Actionable Item (AI)
- Item that can be impacted by an Action. AIs are what the user has to
select from when creating an Action. Examples: Flight Box, Lab
Computer, Code Subsystem.
Team Workflow Definition
- Teams are created to perform that work associated with the Action.
They are related to the AIs that they are responsible for and are
configured with Leads and Members to route the Actions and perform the
work. A workflow is configured that the team will follow to perform the
work.
Workflow Configuration - State machine that shows the path the Team will follow to perform the work associated with the Action.
Action - Top level grouping object. An Action is written against
any number of AIs. The Team Workflows are then created for each team
configured to perform work for an AI.
Team Workflow - Instantiation of a Workflow Diagram needed to
perform the work. Each team independently moves through their workflow
state machine however ATS can be configured such that certain gates
must be met from other Teams or outside events before a workflow can
continue.
Task - Within states of a Team Workflow, smaller-light-weight
Tasks can be created to further separate the work that needs to be
completed for that state. Normally, the state can not continue until
the Task is completed.
Versions - ATS has built in project/release planning. Versions are created to group Team Workflows (Actions) into Builds and Releases.
denotes an Action, the top level object in ATS denotes a Team Workflow; moves team through completion of change denotes a Task; lightweight workflow that is performed during Team Workflow states denotes the ATS targeted for release version denotes the ATS review
ATS Overlays
warning that something needs to be addressed; open object for more information released version next release version ATS object marked as user's favorite; select "My Favorites" to load all marked ATS object user desires to receive email upon every state transition ATS object is obtaining estimated hours, percent complete, hours spent and remaining hours from tasks
ATS Operations
Select to create a new action
Select to create a new task
Select to refresh current view
Select to print the ATS Results
Select to email the ATS Results to an OSEE user
Select to export the ATS Results to CSV file
Select to Report a Bug.
ATS Configuration
denotes a team configured to do work in ATS denotes an Actionable Item that a user can create an Action against
Prevents end users from
performing an essential task that results in work stoppages. The impact
to project cost/schedule requires an immediate resolution and a special
release may be necessary.
a. Prevent the accomplishment of an operational or mission essential capability b. Jeopardize safety, security, or other requirement designated "critical"
2
Adversely affects end users
from performing an essential task. Significant impact to project
cost/schedule with resolution needed within 3 weeks.
a. Adversely affect the accomplishment of an operational or mission essential capability and no work-around solution is known. b.
Adversely affect technical, cost, or schedule risks to the project or
to life cycle support of the system, and no work-around solution is
known
3
Hinders end users from
performing an essential task or a capability is behind schedule. Impact
to project cost/schedule with resolution needed within 6 weeks.
a. Adversely affect the accomplishment of an operational or mission essential capability but a work-around solution is known. b.
Adversely affect technical, cost, or schedule risks to the project or
to life cycle support of the system, but a work-around solution is known
4
Minor impact to end users or is a capability being developed per schedule. Can be resolved per normal release schedule.
a.
Result in user/operator inconvenience or annoyance but does not affect
a required operational or mission essential capability. b. Result in
inconvenience or annoyance for development or support personnel, but
does not prevent the accomplishment of those responsibilities.
5
An inconvenience or annoyance. Can be resolved as schedule and budget permits.
A quick way to report a bug against a view or editor.
How to do it
Select the bug button () from the toolbar at the top
of the view or editor that has the problem. A wizard will come up to provide guidance
through the rest of the steps.
Show and edit the workflows configured for use in ATS including Team Workflows, Tasks and Reviews.
How to do it
Double-click open any Action or Team Workflow from ATS World, Search results or ATS Results.
The editor will be opened allowing view and edit of workflow.
Shows tasks associated with states of workflow. Allows quick editing of task information and
allows a quick jump (double-click) to open task in ATS Workflow Editor.
Shows states of workflow, alows entry in current state and provides services to perform actions,
see metrics and research information about workflow.
How to do it
Default tab shown when any ATS object is opened in the ATS Editor.
Current State
Shown in the top status bar and in the main window, the current state is the state of the workflow
state machine that is running for this ATS object. These workflows can be configured with 3 or 30
state depending on the needs of the program/team that is using it.
More
Other States
Shows states of workflow, alows entry in current state and provides services to perform actions,
see metrics and research information about workflow.
Services
Shows tasks associated with states of workflow. Allows quick editing of task information and
allows a quick jump (double-click) to open task in ATS Workflow Editor.
Shows tasks associated with states of workflow. Allows quick editing of task information and
allows a quick jump (double-click) to open task in ATS Workflow Editor.
How to do it
Select task tab after ATS object is opened in the ATS Editor.
Open Task
Double-click on any task to open in ATS Editor.
Right-click edit
Selecting one or more tasks and right-click produces a menu with selections for editing
multiple tasks at a single time.
Alt-Left-Click edit
A quick way to edit a single field in a task is by holding the Alt key down and selecting
the cell to edit. This pops up an editor associated with the type of cell selected.
Actions
Select to only show tasks related to the current state of the workflow.
Select to create a new task.
Select to delete selected task.
Select to refresh the current task list.
Select to Customize Table.
As data is entered into OSEE spell-checked fields, a blue line will be displayed if the word is not recognized.
Only lower-case words or words with only first character uppercase will be spell checked. Acronyms, words with
special characters, numbers and single letter words will be ignored.
Main Dictionary
OSEE has a main dictionary included in it's release. See below for it's source, copyrights and credits.
Additional Released Dictionaries
Additionally dictionaries can be added to OSEE via extension points. These can only be
modified by hand and thus included in normal release cycle.
Run-time Global Dictionary
Each OSEE user is able to add words to a Global dictionary stored in the database by right-clicking on the word
underlined in blue and selecting to save global. These words are stored in the "Global Preferences" artifact
and will then be shown as a valid word in all users's spell checking.
Run-time Personal Dictionary
Each OSEE user is able to add words to their Personal dictionary stored in the database by right-clicking on the word
underlined in blue and selecting to save personal. These words are stored in the user's "User" artifact
and will then be shown as a valid word only for that user.
