Differences between MDE, MDD, MBE, etc, are idiosyncratic. MDA (Model Driven Architecture) is more specific because it has been proposed by the OMG and comes with sound semantics, even if there isn't much consensus about its use.

http://caminao.wordpress.com/system-engineering/models-perspectives/mde/

Hello,

MDE is a general methodology for software development, which preconizes the use of recurrent patterns (models) to icrease productivity and compatibility between systems.

MDA is a specific proposition for implementing MDE, made by the OMG, which describes an approach based on metamodels, then abstract models (PIM), and finally more specific models (PSM) which can be used to generate source code. MDA proposes but is not limited to some standards (MOF, UML, CWM...)

MDD is a solution for developping software following a general Model Driven Engineering approach without being restrained to MDA.

I hope it's clear.

Amina

Also notion of Model-Driven Software Development (MDSD) occurs quite often. It is very similar to (or even the same as) MDD described by Amina Bouraoui.

Just a notion - i always thought they differed exactly as their base nouns differed - architecture, development, engineering

engineering can be defined to include the other two

development can be defined as part of engineering or as encompassing the entire program, which subsumes engineering

they both presume to include architecture

for all of them, the key is a fundamental use of models to create, analyze, share, retain. And deliver knowledge about the system

Model Driven Architecture is like a guide stablished by the OMG as a standart to implement Model-Driven Development (MDD), which is a software development paradigm that uses models as the first class elements in the develoment process . Model-Driven Engineering are those activities covering an engineering process to develop software (taskt, documentation, etc.)

I think that the following book: Volter and Stahl "Model-Driven Software Development: Technology, Engineering, Management" (http://books.google.pl/books/about/Model_Driven_Software_Development.html?id=I6lrQgAACAAJ&redir_esc=y) explains quite well basic notions related to the MDE concept. It is definetly worth reading as an introduction to this software development paradigm. It was also very useful, while we were writing a book for IT students concerning web applications development based on platform-independent models.

To put it in a nutshell, MDA is a particular MDE incarnation, located in an object-oriented "technical space" owned by the OMG.

MDE is more generic and deals with various technical spaces such as XML (at the top of which lies XML schema as a metaformalism)...