Seventh šin a
series of articles
on retooling tn-
formation
systems.

While corpora-
tions are rapidly
adopting CASE
tools to build
business applica-
tions, it has be-
come increasing:
ly difficult to dif-
ferentiate among
the offerings.
Many CASE tools

boast flashy graphical interfaces and
claim support for the entire life cycle.
Oihers tout code-generation capabilities,
support for reverse-engineering and
project-management, facilities.

To match the tool to the needs of
your organization, look for something
that will give you the most bang for the
buck. As summarized in the figure, this
is achieved by tools that address the fol-
lowing criteria:
€ a graphics-style user interface,

8 support for the entire lite-cycle

Look for CASE Tool

MARTIN

process,

6 the ability to generate 100 percent of
application code;

6 a single repository of design specifi-
catlons;

6 desktop code generation;

€ multiple code generators for COBOL,
C, Ada, and so on; and

€ support for standards such as Struc-
tured Guery Language (SOL) databases
and IBMs AD/Cycele repository.

Recent studies indicate that graphics-
oriented analysis and design tools head
the wish list of most CASE users. Detfin-
ing design specifications in a graphical
form tends to be much more productive
than older, text-oriented approaches.

Code-generation capabilities and sup-
port for the entire life-cycle process are

Focus COBOL/2 Workbench'"

Po; WEEK NAPPLIGATION DEVE

LOPMENT

APPLIED INTELLIGENCE

| highly desired ts for CASE tools.
Users recognize Če leS not enougli VO
use CASE tools to define design speci!i:
cations; for maximum productivity, the
tool must automatically convert design
specifications into 100 percent of the
source code or object code reguired to
run an application.

What Ta

| Grapnnhi h
sek A]

iNertace |

Pl ni

Aneksa,
ke

Only a small number of integrated
CASE (I-CASE) tools on the market to-
day meet; this reguirement. Most prod-
ucts still reguire programmers to con-
vert design specifications into source
code by hand. This is an expensive, la-
bor-intensive and error-prone process
that can be eliminated entirely through

the use of I-CASE tools.

Isa

Doris he ability lo maintain a single

Look forina CASE

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zdj RE RIJA x K: f j iča | ,
veki sem oe ng pn mna —e—m — Eme r— — . ko ——- idi donna, aa ljen Mma Na Pen zi KI. zade Šealutnki k ši. ii ia ll A A VEJE : %

s that Give More Ban

sd
a Em

Another feature coveted in ad

reposilory of design information. As dis:
cussed in previous columns, Inany notr
integrated CASE tools use a bridge to an
external code generator to produce ihe
source code for an application, This re:
sults in the creation of two potentially

00]

odi m,

Des bi že a is
code! P | KI t
ner snen ba PI

Ul anima

Odegii. Jsre
ma |) ke
Slon:

incompatible design-informatlon reposi-
tories—one associated with (he [ront-
end CASE tool and (he other with the
external code generator.

Manual programming is typically re-
guired to maintain consisteney belwcen
(he two repositories. 'Hirougyh (ha use of
a single repository lo nečinilalu otorlata
information and gonoralo colo, MUAHN

I—i O — ER — A — —O— ie a

Hit!

DRABOG

ope ii NE NE An ME SEA Z
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Mae ability to generate 100 percent of
the code for an application from design
specifications on the desktop IS another
atribute of CASE tools that IS rising in
importance among users. This abilily
eliminates the need for a mainframe
code generator, which typically costs
from $200,000 to $300,000. In addition,
these tools can be used to develop prolo-
type applications on the PC that can
then be shown to the user and iterated
rapidly to develop production systems.
It's also important to look for tools
that are capable of generatinuy code in
multiple source languages, not just CO
BOL. It's likely that an increasing num-
ber of CASE tool vendors will offer inte-
grated tools that can generate C code.
Finally, compliance with standards is
another important element in the selec-
tion of CASE tools. Users should consid-
er whether CASE offerings support in-
dustry-standard SAL for shared data-
base access, AD/Cycle for shared access
to design information, common graphi-
cal user interfaces to ensure a consistent
look and feel for all applications, and
compliance with communication stan-
dards, including SNA in the IBM envi:
ronment and TCP/IP and OSI protocols
in all environments.

Next week I will discuss additional
features to look for in order to get the
maximum return from an investment in
CASE technology. H

The concepts embodied in this article
are described in the CASE volume in
The James Martin Report Series. For
more information on this volume, call
(617) 639-1958. For information on
seminars, contact (in the United States
and Canada) Technology Transfer In-
stitute, 741 10th St., Santa Monica,
Calif. 90402 (213) 394-8305. In Eu-
rope, contact Savant, 2 New St.,
Carnforth, Lancs., LA5 9BX United
Kingdom (0524) 734 505.

po
NR

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