The discussion had several points.  The definition of Modeling had several viewpoints.  One group saw modeling as something that had value beyond what could be represented in code.  A minority could see modeling as just a graphical rendering of what was in code.  The value derived from modeling varried more widely.  Some wanted engineering value (QOS modeling, analysis of communications loading, doing for software systems what engineering tools do for other domains).  Some saw the value in modeling in representing design/analysis to other team members.  Some of the differences came out of what types of software people were building.  For a web app supporting one site, the main focus was on managing a large team.  For those building software in distributed systems or something like an airplane network of computers, the need to do engineering analysis on the software has more value.  These systems like medical systems are required to work the first time, or work in the face of various constraints or failures.  Relying on just testing or programmer skill is not an option in these domains.