Shows a graphical representation of the currently open Action or Team Workflow.
How to do it
Double-click open any Action or Team Workflow. Action View will show parent child
relationship between Action and it's children Team Workflows. Cyan outline show currently
open editor.
ToolTip
Hover over any object to determine information about current state, assignees and work to be done.
Double-Click / Right-Click
Double-Click to open any object in the ATS Editor or right click for more options.
Shows ATS workflow objects including Actions, Team Workflows, Tasks and Reviews that were
returned from a search normally performed by the ATS Navigator.
How to do it
Double-click search item from ATS Navigator. ATS World will show that it is loading. Upon
return, ATS World will contain all ATS objects from the search. In addition, a plus is shown
next to any object. Upon selection, viewer will expand to show all children of the selected
object.
Open ATS Action, Team Workflow, Task or Review
Double-click to open any item open in ATS Workflow Editor.
Sorting
Selecting column headers will sort that column. Holding down Ctrl and selecting successive
columns will enable multi sort. Re-selecting a column will reverse sort that column.
The status label at the bottom will show the columns being sorted and which direction the
sort is being performed. To remove all sorting, right-click and select "Remove All Sorting".
Bottom Status Line
The bottom status line will show the total number of objects loaded into the table, the total
shown and the total selected. It will also show all the sorts and filters that are enabled.
Top Status Line
The top status line will show the name of the search that populated the ATS World View. A
warning icon () will show if the search returned no objects to show.
Filtering
Bottom right of the ATS World shows a filter box that is a quick way to filter by one or two words.
Simply type in a string, press enter and ATS World will only show those loaded objects that where one of the
visible cells contains the typed text. This is a case in-sensitive search. Select the clear
action () to clear out the text and restore all loaded actions.
Actions
Select to load ATS World with all the actions that you have work to do on.
Select to create a new Action.
Select to rank actions by deadline date then by priority and annual cost avoidence.
Select to refresh the current search.
Select to Customize Table.
Select to Report a Bug.
Show reports, errors, metrics and other data in a multi-paged view with print, email and exporting capabilities.
How to do it
This view pops up automatically when OSEE needs to report larger amounts of data to the user.
Actions
Select to print the current window.
Select to email the current results view to an OSEE user.
Select to export the current table into a comma seperated value file.
Mulit-page
Selecting the down arrow will show a list of all pages that have been displayed during the current instance
of OSEE running. Selecting from this list will display the previous page.
The Peer To Peer Review is a lightweight review type that enables interactive one-on-one reviews where two people sit
at a single computer and review, disposition and resolve the issues as they are found. This review type does not
require (but does allow) defects to be logged. This review type can be created as a stand-alone review or attached to
any workflow. When attached to a workflow, it is related to a state and can be set as a "blocking" review that will
keep the workflow from continuing until the review is completed.
State Machine
How to do it
Stand-Alone Peer To Peer Review - From ATS Navigator, filter on "peer" and select "New Peer To Peer Review". Enter
required fields and select transition to start the review.
Workflow Related Peer To Peer Review - From any ATS workflow editor, select
"Create a Peer To Peer Review" in the left column of the workflow editor.
This will create the review and attach it to the current state. Enter
required fields and select transition to start the review.
Prepare State
This state allows the user to create the peer to peer review. Enter the required information and transition to
Review to start the review. All review participants will be automatically assigned to the review state upon
transition.
Field
Description
Title
Enter a descriptive title for this review.
Review Roles
Add roles and select the appropriate user. This review type requires at least one Author and one Reviewer.
Location of review materials
Either enter in a description of review materials or simply drag in files from workspace to
be reviewed. If files are dropped in this box, the java package name (if appropriate), filename and a space to enter in the
repository version will be provided.
Description
Information necessary to make an informed decision.
Blocking Review
if NOT a stand-alone review, this field will be enabled for entry.
select yes if this review must be completed before the parent workflow can transition
Need By
Date the review should be completed.
Review State
This state allows the users to review the materials, log any defects
and allows for the author to resolve and close any defects.
Field
Description
Review Roles
Add or remove participants as needed. See Prepare State description for more information.
Review Defect
Defects are not REQUIRED, but can be entered. Defects must be dispositioned and closed before
review can be completed
Resolution
Any notes or further information can be entered here.
The Decision Review is a simple review that allows one or multiple users to review something
and answer a question. This review can be created, and thus attached, to any reviewable
state in ATS. In addition, it can be created automatically to perform simple "validation"
type reviews during a workflow.
State Machine
How to do it
From any active state, select "Create a Decision Review" in the left column of the workflow editor.
This will create the review and attach it to the current state. Then, proceed to "Prepare State"
to entering the necessary information required for this review.
Prepare State
This state allows the user to create the decision review. Enter the required information and transition to
Decision to start the review. All transitioned to assignees will be required to perform the review.
Field
Description
Title
Enter the question that is to be answered by the reviewers. Example: Do you think we should buy this software?
Decision Review Options
Enter in all the options that are available for selection.
Each line is a single decision option in the format: answer;state;<userId>
Where answer = Yes, No, Mabye, etc...
state = Followup or Completed - this will be the state to transition to if the answer is choosen
<userId> = userId of the user to assign to the state to transition to.
Note: Multiple users can be specified by <userId1><userId2>
Note:UserIds are only valid for Followup state. Completed state has no assignees.
Description
Information necessary to make an informed decision.
Blocking Review
yes if this review must be completed before the parent workflow can transition
Need By
Date the decision must be made.
Decision State
This state allows the user to review the description or materials and choose their decision.
Field
Description
Question
The question to be answered as part of this review.
Decision
The decision made by the user.
Resolution
Any notes or information as to why the decision was made.
Followup State
This state allows for followup action to be taken based on the decision.
Resolution
Any notes or information as to why the decision was made.
ATS is used to track any type of change throughout the lifecycle of a
project. Below are the steps to configure ATS for tracking something
new.
