disappearing diagrams

[mylesr]

I spent hours working on a class diagram yesterday, saving it several times along the way.  Today I went to open it and I can't find it!  The EAP file is there, but when I open it, there are no diagrams.  I tried creating a new project and added a new diagram to it, saved, closed, opened, and the new diagram is gone.  Help!

[Bruno.Cossi]

Hi,

are you sure it is gone? Perhaps it is just saved in a different package? Try to use the search functionality (menu Edit > Find or Ctrl + F).
Also, check the Project Statistics (menu Project > View Project Statistics) and check the diagram count, if it is 0 then there may be a problem :-)

Hope this helps!
Bruno

[mylesr]

The diagram count in the Project Statistics is 17.  I only created one diagram, however, and when I click on the previous and next buttons in the Diagram Toolbar, only the start page appears to exist.  What I'm doing is fairly simple:
1) open EA
2) create a new project based on the EABase template
3) Click on Diagram|New Diagram and add a class diagram giving it a name.
4) Drop two generic classes on the diagram and create an association between them.
5) Click the "save" button.
(At this point, I can click on the "next" button in the Diagram toolbar and it switches back and forth between the start page and the diagram.  There are two tabs at the bottom, one for the start page and one for the diagram.)
6) Click File|Close to close the current project.
7) Click File|Open and open the project I just saved.  
(At this point, I can't find the diagram.  There is only the one start page tab at the bottom, and the "next" button on the Diagram Toolbar can't find anything.  When I check diagram count for the project, as you suggested, it says that there are 15 diagrams.  When I select Edit|Find and search for the name that I gave the diagram, it doesn't find anything.)

[Eve]

Just a guess, but try browsing the project view to look for your diagrams.  They aren't opened when loading a project (unless you set one as the default diagram with "Diagram" | "Set as Model Default")

To open the project view select "View" | "Project View" from the main menu.

Simon

[mylesr]

Yes, it showed up under "Use Case View", which is a little misleading because a class diagram is not a use case diagram.  I'm glad it's not gone for good.  Thanks!

[Bruno.Cossi]

Hi,

in EA you can create any type of diagram under any of the views. Just watch which package is highlighted when you are creating new diagram.

Bruno

Yes, it showed up under "Use Case View", which is a little misleading because a class diagram is not a use case diagram.  I'm glad it's not gone for good.  Thanks!

[endeavour]

I spent hours working on a class diagram yesterday, saving it several times along the way.  Today I went to open it and I can't find it!  The EAP file is there, but when I open it, there are no diagrams.  I tried creating a new project and added a new diagram to it, saved, closed, opened, and the new diagram is gone.  Help!

I am also having the same problem.  I have one project that saves (albeit it redraws the diagrams) and all others just come back empty after I close and re-open them.

[thomaskilian]

Try the following: select one of the elements in the browser of which you know that you placed them in a diagramm. Right click and select Usage or Ctrl+U. A window should pop up with locations where this element is used in diagrams. Double click and the appropriate diagram will open.

[endeavour]

thanks thomas that works.

given that this seems a common question perhaps someone should redesign the user interface to behave more inuitively.

it could at least be in the user guide!

[mikewhit]

The answer is always to have the Project Browser window visible. That way you can see where your current work is located.

I am surprised if you could not find any of your work by just opening up the Project Browser - using the NumLock '*' key works like Explorer and opens all subfolders.

The analogous Windows situation is using Start - New Office Document to create a doc, saving in the 'default' location, and then expecting to find the doc right there on the desktop next time you start Windows !

Sorry, not meaning to sound 'know-it-all' ;-)

[endeavour]

I am not sure this is analogous with File->Open.

I can certainly open existing projects in the way you describe.  That is not the issue.

The problem is that when I opne them they appear to have no diagrams . the tabs at the bottom aren't there.

To a novice user (like myself) it appears as though the diagrams have not saved.

[mikewhit]

This is due to EA not reopening all the diagrams that you had open last time.

You are probably thinking along the lines of a Development Project IDE which remembers which files you had open last time, and reopens them for you.

But surely you would not think all of the project files had vanished just because the IDE did not reopen them next time ?

Anyway, there is a mismatch in expectations at some level; I hope Sparx can learn from this to either put in some extra help, or perhaps (optionally) make open diagrams persistent.

But users still need to be aware of where in the project hierarchy their diagrams and elements are stored, there is no substitute for that; they can't rely on diagram tabs to show them where to find things.