Modular design facilitates collaborative model construction, since teams of specialists can work independently on different modules with minimal risk of interference. Modules can be archived in distributed libraries and serve as a set of templates to speed future development. A modeling environment that supports modularity could provide a universal modeling language to promote worldwide collaborative model construction. A second step toward reducing model complexity involves the utilization of graphical, icon-based module interfaces, wherein the structure of the module is represented diagramatically, so that new users can recognize the major interactions at a glance. Scientists with little or no programming experience can begin building and running models almost immediately.
Inherent constraints make it much easier to generate bug-free models.
Built-in tools for display and analysis facilitate understanding, debugging, and calibration of the module dynamics. One major advantage of this graphical approach to modeling is that the process of modeling can become a consensus building tool. The graphical representation of the model can serve as a blackboard for group brainstorming as the model grows through a collaborative process of exploration. New ideas can be tested and scenarios investigated using the model within the context of group discussion. When applied in this manner the process of creating a model may be more valuable then the finished product.