Trace Modeler

New release : Trace Modeler v1.6.2

Mon, 23 Mar 2009 00:01:00 +0100

Trace Modeler v1.6.2 has been released.

Pressing ENTER when an activation is selected starts edit of the corresponding call label

Further improved the type inferencing algorithm of the 'Build model' feature

Added a few alternative ways to zoom in/out with the mouse, the possibilities are now

CTRL-MOUSEWHEEL, CMD-MOUSEWHEEL, ALT-MOUSEWHEEL, META-MOUSEWHEEL

Workspace now displays a border around the selected diagram when it has the keyboard focus

On large diagrams, SHIFT-RIGHT-DRAG can be used to scroll 1:1 with the mouse pointer

RIGHT-DRAG scrolls faster, depending on the diagram size

Renamed the shell scripts and executables

for Windows : win_tracemodeler.exe and win_batchexport.exe

for Unix and Linux : nix_tracemodeler.sh and nix_batchexport.sh

for Mac OSX : osx_tracemodeler.command and osx_batchexport.sh

Some Mac OSX specific changes

Fixed the visual menu glitch, menu are now rendered correctly

Screen menu bar is used instead of a window menu bar (OSX 10.5 only)

Uses the native file dialog for opening and saving trace files

Added a shell script osx_tracemodeler.command that can be run from the Finder

Added lots of OSX-specific keyboard and mouse controls (see manual for a complete list)

Any errors about missing files during the loading of the workspace are now reported in bulk

Fixed : the activations of self calls whose top is off-screen, are now correctly stacked

Changed the standard font for the UI, welcome diagram, default diagram and examples to "Arial"

They no longer rely on the logical "SansSerif" and "Dialog" fonts because they are mapped differently on different platforms

New release : Trace Modeler v1.6.1

Tue, 10 Mar 2009 00:01:00 +0100

Trace Modeler v1.6.1 has been released.

Added a feature to quickly give feedback about Trace Modeler, available from the toolbar and menu bar

Opens a webpage where you can suggest features or other improvements (no login required)

You can also view and vote for suggestions made by others!

Improved the type inferencing capabilities for the experimental 'Build Model' feature

Added better support for keyboards without a numeric keypad, particularly for zooming in/out. To summarize, the possible ways to zoom in/out are now :

CTRL-MOUSEWHEEL with the mouse
using the corresponding entries in the toolbar and the View Menu
CTRL-PLUS / CTRL-MINUS on the numeric keypad
CTRL-PLUS / CTRL-MINUS on the regular keyboard (if this doesn't work on your keyboard please use CTRL-PAGEUP / CTRL-PAGEDOWN)

Fixed : pressing HOME to reset the view is now working again

New release : Trace Modeler v1.6.0

Fri, 06 Mar 2009 00:01:00 +0100

Trace Modeler v1.6.0 has been released.

Changed the drag & drop indicator style to make it clearer what will happen when dropped

Indicator for activations now uses an arrow and shows which target will receive the message

Drop indicator color is now blue when the element can be dropped

Drop indicator color is now red when the element cannot be dropped

'Export as image' opens an export dialog where the destination (file/clipboard) can be chosen

Available on the toolbar and the Tools menu

'Export to clipboard' and 'Export to file' were removed from the toolbar and menus

Reorganized the menubar

Removed the Window menu and moved its contents to the other menus

Reordered the entries of the File menu

Added 'Build model [experimental]' to the Tools menu

Added an example for the 'Build Model' functionality

Consists of 4 sequence diagrams depicting 4 representative scenarios for the same domain

Detailed instructions are given in the trace file 'tic-tac-toe readme' in the 'examples' folder of your Trace Modeler installation. This is one of the examples that is automatically opened on first use. If needed, you can quickly open all example diagrams from the Help menu.

Added a new preference setting 'Palettes always visible' (checked by default)

When checked the palettes remain opaque when not in use

When unchecked the palettes become semi-transparent when not in use

When in presentation mode the palette always becomes semi-transparent when not in use

Changes to the 'Preferences' window

'Preferences' window is now modal and has 'Confirm' and 'Cancel' buttons

Renamed preference 'use workspace' to 'save workspace on exit'

Removed the blurred background on menubar menus and context menus

The 'Diagram Style' and 'History' windows are now internal windows (again)

New release : Trace Modeler v1.5.31

Mon, 23 Feb 2009 00:01:00 +0100

Trace Modeler v1.5.31 has been released.

