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Pattern-Oriented Software Architecture by Frank Buschmann Recommended

ISBN: 0 471 95869 7       Publisher: Wiley       Pages: 457pp       Price: £?

Categories:   object oriented     patterns

Reviewed by Klitos Kyriacou in C Vu 9-2 (Jan 1997)

Whereas ' Design Patterns ' covers a single level of abstraction in object-oriented development, the present book covers three levels; the high-level architectural patterns, design patterns and language- specific idioms. More pages are devoted to architectural patterns than to the other two combined. Descriptions of patterns that have appeared in ' Design Patterns ' come with acknowledgement of the earlier work and build upon it, rather than replicating it. Therefore, it is well worth having both books.

These patterns are not all specifically object-oriented. For example, a familiar architectural pattern described is Pipes and Filters. However, patterns are about reuse and since object orientation can facilitate reuse, many of the patterns described are object-oriented.

I started reading this book while I was developing a C++ application with a character-based interface, using menus. I tried to follow its guidelines for implementing the Model/View/Controller architecture, as I wanted to keep the presentation separate from the application logic. This was partly successful. The MVC architecture is more typically used in frameworks provided by designers of GUI systems. Perhaps the guidelines did not advise clearly enough about applying a pattern to the right kind of application and level of abstraction.

The chapters cataloguing the patterns (with examples in C++, Java and Smalltalk) are followed by a chapter on pattern systems, putting the patterns into perspective and showing how they are used together. The next chapter is on patterns and software architecture, advising on the development process. This is followed by a chapter on the pattern community; who the prominent people in the field are and how to join relevant mailing lists and access their web sites. The book closes with an opinion on the future direction of patterns. At the end is an index of patterns, but, unfortunately, no general index.