AToM3 Types

Programming

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5. AToM³ Basic Types

The base class for all AToM³ basic types is ATOM3Type, whose structure is shown in the following figure:

Figure 1: ATOM3Type class structure. The meaning of the attributes is as follows:

parent: The frame in which the widgets to edit this variable will be shown.
mode: A flag with values ATOM3TypeDialog.SHOW (by default) or ATOM3TypeDialog.OPEN. The flag indicates which method -- show or open -- must be called in order to edit the variable.

The meaning of the methods is as follows:

getMode: Returns the mode attribute of the object.
setMode: Sets the mode attribute of the object.
hasEqualValue: checks if both objects have the same value and returns 1 or 0.
isNone: Abstract method. Should return 0 if the value stored in the type is considered None, another value otherwise.
setNone: Abstract method. Should set to None the value of the type.
unSetNone: Abstract method. Should make the value of the type different from None.
getValue: Abstract method. Should return the actual attribute value.
setValue: Abstract method. Should set the actual attribute value.
invalid: Abstract method. Should be implemented to decide if the value is valid (returns 1) or invalid (return 0).
show: This method is used to create a widget to edit the variable, must be extended.
open: Same as show, but can be applied for example to ASG's children, if we are interested in editing the nodes of the graph and not the model properties.
destroy: Abstract method. This should be implemented to store the actual value of the widget, as the frame in which it is located is going to be destroyed.
getTypeName: Returns a string with the name of the type.
clone: creates an exact copy of itself. Must be extended.
copy: copies each field of the other object into its own state. Must be extended.
toString: Abstract method which should be implemented to return a string representing the type's value.

The following table shows the available basic types in AToM³ as mentioned before, all of them inherit from ATOM3Type.

**Table 1:** AToM³ Basic Types.
Type	Description	Generative?
ATOM3Appearance	A type to provide the lower meta-level entity with an icon-like appearance. When editing the icon, a dialog window is produced by the appearanceEditor class.	Yes
ATOM3Attribute	A type to provide the lower meta-level entity with an attribue of any kind, which in its turn can be ATOM3Attribute.	Yes
ATOM3Boolean	A boolean variable.	No
ATOM3BottomType	The bottom type, whose value is always None.	No
ATOM3Connection	Controls cardinalities between objects.	Yes
ATOM3Constraint	A generative type which creates a constraint in the lower meta-level entity	Yes
ATOM3Enum	Defines an enumerate variable.	No
ATOM3File	Produces a dialog window which allows the user to choose a file.	No
ATOM3Float	A float number type.	No
ATOM3Integer	An integer number type.	No
ATOM3Link	A type to provide the lower meta-level entity with a link-like appearance.	Yes
ATOM3List	A list of some AToM³ type, including lists.	No
ATOM3MSEnum	A multiple selection enumerate type.	No
ATOM3String	A string type.	No

5.1 AToM³ Generative Types

Basic types can be regular or generative. The latter are the key concept in AToM³'s meta-modelling approach. These are types which will generate an attribute, an appearance or a constraint in the lower meta-level entity. A meta-model is indeed a meta-meta-model if some of its entities have a generative-attribute.

<<[AToM3 Graphics] ::: [Graph Gramars]>>

Maintained by Juan de Lara. Last modified 22 July 2002.

Programming

<<[AToM3 Graphics] ::: [Graph Gramars]>>

5. AToM3 Basic Types

5.1 AToM3 Generative Types

<<[AToM3 Graphics] ::: [Graph Gramars]>>

5. AToM³ Basic Types

5.1 AToM³ Generative Types