Job titles like "Technical Architect" and "Chief Architect"
nowadays abound in the software industry, yet many people
suspect that "architecture" is one of the most overused and
least understood terms in professional software development.
Gorton's book helps resolve this predicament. It concisely
describes the essential elements of knowledge and key skills
required to be a software architect. The explanations encompass
the essentials of architecture thinking, practices, and
supporting technologies. They range from a general understanding
of software structure and quality attributes, through technical
issues like middleware components and documentation techniques,
to emerging technologies like model-driven architecture,
software product lines, aspect-oriented design, service-oriented
architectures, and the Semantic Web, all of which will influence
future software system architectures. All approaches are
illustrated by an ongoing real-world example. So if you work as
an architect or senior designer (or want to