<<UML>> 2000 WORKSHOP

Dynamic Behaviour in UML Models: Semantic Questions
Call for Participation

EXTENDED DEADLINE: 25 August 2000

Although many years of practical experience went into the design of the UML, the lack of precise semantics still stands in the way of effective application.
The modelling of complex systems requires techniques that allow us to manage complexity as well as techniques that allow early detection of errors in behaviour models. UML well supports the principle of separation of views that is an effective means of controlling complexity. However, UML does not support so well the formality and rigour needed to early detect errors in requirements and design. Developing a precise, complete, and understandable semantics for the UML that enables practical, tool-supported and rigorous analysis of UML models can enhance its applicability to the modelling of complex systems. A formal analysis of the semantic foundations of the UML notations can also lead to more precise and complete natural language descriptions of the notations in the UML standard. In addition, the insights provided by a well-defined UML semantics can help modelers choose appropriately among a variety of modelling constructs.
These observations are particularly relevant when we consider the dynamic behaviour of the UML models:

The purpose of this workshop is to bring together researchers and practitioners from academia and industry to report on their experiences with developing precise semantics for the dynamic behaviour of UML models.
This one-day workshop will be the first on the particular topic of the semantics of the dynamic behaviour of the UML, but it ideally follows a series of successful four workshops on strengthening the UML semantic foundation organized at the OOPSLA and ECOOP conferences in the last two years, where this particular topic raised many questions and lively debate. Presentations and discussions at this workshop will focus on identifying the challenges, recognizing limitations, and analyzing proposed semantics for the dynamic aspects of UML.
The results of these discussions are being collected in the The precise UML group FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) document. The FAQ will provide answers to questions, clarifying the role and need for precise semantics, the different approaches that can be taken, and highlight key problems.

Participation

Attendance at the workshop will be on invitation only. Participants that would like to be invited are asked to write a position paper on some aspect of the dynamic behaviour of UML models. A nonexhaustive list of topics is


Submissions should be not longer than 5 pages and should be either an HTML document, or a plain text or a PDF file to be sent to Gianna Reggio.
The organizing committee will review submissions and select those that present relevant and interesting ideas and concepts that can contribute to the workshop.
The committee will set up a preliminary web-based discussion around the topics of the accepted submissions; the results of such discussion will be in a summary to be distributed at the participants as a starting point for the workshop.
The selected contributions will be published as a technical report jointly issued by the Technical and the Ludwig-Maximilians Universities of Munich. In addition, the organizers will take care to prepare a short report describing the workshop results for the UML'2000 Workshops Reader.
The existing UML semantics FAQ document for the part about the dynamic behaviour aspects will be updated with the main results concerning key questions/answers addressed during the workshop.

Dates

Location & Registration

The workshop will take place at York (Great Britain) before the conference <<UML>> 2000.
Information about the workshop location, fee, and registration can be found on the page of <<UML>> 2000; a discounted fee will be offered for those also attending the conference.

Organizers

Gianna Reggio (DISI - Università di Genova, Italy)    CONTACT PERSON reggio@disi.unige.it
Alexander Knapp, (Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Germany)
Bernhard Rumpe (TU München, Germany)
Bran Selic (Rational Software Inc.)
Roel Wieringa (University of Twente, The Netherlands)
Last Updated: 27 July 2000