Diagram enhancement ideas

[mch]

Hi,

I've been using EA for a few months and think its a great product. However I'd like to suggest a few enhancements to the diagramming that would allow me to product better quality diagrams:

• Better control of line routing. I would like to be able specify which side of a symbol a line comes from and to manually add waypoints.
  
• horizontal and vertical alignment of text in a symbol. As a first step I want to be able to specify that the symbol name be placed either at the top or in the middle
  
• Text wrapping control. Text often goes outside the symbol boundary, especially with the likes of the process symbol.
  
• The ability to turn stereotypes off for a symbol or a diagram.
  
• Setting font type, size, and colour for individual symbols
  
• Colour on association lines
  

Thanks,
Mark

[gsparks]

Hi Mark,

Some quick answers to your suggestions:

1. Line routing is a high priority - its just that other things seem to keep getting bumped up to the top of the list

2. This may present some difficulties, as placement is often constrained by other factors (compartments, stereotypes, adornments etc.)

3. Some have already been improved - activities, states, use cases in particular for build 467

4. Ill see what it would take. It would probably need to be set on an element by element basis (like the Set Feature Visibility dialog)

5. Font colour is already configurable. Type and size may be an issue as font type already has some meaning within UML - eg. abstract classes and operations are rendered in italic. Different font types may obscure this feature.

6. What sort of meaning would be attached to line colour?

Hope this is relevant,

Geoff Sparks

[mch]

Hi Geoff,
thanks for the your response. I've just downloaded build 467 and the text wrapping is looking good. Will other elements be improved (eg process stereotypes)?

I'm pleased to see that line routing is on the list, I'm really hanging out for this. Any ideas as to when?

Line colour would simply be an add to communication, especially on some of the more complex diagrams.

Keep up the great work!
Mark

[gsparks]

Hi again,

When you say "Will other elements be improved (eg process stereotypes)?" do you mean the option to switch off the steretoyped display, or something else?

I hate making promises about changes as invariably something comes up which is more important :-( ... I had hoped that routing would be implemented already, but other issues got in the way ... at the moment I am confident that within the next couple of months this will be addressed.

Geoff

[mch]

Hi Geoff,

by other elements I was meaning the text wrapping...

Cheers,
Mark

[mch]

Hi Geoff,

by other elements I was meaning the text wrapping...

Cheers,
Mark