Reference Objects (Application Basics)

Go Up to Elements

The commands on the shortcut menus for the Reference Objects in a diagram are very similar. However additional commands appear on each of the objects. Since Domains are not visible in a diagram, no shortcut menu is available here.

Shortcut menus are available for the following objects:

• Business Element
• Business Rule
• Business Unit
• Steward
• Links
• Usage

Business Element

Business Elements are often used by business users to document their list of “terms and/or definitions”. While from a business user’s point-of-view, this may be no more than a list of terms, they can be used by a modeler to seed attributes of semantically-rich models.

Shortcut Menu Item	Icon	Description
Show Name		This is a toggle command. If it is selected the element label shows.
Appearance...		Opens the Appearance tab in the Property View where you can edit the font and color options, horizontal alignment, and Diagram display options of the object.
Connections		This command shows or hides the following connection objects: All, Interactions, Line Shapes, Links, Relationships, or Usages.
Grouping		Group: Groups two or more selected elements into a single entity that can be moved around a diagram in a block. Ungroup: Removes the selected grouping. This command is available only if the element selected is in a group.
Align Objects		When two or more objects are selected, the alignment commands are available on a pull-right menu.
Order		This is a pull-right menu displaying two commands that control stacking of elements in the Diagram View: Bring to Front and Send to Back.
Edit		This opens a pull-right menu allowing you to cut, copy, paste, delete, or select all elements in the diagram.
Binding Business Attributes to Business Elements...		Opens the Bindings tab for the selected Business Element. You can add, edit or delete bindings.
Links		If you are creating a new link, click Links>New and the Create Link wizard opens. If you are editing an existing link, click Links>Edit. If there are multiple links, the pull-right menu displays a list of the existing links. Click the name on the pull-right and the Edit Link wizard opens. If there is only one link the command is Links>Edit.   You can also select to show or hide the link in the Diagram View.
Usage (CRUD)		If you are creating a new usage, click Usage>New and the Usages wizard opens. If you want to edit or view an existing usage, click Usage (CRUD)>Edit or View. The Usage (CRUD) tab opens in the Property View for the selected element.   You can also select to show or hide the Usage in the Diagram View.
Create Diagram from Selected Elements...		This function gives you the ability to create a diagram from the Business Element that exists on the diagram.
Impact Analysis		You have two commands available from the pull-right menu: You can generate an Impact Analysis Diagram which graphically displays all the associated relationships and elements. You can also show the Impact Analysis Report.
Find in Model View		Select this command to locate the selected element in the Model View tree.
Properties		Opens the Property View dialog for the selected element.

Business Rule

A business rule is a policy, practice, or formula related to the operation and enforcement of business practices.

Shortcut Menu Item	Icon	Description
Show Name		This is a toggle command. If it is selected the element label shows.
Appearance...		Opens the Appearance tab in the Property View where you can edit the font and color options, horizontal alignment, and Diagram display options of the object.
Connections		This command shows or hides the following connection objects: All, Interactions, Line Shapes, Links, Relationships, or Usages.
Grouping		Group: Groups two or more selected elements into a single entity that can be moved around a diagram in a block. Ungroup: Removes the selected grouping. This command is available only if the element selected is in a group.
Align Objects		When two or more objects are selected, the alignment commands are available on a pull-right menu.
Order		This is a pull-right menu displaying two commands that control stacking of elements in the Diagram View: Bring to Front and Send to Back.
Edit		This opens a pull-right menu allowing you to cut, copy, paste, delete, or select all elements in the diagram.
Links		If you are creating a new link, click Links>New and the Create Link wizard opens. If you are editing an existing link, click Links>Edit. If there are multiple links, the pull-right menu displays a list of the existing links. Click the name on the pull-right and the Edit Link wizard opens. If there is only one link the command is Links>Edit.   You can also select to show or hide the link in the Diagram View.
Usage (CRUD)		If you are creating a new usage, click Usage>New and the Usages wizard opens. If you want to edit or view an existing usage, click Usage (CRUD)>Edit or View. The Usage (CRUD) tab opens in the Property View for the selected element.   You can also select to show or hide the Usage in the Diagram View.
Create Diagram from Selected Elements...		This function gives you the ability to create a diagram from the Business Rule element that exists on the diagram.
Impact Analysis		You have two commands available from the pull-right menu: You can generate an Impact Analysis Diagram which graphically displays all the associated relationships and elements. You can also show the Impact Analysis Report.
Find in Model View		Select this command to locate the selected element in the Model View tree.
Properties		Opens the Property View dialog for the selected element.

