Exploring Oslo's modeling language promises

Be the first to comment | 1I like it!
October 31, 2008, 10:36 AM —  CIO.com — 

Fundamentally, software modeling is about describing an application. Modeling has long held promise for software developers, especially as they struggle with ever-more-complex, distributed, composite applications built on IT silos that Do Not Play Well With Others. But modeling has not gained mainstream adoption, explains Burley Kawasaki, Microsoft director of product management, Connected Systems Division.

"Until now," is the unspoken addition. With Oslo, Microsoft wants to bring modeling to the software development mainstream. Among Oslo's pieces: a modeling-specific language-code-named M-in which to write domain specific languages (DSLs); a way to build visual DSLs (code-named Quadrant); and a repository that brings all the models together to be viewed and managed as a cohesive whole (mysteriously, the repository does not have a code name). "This represents us going from a world of general programming languages and domain-specific APIs to a more domain-specific language world," says Doug Purdy, Microsoft product unit manager for Connected Systems Architecture.

Today, M will be made available under the open specification promise, which allows anyone to implement the language spec. "As much as we're proud of the intellectual property we've put into it," says Kawasaki, "It's what you do with the language that matters."

We do, however, hope that the company resists the recent tendency to turn the code name into the final product name. Some developers inevitably will hate M just as some hate C# and others hate Java. Just thinking of the phrase, "Anti-M" makes us contemplate a future in which developers chant, "There's no place like home. There's no place like home."

So what's the big deal about modeling? Hasn't it been around for years? Yes-but only to a degree. When it's used in enterprise development, modeling is most often adopted for the software design phase. That can be helpful in drawing a picture of what the business wants, Kawasaki says, and "it can help developers implement what they thought the picture meant." But it's what they thought the picture meant; how often is that actually the case? Even when the model matches the original software vision, it goes out of sync very quickly.

But just as "the map is not the territory," the software model isn't the picture; the model has to describe the application. If the business rules change or the software intent changes, the application needs to change too.

Sign up for ITworld's Daily newsletter
Follow ITworld on Twitter @IT_world

I like it!
Close

On Twitter now

microsoft

Powered by Twitter
You are logged in | Sign out
Sign in and post to Twitter

What are you thinking?

Cancel Tweet sent

On Twitter now

Post a comment
The content of this field is kept private and will not be shown publicly.
  • Allowed HTML tags: <a> <em> <strong> <cite> <code> <ul> <ol> <li> <dl> <dt> <dd>
  • Lines and paragraphs break automatically.
peer-to-peer

Brian Proffitt
Microsoft/Novell: Breaking Down the Coupon Numbers

Esther Schindler
Drupal's Dries Buytaert on Building the Next Drupal

Tom Henderson
Top Ten General Operating Systems Rants

pasmith
PS3 motion controller delayed; goes up against Project Natal

sjvn
Neolithic Windows security hole alive and well in Windows 7

claird
Perl source code comparison makes for good reading

mikelgan
Cell phones don't create stress or interrupt much

Sandra Henry-Stocker
How to: The Unix Interview

 

Where Google Chrome security fails: the password
I heard mention that the Chrome OS will have some sort of encryption available a la bitlocker. If it's possible to encrypt personal data using another password or key, then it may have potential for very secure data.... And Ubuntu has an 'encrypt home directory' option, perhaps google should follow suit.
- Dann

Join the conversation here

The Daily Tip

The Daily TipQuick, practical advice for IT pros. Made fresh daily.

Hot tips:

Want to cash in on your IT savvy? Send your tip to tips@itworld.com. If we post it, we'll send you a $25 Amazon e-gift card.

Newsletters

Subscribe to ITWORLD TODAY and receive the latest IT news and analysis.

I would like to receive offers via email from ITworld partners.
By clicking submit you agree to the terms and conditions outlined in ITworld's privacy policy.
Marketplace