In this module we will see the what and why of object oriented analysis and design. We all try to build different products, be it physical or digital. Let's say for example, like the one the most commonly we use everyone use a phone. Let's say I give you all the resources for a phone, be it chipset, battery, screen and stuff. Can we really build a phone if I have all the resources that I need? Or let's take an example of say a digital product. Let's say I want to build an app. I want to build WhatsApp I know how it works. I have seen an equivalent and I give you everything. Can we really build it? It's not straight as straightforward as you see. So where do we get started? That's where object oriented analysis is very, very fundamental. You first try to understand what needs to be developed. That's what is part you call as analysis. You analyze what needs to be done. And once post the analysis part, you actually design what needs to be done. For example, let's say I have an app and in my app we visualize that my app needs to be doing so many functionalities. So I need a button here, I need a menu here and stuff like that. And if I need all these, I need to do a design on top of this to implement so that it starts working. So that's where to build any product. The moment we have a requirement, the very first step becomes my object oriented analysis and design.

Video Recap

Object Oriented Analysis and Design (OOAD) is a structured methodology for analyzing, designing, and developing software systems.
OOAD is based on the principles of object-oriented programming, which emphasizes using objects to represent real-world entities and relationships between them.
It helps to break down the requirements of a product into smaller, more manageable components to identify the necessary objects and their properties, behaviors, and relationships.
OOAD provides a systematic approach to create high-quality, maintainable, and reusable software.
OOAD is fundamental in the software development process as it enables developers to better understand what needs to be developed and how to design and implement the system.

So now you know what is OOAD. Whenever you want to build a complex product, be it a physical or digital, the first step should be OOAD. OOAD is composed of two parts, 'Analysis' and 'Design'. The analysis is done during the requirement gathering part, where you work with the users of the system or the software to define the functionality of the system. Post analysis, you design the system by refining the analysis models created during the analysis phase.

In brief, the analysis answers the 'what' part of the software development, where you define what functionality that the software needs to perform. And the design answers the 'how' part of the software development, where you define how those functionalities will be implemented.

So now you know what is OOAD and what Analysis and Design mean. In the next video, you will see why you need to use object-oriented analysis and design.

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In the previous video, you saw that OOAD is required for the following purposes:

To keep all stakeholders on the same page - Suppose you want to build a chatting app, called WhatsApp. If you just say that you want to build a chatting app, which can be used to chat with others, it will be very difficult for others to really understand what you want to build. But if you clear lay down all the requirements and design for that product, it makes a lot easier to convey your thoughts to others.
Help the product evolve - OOAD helps you draw a blueprint of your system. This blueprint helps you visualize the system at a very high level. If you want to evolve your system, you can easily find out what components of your system need to be modify and what new components need to be added.
Transfer knowledge - As OOAD helps you draw a blueprint of your system, it will be a lot easier to explain what and how your system works internally rather than showing them the source code, which may not make sense.

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Now you know what OOAD is and why you need it. In brief, object-oriented analysis and design is the first step in developing any system.