Modelling tutorial

Return to AToM3 Help Center

Setting up your meta-modeling environment

The first thing you'll want to do is choose which formalisms (meta-models) start up with AToM3.

By default, AToM3 starts with Entity Relationship V3
UPDATE: AToM3 now starts with Class Diagram V3 by default, along with its associated button generating grammar. It's very similar to Entity Relationship V3 however, just substitute "Entity" for "Class", and "Relation" for "Association".
(which lets you generate new formalisms) and the Graph Transformation Toolbar. You can change this in Options, press F1 (or Right-Click, File-Menu, Options).

You can close formalisms by pressing F4 (or Right-Click, File-Menu, Close-Metamodel)

You can open formalisms by pressing F3 (or Right-Click, File-Menu, Open-Metamodel)

You can open RECENT formalisms quickly by pressing F7 (or Right-Click, Open Recent-Metamodel)

A formalism appears to be just a toolbar with buttons, indeed the Graph Transformation Toolbar is nothing but buttons, but others, like Entity Relationship V3, are en entire model making environment specification that controls what can be drawn on the canvas, what it looks like, and what can be modified... Hence why we call them meta-models!

Model making 101

You can open models by pressing Control-O (or Right-Click, File-Menu, Open-Model)

You can open RECENT models by pressing F6 (or Right-Click, Open Recent-Model)

You can save models by pressing Control-S (or Right-Click, File-Menu, Save-Model)

You can save models as (some new path) by pressing Alt-S (or Right-Click, File-Menu, Save as...)

To actually make the model, lets assume you have Entity Relationship V3 formalism open

  1. Click the Entity icon in the toolbar
  2. Control-Right-Click on the canvas (or Right-Click, Action)
  3. Repeat 2 until you have a bunch of Entities on the canvas...
  4. To link two entities together, Control-Left-Click one of them (or Right-Click, Create-Arrow) and Left-Click on the second Entity. This is the simplest form of connection, see * and ** for more details. Also, to connect an Entity to itself, you definately want to read *.
  5. To edit the attributes of an Entity/Relationship, either Double-Click it, or press E (or Right-Click and choose one of Edit-Nearest or Edit-Overlapping) while holding the cursor over it (second method is more reliable sometimes).
  6. To select entities: Left-Click and drag a box over all desired entites OR Left-Click a desired entity AND holding SHIFT down, augment your selection OR holding ALT down subtract from your selection. Select-All and De-Select All are also possible, Ctrl-A and Ctrl-D (or Right-Click, Select All and Right-Click De-Select All).
  7. To drag entities: you must have selected entities first. Now you Left-Click, and while holding it down, you drag your mouse. Alternative: press D (or Right-Click, Drag-Overlapping) to drag what is immediately under your cursor, possibly letting you choose from a list.
  8. Layout functions that eliminate overlap (Force Transfer), spread out your nodes evenly (Spring-Layout), or just prettify your arrows (Arrow Optimizer) can be applied to selected entities by going to the layout menu L (or Right-Click, Layout-Menu).
  9. External layout is possible via the Right-Click, Export-Menu. This will send your AToM3 model to an external graph format that can be read in by tools such as yED (GML format). Instant GML-Export/Import allows you to send the model to yED, play around with it in yED, then load it back into AToM3 so you preserve your original model graphics.

* To link two entities together (but add intermediate points between them), Control-Left-Click one of them (or Right-Click, Create-Arrow), now Left-Click any empty spot on the canvas to drop intermediate control points, Right-Click to remove the last control point, a final Left-Click on the target Entity ends the process. The two entities could also be just the same entity with a self-arrow.

** To link two entities together (but add intermediate points between them AND not connect with random things that happen to be in the way), Control-Left-Click one of them (or Right-Click, Create-Arrow), press SPACEBAR (the cursor changes), now Left-Click anywhere on the canvas to drop intermediate control points, Right-Click to remove the last control point, press SPACEBAR, a final Left-Click on the target Entity ends the process.



Author: Denis Dube
Updated April 3, 2005