Added three new UML elements : actions, constraints and state invariants

Added support for opening multiple diagrams at once, for every opened diagram an entry is added to the diagram list sidebar

Added a diagram list sidebar

Sidebar can be collapsed/expanded from the menu, toolbar and divider (and from the diagram context menu when using the presentation interface)

Diagrams with unsaved modifications are indicated with a disk icon

Added workspace functionality

When Trace Modeler starts it will automatically reopen all diagrams you were working on when you last exited

Added a 'Use workspace' preference setting (available in the 'Preferences' window)

Much faster loading, layout and rendering of huge diagrams (10'000+ calls)

Trace Modeler handles them with ease, even on modest hardware.

Necessary for [censored]

Some changes to the File menu

Added 'Open folder' item to the File menu, use it to quickly open all trace files in a folder

Added 'Save all' item to the File menu

Changed the way the entries in 'Open recent' are organized

Removed the big trial watermark and replaced it with something a bit more subtle

Added lots of tweaks and new rules to the layout engine

many of them related to operand guards and some constructor specific rules

'Optimize target order' can now produce a call-local ordering

Useful for studying huge diagrams

Select a call, activation or return and click 'Optimize target order' and it will layout the targets so that flow around that call can be studied

Added style support, each individual element can now be styled (custom line, fill and text colors).

elements can share common styles and styles can extend each other

style support through files only for now, UI integration is coming soon

Diagram frame can now be added and removed in the same manner as the other elements

removed the 'Diagram frame' diagram style property (no longer necessary)

Added floating comments

the diagram frame will not consider these when calculating its boundary

the comment and its links are drawn with a drop-shadow for easy identification

When in text edit mode, you can easily switch to the next/previous element

hold down PAGE UP or PAGE DOWN in text edit mode to see it in action

Some important changes to text edit mode

ENTER will now add a newline (no longer necessary to combine with SHIFT or CTRL)

ESCAPE will now confirm your editing and leave text edit mode (no longer cancels)

if you want to cancel your changes, simply press CTRL-Z during text edit mode or confirm your editing and then undo (using the toolbar, edit menu or CTRL-Z)

Added some more features to text edit mode

added a context menu (cut, copy, paste, select all, copy all) to text edit mode

added a red border around the text edit area making it easy to spot

the highlight of the selected figure is now hidden during text edit mode

Added a 'palette location' preference setting

possible values are 'left', 'right' and 'both'

when setting it to 'both', the mouse travel distance is at most half a screen!

available in the 'Preferences' window

Added support for drag and drop of message and return arrows

It switches automatically to drag and drop of the corresponding activation bar.

Changed the in-diagram drag & drop indicators

it is now consistent with the drag & drop indicators used by the element palette

LEFT-DRAG of diagram elements is now a bit less sensitive to initiate a drag&drop gesture

Call and return arrows can now be used to initiate a drag and drop of an activation

switches automatically to drag and drop of corresp. activation when dragging an arrow

'Export to clipboard' can now be scaled too

uses the scale factor from the 'Export settings' window

Changes to the 'Export settings' window

added a 'try to free more memory' button to the export settings window

available memory report in the export settings window is now updated every 5 seconds

required memory info is now more accurate

reported size in pixels is now correct

Improved tab order

now includes all elements on the diagram and uses their position on the diagram to determine their ideal tab order

The presentation interface can now be activated from the toolbar as well

The keyboard shortcut for the presentation interface is now F7 (used to be F6)

When using the presentation interface, the diagram context menu now also has an entry to switch back to the regular interface

Added a context menu to the 'Application log' window for easy copying of messages

Target names are now preserved when editing & saving (only relevant if you generate trace files yourself)

Added an arrow that indicates where the diagram is when it is scrolled out of view

Submenu entries are now a bit taller so the submenus should feel a bit less sensitive

Added a splash screen to tracemodeler.exe to indicate the JRE is starting (win only)

When a license is imported, the license file is no longer used after import

Better reporting of errors that are encountered whilst loading a diagram

line numbers in error & warning output

unknown commands are now reported instead of ignored

Better shell scripts on *nix and OSX (thanks Kristof and Bram!), the user no longer needs to enter program directory

Changed the default extension for trace files from .trace to .tmt

Changed the direction of horizontal scrolling with SHIFT-WHEEL

The following secondary windows can now be placed outside of the main window as well

Diagram style window

Preferences window

History window

Export settings window

The tip of the day window is no longer modal

You can open it and keep working in Trace Modeler at the same time

Added a 'Experimental features' checkbox to the 'Preferences' window

Experimental feature : 'Build Model' button on the toolbar

Uses a new file format (file format version is now v2)

Trace Modeler v1.5 or later can read all older format versions

Trace Modeler v1.4 or earlier can NOT read the new format v2 (!)

