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| Criterion |  UX Design Customer Journey Canvas |  Architecture arc42 |  UX Research Affinity Diagramming |  Architecture C4 Model |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | When a journey needs to be understood across several phases, it arranges experience, touchpoints, and opportunities into one picture. It makes gaps and friction along the user path clear. | 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. | When research notes, feedback, or observations sit unconnected side by side, affinity diagramming sorts the raw material into solid themes. Many individual points turn into patterns that make decisions and opportunities clearer. | The C4 Model makes a system legible across several resolution levels, from context down to code. It suits situations where different audiences need to understand the same architecture from different altitudes. |
Complexitydifferent | Medium | Low | Low | Low |
Timedifferent | 1-3 h | 1-2 Tage | 45–90 min | 1-4 h |
Participantsdifferent | 3-10 | 1-4 | 3-10 | 1-5 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop | Workshop + async | Workshop | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Customer Journey Canvas, Pain Points, Experience Opportunities | Architecture Document, Context View, Runtime View, Deployment View | Theme clusters, Insight statements, Opportunity areas | Context Diagram, Container Diagram, Component Diagram |
Tagsno overlap | JourneyCustomerService designCanvas | ArchitectureDocumentationCommunication | SynthesisQualitativeRoot cause | ArchitectureCommunicationVisualization |