Tool Mentor: Finding Actors and Use Cases Using Rational Software Architect
This tool mentor describes how to find actors and use cases using the RSA modeling environment.
Tool: Rational Software Architect
Relationships
Main Description

Overview

This tool mentor assumes that a Use-Case Model has already been created in accordance with the Model Structure Guidelines for RSx.

The following steps are performed in this tool mentor:

Additional Tool Information

Find Actors

After finding the actors, record your results as follows:

  1. Open the Use-Case Model.
  2. Navigate to a package where actors are to be captured. See Model Structure Guidelines for RSx.
  3. Add actors to the diagram.
  4. Annotate each actor with a brief description. See Documenting Model Elements.

For more information, refer to Modeling the Behavior of a System by Using Use-Case Diagrams in the online Help.

Find Use Cases

After finding use cases, record your results as follows:

  1. Navigate to a package in which use cases are to be captured. See Model Structure Guidelines for RSx.
  2. Create a use-case diagram to capture use cases. See Creating Use-Case Diagrams in the online Help.
  3. Provide a brief description and the outlined flow of events. This can be initially annotated on the model element. (See Documenting Model Elements.) Alternatively, you can use the RUP-provided template for Artifact: Use Case and attach it to the use case in the model. See Linking Model Elements to External Files.

Describe How Actors and Use Cases Interact

Describe the interaction between actors and use cases by following these steps:

  1. Add associations between actors and use cases. See Specifying Relationships in UML Diagrams.
  2. Optionally, describe the association. See Documenting Model Elements.
  3. Optionally, add multiplicity of a role. See Specifying the Multiplicity Property.

Package Use Cases and Actors

Organize actors and use cases in packages.

Refer to Organizing Model Elements in Packages in the online Help.

Present the Use-Case Model in Use-Case Diagrams

For the purposes of this tool mentor, it is assumed that diagrams have been created as actors and use cases are identified. See earlier steps for guidance on use-case diagramming.

Develop a Survey of the Use-Case Model

The tool provides Use-Case Model reports. It might be helpful to publish the model to HTML format. Also note that diagrams can be copied to Microsoft Word and other programs.

For more information, refer to Publishing Models.

Evaluate the Results

Reports (see previous step) and published models can be useful for reviewing the model.