How to do it
Review ATS
Overview to understand ATS Concepts, Terms and Architecture. Pay
special attention to ATS Terms
Determine what Actionable Items (AIs) need to be available to
the user to select from. This can be anything from a single AI for
tracking something like a tool or even an activity that needs to be
done to a hierarchical decomposition of an entire software product or
engineering program.
Considerations:
Item should be in the context of what the user would
recognize. eg: OSEE ATS World View versus something unknown to the
user such as AtsWorldView.java.
Decompose AI into children AI when it is desired to
sort/filter/report by that decomposition.
Actionable Item attributes to be configured:
Name: Unique name that the user would identify with.
Active: yes (converted to "no" when AI is no longer
actionable)
Actionable Item relations to be configured:
TeamActionableItem: relate to Team Definition that is
responsible for performing the tasks associated with this AI. NOTE:
If this relation is not set, ATS will walk up the Default Hierarchy
to find the first AI with this relation.
Determine the teams that are going to perform the tasks that
are associated with the AIs selected by the user.
Considerations:
Use separate teams if certain changes are to be managed by
different leads.
Use separate teams if one team's completion and releasing is
independent of another's.
Use separate teams if team members are separate.
Use separate teams if different workflows are required for
one set of AIs than another.
Team attributes to be configured:
Name: Unique team name that is distinguishable from other
teams in a list.
Description: Full description of the team and it's scope.
Active: yes (converted to "no" when AI is no longer
actionable)
Team Uses Versions: yes if team workflows are going to use
the build management and release capabilities of ATS.
Full Nam: Extended name for the team. Expansion of acronym
if applicable
Team relations to be configured:
TeamActionableItem: relation to all AIs that this team is
responsible for.
Work Item.Child: WorkFlowDefinition artifact
configures the state machine that
this team works under. NOTE: If this relation is not set, ATS will
walk up the Default Hierarchy to find the first AI with this
relation.
TeamLead: User(s) that are leading this team. These users
will be assigned to the Endorse state of the Team Workflow upon
creation of an Action by a user. Providing multiple leads reduces
bottlenecks. First lead to handle the Team Workflow wins.
TeamMember: User(s) that are members of the team. These
users will be shown first as preferred assignees and have the ability
to privileged edit a Team Workflow for the team they belong to.
Choose existing WorkFlowDefinition or create new WorkFlowDefinition
to be used by the team and relate it to Team Definition (as
above). This can be done through File->New->Workflow Configuration. Enter a namespace
and a default workflow will be created and can be edited.
Create version artifacts necessary (if using versions) and
relate them to Team Definition (as above)
If branching of artifacts is going to be used (see below), configure versions
with their appropriate parent branch id.
Determine if Branching within one of the states in the workflow is desired/required
and configure as appropriate.
Considerations:
Branching is necessary if objects to change are stored in OSEE as artifacts.
If so, OSEE ATS can create a working branch off the parent branch, allow user
to modify artifacts and then commit these changes when complete, reviewed and
authorized (as necessary). If objects are stored outside OSEE (eg. code files
checked into SVN), this option is not necessary.
Configure ATS workflow for branching:
Create AtsStateItem extension specifying which state the branching will occur.
This is normally in the Implement state of a workflow.
Create root branch and import documents that will be managed through define
and tracked through ATS.
Set all Version artifacts "Parent Branch Id" attribute to the branch id
of the root branch (or child branches, if using multi-branching)
If only a single branch is to be used OR versioning is NOT configured to be
used, the "Parent Branch Id" should be s
The Team Definition artifact specifies leads and members that are assigned to work on related Actionable Items.
How to do it
Team Definitions should match company organizational structure.
Attributes
Name:[uniquely recognizable team name]
ats.Full Name:[optional full name]
ats.Description:[desc]
ats.Active:[yes]
ats.Team Uses Version:[yes if want to use release/build planning]
Relations
DefaultHeirarchy: Relate to parent team or top level "Teams"
TeamDefinitionToVersion: Relate to current and future VersionArtifacts
TeamLead:
Relate to one or more team leads. These individuals will have
priviledged edit and perform the Endorse state by default.
TeamMember:
Relate to one or more team members. These individuals will have ability
to priviledged edit Workflows created by themselves against the team
they belong to.
Work Item.Child: Relate to a single "Work Flow Definition" artifact that defines the workflow
that will be used for this team.
Actionable Items provide the end user with a selection of things impacted by the Action. They
are related to the Team that is responsible for performing the
work.
How to do it
AIs should not be deleted. Instead, use the ats.Active attribute to deactivate the AI.
If an AI must be deleted, search for all "ats.Actionable Item" attributes that have the value of the AI's guid.
These must be changed to another AI before deletion.
Actionable
Item tree can be created to the level at which actions are to be
written. Usually a component decomposition. In the case of UIs, create
one for each view or window.
Attributes
Name:[uniquely recognizable team name]
ats.Active:[yes]
Relations
DefaultHeirarchy: Relate to parent team or top level "Actionable Items" artifact"
TeamActionableItem:
Relate to team responsible for performing tasks. Team can be related to
parent and all children will have team by default.
Give a graphical method to creating / updating ATS Workflow Configurations. This editor
also gives easy access, through double-click" to edit the "Work Page Definition" artifact
that represent the selected state.
How to do it
Open editor for a specific workflow:
Existing Work Flow Definition Artifact: From Common branch in Artifact Explorer, expand Action Tracking System -> Work Flows
and double-click the workflow you wish to edit.
From ATS Workflow Editor: Select workflow icon at top right and associated workflow
will be opened.
New Workflow Configuration: File -> New -> Other -> OSEE ATS -> Workflow Configuration;
Enter unique namespace for this workflow configuration. (eg: org..code). This
creates a simple workflow to use as a starting place.
Create states:
Add necessary states to diagram to represent workflow. Note: Only one state
is the entry point and the workflow must end at the "Completed" state. The "Cancelled"
state is optional, but should be used in most cases.
Editing Rules, Widgets and other State attributes: Double-click on any state to open
the Artifact in the Artifact Editor.
