Unified Modeling Language
Overview
 
Unified Modeling Language (UML) is a standardized general-purpose modeling language
Modeling language
A modeling language is any artificial language that can be used to express information or knowledge or systems in a structure that is defined by a consistent set of rules...

 in the field of object-oriented software engineering
Software engineering
Software Engineering is the application of a systematic, disciplined, quantifiable approach to the development, operation, and maintenance of software, and the study of these approaches; that is, the application of engineering to software...

. The standard is managed, and was created, by the Object Management Group
Object Management Group
Object Management Group is a consortium, originally aimed at setting standards for distributed object-oriented systems, and is now focused on modeling and model-based standards.- Overview :...

. It was first added to the list of OMG adopted technologies in 1997, and has since become the industry standard for modeling software-intensive systems.

UML includes a set of graphic notation techniques to create visual models
Visual modeling
Visual modeling is the graphic representation of objects and systems of interest using graphical languages. Visual modeling languages may be General-Purpose Modeling languages or Domain-Specific Modeling languages...

 of object-oriented software-intensive systems.
The Unified Modeling Language (UML) is used to specify, visualize, modify, construct and document the artifacts
Artifact (software development)
An artifact is one of many kinds of tangible by-product produced during the development of software. Some artifacts help describe the function, architecture, and design of software...

 of an object-oriented software-intensive system under development.
 
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