Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

PlantUML VS CakePHP

Compare PlantUML VS CakePHP and see what are their differences

Note: These products don't have any matching categories. If you think this is a mistake, please edit the details of one of the products and suggest appropriate categories.

PlantUML logo PlantUML

PlantUML is an open-source tool that uses simple textual descriptions to draw UML diagrams.

CakePHP logo CakePHP

The Rapid Development Framework for PHP
  • PlantUML Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-10-22
  • CakePHP Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-10-21

PlantUML features and specs

  • Simple Syntax
    PlantUML uses a plain text language that is easy to learn, making it accessible for both technical and non-technical users.
  • Quick Diagram Creation
    Due to its straightforward text-based syntax, diagrams can be created and modified quickly without the need for a graphical interface.
  • Version Control Friendly
    Diagrams are stored as text files, making them easy to manage with version control systems like Git.
  • Integrations
    PlantUML integrates well with many other tools and platforms including IDEs (e.g., IntelliJ, VSCode), documentation generators (e.g., Doxygen, Sphinx), and project management tools.
  • Wide Range of Diagrams
    PlantUML supports a variety of UML and non-UML diagrams, including sequence diagrams, use case diagrams, class diagrams, and more.
  • Open Source
    PlantUML is an open-source tool, which makes it free to use and allows for community contributions and extensions.

Possible disadvantages of PlantUML

  • Learning Curve
    While the syntax is simple, users unfamiliar with text-based diagramming may need time to become proficient.
  • No GUI
    PlantUML lacks a graphical user interface (GUI), which might be a disadvantage for users who prefer drag-and-drop diagram creation.
  • Complex Diagrams
    For very complex diagrams, the text-based syntax can become cumbersome and hard to manage.
  • Rendering Limitations
    The style and formatting options are less flexible compared to some dedicated graphical diagramming tools.
  • Performance
    For large diagrams, the text-to-diagram rendering process can be slow.
  • Security Concerns
    Using PlantUML with remote server options might raise security issues, particularly when dealing with sensitive information.

CakePHP features and specs

  • Structured MVC Framework
    CakePHP follows the Model-View-Controller (MVC) architectural pattern, which provides a clear separation of concerns, making the application more organized and maintainable.
  • Built-in ORM
    CakePHP includes a powerful Object-Relational Mapping (ORM) system which simplifies database interactions and promotes the use of PHP objects instead of writing raw SQL queries.
  • Convention Over Configuration
    CakePHP follows the 'convention over configuration' philosophy, which reduces the need for extensive configuration and allows developers to quickly set up new projects.
  • Security Features
    The framework comes with built-in security features like input validation, SQL injection prevention, and CSRF protection, which help in building safer applications.
  • Active Community
    CakePHP has an active and supportive community, which provides a wealth of plugins, tutorials, and help through forums and other online resources.

Possible disadvantages of CakePHP

  • Learning Curve
    For developers who are new to MVC frameworks or the conventions used by CakePHP, there can be a steep learning curve initially.
  • Performance Overhead
    Due to its extensive features and abstractions, CakePHP can sometimes have a higher performance overhead compared to lightweight frameworks, especially in high-traffic applications.
  • Limited Flexibility
    While conventions can be beneficial, they may also limit flexibility for developers who prefer to structure their projects differently or need to implement custom solutions.
  • Updates and Compatibility
    Major updates to the framework might introduce breaking changes, requiring existing projects to undergo significant modifications to stay up-to-date.

Analysis of PlantUML

Overall verdict

  • Yes, PlantUML is a good tool for developers and teams who need a straightforward and efficient way to create and manage diagrams within their projects. Its text-based approach allows for easy updates and maintenance, which is beneficial in agile and fast-paced development settings.

Why this product is good

  • PlantUML is appreciated for its simplicity and versatility in creating UML diagrams. It allows users to write diagrams using a concise text-based language, which can be easily integrated into code repositories for version control. This approach facilitates collaboration and documentation among developers. Moreover, it supports various diagram types beyond UML, such as sequence diagrams, class diagrams, and state diagrams, and can be integrated with other tools and editors, enhancing its utility across different environments.