Create transitions:
For each state, a single "Default Transition" must be specified. This will
be the default state specified as the "next" state in the workflow. Optional transitions
to other states can be specified by the "Transition" arrow. The user will have the
option of selecting one of these states instead.
The "Return Transition" can be specified for valid jumps "back" to previous states.
(eg: The user may need to transition back to the "Analyze" state from the "Authorize"
state if authorization failed and more analysis is needed.
Select a single state and set it's "Start Page" property to "Yes" for the state
specified to start the workflow. Only one state can be the start state.
Save and test the new workflow configuration:
Select Save to persist the changes. Validation will be automatically run (see below)
Validation of a workflow is provided by selecting the check icon and selecting a state,
transition or the entire workflow (selecting the white background). This will popup
whatever error occurs or a "Validation Success" if all is ok.
Note: This same validation will occur during save and will fail if all problems are not resolved.
The Work Flow Definition artifact specifies the workflow that a team moves through to complete
an Action. This artifact specifies the states, their transitions and the start state of the
workflow. Creation/Editing of this artifact can either be done through the Artifact Editor
or using the Workflow Configuration Editor (OSEE 0.6.0 Release and beyond).
On the Common branch in the Artifact Editor, Expand "Action Tracking System" and right-click
on "Work Flows", select New Child -> Work Flow Definition. Enter a unique namespace name
for this workflow (eg: org..code). In the Artifact Editor, add and set the attributes
and relations as below.
Attributes
Name:[unique namespace, usually the same as the Work Id specified below]
osee.wi.Work Id:[unique workflow namespace] - this will preceed each state name
specified in the workflow.
osee.wi.Parent Work Id:[Work Id of Parent Work Flow Definition] - this will allow
this workflow to inherit it's transitions and start state from another workflow. This
can not be used with other attributes below
osee.wi.Start Page:[namespace.state name] - this specifies the name of the
initial state in the workflow
osee.wi.Transition:[[from state name];[transition type];[to state name]] - specifies
the transition from state to state where
[from state name]/[to state name]- unique Work Page Definition Work Id comprised of [namespace].[State Name]
[transition type] - one of the following:
ToPageAsDefault - Transition is "Default Transition" state
ToPage - Transition is optional transition to state
ToPageAsReturn - Optional transition to a previously visited state
osee.wi.Description:Optional attribute to add description of workflow
Relations
Work Item.Parent: Relate to any Team Definition configured to use this workflow.
The ATS Workflow Configuration Editor will allow the editing of the three main fields of a
Work Page Definition Artifact. The remaining fields, and the relations to
Work Rules and Work Widgets must be done through the
Artifact Editor.
How to do it - Artifact Editor
Work Page Definitions are either stored as children of their Work Flow Definition artifact or
under the "Work Pages" folder.
On the Common branch in the Artifact Editor, Expand "Action Tracking System" and right-click
on "Work Page", select New Child -> Work Page Definition, or double-click an existing Work Page
Definition artifact. Edit the following attributes and relations accordingly.
Attributes
Name:[unique name matching Work Id below]
osee.wi.Work Id:[unique workflow namespace].[Work Page Name] as below.
osee.wi.Parent Work Id:[Work Id of Parent Work Page Definition] - this will allow
this workflow to inherit it's widgets and rules from another workflow. This
can not be used with other attributes below
osee.wi.Work Page Name:State Name that the user will see. This can not have any
special characters including . in the name.
Relations
Work Item.Child: Relate to any Rules or Widgets that this state is made of.
The Work Widget Definition artifact specifies a single widget, via xml, that will be
displayed on the state page in the ATS Workflow Editor.
How to do it - Artifact Editor
On the Common branch in the Artifact Editor, Expand "Action Tracking System" expand
"Work Widget" and double-click any existing Work Widget. Edit the following attributes and relations
accordingly.
Attributes
Name:[unique name matching Work Id below]
osee.wi.Work Id:[unique id]
osee.wi.Work Description:Simple description explaining what widget is.
osee.wi.Work Data: XWidget=[XWidget xml specifying widget]
Relations
Work Item.Parent: Relate to any Team Definition or Work Page Definition artifacts as appropriate.
The Work Rule Definition artifact specifies a single rule that can be applied to workflow configurations
or to Team Definition artifacts. These rules are normally backed by
java code that performs certain tasks like automatically creating new reviews, assigning
workflows to specific users or specifying states as allowing create/commit of branches.
How to do it - Artifact Editor
On the Common branch in the Artifact Editor, Expand "Action Tracking System" expand
"Work Rule" and double-click any existing Work Rule. Edit the following attributes and relations
accordingly.
Attributes
Name:[unique name matching Work Id below]
osee.wi.Work Id:[unique workflow namespace].[Work Page Name] as below.
osee.wi.Work Description:Simple description explaining what rule does.
osee.wi.Work Data:Key/Value pares of information used by rule.
Relations
Work Item.Parent: Relate to any Team Definition or Work Page Definition artifacts as appropriate.
To configure ATS workflows to use the integrated help system. ATS help useds a combination of widget
tooltip, static help pages and dynamic help content configured through extended plugins.
How to do it
Workflow Page Help
Workflow Widget Help
Declared tooltip is shown as tooltip when hover over label
Double-Click label pops open html dialog if help contextId and pluginId are set
Double-Click label pops open tooltip
Top down order of obtaining help content
Setting tooltip in IStateItem interface
Work Widget Definitions in Work Data attribute value of XWidget=...tooltip="put help here"
The
Branch Manager View is used to display all of the branches in Skynet,
as well as details for the transactions on each branch.
Branches
and transactions can be sorted by clicking on the column heading for
the column to sort by. Initially, the data will be sorted in ascending
order. Clicking the same column multiple times will toggle the sorting
between ascending and descending.
The branch which is returned to any program that asks for the current default branch. For instance,
the Artifact Explorer will use the default branch to determine what artifacts to show, and artifact
searches are performed against the default branch.
How to tell what the default branch is
The Branch Manager view shows all of the branches with the icon.
The default branch will have a at the top right of the normal branch icon.
Most views and editors that are working with artifacts will show the branch in the status bar next to the branch icon.