Business Unit

A business unit is an organizational area within or external to an enterprise, for example, Human Resources, Sales, Accounting, etc.

Shortcut Menu Item	Icon	Description
Show Name		This is a toggle command. If it is selected the element label shows.
Appearance...		Opens the Appearance tab in the Property View where you can edit the font and color options, horizontal alignment, and Diagram display options of the object.
Connections		This command shows or hides the following connection objects: All, Line Shapes, Links or Usages.
Grouping		Group: Groups two or more selected elements into a single entity that can be moved around a diagram in a block. Ungroup: Removes the selected grouping. This command is available only if the element selected is in a group.
Align Objects		When two or more objects are selected, the alignment commands are available on a pull-right menu.
Order		This is a pull-right menu displaying two commands that control stacking of elements in the Diagram View: Bring to Front and Send to Back.
Edit		This opens a pull-right menu allowing you to cut, copy, paste, delete, or select all elements in the diagram.
Creating as Pool		This creates a pool and lane with the same name as the Business Unit. The Business Unit is automatically associated with the Pool as a participant. A conceptual link from the Pool to the Business Unit is also created. The name of the link is the name of the Business Unit. This command is enabled only when Business Process diagrams are open.
Detaching from Pool		Once you have created a Business Unit or Steward as a pool you can eliminate the relationship between the reference object and the pool. This command is enabled only when Business Process diagrams are open.
Links		If you are creating a new link, click Links>New and the Create Link wizard opens. If you are editing an existing link, click Links>Edit. If there are multiple links, the pull-right menu displays a list of the existing links. Click the name on the pull-right and the Edit Link wizard opens. If there is only one link the command is Links>Edit.   You can also select to show or hide the link in the Diagram View.
Usage (CRUD)		If you are creating a new usage, click Usage>New and the Usages wizard opens. If you want to edit or view an existing usage, click Usage (CRUD)>Edit or View. The Usage (CRUD) tab opens in the Property View for the selected element.   You can also select to show or hide the Usage in the Diagram View.
Create Diagram from Selected Elements...		This function gives you the ability to create a diagram from the Business Unit element that exists on the diagram.
Impact Analysis		You have two commands available from the pull-right menu: You can generate an Impact Analysis Diagram which graphically displays all the associated relationships and elements. You can also show the Impact Analysis Report.
Find in Model View		Select this command to locate the selected element in the Model View tree.
Properties		Opens the Property View dialog for the selected element.

Steward

A steward is a person or organization responsible for or associated with a model element, for example: DBA, Auditor, Jeffrey Smith, etc.

