The surge of interest in object orientation (OO) is leading many corporates to commit resources to OO projects. A major problem in development of these has been the lack of skills, which has led Software Futures` Object Business to focus on indepth education. Initiatives here have included master classes run around the country and the formation of the hugely successful OTSIG, which has drawn more than 200 OO enthusiasts. Now Software Futures is bringing Martin Fowler, one of the world`s leading OO exponents, to South Africa in May to run master classes and executive breakfasts in Johannesburg and Cape Town. "It is widely acknowledged that OO has become pervasive, but our IT industry simply lacks the indepth skills to maximise the promise of OO," says Derek Hughes, director of Software Futures` Object Business. "For that reason we have focused our efforts on educating and evangelising. Bringing Martin Fowler to South Africa is a major consolidation of our efforts to date." Fowler has spent a decade applying object technology to business information systems. He has advised clients on analysis modeling, object design, patterns, effective coding techniques, test planning, and project management. Fowler is an accomplished speaker who has given tutorial presentations on analysis, design, and patterns at conferences such as OOPSLA, Object World, ECOOP, and ICSE. He is the author of the books "Analysis Patterns: Reusable Object Models", and "UML Distilled: Applying the Standard Object Modelling Language", both published by Addison-Wesley. The latter book won a Software Development Productivity award in 1998 and is the first in a series to be published on UML - the other three titles are authored by Grady Booch, James Rumbaugh and Ivar Jacobson respectively. During his visit to South Africa, Fowler will present three master classes over two days in Johannesburg (27-28 May, Park Hyatt Hotel) and Cape Town (2-3 June, BMW Pavilion). The classes focus on: * Use of UML: A pragmatic approach presented from a pactitioner`s point of view. * Refactoring: The application of controlled rework during an iterative incremental development process. * Using patterns: Leveraging common solutions to common problems through the use of patterns. In addition to the master classes, Fowler has developed and taught a range of highly interactive training workshops for topics such as Use of UML, OO Analysis and Design, Using Patterns, Refactoring, and OO Programming. These workshops are intended for small audiences, preferably from a single organisation as the content is customised for the audience. Fowler will be presenting a number of these focused workshops to interested companies during his two week stay in South Africa. Finally, Fowler will share his views on the current state and future of the object technology industry at executives breakfast seminars in Cape Town (1 June, BMW Pavilion) and Johannesburg (28 May, Park Hyatt Hotel). "South Africans seldom have direct access to acknowledged experts and published authors of the calibre of Martin Fowler," says Hughes. This is a unique opportunity to gain first-hand knowledge and experience from a man who characterises his approach to his work with this statement, "My goal is simple: to make myself unnecessary to my clients by passing on the lessons that I have learned and the skills that I have acquired."
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