How to set it
The default branch is set from the Branch Manager view. Use sorting or filtering in the table to find the
desired branch. Right-click on the branch and then select Set Default Branch from the popup menu.
The Set Default Branch option will be disabled if any of the following cases are true:
A branch that the user has marked as a favorite. Any number of branches can be marked as favorite. This is
used in conjunction with the Show Favorites First filter to quickly locate
branches of interest.
How to tell which branches are favorites
The Branch Manager view shows all of the branches with the icon.
A favorite branch will have a at the bottom left of the normal branch icon.
How to set/unset it
A favorite branch is set from the Branch Manager view. Use sorting or filtering in the table to find the
desired branch. Right-click on the branch and then select Mark As Favorite
or Unmark As Favorite from the popup menu.
A quick way to limit which branches are displayed in the Branch Manager view.
How to do it
Type text in to the box labeled Filter:. As characters are typed, the Branch Manager
will update to only display branches whose name contains the text, ignoring the case.
If no text is entered then all branches will be displayed.
A view that shows all of the changes made on a branch, or between two transactions on the same branch.
How to do it
For a branch
Use filtering or sorting to locate the branch of interest. Right-click
the branch and select Show Change Report. The change report will show all changes made on the branch
since its baseline.
If anything is selected in addition to the one branch, then the Show Change Report menu item will be disabled.
For a range of transactions
Use filtering or sorting to locate the branch with the transactions. Then locate the
starting and ending transactions. Select both of the transactions by ctrl-clicking each transaction, then right-click
and select Show Change Report. The change report will show all changes after the earlier transaction, up to and
including the later transaction.
If anything is selected in addition to the two transactions, or the two transactions are on seperate branches,
the Show Change Report menu item will be disabled.
The Change Report View is used to summarize the changes that have been made on a branch or series of transactions.
Icons
Base image for relation links
Base image for attributes
Overlay to mark item as an incoming new item
Overlay to mark item as an incoming modification
Overlay to mark item as an incoming delete
Overlay to mark item as an outgoing new item
Overlay to mark item as an outgoing modification
Overlay to mark item as an outgoing delete
Overlay to mark an item as being new but having incoming changes
Overlay to mark an item as having incoming and outgoing changes
Overlay to mark an item as being deleted but having incoming changes
Branch Change Report
A Change Report can be performed for a branch two ways. The first way is by selecting right-clicking a branch
from the Branch Manager then choosing the "Show Change Report" menu item. The second way is to select
"Show Change Report" from the Aspect view of an ATS Action that is still in work; this will do a Change
Report for the working branch of the Aspect.
This type of Change Report will display all of the artifacts on the branch that have had an attribute
or relation link modified. It will also do conflict detection on these artifacts against the parent branch.
All changes done on the current artifact will appear with a grey right arrow, while all changes from the
parent branch will be shown with a blue left arrow. Attributes and relation links with multiple changes will
provide a summarized node that shows the final effect of the changes and can be expanded to view all of the
minor changes that were made. If an attribute or relation link was modified on both
branches then the summary will show a red conflict mark to signify that a commit will cause an override
to occur.
Forces the Change Report to be recomputed. This is typically used when the Change Report snapshot has become out of date,
noted by a next to the snapshot description on the first line of the Change Report.
How to do it
Select the refresh button () from the toolbar on the top portion of the Change Report view.
If the Change Report view is empty then the refresh button will do nothing.
Type your search string in the Enter Search String combo box, or use the
pull-down list to select a previously entered search expression. Special characters such as (' ',
!, ", #, $,
%, (, ), *, +,
,, -, ., /, :,
;, <, >, ?, @,
[, \, ], ^, {,
|, }, ~, _) are assumed to be word separators unless By Id option is selected.
When By Id option is selected, (, and ' ') are treated as separators.
For example:
When By Id is not selected, hello.world will be translated to hello and world. The search will match attributes with hello and world keywords.
When By Id is selected, (A+ABG7jFm+0BKaVZIxfqOQ,AFABG7jFm+0BKaVZIxfqOQ PX1FH) will be interpreted as 2 GUID(s) and 1 HRID. The search will match artifacts containing A+ABG7jFm+0BKaVZIxfqOQ and AFABG7jFm+0BKaVZIxfqOQ as its GUID or PX1FH as its HRID.
Finish entering your search options, (for example, to scope
the search to include deleted artifacts, check the include deleted option),
and click Search or press Enter from the combo box to execute the search.
The Search view displays the results of your search. Right-click on any item in
the Search view to open a pop-up menu that allows you perform various operations
on the artifacts such as copy search results to the clipboard or reveal a
selected artifact in Artifact Explorer. To open one of the listed artifacts,
double-click it or select Open from its pop-up menu.
When an artifact is saved, each attribute contained in the artifact is analyzed to produce a list of
tags that are then associated with the artifact. Quick search is a form of keyword based searching
which uses tags to perform contextual artifact searches.
For an attribute to be tagged by the system, it must meet the following criteria:
The attribute's type must specify an Attribute Tagger to be used by the tagging system.
The attribute must contain valid data.
The attribute revision must be saved in the database before sending to tagging system.
To produce tags, modified attributes are sent to the OSEE application server where the tagging system
processes each attribute using an Attribute Tagger specified by the attribute's type. The Attribute Tagger
knows how to interpret the attribute's data and how to extract words from the content. At this point, a word is defined
as a sequential set of alphanumeric characters delimited by one or more spaces. As words are parsed, they are sent
to the tagging system's word encoder where the following processing takes place:
The characters in the original word are converted to lower case.
The lower cased version of the word is encoded and stored in the tagging system.
The lower cased version of the word is split using punctuation characters such as (' ',
!, ", #, $,
%, (, ), *, +,
,, -, ., /, :,
;, <, >, ?, @,
[, \, ], ^, {,
|, }, ~, _) as delimiters.
Possessive words (ending in 's) are converted into regular form.
Each word is converted from plural to singular form.
Each word is encoded and stored in the tag system.
