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3. Quick Tour
A sample design file called acctg.dsn is provided with Personal
CASE. This illustrates a typical application of Personal CASE in
the design of an accounting software application.
In this chapter:
- Start Personal CASE
- Load a Sample Design
- Manipulate Diagram Components
- Manipulate Data Flows
- Browse Diagram Pages
- Use the Data Dictionary
- Print and Save
- Quit Personal CASE
Start Personal CASE
From the MS-DOS executive, double-click on pcase.exe or use the
arrow keys to highlight pcase.exe and press enter. If the file
name is not displayed, open the directory or drive in which the
program was installed with the Change Directory command from the
Special menu.
The program will display its startup screen and message (Figure
3-1). Click on the OK button.
In addition to the standard window components, Personal CASE
displays the Toolbox Window (Figure 3-2). The Toolbox is used to
select drawing actions. There are four choices, each represented
by an Icon.
Icon: Meaning:
(top left) Draw and manipulate Components.
(top right) Add,delete and route Data Flows between
Components.
(bottom left) Add and edit descriptive text.
(bottom right) Manipulate group of Components as a unit
using the Windows clipboard.
There are three ways to choose a drawing tool:
Quick Tour 7
- Click on the toolÆs icon in the toolbox with the mouse.
- Use the keys ctrl + numpad plus or numpad minus to move the
highlight to a different icon. numpad plus and numpad minus
are the "+" and "-" keys located on the numeric keypad area.
- Choose the tool from the Toolbox menu.
Load a Sample Design
Choose the Open command from the File menu. A dialog box will
appear from which you choose the design file to be opened (Figure
3-3). If the sample design files are found in the current
directory, you will see the name acctg.dsn in the list box.
If the samples are in a different directory, choose the proper
directory from the list box. Double-click on the directory name
to open it. Double-click on the "[..]" item to open the parent
directory. Double-click on the "[-A-]", "[-B-]", etc. items to
access a different disk unit. Click on the scroll bar to scroll
entries through the list box.
Double-click on the design file acctg.dsn to open it or click on
the file name and then click on the OK button. The file will be
opened and its contents displayed in the programÆs main window.
You may see the message:
UNABLE TO open GLOBAL data dictionary .... try another file
name?
where "..." is the file name of the Data Dictionary.
This message tells you that the design files have been moved to a
different disk or directory, as is done when you copied them to
your hard disk. The program is attempting to locate the data
dictionary file in the new directory, prompting you for approval.
Click on the Retry button and a list of Data Dictionary file
names will appear. Double-click on the name acctg.dct and the
design file will be displayed. Once you save the design in its
new directory, this message shouldnÆt reappear.
Manipulate Diagram Components
Diagram Components can be directly manipulated with the mouse.
They can be moved to new locations, re-sized or erased. New
diagram Components can be added in the same way. The Data Flows
connected to a Component are automatically re-drawn whenever a
Component is manipulated.
Activate Component Mode
Quick Tour 8
Click on the Component Icon in the Toolbox Window, or highlight
it with the ctrl+numpad PLUS or ctrl+numpad minus keys.
Move Component with the Mouse
Click on a Component with the mouse, hold down the mouse button
and move the mouse to a new location. A dotted-line outline will
follow the mouse as it is moved. Release the mouse button, and
the Component will be placed at its new location. Note that
Components may not overlap on a page.
Move Component with the Keyboard
Move the mouse pointer onto the component with the arrow keys.
Press and hold down the space bar. Drag the component to its new
location with the arrow keys. Release the space bar at the new
location.
Change Component Size with the Mouse
Hold down the ctrl key, click on the Component and drag it as
above. The Component size will be increased in the direction that
you are moving the mouse. A Component is made smaller by holding
down both the shift and ctrl keys when clicking on the Component.
Change Component Size with the Keyboard
Move the mouse pointer onto the component with the arrow keys.
Press and hold down ctrl + space bar. Release the ctrl key. Drag
the component to its new larger size with the arrow keys. Release
the space bar at the new location. To make the component smaller,
hold down both ctrl and shift when pressing the space bar.
Delete Component
The Component which was last selected with the mouse is
highlighted on the screen. To delete it, press shift + delete.
Any Data Flows associated with the Component are deleted as well.
Add Components
Click on the Component Icon from the Toolbox Window until the
icon of the new Component is shown. Then click the mouse in a
vacant area of the page.
The program will prompt for Data Dictionary information for each
new Component with the Dictionary Add dialog box. For now, click
on the Cancel button to defer dictionary information, or press
the esc key. Dictionary information may be added later on.
