Product Description

Together(r), one of the world's fastest-growing software development platforms, delivers a uniquely well-integrated set of lifecycle tools for building software that deliver unprecedented quality, efficiency, and performance. In this practical, accessible book, TogetherSoft experts and mentors bring together all the insider's insights every project team member needs to succeed with this breakthrough development toolset. The authors begin by introducing Together, its goals, the problems it is intended to solve, and the unique approach it takes to software deployment and use. Next, they walk through the entire process of developing with the Together ControlCenter, presenting development "from the inside out," as a continuous series of interacting activities intended to deliver frequent, tangible working results. Along the way, they cover the entire development lifecycle: domain modeling, requirements specification, feature-centric management, quality assurance, design, implementation, architecture, and the development of persistent objects.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #964103 in Books
• Published on: 2002-05-21
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 384 pages

From the Back Cover

Together: supercharging software development, from start to finish!

Together delivers a superbly integrated set of lifecycle tools for building software with breakthrough quality, efficiency, and performance. Now there's a definitive guide to making the most of Together: Better Software Faster. In this book, two leading Together mentors share the techniques you need to succeed every step of the way—from planning and requirements through development, debugging, delivery, and administration. You'll find detailed examples and practical insights for:

• Leveraging Together's common language, diagrams, and building block components to improve team collaboration
• Mastering TogetherSoft's "Model-Build-Deploy" approach to software development
• Managing the software development process from the Together ControlCenter
• Using Together to simplify modeling, design, and architecture
• Taking advantage of Together's tools for enhancing programmer efficiency and reducing errors

Whether you're an analyst, architect, designer, developer, or manager ... no matter what enterprise technologies you're already using ... this book will help you streamline and supercharge your very next software project ... Together!

Every book in the Coad Series (Peter Coad, series editor) delivers practical guidance for building better businesses, and the systems that support them—faster, better, and more easily. Legendary software methodology expert and TogetherSoft founder Peter Coad personally selects authors and books for this series, and works on a strategic level with every author throughout the book development process.

About the Author

ANDY CARMICHAEL has worked in software engineering for 20 years, specializing in software development methods and tools. He co-authored Better Software Faster while TogetherSoft's Director of Professional Services, Europe and the UK's Technical Services Director. He has edited two other books, Object Development Methods and Developing Business Objects, and is technical editor for Application Development Advisor magazine.

DAN HAYWOOD has worked on large and small software development projects for more than 12 years as an independent consultant and as a consultant for Sybase Professional Services and Accenture.

Customer Reviews

Something worthwhile on nearly every page
I have read good books about how to develop software, but this one goes to another level. It gives a lucid explanation of the principles that are needed to understand and manage the reality of iterative and evolutionary software development. That's right - this book doesn't ask you to learn some new methodology for software development. Rather it gives you principles that will make sense whatever process you are working.

While identifying key ideas behind good software processes, it is also eminently practical - the authors obviously enjoy making software that works. The book includes a significant application, complete with requirements model and a full suite of tests. This is an example that teaches.

As an added bonus the book demonstrates how to put these principles to good use with Together ControlCenter. As far as I know, it it is the ONLY book out there to deal with the single-source, single model approach that Together allows.

Finally, as an experienced Together user I was pleased to find the book uses side bars and appendices to share plenty of advanced tips and tricks too.

Down-to-earth, Pragmatic, readable
This book felt like a fresh breeze on a subject that has been dragged ad infinitum through a morass of books on this methodology or that process. It is not another methodology, nor is it merely a process (though there are solid roots in proven methodologies and processes).

The book impresses most with its down-to-earth practicality. Developers should quickly recognize the authors as two of their own who have spent a lot of time out there in the trenches. I helped review the manuscript for the publisher, and I found myself constantly distracted from the task of looking for problems in the text because I kept on highlighting interesting stuff that I wanted to go back to. I learned much then, and I am still learning.

The work is jam-packed with highly pragmatic advice, based on long experience, on how to tackle object-based, distributed development projects using a readily available development environment. (TogetherSoft's Together ControlCenter is the authors' weapon of choice... as far as I know it's the first third-party book dealing with this killer development tool. For TCC users, the book is probably worth it's price for the expert tips and tricks alone.)

Example abounds. The authors have built a reasonably robust distributed application (for an auto servicing shop), with both local and internet-based clients, around which the text revolves. (You can download the source code free from the book's website.) The language is Java, and the focus is on building distributed applications developed in a team setting.

Anyone relatively new to distributed apps (as I am), especially corporate developers and project managers, will probably benefit most from this book, though I think even the most seasoned veterans could find some interesting tidbits (artifact management and ControlCenter tips, for example).

Essential for Practical OO Development
Since the early nineties, the thickness of computer books seems to be inversely proportional to value of the content - in fact, most of the information can now be found on the web, leading me to donate most of my "thud-factor" books to local schools and other worthy causes.

I bought this book because I use Together to design secure software solutions in UML/Java/C++ and, like most OO designers, have read title after title which have plenty of theory but little useful advice. This book is full to the brim with practical, pragmatic guidance and examples from two guys who obviously "walk the talk" - it's an invaluable insight and guide to Software Engineers who are faced with the challenges of developing OO solutions using state-of-the-art tools in todays stressful and demanding organisations.

I now have two shelves of top class books - Better Software Faster has earned its place.