When encoding words into tags, the tag encoder uses an algorithm which transforms the word's characters
into a bit-packed tag that will fit in a 64-bit integer. The tag will represent up to 12 characters
(all that can fit into 64-bits). Longer words will be turned into consecutive tags.
The Mass Artifact Editor allows the easy view of multiple artifact along with their attributes.
This editor can be viewed from right-click off Artifact Explorer, Search Results page, or via
ATS action. Single cells can be edited via Alt-Left-Mouse-Click. After editing any number of
artifacts shown, the save button persists this data.
Note: This editor will close upon switch of default branch unless the editor is tied to
the common branch.
The Merge Manager is used to resolve conflicts that arise when doing
development on parallel branches. The Merge Manager makes conflicts that
arise easily identifiable and then provides the means for resolving the
conflicts, so that the working branch can be committed.
Icons
Resolution has been started for the conflict
Conflict has been resolved and is ready to be committed, In the Merge column
it means that the Source and Destination Branches have the same value even
though they were both changed.
After a conflict has been marked as resolved the value changed on the source
or destination branch
A conflict that provides the user special information but does not need to
be resolved
A conflict that can not be resolved except by reverting the Artifact or
Attribute, because it was deleted on the Destination Branch
Shows that the item defined by the column it is in has the Destination
Branches value
Shows that the item defined by the column it is in has the Source Branches
value
Shows that the item defined by the column it is in has a new value that is
neither the Source Branch nor Destination Branch value.
Shows that the conflict has not been given an initial value
Opens the Associated Artifact for the merge
Opens up the Change Report for the Source Branch
Opens up the Change Report for the Destination Branch
Refreshes the Merge Manger view to find new conflicts
Allows the user to customize the Merge Manager tables
Report a bug with the Merge Manager
Overview
The Merge Manager is in place to find conflicts and help users resolve these
conflicts. A conflict exists if the value of an attribute/artifact has
changed on both the Destination and Source Branches. For reference the
Source Branch is the users working branch. It is the branch that the user
has been making changes to and would like to then add back into the Destination
Branch or Baseline Branch. Both branches are identified by name in the
header of the Merge Manager.
Depending upon the conflict found, the user may have several choices for
resolution. These include
Accept the value on the Source Branch and overwrite the value on the
Destination Branch
Accept the value on the Destination Branch and do not add any of the
Source Branch changes, (These will still show up as merged on
Change Reports)
Create a solution that is a combination of the two changes
Revert the changes on the Source Branch (This is the only
available solution when the Artifact/Attribute was deleted on the
Destination Branch, will show up as no change on the
Change Report)
Do nothing (only possible for informational conflicts)
Committing of Branches is blocked until all conflicts are resolved.
The GUI
The GUI is organized to provide the user with an ability to quickly identify
conflicts.
The Heading - The Heading contains text to help identify what is
being merged. It identifies the Source Branch, and the Destination Branch.
It also provides the user with information about how many conflicts there
are and if they have been resolved. The Heading also contains easy
launch icons for additional tools in connection with the Merge Manager.
The Conflict Resolution Column - This column provides the user
information about the state of the conflict. A blank entry in the
column means that the conflict is new and has not had any actions performed
on it. A
indicates that conflict is in the modified state. This means the user
has begun merging the conflict but has not marked it as resolved. The
user may transition it into the resolved state by left clicking on the
icon. The
icon indicates the user has marked the conflict as resolved. This
means they have selected a value for it and have verified the value going in
is what they want. No additional changes are allowed on a conflict
once it is in the resolved state. It can be placed back into the
modified state by left clicking on the
icon. The
means that a conflict was in the resolved state but a new change has
occurred on either the Source or Destination Branch. It serves to
notify the user that the conflict was not in the finalized state when they
resolved the conflict. The user can return to resolved state by left
clicking on the
icon. The
icon indicates that an Artifact or Attribute must be reverted on the Source
Branch. This indicates that the Artifact/Attribute was deleted on the
Destination Branch and can not have a change committed onto it. The
user must abandon any change to that artifact attribute by using the revert
command. Once the Artifact/Attribute has been reverted the Merge
Manager will be refreshed and the conflict will be removed. The
icon
indicates an informational conflict. The user does not have to take
any action to resolve these conflicts. It just provides the
information that the Source Branch deleted the Artifact/Attribute but the
Destination Branch has been modified. The user is free to act as
desired based on the provided information.
The Artifact Name Column - This column tells which artifact the
conflict occurred on. If the name is different between the Source and
Destination Branches, (this will show up as a conflict) it will at first
showing use the Source Branch value and then use whatever the name is
resolved to be after that has occurred.
The Artifact Type Column - Simply lists what type of Artifact is
conflicted
The Conflicting Item Column - In the case of an attribute
conflict it states what attribute type is conflicting. In the case of
an artifact conflict it will always say "Artifact State"
The Source Value Column - When possible this column tells what
value the Source Branch has for the conflict. It will always have a
icon. If the conflicting item is Word Formatted Content the words "Stream
data" will be shown. For artifact conflicts it will either show
"Modified" or "Deleted". Left clicking on the
icon will populate the Merge Branch with value found on the Source Branch.
The Destination Value Column - When possible this column tells
what value the Destination Branch has for the conflict. It will always
have a
icon. If the conflicting item is Word Formatted Content the words "Stream
data" will be shown. For artifact conflicts it will either show
"Modified" or "Deleted". Left clicking on the
icon will populate the Merge Branch with value found on the Destination
Branch.
The Merge Value Column - The Merged Value column serves to show
the user the value that has been selected for use when the Branch is
committed. The Merge value is actually kept on a new "Merge Branch"
and so any changes made to it will not affect the value seen on the Source
or Destination Branches. When the Merge Value column is blank with no
icon, the conflict is informational and no actions are provided. When
the Merge Value column contains a
icon
the value has not been set. This is the icon that should be shown for all
conflicts (Except informational conflicts, or same value conflicts) the
first time the user brings up the merge manager. The
icon indicates that the Source Value was selected as the final value.
The actual Source Value text will also be shown in this column if possible.
