how to draw UML class diagrams and sequence diagrams in Java

---

Request for Question Clarification by mathtalk-ga on 13 Dec 2002 07:14 PST

Hi, geneva:

Do you need source code for the drawing routines in Java, or does it
suffice to have an implementation that can be called from Java?

thanks, mathtalk-ga

---

Clarification of Question by geneva-ga on 13 Dec 2002 09:34 PST

Really I need the source code to be able to draw UML class and
sequence diagrams. So I can pass it some code to then use in the
diagram.
cheers.

---

Clarification of Question by geneva-ga on 13 Dec 2002 09:34 PST

Actually I guess both would be a good start if possible

---

Request for Question Clarification by mathtalk-ga on 13 Dec 2002 12:10 PST

Hi, geneva:

Thanks for clarifying that you want both Java source code and an
implementation.  I would also like to know what price, if any, you
would be willing to pay for such software; a range would be the best
way to answer this, unless you are strictly interested in free
software.  Please clarify.

From the research I have done on this question so far, I'm concerned
that producing an impressive answer might not be possible for me
within the level of effort appropriate to the $10 List Price.  It is
possible another Researcher may be able to.  Therefore I am releasing
my lock on the question at this time.

Here is a link to guidelines about pricing your question, 

https://answers.google.com/answers/pricing.html 

If you both raise your price and also post a clarification here, the
system will notify me and I will take another look at your question.

best wishes, mathtalk-ga

Hi, geneva-ga:

I see that no other Researcher has chimed in, so in the absence of a
clarification from you, I'll go ahead and post my answer, assuming
that you are looking to get a free implementation with source code. 
The tradeoff is that it presupposes a certain amount of effort and
experience on your part.

There's an Open Source project ArgoUML (or Argo UML), a "100% Java"
implementation of a UML diagramming tool:

[ArgoUML Homepage]
http://argouml.tigris.org/

which has been around awhile, and is generally well rated among the
open source community:

http://freshmeat.net/projects/argouml/?topic_id=65

However it sounds to me like your focus may be "reverse engineering",
ie. dumping in Java code and viewing UML diagrams which result.  This
is an area of active development for ArgoUML, see:

[ArgoUML Job Jar]
http://argouml.tigris.org/jobjar.html

For the current ArgoUML capabilities in reverse engineering see the
"cookbook":

[5.6 Reverse Engineering]
http://argouml.tigris.org/documentation/defaulthtml/cookbook/ch05s06.html

However you may want to look at some alternatives.  Here are listed a
number of free UML diagramming packages, most with Java roots and some
(such as Gentleware's Poseidon) strict descendants of ArgoUML:

[Objects by Design: UML Products by Price]
http://www.objectsbydesign.com/tools/umltools_byPrice.html

I would love to provide a more detailed answer, but due to the limited
information provided about your goals and the amount of time
appropriate to your list price, I think it might be expeditious to
await any request for clarification you have after reviewing my
suggestions.

regards, mathtalk-ga

---

Clarification of Answer by mathtalk-ga on 14 Dec 2002 15:34 PST

Search Strategy

First I went to sourceforge.net, an impressive collection of open
source community projects, and looked there for UML diagramming tools
either in Java or with an ability to reverse engineer Java.  The
search engine there has unfortunately been down (too busy) much of the
time recently, but it's a great resource for you to know about.

I then rounded out my research with selective use of Google:

Keywords: "Argo UML"
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=ISO-8859-1&q=%22Argo+UML%22&btnG=Google+Search

Keywords: "open source" "UML diagram" "reverse engineering" Java
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=ISO-8859-1&q=%22open+source%22+%22UML+diagram%22+%22reverse+engineering%22+Java&btnG=Google+Search