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| Criterion | ![]() Architecture arc42 | ![]() Decision Making Assumption Surfacing | ![]() Decision Making Argument Mapping | ![]() Architecture Architecture Communication Canvas |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | arc42 structures architecture knowledge so teams can document system, decisions, and risks consistently. The template builds a living understanding of the architecture instead of scattered notes. | Plans often contain assumptions that were never openly stated and remain dangerous precisely because of that. Assumption Surfacing makes these silent premises visible and prioritizes which of them carry the initiative or could sink it. | When statements, evidence, and counterarguments get mixed up, a debate quickly loses its structure. Argument Mapping breaks a thesis down into its reasoning and makes visible what it really rests on. | The Architecture Communication Canvas plans architecture communication so the right people receive the right message. The method turns technical complexity into deliberate communication design. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Low | Medium | Medium |
Timedifferent | 1-2 Tage | 45-90 min | 1-3 h | 60-120 min |
Participantsdifferent | 1-4 | 2-8 | 1-8 | 2-8 |
Formatsame | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Architecture Document, Context View, Runtime View, Deployment View | Assumption List, Critical Assumptions, Learning Plan | Argument Map, Evidence Gaps, Decision Rationale | Communication Canvas, Stakeholder Messages, Architecture Communication Plan |
Tagsno overlap | ArchitectureDocumentationCommunication | AssumptionsRiskDecisionDiscovery | SensemakingDecisionRationale | ArchitectureCommunicationStakeholdersCanvas |