The
icon indicates that the Destination Value was selected as the final value.
The Destination Value text will also be shown in this column if possible.
The
icon will be shown when a new value has been selected for the final value.
This indicates that the user has modified the final value so that it is no
longer a copy of the Source or Destination, but some variation thereof.
A
icon indicates that although both the Source Branch Value and Destination
Branch Value have changed they were both changed to the same value and so
there is not really a conflict. Left clicking on the icon in the Merge Value
column will bring up the Merge Wizard or in the case of un-resolvable
conflicts a dialog offering the ability to revert the conflicting item.
The Right Click Menu - Right clicking on any row will display a
menu with options for dealing with conflicts.
"Set Source as Default Branch" - This selection is a quick way to set
the Source Branch as the default branch. If the Source Branch is
already set as the Default Branch, the menu item will be grayed out and
there will be a check mark next to the option.
"Set Destination as Default Branch" - This selection is a quick way to
set the Destination Branch as the default branch. If the Destination
Branch is already set as the Default Branch, the menu item will be grayed
out and there will be a check mark next to the option.
"Edit Merge Artifact" - This option is only enabled for Word Formatted
Content conflicts and will bring up the Merge Artifact in Word. The
Merge Artifact is a separate version of the artifact that will preserve the
details of the Merge, and will be reviewable in the Merge Manager after an
artifact is committed. IMPORTANT: If the user makes the changes to
their Source Branch instead of on the Merge Artifact the Merge Manager will
incorrectly represent the merge in future reviews.
"Generate Three Way Merge" - Will generate a
Three Way Merge for the Word Formatted Content.
"Preview" -> "Preview Source Artifact", "Preview Destination Artifact",
"Preview Merge Artifact" will show a preview in Word of the Artifact based
on the version selected.
"Differences" -> "Show Source Branch Differences", "Show Destination
Branch Differences", "Show Source/Destination Differences", "Show
Source/Merge Differences", "Show Destination/Merge Differences" will
generate differences based upon which option is selected. Allows the
user to see how different versions of the artifact differ.
"Reveal Artifact in Explorer" - This option is only available when
either the Source or Destination Branch is set as the default branch.
When such is the case this will reveal the artifact in the Artifact Explorer
for the Branch that is the default branch.
"Resource History" - This option is only available when either the
Source or Destination Branch is set as the default branch. When such
is the case this will reveal the resource history of the artifact on the
Branch that is the default branch.
Resolution Of Conflicts
For Word Formatted Content conflicts see the section below. This
section addresses all other conflicts.
Informational Conflicts
Informational conflicts are identified by
the
icon in the conflict resolution column in the GUI. Informational
conflicts require no action by the user, and no actions are provided in the
GUI other than the ability to use the right
click menu to examine the artifact using the tools provided there.
An informational conflict is generated when the Source branch deletes an
Artifact or an Attribute and that same Artifact or Attribute was modified on
the Destination Branch. This is to allow the user the opportunity to
review a change that was made on the Destination Branch that might
make them want to take some action in regards to their deletion.
Un-resolvable Conflicts
Un-resolvable Conflicts are identified
by the
icon in the conflict resolution column of the GUI. This conflicts require
the user to revert the Artifact or Attribute that caused the conflict on the
Source Branch. An Un-resolvable conflict is caused when the
Destination Branch deletes an Artifact or Attribute while the Source Branch
modifies that same Artifact, Attribute. The reason the user must
revert their changes is that committing in their changes would essentially
undo that deletion and bring that item back into existence. If the deletion
should not have happened the user needs to talk with the committer of the
deletion to resolve the issue.
Attribute Conflicts
Attribute Conflicts occur when both the
Destination and Source branch modify an attribute. This section will
cover all attributes except Word Formatted
Content Attributes. The resolution of these Attribute values
provide three options. Use the Source attribute value, use the
destination attribute value, use a modified value that is some
combination of the source and destination values. In order to use the Source
Value the user may left click on the
icon in the Source Value column. This will copy the
icon and the value displayed in the Source Value column into the Merged
Value Column. In order to use the Destination Value the user may left
click on the
icon in the Destination Value column. This will copy the
icon and the value displayed in the Source Value column into the Merged
Value Column. Both of these options are also available from the
Merge
Wizard (Left click on the icon in the Merge Value column) with the "Load
Source Data" and "Load Destination Value" buttons. In order to modify
the value to some combination the user must bring up the Merge Wizard which
has an embedded editor specific to the attribute that needs to be modified.
Once the value is accurately entered in the editor the user may than select
"Finish" This will place a
icon in the Merged Value column along with the new value. The user then right clicks on the
in the Conflict Status Column so that the
icon is displayed. The conflict is resolved and will allow the
Source Branch to be committed.
Resolution of conflicts is provided in two different ways. They can
either copy and paste the changes into their Merge Artifact document or they can
generate a Three Way Merge and accept the changes that show up in the generated
document. Both approaches have their advantages and disadvantages and are
best suited for different situations. They can also be combined where the
situation warrants it, however the three way merge must always be done first if
this is the case.
Manual Merging
Usage
When one version of the artifact has many changes and the other
version has very few changes
When both files have formatting changes
When three way merging generates a complex document
When both versions edit the same text in multiple places
Manual Merging is the process of combining the Source Branch changes
and the destination branch changes manually by copying and pasting them
into the Merge Artifact document. The Merge Artifact is a separate
version of the artifact that will preserve the details of the Merge, and
will be reviewable in the Merge Manager after an artifact is committed.
IMPORTANT: If the user makes the changes to their Source Branch instead
of on the Merge Artifact the Merge Manager will incorrectly represent
the merge in future reviews.
The following procedure illustrates the functionality available
to facilitate a manual merge.
The user will first either launch the Merge Wizard by left clicking
on the icon in the Merge Value column of the GUI or they may select the
functionality from the right click menu for the conflict in question.
The first thing to do is to bring up a word document comparison of both
the Source Branch Version and the Destination Branch Version.
