! I have been busy finishing up a project for one of my clients the last couple of months, so I haven't had anything new to announce till now.

Here's the latest: Lee Riemenschneider has started a new Executable UML group on Linked In. Please visit and participate - see you there!

I have posted an excerpt from my UML book as a Google Knol. It is chapter 7 and describes how to model loops and constraints on a class model. As always, I welcome your comments and questions. If you are already an expert, and I know that many of you are, please forward the link to any interested colleagues.

I will be in Sweden for most of September - if all goes well. I would be happy to present/teach/consult for anyone in the neighborhood. Or perhaps just meet up for drinks and potatoes in one of their many Scandinavian forms. They love their potatoes.

New writing: Sort of. I have been meaning to create a better explanation of just exactly what analysts / modelers do for a living. There is a lot more to it than just drawing rectangles and arrows. I have posted links to some example analysis notes of mine and provided a more tangible description of my analysis and modeling services. I hope you will encourage my ongoing writing activities by forwarding ths note to any people/projects that might benefit from them. If you link me up with a real project, I would be happy to express my gratitude in tangible ways as well! (E-mail me for details on that)

The quarterly online journal, Methods and Tools, has published the article I wrote back in October titled "How to Build Articulate Class Models and Get Real Benefits from UML". This journal covers many other interesting topics and you may want to subscribe

Other than that, I continue to pursue my hobby of building a library of analysis and modeling documents for a next generation 2D model draw tool. A tiny portion is linked in the example notes mentioned above.

Hope you all are doing well on your projects and keep in touch! My e-mail, as always, is:
leon_starr (AT SIGN) modelint.com

How many times have you searched YouTube for cool videos about Executable UML to show your friends and ended up settling for a chimp on a Segway?

Well, your troubles are over! I have just posted a 10 minute video to accompany the article published in January titled Time and Synchronization in Executable UML. Is it more exciting than a child riding a giant python? You be the judge.

In addition to YouTube, you can watch it directly on the Model Integration website under the downloads section. (There is also a link underneath the video window at our website if you want to download the complete video to your desktop).

More news: I have posted Practical Reasons to Document UML Models, Chapter 11 from my Executable UML book, available online or as downloadable PDF.

If you would forward this information to any interested colleagues, I would really appreciate it. Also, please encourage them to sign up for the newsletter.

And I am always grateful for your comments and giving the article and video gold stars.

Finally, if you know of anyone at your organization or elsewhere who might be interested in training or model development services, please put them in touch with me. My e-mail address is: leon_starr (an A in a circle) modelint DOT com. (Like the spam spiders aren't going to figure that one out - oh well). Thanks all!