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Concepts

This section clarifies the concepts used within EVA Netmodeler to allow more effective use of the tool and all facilities provided. We recommend scanning it before using the tool in earnest. You can return to any section in future for details.

• Types discusses the way in which EVA Netmodeler works with structured information and how we create the knowledge base. Related types are grouped into Domains
• Relationships discusses how items in the knowledge base are related to each other. Items may have relationships to items of other types, as well as to items of the same type. The latter supports creation of hierarchies and networks within a type.
• Named Properties describes how properties of items are defined and named.
• Property Types lists the types of information that EVA Netmodeler provides for use in defining named properties of types.
• Items describes how items (instances of types) are managed.
• Domains are named sets of types. Domains typically reflect an area of interest e.g. Business, Technical, Risk, Marketing etc. They are also used to manage meta models, identify information for export and are useful in setting up easy to administer security.
• Information Nodes which provide a facility for recording further information about relationships between items.
• Defaults are used within EVA Netmodeler to provide default values for newly created item's named properties
• Documents are linked content files which can be managed in terms of versions by EVA Netmodeler
• Templates provide a way to provide a standard structure for documents, presentations, project files etc. while allowing users to create their own copies which are linked to items within EVA Netmodeler and versioned each time an updated copy is provided. A great way to implement standards or facilitate consistency.
• Discussions provide a method for recording free form text related to an item
• Discussion Threads allow the creation and maintenance of threaded discussion groups, similar to newsgroups on the Internet, but linked to instances within the knowledge base
• Models and how EVA Netmodeler manages them
• Time/Calendar Related Items provides a mechanism to link items in EVA Netmodeler to time and have them displayed in the Calendar Browser
• Filters provide a powerful mechanism to determine what is retrieved and displayed in EVA Netmodeler. They can be used, for example, to limit viewing to currently implemented items in an enterprise architecture, or to items belonging to a certain business unit
• Calculated Properties allow the specification of formulas or derivations in properties rather than fixed values. This is similar to the idea of a spread sheet cell, except that in EVA Netmodeler the formula will reference properties from items in the repository, rather than other cells. Correctly used, the feature can be extremely powerful.
• Events allow EVA Netmodeler to detect certain situations and initiate designated actions. For example, when a model of a certain type is added, lets say a database design, inform a particular user via email, for example, the database administrator.
• Edit Locking provides for safe concurrent access to the repository by multiple users.
• Error Handling provides consistent and graceful handling of errors, preventing crashes and ensuring availability.
• SQL access to external data sources allows data from external databases (or other compatible sources) to be accessed from within EVA Netmodeler Calculated Properties. EVA Netmodeler can also write to external databases using the same mechanism. .
• Custom Menus allow administrators and authorised users to set up quick access menus for frequently used functions.
• Custom Views allow developers to easily extend the tool by adding unique user interfaces, reports and functionality.
• Anonymous Access: By designating certain types as public and generating query URL's from EVA Netmodeler, casual browsers can retrieve content from EVA Netmodeler without logging in by clicking on a link which can be in a standard web page, document or any other place you can keep a web link.
• Currency is a concept whereby EVA Netmodeler will remember what type/item and date you are working with as you move from view (browser) to view (browser) within the tool. This makes it easy for a user to select another view of the current information without losing context or having to reselect type, item or date.
• System Settings are items within the EVA Netmodeler repository that determine how the tool behaves, where files and documents are stored, the look and feel of the interface and allow customising various features
• Scaling is a way of dealing with large result sets. Effectively, the user sets parameters for the maximum viewing size e.g. a Matrix of 20 by 20 entries. If the actual result is larger (e.g. 40 x 100), EVA Netmodeler will present it in chunks as large as the user selected, and will provide a map and links to navigate the full result space. Take a look at the XRef Browser to see this in action.