Editing Diagrams

This chapter describes the Diagram Editor that is used to edit Diagrams.

Diagram Editor

Diagram Editor Context Menu

You can close other tabs, delete diagrams and print diagams from Diagram editor’s context menu:

../../_images/editing_dgm_tab_pop-up.png

Draw Suggest Feature

Draw Suggest Feature appears when you have a mouse over a Model Element in the diagram, providing with a set of suggested Model Elements to help you with modeling faster.

To switch On/Off image the Draw Suggest Feature, click image [Enable Suggest Feature] on the Tool Palette.

While you hold [Shift] key down, setting is toggled another one.

The default setting can be done in Menu [Tools]-[System Properties]-[Diagram Editor]-[Enable Suggest Feature] on the Diagram Editor.

Creating Diagram Elements

  1. Using the Tool Palette

  1. Select the target Diagram Element on the Tool Palette in the Diagram Editor.

  2. Click on the Diagram to create the Diagram Element.

  3. The new Diagram Element is added to the structure tree.

Note) Lines are not added to the structure tree.

  1. Dragging and dropping from the [Structure] onto a Diagram

  1. Drag a Diagram Element from the [Structure] in the Project View.

  2. Drop it onto a Diagram in the Diagram Editor to create the Diagram Element.

Dragging and Dropping

  1. Double-clicking on the Diagram Editor

    1. Double-click on the Diagram Editor to create a main Diagram Element of the Diagram.

Diagram

Main Diagram Element

Requirement Diagram

Requirement

Block Definition Diagram

Block

Internal Block Diagram

Part Property

Parametric Diagram

Constraint Property

Usecase Diagram

Usecase

Activitiy Diagram

Action

Statemachine Diagram

State

Sequence Diagram

Lifeline

Safety Concept Diagram (astah* System Safety)

Requirement

Control Structure Diagram (astah* System Safety)

Component

Control Loop Diagram (astah* System Safety)

Component

GSN / D-Case (astah* System Safety)

Goal

Mindmap

Floating Topic

  1. Using the Draw Suggest Feature

  1. Mouse-over a target Diagram Element.

  2. The Draw Suggest icon is hovered.

  3. Select the icon of the Diagram to create the Diagram Element.

Draw Suggest

Creating Diagram Elements in Succession

  1. Using [Lock Selected Mode] in the Tool Palette.

  1. Click on the Mode Lock [Lock Selected Mode] in the Tool Palette.

  2. Select the target Diagram Element.

  3. Click on the Diagram repeatedly.

  1. Using the [Shift] Key

  1. Select the target Diagram Element on the Tool Palette in the Diagram Editor.

  2. Hold down the [Shift] Key and click on the Diagram repeatedly.

Gap Remover/Expander

By the [Gap Remover/Expander] function, multiple Diagram Elements can be moved at the same time.
You can create a space for another Diagram Element on the Diagram later or improve the appearance of the Diagram.
It can be used other than the Mindmap.

  1. Click Gap Expander [Gap Expander] or Gap Remover [Gap Remover] on the Tool Palette to turn the Gap Remover/Expander mode ON.

  2. Click on the point to expand or to remove on the Diagram and drag it.

  • Gap Expander [Gap Expander] expands gap by sliding the Diagram Elements to the dragged direction.

  • Gap Remover [Gap Remover] removes unnecessary gap by sliding the Diagram Elements on the opposite side of the dragged direction.

Editing Diagram Elements

Editing Names

Double-click the name of the Diagram Element and edit the name.

Editing Names

Note) You can edit the name in the [Structure] of the [Project View] or in the [Property View].

Resizing

  1. Auto Resize

A Diagram element is resized automatically according to the changed name.

  1. Manual Resize

Click the target Diagram Element and drag the corner.

Customized Icons

Set a user-specific image to a Stereotype as a Customized Icon.
The Model Element to which the Stereotype with a Customized Icon has been applied can switch to the Customized Icon notation.
This is available for Model Elements for which Stereotype can be applied in SysML.

  1. Setting Customized Icon for Stereotype

  • Follow the steps below to set the Customized Icon for the Stereotype.

    1. Select the Project in the Structure Tree.

    2. Go down to its Property View, and then select the Stereotype and click edit_icon in the [Profile Stereotype] tab.

    3. In the [Edit Stereotype Definition] dialog, set the [Icon] to an image.

    • Gif, jpeg, jpg, png formats are supported.

    stereotype_edit_dialog

    profile_stereotype_tab

  1. Switch notation of Diagram Element

  • Follow the steps below to switch the notation of the Diagram Element to the Customized Icon notation.

