A Practical Guide to SysML: The Systems Modeling Language (The MK/OMG Press) Review

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(More customer reviews)Often, you can tell the value of a book by what shape it's in. My copy of A Practical Guide to SysML is pretty beat up. Not only does it have a lot of my own scribbling in the margins and blue and yellow highlighting (blue for things to come back and skim and yellow for things to absolutely visit again), it has coffee, peach and other various stains. This book resides in my brief case (my satchel bag) and goes with me ("A Good Companion") when I have to accompany my wife on errands (if I am 30 minutes in any place I will read a passage or two). With this book and an iPod, I can handle anything including long waits in any airport or any delays anywhere.
Sandy and the team do an outstanding job of introducing the reader into one of the most important new System Engineering tools available today; SysML. As pointed out by others, it's not just about software anymore, it often about architectures and the enterprise. As the trends in system development move from platform centric to NetCentric, as work for organizations moves from individuals to collaborative enterprise efforts and as we all try to improve our processes and add value to collaborative efforts, a model of "what we're doing" becomes so important. The team does an outstanding job of presenting the concept of Model Based System Engineering (MBSE) in Chapter 2 and providing a great example to follow in the subsequent chapters. Throughout the book, the explanation of the diagrams and concepts are thorough and easy to understand. I thank the authors for making it interesting and relevant.
For those just starting in the field, this book is an outstanding accompaniment to any of the SysML CASE tools that are emerging. In fact, I highly recommend to anybody who is going to be working in the System Engineering field (be it automotive, aerospace, civil engineering, architecture, software, disaster relief, etc.) to keep a copy of this book handy in case you get delayed some place and want make use of some spare time.
Frank C. Alvidrez, CEA
Lancaster, CA
Post Scrip (Feb 09) - I had the great fortune of attending a two day intense INCOSE sponsored tutorial on SysML taught by Sandy in Old Town Pasadena Nov 08. Wow, what a drink from the knowledge fire hose. Sandy's insight in model organization (using block diagrams for domain modeling) of complex projects was just one stunning eye opener. If anybody gets a chance to attend of one these, do it.
- Frank


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Systems engineers and architects must understand how all the parts of a system work together to satisfy its requirements. SysML is a general purpose graphical modeling language used to specify, analyze, and design systems that may include hardware, software, and personnel. It allows engineers to describe how a system interacts with its environment, and how its parts must interact to achieve the desired system behavior and performance. The SysML model provides a shared view of the system, enabling a design team to surface issues early and prevent problems that would otherwise delay development and degrade design quality. Since SysML is based on UML, it also facilitates integration between systems and software development. SysML is now being adopted by companies across a broad range of industry, including Aerospace and Defense, Automotive, and IT System Developers.This book provides a comprehensive and practical guide for modeling systems with SysML. It includes a full description of the language along with a quick reference guide, and shows how the language can be applied to specify, analyze, and design systems. It contains examples to help readers understand how SysML can be used in practice. The book also includes guidance on how an organization or project can transition to model based systems engineering using SysML, with considerations for processes, methods, tools, and training. *The authoritative guide for understanding and applying SysML*Authored by the foremost experts on the language*Language description, examples, and quick reference guide included

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Workflow Modeling: Tools for Process Improvement and Application Development, 2nd Edition Review

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(More customer reviews)Rarely do I get excited about books on workflow modeling. I have a few good books on the subject, all of which provide solid approaches and most of which are well written. This book stands out because it goes beyond merely "solid" or "well written" by giving one of the most comprehensive approaches to workflow modeling I've had the pleasure of reading.
First, like most books on the topic, none of the components of the approach are new. What makes the approach refreshing is the way the authors take standard techniques and tie them together into a coherent process. Second, this book can be used as a workbook during a workflow modeling project, and is well suited to this because of the numerous checklists and diagrams that will prove invaluable every step of the way. Finally, this is the first book of its kind that incorporates use cases, making it invaluable to project teams that have standardized on UML (Unified Modeling Language)or wish to integrate an object-oriented approach into a workflow modeling project. If you're not familiar with use cases I strongly recommend Writing Effective Use Cases by Alistar Cockburn (the best book on the subject in my opinion); UML Distilled by Fowler and Scott is an excellent introduction to that subject if it's new to you.
The approach is straightforward: frame the process and define its scope, understand the existing process (if there is one), design the "to-be" process and develop use case scenarios. I wish to offer one caveat at this point: if you are reengineering a process that is seriously broken you might consider skipping the "as-is" process. Understanding the existing process is useful if your goal is incremental improvement. Reengineering efforts usually radically transform existing processes, making efforts to understand them both moot and wasted.
Some of the highlights of this book include the authors' clear definitions and way of decomposing complex systems into discrete steps and components. For example, they use a five tier view of processes that ensures you have a complete view of all issues and factors. The views are: (1) mission, strategy and goals (I personally extend goals further into Goal-Question-Metric), (2)business processes, (3) presentation, (4) application logic and (5) data. Note that the last three align nicely to a 3-tier client/server architecture. This observation clearly shows how coherent the authors' approach is and how it can foster alignment of technology to business requirements.
I also like how the authors clarify the key issues in process design by pointing out six enablers that you need to account for during the analysis and design phase: (1)workflow, (2) technology, (3) human resources, (4) motivations and measurements, (5) policies and rules and (6) environmental constraints (facilities, external process capabilities, etc.). There is one minor point of disagreement I have between their workflow modeling technique and the one I use. The authors use swimlane diagrams (also called Rummler-Brache diagrams), while I use deployment diagrams. The difference? Swimlane diagrams do not capture phases or cycles. I always place workflows into the context of Entry Criteria-Task-Validation-Exit Criteria (ETVX), which is nearly identical to the TQM Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) cycle. I insist on ETVX because it allows me to spot missing validation points in an existing workflow, and ensures that I clearly define entry and exit criteria, as well as validation points in a "to-be" workflow. Of course I am stating personal preferences - following the authors' approach verbatim will definitely result in a workflow design that is not only "bulletproof", but will align information systems and business process almost perfectly.
This book is a gem. It's readable, full of ideas and, with the incorporation of use cases into the approach, completely up-to-date with respect to IS/IT methodologies. If you want a fresh, modern approach to workflow design this book is the only one that will provide it.

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At last - here's the long-awaited, extensively revised and expanded edition of the acclaimed and bestselling book, "Workflow Modeling". This thoroughly updated resource provides proven techniques for identifying, modeling, and redesigning business processes, and explaining how to implement workflow improvement, this book helps professionals define requirements for systems development or systems acquisition. By showing how to build visual models for illustrating workflow, the book helps practitioners assess their current business processes and see where process improvement and systems development can take place. Leading author Alec Sharp is an internationally recognized expert in business process management and is in high demand as a speaker and seminar leader in the field.

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