The file extension for trace files is now .tmt instead of .trace

Changes in file format

TRACE_MODELER_FILE_FORMAT is now 2

ACTION added

CONSTRAINT added

INVARIANT added

DIAGRAM_FRAME dropped

DIAGRAM_FRAME_NAME renamed to DIAGRAM_FRAME

COMBINE_BEGIN renamed to FRAGMENT

COMBINE_END renamed to FRAGMENT_END

OPERAND_BEGIN renamed to OPERAND

The fourteen different message commands and one option were simplified to

4 message commands (CALL, CONSTRUCT, DESTRUCT and SIGNAL)

3 message options (ASYNC, INDIRECT and SLOW)

STYLE definition command added

used to define named styles

can introduce a new style, or override a default style

Every trace element can have a STYLE option to specify its style

message commands can have an additional ACTIVATION_STYLE option

Check out the examples to see how styles are defined and used

New article : Pimp My Diagram Episode 02 - Three Little Pigs

Fri, 20 Jun 2008 00:01:00 +0100

The Pimp My Diagram series discusses some issues in UML sequence diagrams and shows you how to improve your own diagrams. Each episode features the makeover of a single sequence diagram, either picked from the web or submitted by a reader.
This short episode shows how you can tell the story of three little pigs.

New release : Trace Modeler v1.4.2

Thu, 22 May 2008 00:01:00 +0100

Trace Modeler v1.4.2 has been released.

Added a workaround for an annoying bug in JRE 1.6.0_10 that prevented Trace Modeler from starting

Fixed a regression bug : the effect of changing to/from (a)synchronous call was not immediately visible.

New release : Trace Modeler v1.4.0

Wed, 21 May 2008 00:00:00 +0100

Trace Modeler v1.4.0 has been released.

Added support for EPS export

available in the 'Export settings' window

Better support for HUGE diagrams in preparation of the [censored]

(huge meaning hundreds of targets and calls)

loading of .trace files is now 4x faster

drawing is up to 10x faster (depending on zoom & diagram complexity)

Scaling factor for export now allows fractional numbers

see 'Export settings' window and 'Batch export' functionality

New release : Trace Modeler v1.3.0

Thu, 08 May 2008 00:00:00 +0100

Trace Modeler v1.3.0 has been released.

Added support for PDF and SVG export

available in the 'Export settings' window

Added 'Diagram frame' diagram style property

diagram frame can be hidden, include comments or exclude comments
the text of the diagram frame can be edited
see 'Diagram style' window, diagram context menu and diagram frame context menu

The diagram will scroll automatically to keep the cursor visible when editing text

on switch to text edit mode, when typing and on cursor movement

Changes in file format

DIAGRAM_FRAME added
DIAGRAM_FRAME_NAME added

New release : Trace Modeler v1.2.0

Thu, 27 Mar 2008 00:00:00 +0100

Trace Modeler v1.2.0 has been released.

Added 'Messsage numbering' diagram style property

message numbering can be off, flat or hierarchical
available in the 'Diagram style' window

Added smart labels for messages and replies

on long message/reply arrows, labels are often out of view which hinders understanding
smart labels move to stay in view as much as possible, try it!
(note that targets have always had smart labels)

Added 'Standard zoom' preference setting

useful if you have a high resolution display and find the diagram too small at 100%
available in the 'Preferences' window

Preferences from most recent prior version are automatically imported on first use of new version

Native file chooser is used on all Windows platforms

there's also a flag to force the use of a native chooser on other platforms if you want

Change in file format

MESSAGE_NUMBERING added

New release : Trace Modeler v1.1.0

Fri, 15 Feb 2008 00:00:00 +0100

Trace Modeler v1.1.0 has been released.

Added support for indirect messages
- is generally useful if you don't want to show the middle man
- but will truly shine once the [censored] is released
Added a new shortcut for 'Reopen file' (F5)
- will come in handy for tweaking the [censored]
Change in file format
- added INDIRECT option to all message kinds (CALL, CONSTRUCT, etc.)
Added a presentation mode : toggle with F6
- no menubar, no toolbar and no scrollbars
- great for giving presentations!
Changed the watermark when run with an evaluation license
fix : mode indicator now disappears as well when scrollbars are hidden
fix : SHIFT-CLICK on diagram during text edit no longer makes the edited label disappear.
fix : 'split here' now only applies when current selection is an activation

New release : Trace Modeler v1.0.0

Wed, 05 Dec 2007 00:00:00 +0100

Trace Modeler v1.0.0 has been released.