Recommended for

  • Software developers
  • Technical architects
  • Project managers
  • Teams using agile methodologies
  • Educators teaching software design

PlantUML videos

PlantUML - beautiful quick diagrams to explain your models

More videos:

  • Review - Folge16 - PlantUML und IntelliJ
  • Tutorial - PlantUML Gizmo Tutorial: Google Docs Add-on
  • Review - Mermaid vs PlantUML vs HackerDraw: Which One Is Best For You?
  • Review - Using PlantUML For Diagrams In A GitLab Wiki

CakePHP videos

CakePHP 3.7 Standards and MySQL Database Review

More videos:

  • Tutorial - CakePHP 3 Tutorial - part 1: Introduction & Installation

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to PlantUML and CakePHP)
Diagrams
100 100%
0% 0
Web Frameworks
0 0%
100% 100
Flowcharts
100 100%
0% 0
Developer Tools
0 0%
100% 100

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare PlantUML and CakePHP

PlantUML Reviews

Top 7 diagrams as code tools for software architecture
PlantUML is a tool that allows you to write diagrams such as sequence, object, component, usecase, class diagrams and more.
5 great diagramming tools for enterprise and software architects
PlantUML is an open source tool and syntax that allows you to make sequence, use case, class, object, and other diagrams from code. It also supports non-UML diagrams like JSON and YAML. In addition, it enjoys support from ArchiMate, ERD, Business Process Modeling Notation (BPMN), and other common notation styles. Its simple, plain-text definitions make creating, sharing, and...
Source: www.redhat.com
Software Diagrams - Plant UML vs Mermaid
For C4 Models, Mermaid support is still experimental. This shows as you have little control over the way the diagram is rendered, and some parts are unreadable (i.e., arrows over nodes). PlantUML works as you would expect and has support for more advanced setup like sprites. Not even close on this one. Winner: PlantUML
9 Best UML Software For Mac & PC
PlantUML is another free open source sequence diagram software that uses text input to build UML charts. PlantUML requires using a specific PlantUML Language to construct sequence charts but once learned it’s very flexible.
Source: machow2.com
40 Open Source, Free and Top Unified Modeling Language (UML) Tools
PlantUML is a component that allows users to quickly write sequence diagrams, usecase diagrams, class diagrams, activity diagrams, component diagrams, state diagrams, deployment diagrams, object diagrams and wireframe graphical interfaces. Diagrams are defined using a simple and intuitive language. Images can be generated in PNG, SVG or LaTeX format and it is also possible...

CakePHP Reviews

CakePHP vs CodeIgniter: Which PHP Framework is Best for Development?
CakePHP: CakePHP was released in April 2005 by Larry Masters. It is influenced by the concepts of Ruby on Rails and emphasizes convention over configuration, aiming to make web development fast and easy. CakePHP has undergone significant evolution, with the latest versions providing advanced features while maintaining backward compatibility.
Top 5 Laravel Alternatives
CakePHP is less complicated to work with than Laravel. CakePHP’s stated goal is to streamline the processes of developing, deploying, and maintaining Web Apps. The clean MVC layout makes it easy to pick up and use.
Top 10 Phoenix Framework Alternatives
CakePHP offers multiple features like code generation and app scaffolding that accelerates production speeds and saves development costs.
The Most Popular PHP Frameworks to Use in 2021
For example, the CakePHP framework has the Bake command-line tool which can quickly create any skeleton code that you need in your application.
Source: kinsta.com
Top 9 PHP Frameworks For Web Development In 2021
CakePHP is an open-source web development PHP framework. It’s ranked 6th in PHP Benchmarks, just above the Laravel web development framework. The newly released v4.0 comes with a renovated skeleton design and provides APIs to enable developers for rapid application development. On GitHub, it has 8.3k+ stars and 555 contributors. For commercial support, you have cakeDC....

