Classes (OOM)

A class is a description of a set of objects that have a similar structure and behavior, and share the same attributes, operations, relationships, and semantics.

A class can be created in the following diagrams:

The structure of a class is described by its attributes and associations, and its behavior is described by its operations.

Classes, and the relationships that you create between them, form the basic structure of an OOM. A class defines a concept within the application being modeled, such as:

The following example shows the class Aircraft with its attributes (range and length) and operation (startengines).

• Creating a Class
  You can create a class from an interface, or from the Toolbox, Browser, or Model menu.
• Class Properties
  To view or edit a class's properties, double-click its diagram symbol or Browser or list entry. The property sheet tabs and fields listed here are those available by default, before any customization of the interface by you or an administrator.
• Creating Java BeanInfo Classes
  If you are using the Java object language, you can create Java BeanInfo classes from any class with a type of "JavaBean".
• Generic Types and Methods
  Generic types and methods are a new feature of Java 5.0. A generic type is a class or interface that has one or more type variables and one or more methods that use a type variable as a placeholder for an argument or return type.
• Composite and Inner Classifiers
  A composite classifier is a class or an interface that contains other classes or interfaces (called inner classifiers). Inner classifiers are listed in the Browser as children of their composite classifier.
• Specifying a Classifier as a Data Type or Return Type
  You can specify a class or an interface in the current model or in another model (including a JDK library) as an attribute or parameter data type or as an operation return type. If the classifier belongs to the current model or package, it is displayed together with the other classifiers. If it belongs to another model or package, a shortcut of the classifier is created in the current package.
• Viewing the Migrated Attributes of a Class
  Navigable associations migrate attributes to classes during code generation. You can display these migrated attributes in the Associations tab of a class property sheet.