Inherited columns not availabel to operations

[Paolo F Cantoni]

For better of for worse (for the better, I think) EA allows you to use inheritance in data modelling.

It also allows you to mark a table as {abstract} - thus making it into a logical/conceptual entity.

However, these "inherited" columns and operations aren't available to the specialized tables... Thus, when you want to create indexes and other constraints it would be very useful to make them available (as they, in effect, are to a bare class).  The reason you need to make them available is that there are stricter requirements in Data Modelling than in general UML. It would be "wrong" to just allow arbitrary parameters to the operations defined for a data modelling classifier.

If the argument is that this would seriously interfere with DDL generation - the (inheritance) facility is there... It already interferes...Handle it!  However, as an interim solution, if this functionality were available for {abstract} tables only that would be sufficiently useful.

Thoughts? Votes?
Paolo

[«Midnight»]

Perhaps this could be the seed for future implementation of DBMS domains.

Given how this continues to 'appear' only in "future" EA versions, perhaps the entire subject is taboo.