Manipulate Data Flows
Data Flows are manipulated via their endpoint Components.
Whenever a Component is moved or re-sized, its attached Data
Quick Tour 9
Flows are re-drawn. Whenever a Component is deleted, its attached
Data Flows are deleted.
Select Data Flow Tool
Click on the Data Flow icon from the Toolbox.
Add Data Flow
Click on the source and then destination Components. The Data
Flow will be automatically drawn between the Components. If the
two Components are already connected, a dialog box will ask
whether a new data flow is to be added, or an existing one
deleted. Click on the add button of the dialog box.
The program will prompt for Data Dictionary information for the
new Data Flow. Again, defer the entry of Data Dictionary
information by choosing the Cancel button, or pressing esc.
Delete Data Flow
To delete an existing Data Flow, click on its source and then
destination Components. A dialog box will ask whether a new data
flow is to be added between the components, or an existing one is
to be deleted. In the dialog box list box, click on the name of
an existing data flow and then click the delete button.
Browse Diagram Pages
The sample design contains a number of pages. Choose one of the
commands from the Page menu to view the different pages. Or press
ctrl + page up or ctrl + page down to move between pages.
Use the Data Dictionary
Data Dictionary information can be added or changed for any
Component or Data Flow in the design. When a new Component or
Data Flow is added, the program will prompt for Data Dictionary
information (Figure 3-4). You can add it at that time, or defer
the task.
Add Data Dictionary Information
Each Component and Data Flow must be given a Class Label.
Optionally, an item may additionally be given an Instance Label,
which specifically identifies it as a particular member of a
class of items. This is analogous to "data types" and "variable
name" in a programming language.
Type a label for your new item. If the label is already in the
Data Dictionary, the related Description and other information
will be displayed. If not, the Description must be typed at this
point. Click on the Add button to add the Dictionary information.
Quick Tour 10
The Data Dictionary information is now linked to the Component or
Data Flow. It will be shown in the diagram inside of a Component
and at the mid-point of a Data Flow.
Update Data Dictionary Information
To change the Data Dictionary information for a Component, select
the Component Tool and double-click on the Component. For a Data
Flow, select the Data Flow Tool, double-click on the Data FlowÆs
source Component and click on its destination, or double-click on
the Data Flow's descriptive label. The Dictionary Change dialog
box will pop up showing the requested Data Dictionary
information.
The Class or Instance Label for the itemÆs Dictionary information
may be changed to associate the item with a new or different
entry from the Data Dictionary. The Description associated with a
given label may be changed only by using the Browse command from
the Dictionary menu.
Move a Data Flow's Description
By default, Data Dictionary information for a Data Flow is shown
at the arrow's midpoint. With the Component Tool, the descriptive
text from the Dictionary may be dragged to a different location.
Browse the Data Dictionary
Choose the Browse command from the Dictionary menu. A dialog box
(Figure 3-5) will allow you to browse through the entries in the
data dictionary.
The large scroll bar at the right edge of the dialog box is
clicked to move one at a time through the dictionary in
alphabetical order. The dictionary label, description and entry
type are displayed.
To call up a particular dictionary entry, type its label in the
Label edit control and press the tab key. The dictionary
information for that label will be displayed.
To see a list of all available dictionary labels, click on the
"?" button and a list box containing all labels used in the
diagram will pop up. Select the desired label and click on the OK
button.
The Description for a dictionary entry can be changed by tabbing
to the Description field and editing the displayed text.
Finally, the expansion page for a process can be selected while
browsing. If a Process Component is selected, click on the
Details button, and the diagram page containing the details of
that process will be selected. The Details button moves you
deeper into the hierarchy.
Quick Tour 11
If an External or Parameter Component is selected, click on the
Owner button, and the owning page is shown. The Owner button
moves you upward towards the top of the hierarchy.
Print and Save
Choose the Diagram command from the Reports menu. A dialog box
will prompt you for the printer to be used. (Figure 3-6) A list
of printers that have been installed in Windows is shown. Double-
click on the name of the desired printer, and your diagram will
print.
A number of textual reports can also be printed based upon
information from the data dictionary. To see these reports,
choose the Dictionary Contents, Process Hierarchy, Process Usage
or Data Flow Usage commands from the Reports menu.
Finally, save your work. Choose the Save command (or press ctrl +
S) and your design will be saved with the same file name.
Quit Personal CASE
Choose the Exit command from the File menu. Or choose the Close
command from the System Menu. You will be returned to the MS-DOS
Executive.
To stop Windows, choose the Exit command from the File menu or
the Close command from the System Menu.