    1. Appley the Stereotype with the Customized Icon set to the Model Element of the Diagram Element.

    2. Select the Diagram Element in the Diagram Editor and click the triangle on the stereotype_normal_button button on the Tool Bar.

    3. Click stereotype_customize_button button.

    ../../_images/switch_icon_notation.png

Note

Please refer to SysML Related Functions - Profile for details.

Multiple Selection/Cancel

Multiple Selection

  1. Dragging

Drag the cursor over the Diagram Editor to select the target Diagram Elements.

  1. Using the [Shift] or [Ctrl] Key

Select the Diagram Elements in the Diagram Editor by holding down the [Shift] or [Ctrl] key.

Note

Selecting all Diagram Elements in a Diagram

  • To select all Diagram elements on the Diagram, click [Select All] from [Edit] in the Main Menu or from the Context Menu in the Diagram Editor.

  • [Ctrl+A], the short cut key for [Select All] is also available.

Canceling the Selection

To cancel a selection, hold down the [Shift] or [Ctrl] key and reselect the selected Diagram Elements.

Copying as Images

Diagram Elements copied by [Copy to Clipboard] are stored in the Clipboard and can be pasted into other applications (MS Word, etc) as images or EMFs (Enhanced Meta File).This function is not available in Astah for Mac.

Pasting Text from Clipboard

Copy the text to the clipboard and paste it on the Diagram in the Diagram Editor to display the model conversion dialog.

Select a type and create a Diagram Element.

Model Conversion Dialog

Color Setup

Setting up Colors of Diagram Elements

  1. Using [Edit] in the Main Menu

  1. Select the target Diagram Element(s) in the Diagram Editor.

  2. Select [Edit] - [Set Color] in the Main Menu.

  3. Select or create a color and click [OK] in the color selection dialog.

  1. Using the Tool Bar in the [Management View]

  1. Select the target Diagram Elements in the Diagram Editor.

  2. Click the triangle on the [Set Color] button on the Tool Bar.

  3. Select or create a color in the color selection dialog.

  4. When clicking the color on the [Set Color] button on the Tool Bar, set the previously used color.

  1. Using the Context Menu

  1. Click [Set Color] from the context menu of the Diagram Element.

  2. Select or create a color and click [OK] in the color selection dialog.

Color Selection Dialog

The color selection dialog contains six image color groups: Aqua, Earth, Nature, Spring, Passion, and Winter.

Use the groups to create well-balanced color.

Press the [Add Color] button to memorize up to 10 colors in [Favorites].

Color Selection Dialog

Setting up Text Colors

  1. Using [Edit] in the Main Menu

  1. Select the target Diagram Elements in the Diagram Editor.

  2. Select [Edit] - [Set Text Color] in the Main Menu.

  3. Select or create a color and click [OK] in the color selection dialog.

  1. Using the Tool Bar in the [Management View]

  1. Select string(s) of the target Diagram Elements in the Diagram Editor.

  2. When clicking the triangle on the [Set Text Color] button on the Tool Bar, select or create a color in the color selection dialog.

  3. When clicking the color on the [Set Text Color] button on the Tool Bar, set the previously used color.

  1. Using the Context Menu

  1. Click [Set Text Color] from the context menu of the Diagram Element.

  2. Select or create a color and click [OK] in the color selection dialog.

Set Style

The context menu of each diagram element allows you to set the color, line color, text color, font, line style, and other styles.

The styles that can be set vary depending on the diagram element.

Editing Lines

Creating Lines

There are four line styles: Line, Line (Right Angle), Curve, and Curve (Right Angle).

By default, Line (Right Angle) is used for all Diagrams.

Note) To cancel drawing a line, press the [Esc] key or right-click.

  1. Creating Line, Line(Right Angle), Curve, and Curve (Right Angle)

  1. Select the target line type from the Tool Palette in the Diagram Editor.

  2. Select [Line], [Line(Right Angle)], [Curve], or [Curve (Right Angle)] in the Tool Palette.

  3. Click on the Diagram Element to select the starting point of the line and the second one to select the end point.

Note 1) To draw a polygonal line, click on a Diagram Element and click on any point on the Diagram. Finally, click on a Diagram Element to select the end point.

