ARCWAY Cockpit supports the architecture-centric management of projects, also known as the ARCWAY Method. Plans are at the heart of this methodology.
ARCWAY Cockpit introduces the notion of architecture to overcome the communication gap. The architecture abstracts from the complexities of the underlying system and delivers a concise overview. Just like an architect uses a blueprint of the house to be built, or an engineer uses a blueprint of the part he needs to construct - ARCWAY Cockpit supports the creation of a blueprint for the project. This blueprint eases the communication between professionals of different disciplines and gives project managers a clear and concise overview of the project.
Each plan consists of several plan elements. In Cockpit we distinguish between Local Elements and Unique Elements. Local Elements appear on only one plan, whereas Unique Elements may occur on multiple plans. This allows to gradually refine the Big Picture to precise and detailed software architectures. Small icons point to the unique elements that contain refinements.
ARCWAY Cockpit takes care of the
management of these Unique Elements and
stores the Unique Elements and their
relationships, e.g. which Unique
Element is hierarchically decomposed into which other
Unique Elements and which Unique Element occurs on which plan, in a
central repository on the server.
Some parts of this information will be displayed within the repository view:
Tell me more about Unique Elements...
Based on the Big Picture, relevant information of various kinds and sources can be attached to elements in the architecture and thus can be easily accessible by all involved parties.
Information can be associated with plan elements by simple drag'n'drop.
Tell me more about InfoLinks...
The architecture-centric approach of ARCWAY Cockpit also implies that the whole project team is able to work collaboratively on a project.
*) Please note that this feature is only available in the Enterprise Edition.