Social recommendations and mentions

PlantUML might be a bit more popular than CakePHP. We know about 12 links to it since March 2021 and only 10 links to CakePHP. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

PlantUML mentions (12)

  • Owning my own data, part 1: Integrating a self-hosted calendar solution
    That particular diagram seems to have been generated by https://plantuml.com according to the image's metadata. - Source: Hacker News / about 2 months ago
  • Common Mistakes in Architecture Diagrams (2020)
    I have to confess I am guilty of this — I used to just draw some unstructured circles and arrows on a whiteboard and call it enough. Lately I've been trying to work my way through lots of different diagram types from https://plantuml.com/, and it does help to wrap my mind around the existing options. - Source: Hacker News / 4 months ago
  • LLM + Mermaid: How Modern Teams Create UML Diagrams Without Lucidchart
    Today, tools like Mermaid and PlantUML have taken center stage, thanks to their ability to generate diagrams with text-based commands. Even better, AI-powered assistants like Claude, ChatGPT, and GitHub Copilot have made generating diagrams even easier. These tools work directly within a developer's environment, creating diagrams that are version-controlled and integrated seamlessly into workflows. - Source: dev.to / 7 months ago
  • Blockdiag – simple diagram images generator – blockdiag 1.0 documentation
    While inactive blockdiag was small and nice for automatically annotating documentation. As you can see it hasn't been maintained for a few years. https://github.com/blockdiag/blockdiag With complex diagrams, I find good old PlantUML diagrams more useful if not as initially pretty as mermaid. Plus it will output archimate without having to touch that UI https://plantuml.com/ But really it is horses for courses.... - Source: Hacker News / 10 months ago
  • Introduction to Haskell Diagrams
    Use a high-level language like Plant UML, D2, Graphviz which are good for the purpose they are designed for, but not for generic purpose diagramming. - Source: dev.to / 10 months ago
View more

CakePHP mentions (10)

  • How to Use ServBay to Create and Run a CakePHP Project
    CakePHP is an open-source PHP web framework designed to help developers build web applications quickly. It is based on the MVC (Model-View-Controller) architecture and provides a powerful toolkit to simplify common development tasks such as database interactions, form handling, authentication, and session management. - Source: dev.to / 11 months ago
  • Top 12 PHP Frameworks For Web Development in 2024
    CakePHP is an open-source PHP framework for web development with 8.7k stars and 3.5k forks on GitHub. It offers APIs that enable developers to develop applications quickly. It allows you to create highly secure and scalable web applications, including social networks, eCommerce, and online collaboration platforms. - Source: dev.to / over 1 year ago
  • Any suggestions for lighter frameworks than Laravel?
    Give https://cakephp.org/ a try. It also is one of the oldest ones out there, so quite mature and stable while being rather lightweight. Serving JSON API seems like a good fit. Source: over 2 years ago
  • Which PHP Framework Should You Use in 2023?
    You can download it and review the documentation here: https://cakephp.org/. - Source: dev.to / over 2 years ago
  • My Workflow
    As the name of the service says it will work best with Laravel but it is not a problem to modify code from other frameworks to make it work the same way. I have several applications created this way in CakePHP. I have this set to manual after clicking the deploy button, but if you want you can turn on quick deploy and then it will publish the application after a push to the main branch (or another one, depending... - Source: dev.to / over 2 years ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing PlantUML and CakePHP, you can also consider the following products

draw.io - Online diagramming application

Laravel - A PHP Framework For Web Artisans

yEd - yEd is a free desktop application to quickly create, import, edit, and automatically arrange diagrams. It runs on Windows, Mac OS X, and Unix/Linux.

CodeIgniter - A Fully Baked PHP Framework

LucidChart - LucidChart is the missing link in online productivity suites. LucidChart allows users to create, collaborate on, and publish attractive flowcharts and other diagrams from a web browser.

Django - The Web framework for perfectionists with deadlines