MIS326

OBJECT-ORIENTED
MODELING WITH UML

Use Case Model (ing) / Diagrams

( Part I )

Spring-910 1

MIS326 PHASES AND WORKFLOWS

Inception Elaboration Construction Transition

Requirements

Analysis

Design

Implementation

Test

Preliminary I1 I2 In In+1 In+2 Im Im+1

Spring-910 Iterations 2
MIS326 WORKFLOW - REQUIREMENTS

find actors and use cases structure the use case model

prioritize use cases

detail a use case

prototype user interface

Spring-910 3

MIS326 FIND ACTORS AND USE CASES

Find actors and use cases workflow

Use case model

[outlined]

Requirements
Specification Find actors and
use cases

Glossary

Spring-910 4
MIS326 THE SUBJECT/ SYSTEM BOUNDARY

Before we can build anything, we need to
know:
– Where the boundary of the system lies subject

– Who or what uses the system

SystemName
– What functions the system should offer to its users

We create a Use Case diagram

containing:
– Subject – the edge of the system
• also known as the system boundary
– Actors – who or what uses the system
– Use Cases – things actors do with the system
– Relationships - between actors and use cases

Spring-910 5

MIS326 WHAT ARE ACTORS ?

An actor is something outside the system that
interacts directly with the system
– Actors are not part of the system. Actor name
– They can represent a human, a machine, or another system.
– They can actively interchange information with the system.
• They can be a giver of information / recipient of information

An Actor specifies a role that some user of a system

plays when interfacing with the system
– multiple roles per user;
– multiple users per role «actor»
Actor Name

An actor is a classifier (like a class)
– user is an instance of the classifier

Actors identify who or what uses the system and so

indicate where the system boundary lies

Spring-910 6
MIS326 A USER MAY HAVE DIFFERENT ROLES

 Ali as
student

Ali

Student
 Ali as
professor
Professor

Spring-910 7

MIS326 IDENTIFYING ACTORS

When identifying actors ask:
– Who or what uses the system?
– What roles do they play in the interaction?
– Who installs the system?
– Who starts and shuts down the system?
– Who maintains the system?
– Does the system interact with an existing system?
– Who gets and provides information to the system?
– Does anything happen at a fixed time ?

Time

Spring-910 8
MIS326 IDENTIFYING ACTORS

Remember the following points:
– Actors are always external to the system.
– Actors interact directly with the system.
– Actors represent roles that people and things play in
relation to the system
– Each actor needs a short name
– Each actor must have a short description (one or two lines)

Spring-910 9

MIS326 WHAT ARE USE CASES?

A use case is something an actor needs the
system to do. It is a “case of use” of the
system by a specific actor PlaceOrder

the interaction that takes place between an
actor and the system

Use cases are always started by an actor
– The primary actor triggers the use case GetStatusOnOrder
– Zero or more secondary (supporting)
actors interact with the use case in some
way

Use cases are always written from the point of
view of the actors

Use case name should be stated from the
perspective of the user as an active verb phrase

A use case is a classifier
Spring-910 10
MIS326 IDENTIFYING USE CASES

Start with the list of actors that interact with the
system

When identifying use cases ask:
– What are the tasks that an actor wants the system to perform?
– Does the system store and retrieve information? If so, which
actors trigger this behaviour?

– Will any actor create, store, change, remove, or read

information in the system?
– Are any actors notified when the system changes state?
– Are there any external events that affect the system? What
notifies the system about those events?
– How will the system be supported and maintained?

Spring-910 11

MIS326 USE CASES AND ACTORS

A use case diagram models a dialog between actors and
the system.

A use case is initiated by an actor to invoke a certain
functionality in the system.

Actor Use Case

Communication-association

Spring-910 12
MIS326 THE USE CASE DIAGRAM

subject name
Mail Order System
communication
relationship system boundary

Place Order

Ship
Cancel Order Product
ShippingCompany
Check Order
Customer Status

Send
actor
Catalogue use case

Dispatcher

Spring-910 13

MIS326 How Would You Read This Diagram?