Editing Targets of Lines

To change the end point of a Line, simply drag the end point onto a new target.

Editing Line Styles

There are four line styles: Line, Line (Right Angle), Curve, and Curve (Right Angle).

  1. Using [Edit] in the Main Menu

  1. Select a Line in the Diagram Editor.

  2. Click [Edit] - [Line style] and select one of the line styles.

  1. Using buttons on the Tool Bar

  1. Select a Line in the Diagram Editor.

  2. Click one of the line styles on the Tool Bar in the Management View.

Tool Bar

  1. Using the Context Menu

Select one of the line styles from [Line style] in the context menu in the Diagram Editor.

Note

To Set Default Line Style

  • Set the line mode on the Tool Bar in the Diagram Editor. Existing Lines are not changed to the selected line mode.

    ../../_images/editing_dgm_set-line-style.png

Setting up Line Color

  1. Using [Edit] in the Main Menu

  1. Select the target line(s) in the Diagram Editor.

  2. Click [Edit] - [Set Line Color] in the Main Menu.

  3. Select or create a color and click [OK] in the color selection dialog.

  1. Using the Tool Bar in the [Management View]

  1. Select the target line(s) in the Diagram Editor.

  2. When clicking the triangle on the [Set Line Color] button on the Tool Bar, select or create a color in the color selection dialog.

  3. When clicking the color on the [Set Line Color] button on the Tool Bar, set the previously used color.

  1. Using the Context Menu

  1. Select [Set Line Color] in the context menu of the target line in the Diagram Editor.

  2. Select or create a color and click [OK] in the color selection dialog.

Displaying Diagrams

Enlarging Diagrams

  1. Click [View] - [Zoom In] in the Main Menu. (Ctrl+ [)

  2. Click [Zoom In] on the Tool Bar.

  3. Using the Context Menu

  1. Right-click on the Diagram Editor to open the context menu.

  2. Click [Zoom In] on the context menu.

  1. Using the [Ctrl] key and the mouse

  1. Hold down the [Ctrl] key and right mouse button and drag upwards.

  2. Hold down the [Ctrl] key and rotate the mouse wheel forwards.

Shrinking Diagrams

  1. Click [View] - [Zoom Out] in the Main Menu. (Ctrl+ ])

  2. Click [Zoom Out] on the Tool Bar.

  3. Using the Context Menu

  1. Right-click on the Diagram Editor to open the context menu.

  2. Click [Zoom Out] on the context menu.

  1. Using the [Ctrl] key and the mouse

  1. Hold down the [Ctrl] key and right mouse button and drag downwards.

  2. Hold down the [Ctrl] key and rotate the mouse wheel backwards.

Displaying Diagrams in their Original Size

  1. Click [View] - [Actual Size] in the Main Menu.

  2. Click [Actual Size] on the Tool Bar.

  3. Using the Context Menu

  1. Right-click on the Diagram Editor to open the context menu.

  2. Click [Normal] on the context menu.

Displaying the Diagram Overview

[Fit to Window], [Window Width], and [Window Height] can be selected.

  1. Click [View]-[Fit to Window/Window Width/Window Height] in the Main Menu.

  2. Click [Fit to Window/Window Width/Window Height] on the Tool Bar.

  3. Using the Context Menu

  1. Right-click on the Diagram Editor to open the context menu.

  2. Click [View]-[Fit to Window/Window Width/Window Height] on the context menu.

Note) [Map] in the Project View can be used to enlarge and shrink Diagrams.

Moving Diagrams

While pressing the right mouse button, drag Diagrams to move in the Diagram Editor.

  1. Moving Diagrams Vertically

Diagrams can be moved vertically by rotating the mouse wheel. When the mouse wheel is rotated forwards, Diagrams are moved upwards. When the mouse wheel is rotated backwards, Diagrams are moved downwards.

  1. Moving Diagrams Horizontally

Diagrams can be moved horizontally by holding down the [Shift] key and rotating the mouse wheel. When the mouse wheel is rotated forwards, Diagrams are moved to the right. When the mouse wheel is rotated backwards, Diagrams are moved to the left.

Alignment of Diagram Elements

Adjust Top

Align the selected Diagram Elements with the top end of the highest Diagram Element.

Align Horizontal Center

Align the Diagram Elements along the midpoint between the highest and lowest Diagram Elements.

Adjust Bottom

Align the selected Diagram Elements with the bottom end of the lowest Diagram Element.