Added tooltips to the element toolbar on the right
Added a new target kind : Time
Export settings are saved between sessions
Moved the export settings to a separate 'Export settings' window
Added EULA to distribution and an acceptance dialog at startup
Added EULA tab to the 'About' window
Cosmetic corrections to the diagram style & preferences windows
Labels on arrows are shifted up a bit so underscores are clearer
Label on a found call is moved a bit further away from the end
Labels for self and non-self calls are now spaced more evenly
Finally got the .sh scripts right (thanks Bram!)
Added an edit mode indicator (lower right corner)
Manual was updated
Program settings can be specified through '.jre.ini' files
Changes in file format :
- TIME added

New release : Trace Modeler demo v0.9.9

Tue, 06 Nov 2007 00:00:00 +0100

Trace Modeler v0.9.9 has been released (final beta).

Added a new cross-platform look & feel
Added toolbar with often used elements (elements can be dragged onto diagram!)
Added toolbar with often used operations (icons can be clicked)
Added scrollbars
- They can be hidden through the 'Preferences' window
Added 'export to clipboard' feature, for quick transfer to other programs
Added few entries to the 'File' menu
- 'Open recent'
- 'Open URL..'
- 'Reopen file'
Added a signal message kind (always async, no return arrow)
Unbound connectors are now moved as well when you reorder targets
Bound connectors are now moved to the caller when a call is inlined
Bound and unbound connectors will move along when a call is split
Improved support for stereotypes
- "<<" and ">>" are automatically replaced with guillemets
- in an underlined label, a line containing a stereotype will not be underlined
- (i.e. a stereotype on most kinds of targets is best placed on its own line)
Corrected the letter spacing when zoomed in or exporting at high dpi
You can now switch to text edit mode by pressing ENTER when an element is selected
Working with hidden arrows is now more intuitive
- they're drawn faintly on-screen to make it easier to recognize and manipulate them
- when exporting a diagram to a graphics file, they're invisible of course
Added executables for Windows platforms
Added commandline parameter to specify which diagram Trace Modeler should open
- (makes it possible to associate .trace files with the startup script or executable)
Added scripts to facilitate batch export
Enlarged the selection area for targets and arrows
Added a splash screen
Replaced third party 'tip of the day' component with homegrown dialog
Changed the title of the main window (filename now comes first)
Removed the preference setting for changing the look&feel
Removed the preference setting for changing the scroll strategy
Changes in file format
- added SIGNAL and SLOW_SIGNAL
- FLOW_COLOR value, preferred format is now in hex (#rrggbbaa)

New release : Trace Modeler demo v0.9.8

Sat, 08 Sep 2007 00:00:00 +0100

Trace Modeler v0.9.8 has been released (first beta).

Added the manual (accessible through the Help menu or F1)
Added a faster way to add targets and calls (with SHIFT-LEFT-CLICK)
Improved the indicators that show where an element will be placed when released during drag&drop.
Added commandline batch export for build scripts and easy synchronization
Added bound comment connectors, these always stay connected to their activation regardless of the change to the diagram, and move intelligently when elements are added/removed/moved etc. or the diagram style changes.
Expanded the layout algorithm to include comments and unbound connectors the algorithm will move them to an appropriate new spot on almost all kinds of changes to a diagram
Added logic to always ensure a correct lifecycle (construction/destruction)
Added logic to always ensure consistent destruction kind and destructor
Added new zoom modes (zoom to width, zoom to height and zoom to fit)
New look for diagram style window
Added new diagram style property : control flow color
New look for preferences window
Added "Connector size" to "Preferences" window
Renamed scroll types in preferences to Regular and Goofy
Changed the way a custom default diagram can be set
Removed gradient background outside of diagram
Menubar is now at top of the screen on MacOSX
Changes to text edit mode :

it now also supports undo/redo (ctrl-z, ctrl-y)
ENTER confirms edit and leaves text edit mode
ESC cancels edit and leaves text edit mode
CTRL-ENTER or SHIFT-ENTER add a new line to the text
TABs are replaced with SPACEs

Changes to diagram edit mode :

SHIFT-LEFT-CLICK will now add a new target or call (depending on where you clicked)

Changes in file format

First line must be "TRACE_MODELER_FILE_FORMAT 1"
FLOW_COLOR added
ENCODING added
TIMESTAMP added
FONT_MESSAGES changed to FONT_REGULAR
SHOW_EMPTY_RETURN change to SHOW_EMPTY_RETURNS
READ_LEFT_TO_RIGHT changed to LAYOUT_LEFT_TO_RIGHT
ICON_SIZE changed to TARGET_ICON_SIZE
CALL_LABEL_ALIGNMENT changed to CALL_ALIGNMENT
RETURN_LABEL_ALIGNMENT changed to RETURN_ALIGNMENT
BOUND_LINK added

Article update : A Quick Introduction to UML Sequence Diagrams

Wed, 18 Apr 2007 00:00:00 +0100

Added a section on instantaneous and non-instantaneous messages.