Table of Contents

Graphical Modeling Languages

Graphical Modeling Language is a type of modeling language that represents systems, processes, or concepts graphically. It’s often used in software engineering to represent software designs, workflows, or data flows.

Types

Some types of graphical modeling languages are as follows:

Flowchart
DFD
ERD
UML
BPMN

Flowchart

A flowchart is a graphical modeling language used to represent the flow of control and execution of algorithms, procedures, and operational instructions. It allows you to describe an algorithm graphically.

A flowchart is represented by conventional shapes like rectangles, diamonds, hexagons, parallelograms, ovals, etc., each with a precise logical meaning. It typically contains textual instructions describing the activity to be performed and is connected by arrows.

Data Flow Diagram (DFD)

DFD represents the flow of data within a system. It uses circles to represent processes, arrows to represent data flow, and rectangles to represent data stores.

Entity-Relationship Diagram (ERD)

ERD represents the entities in a system and their relationships. It uses rectangles to represent entities, diamonds to represent relationships, and lines to represent connections between them.

UML (Unified Modeling Language)

UML is widely used in software engineering to visualize, specify, construct, and document software-intensive systems. It includes various diagram types such as class diagrams, sequence diagrams, and activity diagrams.