Shortcut Menu Item	Icon	Description
Show Name		This is a toggle command. If it is selected the element label shows.
Appearance...		Opens the Appearance tab in the Property View where you can edit the font and color options, horizontal alignment, and Diagram display options of the object.
Connections		This command shows or hides the following connection objects: All, Interactions, Line Shapes, Links, Relationships, or Usages.
Grouping		Group: Groups two or more selected elements into a single entity that can be moved around a diagram in a block. Ungroup: Removes the selected grouping. This command is available only if the element selected is in a group.
Align Objects		When two or more objects are selected, the alignment commands are available on a pull-right menu.
Order		This is a pull-right menu displaying two commands that control stacking of elements in the Diagram View: Bring to Front and Send to Back.
Edit		This opens a pull-right menu allowing you to cut, copy, paste, delete, or select all elements in the diagram.
Creating as Pool		This creates a pool and lane with the same name as the Steward. The Steward is automatically associated with the Pool as a participant. A conceptual link from the Pool to the Steward is also created. The name of the link is the name of the Steward. This command is enabled only when Business Process diagrams are open.
Detaching from Pool		Once you have created a Business Unit or Steward as a pool you can eliminate the relationship between the reference object and the pool. This command is enabled only when Business Process diagrams are open.
Links		If you are creating a new link, click Links>New and the Create Link wizard opens. If you are editing an existing link, click Links>Edit. If there are multiple links, the pull-right menu displays a list of the existing links. Click the name on the pull-right and the Edit Link wizard opens. If there is only one link the command is Links>Edit.   You can also select to show or hide the link in the Diagram View.
Usage (CRUD)		If you are creating a new usage, click Usage>New and the Usages wizard opens. If you want to edit or view an existing usage, click Usage (CRUD)>Edit or View. The Usage (CRUD) tab opens in the Property View for the selected element.   You can also select to show or hide the Usage in the Diagram View.
Impact Analysis		You have two commands available from the pull-right menu: You can generate an Impact Analysis Diagram which graphically displays all the associated relationships and elements. You can also show the Impact Analysis Report.
Find in Model View		Select this command to locate the selected element in the Model View tree.
Properties		Opens the Property View dialog for the selected element.

Links

With a link you create a representation of a relationship between elements. These elements can consist of reference objects, data objects, and elements within a diagram.

Shortcut Menu Item	Description
Show	Name (Type) Verb Phrase Inverse Verb Phrase
Appearance...	Opens the Appearance tab in the Property View where you can edit the font and color options, Diagram display options, and Line display options of the object.
Connections	If you right-click on a connection (for example a Sequence Flow) you get the following commands: Hide Selected: The selected connection no longer appears in the diagram.   Show Attached/Hide Attached: If it is a Business Process diagram, the command shows or hides the following: All, Associations, Line Shapes, Links, Message Flows, Sequence Flows, or Usages. If it is a Conceptual Model diagram, the command shows or hides the following: All, Interactions, Line Shapes, Links, Relationships, or Usages.
Edit	This opens a pull-right menu allowing you to cut, copy, paste, delete, or select all elements in the diagram.
Layout	You can change the layout on individual connections. The commands e available on the pull-right menu are: Curved: Orthogonal bend points with “curved” corners are placed on the line. Elbowed: Orthogonal bend points are placed on the line. Straight: The line is always straight. However there can be bend points on the connection. Remove Bend Points: Removes all bends so the line traverses the shortest distance between two elements. Reset to Default Docking Position: The docking position of the line/element intersection is reset to its default setting.
Find in Model View	Select this command to locate the selected element in the Model View tree.
Properties	Opens the Property View dialog for the selected element.

Usage

You can show the create, read, update, or delete database attributes on a connection. When this connection is created they are labeled with the attributes you selected at the time of creation. These elements can consist of reference objects, data objects, and elements within a diagram.

Shortcut Menu Item	Description
Show	Name (Type) Usage
Appearance...	Opens the Appearance tab in the Property View where you can edit the font and color options, Diagram display options, and Line display options of the object.
Connections	If you right-click on a connection (for example a Sequence Flow) you get the following commands: Hide Selected: The selected connection no longer appears in the diagram.   Show Attached/Hide Attached: If it is a Business Process diagram, the command shows or hides the following: All, Associations, Line Shapes, Links, Message Flows, Sequence Flows, or Usages. If it is a Conceptual Model diagram, the command shows or hides the following: All, Interactions, Line Shapes, Links, Relationships, or Usages.
Edit	This opens a pull-right menu allowing you to delete, or select all elements in the diagram.
Layout	You can change the layout on individual connections. The commands e available on the pull-right menu are: Curved: Orthogonal bend points with “curved” corners are placed on the line. Elbowed: Orthogonal bend points are placed on the line. Straight: The line is always straight. However there can be bend points on the connection. Remove Bend Points: Removes all bends so the line traverses the shortest distance between two elements. Reset to Default Docking Position: The docking position of the line/element intersection is reset to its default setting.
Find in Model View	Select this command to locate the selected element in the Model View tree.
Properties	Opens the Property View dialog for the selected element.