These documents will show all of the changes that have been made to
these two artifacts since the Source Branch was created. To launch
these difference's the user either select "Show Source Diff" and "Show
Destination Diff" from the wizard or "Differences"->"Show Source Branch
Differences" and "Differences"->"Show Destination Branch Differences"
from the right click menu. These will bring up the two
difference's in different Word instances with window labels to allow the
user to differentiate the files. The intention of bringing up
these difference's is twofold. Firstly, it allows the user to
identify the file that has the most changes. Secondly, it will
come in use later when the user copy's and paste's changes into the
Merge document.
Upon identifying the branch that has the most changes the user should
then set the Merge Artifact to contain that branches value. This
is done by either selecting "Populate with Source Data" or "Populate
with Destination Data" from the Merge Wizard or left clicking on the
icon or the
icon in the Source and Destination Value columns in the Merge Manager
GUI. The user can then bring up the Merge Artifact for editing by
clicking on "Edit Merge Artifact" in the Merge Wizard or in the right
click menu. The Document that comes up contains the Merge Artifact
and any changes made to it will be reflected when the Source Branch is
committed. The user can than begin to copy the changes from the
diff report that showed the fewest changes (opposite of the one chosen
as the baseline). After all changes have been migrated into the
Merge Artifact document the user than saves the document, which will
preserve the Merge Artifact value. The user should be aware that
any changes they do not wish to preserve from either the Source or
Destination version of the Artifact need to be omitted on the Merge
Artifact.
The user then right clicks on the
in the Conflict Status Column so that the
icon is displayed. The conflict is resolved and will allow the
Source Branch to be committed.
When both versions have many changes or both versions have few
changes.
When only one file has formatting changes (Must be combined with
Manual Merging in this case)
When three way merging generates an understandable document
Three Way Merging leverages Microsoft Words ability to merge
documents. At the beginning of any Word Formatted Content merge it
is recommended that user generate a Three Way Merge and check the
complexity of the document. In most cases Three Way Merging is a
quicker way to merge two documents, however in some cases the Three Way
Merge will generate a document that is difficult to use and understand.
This usually arises when the Source and Destination branches have edited
the same text or if one of the branches has touched a large percentage
of the file. As it runs fairly quickly it is always a good idea to
run it at the beginning of a Merge to check if it is useful. Three
Way Merging only allows the user to maintain format changes from one of
the documents. If format changes are made on both documents the
Three Way Merge will prompt the user as to which format changes they
would like to maintain, the user will then need to copy the format
changes from the other document into the Merge Artifact document
manually.
A Three Way Merge is generated by selecting Generate Three Way Merge
from either the Merge Wizard or the right click menu. IMPORTANT:
Generating a Three Way Merge will discard any changes made to the Merge
Artifact, therefore a prompt will make sure this is the intended
operation. If a user had started a Three Way Merge previously but
had not completed the Merge the user is also given the option of
continuing the previous Merge in the prompt (Selecting Edit Merge
Artifact will also have this effect). The following is an example of a
Three Way Merge in Word.
A Three Way Merge
The changes made by the Source Branch and Destination Branch are shown
in different colors in the Word Document. In this particular case
the changes made in Red were done by the Source Branch and the changes
made in Blue were done on the Destination Branch. The color scheme
is not consistent and the user needs to verify which color equates to
which changes by hovering there mouse over one of the changes. A
popup will be shown which will identify the author. The following
Guide will explain how to resolve the changes in the document.
IMPORTANT: All changes must be either accepted or rejected before the
conflict can be marked as resolved. After the user has resolved
all the changes it is a good idea to do generate a difference document
between the Source Artifact and the Merge Artifact, and the Destination
Artifact and the Merge Artifact by selecting "Show Source/Merge Diff"
and "Show Destination/Merge Diff" from the merge Wizard or
"Differences"->"Show Source/Merge Differences" and "Differences"->"Show
Destination/Merge Differences" from the
right click menu. These
views will show the differences between the branch artifact and the
merge artifact. For the Source/Merge difference this will show
everything that is different between the source document and the Merge
document. In the case where the user accepts all changes from the
source and destination branches this diff will highlight all of the
changes that occurred on the destination branch. In the
Destination/Merge diff it will highlight all of the changes that
happened on the source branch. It is always possible to use Manual
Merging techniques in conjunction with Three Way Merging.
The user then right clicks on the
in the Conflict Status Column so that the
icon is displayed. The conflict is resolved and will allow the
Source Branch to be committed.
Word Formatted Content Merge Wizard
Additional Features
The Merge Wizard contains a "Clear the Merge Artifact" that is not available
from the right click menu and only available for Word Formatted Content. This will empty out the Merge artifact and
allow the user to start with an empty document for editing. It will also
place a
icon
in the merge value column for that conflict.
Customize the table to show desired columns, widths with specified sorting and filters. Enables loading of
both personal and global customizations and provides the ability to select a customization as the
default customization to be loaded upon startup.
Select Customization
Lists current personal and global customizations to be selected from. Double-click to automatically
load selected customizationa and close dialog.
"-- Table Default --" - Show the default customization for this table.
"-- Current --" - Show the current customization as set from table alterations.
"Other" - Shows a stored customization available for loading.
Select Customization - Icons / Overlays
Customization.
Default customization loaded up restart.
Global customization available to all users.
Select Customization - Buttons
Load - Loads the currently selected customization.
Load+Close - Loads the selected customization and closes the dialog.
Set as Default - Sets the currently selected customization as the default to load upon restart.
Delete - Deletes the currently selected customization.
Configure Customization
Allows for the selected customization to be configured, loaded and saved.
Hidden Columns - Shows the columns that are available to be displays but configured as hidden.
Visible Columns - Show the columns that are configured to be displayed for this customization.
(x) - shows the currently configured width of the column
Sorter - xml representation of the column order to sort by
Text Filter - shows the configured text filter to be applied for this customization. Enter as string.
Configure Customization - Buttons
Load - Loads the configured customization.
Load+Close - Loads the configured customization and closes the dialog.
Rename - Allows the user to define an alternate name for the column.
Save - Saves the configured customization as personal or global (if permissions allow).