Space Evenly Horizontally

Horizontally align Diagram Elements with even spacing between the leftmost and rightmost Diagram Elements.

Adjust Left

Align Diagram Elements with the left side of the leftmost Diagram Element.

Align Vertical Center

Align Diagram Elements along the midpoint between the leftmost and rightmost Diagram Elements.

Adjust Right

Align Diagram Elements with the right side of the rightmost Diagram Element.

Space Evenly Vertically

Vertically align Diagram Elements with even spacing between the highest and lowest Diagram Elements.

Adjust Width

Adjust the width of Diagram Elements to the widest Diagram Element.

Adjust Height

Adjust the height of Diagram Elements to the highest Diagram Element.

Adjust Size

The size of the Diagram Elements can be adjusted to the selected Diagram Element or the specified width and height.

  1. Using the Tool Button

Select the target Diagram Elements and click one of the Alignment buttons from the Tool buttons.

Using [Align] on the Menu

Select the target Diagram Elements and select one of the options from [Alignment] in the Main Menu.

Adjusting Size

The size of the Diagram Elements can be adjusted to the selected Diagram Element or the specified width and height.

Adjusting Size

  1. Select the target Diagram Elements.

  2. Select [Alignment] - [Adjust Size] - [Adjust Size] in the Main Menu.

  1. Adjust size

Select [Adjust size] to input the width and height values and press [OK].

  1. Adjust to the size of selected element

Select [Adjust to the size of selected element]. Select the Diagram Element of the target size from the list and press [OK]. Some of the Diagram Elements may not be adjusted properly depending on the length of the name and so on.

Align Guide

The Align Guide (green line) appears on the Diagram Editor when moving the Diagram Elements. This function helps to align the Diagram Elements to other Diagram Elements.

Align Guide

Jumping to Models in the Structure Tree

Click [Show in Structure Tree] from the context menu of the Diagram Element in the Diagram Editor.

Show in Structure Tree from the Editor

Click on the Diagram to open the context menu and click [Show in Structure Tree].

Changing the order of overlapped Model Elements

bring_to_front_icon [Bring to Front]

Move the selected Diagram Element to the top.

bring_forward_icon [Bring Forward]

Move the selected Diagram Element one step closer to the front

send_backward_icon [Send Backward]

Move the selected Diagram Element one step back.

send_to_back_icon [Send to Back]

Send the selected Diagram Element to the back of all the Diagram Elements.

Using the Tool Button

Select the target Diagram Element(s) and click one of the depthfront_icon buttons from the Tool buttons.

Using [Depth Arrangement] in the Main Menu

Select the Diagram Element(s) and select the way you would like to move it from [Edit]-[Depth Arrangement] in the Main Menu.

iii) Using the Context Menu

  • Select the Diagram Element(s) to open the context menu.

  • Click the way you would like to move it in [Depth Arrangement] of the context menu.

Search for Diagram Elements

Use the Search Bar or Search View to search for the Diagram elements.

Using the Search Bar

  1. Display the Search Bar on the Diagram Editor by either of the following procedure:

  • Press the shortcut key [Ctrl+F] in the Diagram Editor.

  • Select [Search on Diagram] from [Edit] in the Main Menu.

  1. Enter a search text and follow either of the procedure below:

  • Press the Enter key.

  • Press the [Next] or [Previous] button.

The searched text is highlighted on the Diagram.

If multiple texts are searched, press [Next] or [Previous] to see the next.

The search setting can be changed in the [Options] button.

diagrameditor_search
Using the Search View

Refer to Basic Function - Project View - Search View for details.

Switching between editors

You can also use shortcut keys to switch between tabs in the diagram editor.

The following four shortcut keys can be used to switch between editors: Command key instead of Ctrl for Mac OS.

Shortcut Keys

Function

Ctrl + PgDn

Forward to next editor

Ctrl + PgUp

Back to previous editor

Control+TAB

Forward to next editor

Control+Shift+TAB

Back to previous editor

Map View

The lower right corner of the diagram editor shows the entire map of the diagram open in the diagram editor.

The area displayed in the Diagram Editor can be specified by a right-drag. The Diagram in the Diagram Editor can be scrolled using a left-drag. This function is especially useful for big Diagrams that do not fit in the screen.

image

Resize Map View

You can resize the Map View by dragging and dropping the corners of the map view.

Resize Map View

Displaying Map View

Close Map View by clicking the close_button.

Click the open_button to reopen MapView.