Trace Modeler

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.