Basics

Objects

In ModelRight everything is either an object or a property.  Things like Tables, Columns, Models, Templates, etc... are all examples of objects.  Objects can own other "child" objects.  For  example, a Table can own Columns.  The Model Explorer shows the objects in the Model.  The Model Browser provides an unfiltered, read-only view of a Model's objects and properties.

Model

A Model is the root object.  It owns either directly or indirectly all other objects.   For example, a Model owns Table objects directly and Column object indirectly (since they are owned by Table objects).

Properties

Objects hold values for properties.  Examples of properties are Name, Comment, Datatype, etc... An object's properties are displayed in the Property Browser when the object is selected (in either the Model Explorer or the Diagram).   When you click a checkbox or change text in an edit control on the Property Browser, you are creating or changing the value of a "local" property -  a property that is defined on the object itself.  You can delete a local property using the Reset tab of the Property Browser.  Properties can also be "inherited" from a Template.   ModelRight also supports "calculated" properties.  Calculated properties are not local or inherited, but are determined dynamically - usually based on the value of other properties.  Therefore as those other properties change the calculated property automatically changes based on the new values.  The Name of Graphics objects is an example of a calculated property - the Name is based on the name of the object that the Graphic object represents.

Meta Model

The Meta Model provides a map of how different types of objects and properties are connected.  For example. it describes what properties an object can have and what type of child objects it can own.  If you use ModelRight's scripting capabilities, you need to know this information so that you can programmatically navigate an object's children and properties.   ModelRight provides a Meta Model Browser that displays the entire ModelRight meta-model in tree format.

Diagrams

A Diagram is an object that is used to display a set of Table, Views, Relations, etc...  Which Tables and Views are displayed is defined by the Model Subset that owns the Diagram.  A Graphics Object is created (and owned by the Diagram) for each Table, View, Column, etc. that is displayed in the Diagram to represent the object and store graphical properties.  A  Model can any number of Model Subsets and a Model Subset can own any number of Diagrams.    When you Open a Diagram a window is created to graphically display the contents of the Diagram.  Opening and Closing a Diagram has no affect on the underlying Model.

Files

In ModelRight, a file contains one and only one Model.   When you save a file, the Model is saved in a file with a .WER extension.  The "workspace" is saved in a file with the same name, but  with a ".WWS" extension.  The workspace contains information about what Diagrams are open and other user interface information.