UML Class Diagrams Flashcards

UML Class Diagrams Fundamentals

• Association: Line depicting the relationship between two classes with a name above it; arrows indicate directionality.
• Attribute: A variable holding data representing the state of a class instance, also known as a member variable.
• Class: Represents a "thing" in the system with its attributes and operations; serves as a blueprint for creating objects.
• Class Diagram: A static, structural diagram in UML that illustrates classes and their interrelationships.
• Default Value: A preset value for an attribute when no value is explicitly assigned; shown with an equal sign (=) followed by the value in a class diagram.
• Derived Attribute: Not stored but calculated from other attributes; indicated with a forward slash ("/") preceding the name and accompanied by a logic description.
• Multiplicity: Indicates the number of instances in a relationship or distinct values in an attribute; displayed near associations or in square brackets next to attribute names.

Additional Elements in Class Diagrams

• Note: Offers additional information about a class, shown in a rectangle connected to the relevant class with a solid line and featuring a clipped corner.
• Operation: Refers to the methods associated with a class in UML.
• Package: Groups related classes, equivalent to packages in Java and namespaces in .NET.

Member Access Modifiers

• Parameter: Placeholder for values passed to operations; defined by name, colon, and data type; multiple parameters are separated by commas.
• Private Access: Restricts access to the class members only within the same object; indicated by a dash ("-").
• Protected Access: Accessible to the object and child class instances; treated as private by other classes; denoted by a number sign ("#").
• Public Access: Allows any object to access the member; methods should typically be public, while attributes should generally remain private; indicated by a plus sign ("+").
• Public Interface: Comprises all public members, attributes, and operations of a class.

Relationship Indications

• Relationship Pointer: Arrow-like symbol representing the direction of relationships in association names, employing either the greater-than (">") or less-than ("<") symbols.