IBM Rational Software Architect (RSA) 8

1. Model-Driven Development: Supports UML-based modeling for software design.

2. Code Generation: Automates code generation from UML diagrams.

3. Architectural Analysis: Provides tools for analyzing software architecture integrity.

4. Comprehensive IDE: Offers a full-featured integrated development environment.

Before learning IBM Rational Software Architect (RSA) 8, it's beneficial to have the following skills:

1. Understanding of Software Development: Familiarity with software development concepts and methodologies.

2. Knowledge of UML: Understanding of Unified Modeling Language (UML) for software modeling.

3. Programming Skills: Proficiency in programming languages such as Java, C++, or others.

4. Basic Architecture Design: Knowledge of basic software architecture design principles and patterns.

By learning IBM Rational Software Architect (RSA) 8, you gain the following skills:

1. UML Modeling: Ability to create and manipulate UML diagrams for software design.

2. Code Generation: Skill to automatically generate code from UML diagrams, streamlining development.

3. Architectural Analysis: Capability to analyze software architecture integrity and quality.

4. IDE Proficiency: Proficiency in using a comprehensive integrated development environment (IDE).