Autosize: unclear explanation

[marcelloh]

I can't figure out what this function should do.
Can it only be used on elements of the same kind?
If I design a screen, and select the screen and all it's elements, and press autosize (I don't see an 'all'-option), everything is squashed together, but not the same any more.

I thought this option resizes every element to a minimum space needed per element positioned to the left (because we read from left to right).
So to me, this function is confusing.
The help states:
Enterprise Architect resizes the elements where necessary.
When is this necessary? I'm clueless.

[RoyC]

Autosize endeavours to resize the selected elements to the minimum size for revealing the information (such as attributes, operations and notes) they display. Each element is reduced or expanded as necessary to just reveal the information. The size change effectively operates around the mid point of each element, so the layout and size of the diagram do not change.

Autosize operates on several types of element together in any given selection. As the Help states, it does not operate on all types of element, neither does it operate on elements with a specific size definition (such as elements added from a profile) or those where position is crucial (as in Timing and Sequence diagrams. I will add that "neither..." item to the Help.

Autosize is not a tool for making your elements into icons. A screen element with UI elements reflects your design of a user interface screen. The size and position of the UI elements on the screen ought to be critical, as with the elements on a timing or sequence diagram. I don't know why you would want to pass that through any kind of auto- tool.

The menu option got changed, and I have now updated the Help to reflect this.

"Where necessary" means exactly that - certain elements might already be at optimal size, so they are not adjusted.

Finally, as Midnight asked on a previous post, what is the suggestion or request in your posting? Perhaps this topic belongs in the General folder?

[marcelloh]

"so the layout and size of the diagram do not change"
I say this is not the case with me. Everything was ruined and squashed together and moved to the left. So perhaps the "request" was first a request for "how stuff works" and now a request for "making it work like it should"

Roy, the explanation that you gave is a nice feature. (but unfortunately, doesn't work that way. In my case, on use case diagrams and BPMN's)

[RoyC]

I can create both Use Case diagrams and BPMN diagrams on which the autosize works cleanly on all elements EXCEPT Pool, Lane and Boundary. Again, these elements enclose others in a (probably) carefully arranged structure, so if you autosize them they will indeed mess the structure up.

The original Help states that Use Cases and Events do not autosize, but I have autosized both types cleanly. I suppose the rule ought to be that you can autosize anything that does not encapsulate another element. And you wouldn't autosize an encapsulating element anyway, because autosize is intended to optimise the display of TEXT content.

[marcelloh]

Okay, this is what I do to proof it doesn't work:
Create a new use case diagram.
Put 2 use case-symbols on top. ("Use Case1" and "Use Case2")
Resize "Use Case2" to a smaller size, but still so big that the text inside fits without going to 2 lines.
Select both Use Cases.
Right Click and select autosize.
.... the small one gets bigger....
Bigger is not the optimal size (unless you're an American)

[Eve]

From what I read, the problem you have with it is that auto-size has a minimum size of the default size for that element type.

Is that correct?

[RoyC]

Yes, you are probably making Use Case 2 smaller than the default minimum size for the element, so the autosize increases it to the default size.

There is a note in the Help topic about that.