View Transcript

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Submit Grades Close Registration

Billing System

Spring-910 14
MIS326 ECP- VISION

The E-Commerce Platform (ECP) is a new web-based selling channel for a
D & D Company.

The goal of the ECP is to allow D &D customers to order products via the
Internet from an on-line catalogue.

The ECP must integrate with the existing inventory and dispatch systems
and must also communicate credit card information to the credit card
processing company for validation before an order is accepted.

The system should operate according to the “shopping basket” paradigm.
– A catalogue of products is displayed and the users can click on “Add to basket” to place a
product in their shopping basket.

D & D only intends to sell books and CDs via its ECP web channel.

Books
– Each book is identified by its ISBN number.
– Customers can browse the book catalogue by category or find a given book based on the
following search criteria:

CD
– Each CD is identified by its label and catalog number.

Spring-910 15

ECP - The shopping basket, Checkout, New customer

MIS326

When an item is added to the shopping basket, the customer is taken to the
shopping basket screen that shows the list of all products currently in the
basket. On this screen the customer may:
– Remove an item from the basket
– Change the quantity of an item
– Proceed to checkout

The system presents the customer with a summary of their order. If they click
on “confirm” to confirm the order, then the system asks them to log in if they
have not already done so.

New customers must fill out a form that asks for the following details: Name,
Address, Shipping address (if different from above), Email address, Phone
number, Fax number, Credit card details

On submitting this form, the customer will be issued with a user name (which
should probably be their email address) and is asked to select a password.

Spring-910 16
MIS326 USE CASE DIAGRAM (Outlined)
ManageAccount
ManageOrder

ManageBasket CardProcessing
Company

CheckOut
Custormer

BrowseProducts

Inventory

FindProducts

ManageProduct
Shopkeeper

LogOnUser

Dispatcher
CloseOrder

Administrator
ManageUsers
Spring-910 17

MIS326 ACTOR SEMANTICS

Customer :
– Someone who buys products

Shopkeeper :
– A User of the system who is responsible for managing the
catalogue of products.

Administrator :
– A special User of the system who can set up access rights for
other Users.

Dispatcher :
– A User of the system that is worker in the dispatch department.

Inventory:
– Company’s inventory system.

CardProcessingCompany:
– An external company that processes credit card transactions

Spring-910 18
MIS326 THE GLOSSARY

In any business domain there is always
a certain amount of jargon.

It’s important to capture the language
of the domain in the glossary

The aim of the glossary is to define key
Project Glossary terms of the domain and to resolve
synonyms
Term1
 Definition – Describes the main entities of the problem
 Synonyms domain
Term2 – Is written in informal style
 Definition
– Helps to avoid lengthy descriptions
 Synonyms
Term3 – Helps to avoid redundant information
 Definition
 Synonyms
…
You are building a vocabulary that you
can use to discuss the system with the
stakeholders.

Spring-910 19

MIS326 EXAMPLE- GLOSSARY

Term Definition
Catalog A listing of all of the products that ECP currently offers for sale.
An electronic analogue of a real-world checkout in a supermarket. A place where customers can pay for the products in
Checkout
their shopping basket.
Credit card
A card such as VISA or Mastercard that can be used for paying for products.
Synonyms: Card
Customer A party who buys products or services from ECP.

The department that is responsible for processing orders by assembling the required product items and shipping them
Dispatch Department
to the customer.
Dispatch System The system that the Dispatch Department uses to handle order processing. It integrates with the Inventory system.
Inventory System The computer system that ECP uses to manage its stock of products.

A document raised by a customer specifying one or more products that have been purchased by a customer. The
Order order also specifies the quantity of each product, tax and shipping charges. Orders are passed to the Dispatch
Department for processing. Orders are kept for five years to provide an audit trail of ECP’s sales activities.
Product An item offered for sale by ECP.
Products are assigned to categories to allow similar products (such as science fiction books) to be grouped together
Product category
and to increase the ease of searching and maintenance of the catalogue.
An electronic analogue of a real-world shopping basket. A place where customers can store their items prior to
Shopping basket
purchase.
Web browser A program such as Internet Explorer or Netscape Navigator which allows users to browse the World Wide Web.

User Someone who uses the system but who is not a customer.

Spring-910 20