Author Topic: Redefine UML (ex. extending the UML “Actor” with the tag named “EAID”)  (Read 5450 times)

Zerzi

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Hy everyone

My name is Pascal. Currently I am maintaining a MDG Technology.

Now the company wants to add a new tag to all of the existing UML elements. For example extending the UML “Actor” with the tag named “EAID” (type:string).

What I have tried:
  • The UML MDG is not in the Sparx folder (C:\Program Files (x86)\Sparx Systems\EA\MDGTechnologies). But there is no UML MDG File. Therefore editing the MDG File for UML is not possible.
  • The possibility to Redefine the Stereotypes in Another Profile by my own Technology I tried as well. But this seems to work only with Stereotypes (ex. Archimate2::Archimate_BusinessActor), so it does not work with Metaclasses for example “Actor”.

Thus my Question is: Is it possible to extend the UML elements (and connectors) with a single tag? And if yes how?

Thank you for your answers

Geert Bellekens

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I think you would be better off adding the tagged value to all elements without touching the UML profile.
I know that is kind of cheating, but otherwise you would have to extend each every single UML metatype (and the other metatypes you are using).

Adding the tag automatically can be done with an add-in or EA-Matic script.

Geert

qwerty

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Just deploy the new MDG and show the toolbox for it. Select the altered stereotype and from the context menu issue "Synch...". That should add the new TVs.

q.

Zerzi

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Hy Geert
Thanks for the fast reply.
So there is a way to extend the UML?
Because if there is a way maybe I can automate the adding process to all the UML metatypes.

Hy q.
Thanks for the fast reply.
That’s what I have tried. I enabled and activated the MDG then I went to the extendet Toolbox and selected “Synchronize Stereotypes”. This works fine for everything else except UML. Because for the UML Elements the option of “Synchronize Stereotypes” does not show. Extendig Archimate for exaple worked just fine.

Nabil

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Yes you can extend UML with a custom stereotype
Refer this link https://www.sparxsystems.com.au/downloads/whitepapers/enterprise_architecture_framework_design.pdf

HTH
Nabil
Nabil

Geert Bellekens

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So there is a way to extend the UML?

There is, but not "in place".
Extending the UML types would mean that you would have to create your own stereotype for each UML metatype.
Each stereotype would then have your tagged value (this can be inherited from a single stereotype)

But it would also mean that from now on you cannot use any of the "standard" UML stereotype, but only your extended stereotypes. So you probably want to duplicate each and every UML toolbox.

And to be able to use the toolboxes in a convenient way you would then have to to override the default toolbox for each UML diagram type.

Then once that is all in place you probably want to write some kind of script to transform your regular UML elements to your extended stereotype.

So a whole lot of work for little to no added value when compared to simply adding the tagged value to all elements (without messing about with UML profiles)

Geert

qwerty

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You can only extend UML with a new MDG. There is no way to manipulate the build-in UML profile (because it's build-in...).

q.

KP

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Of course you can manually add a tagged value to any element in your model without using stereotypes or profiles or MDG Technologies. And if you want to add the same tagged value to every element in your model, you can write a script to do that. You might need to let it run overnight.
« Last Edit: February 12, 2018, 05:09:30 pm by KP »
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