Modeling Ganymede M6 Review

This wiki page contains the result of the Ganymede M6 Modeling Package review.

Platform: Mac OS X

Installation

• 153MB download extracts to 183MB on disk
• Not all features have generated qualifiers, notably: EMF, XSD, UML2, UML2 Tools, and GMF (only the *.tooling.source feature, oddly enough)
• Not all plug-ins are signed 227333
• Not all sources are packaged in the new method

Startup

• EPP usage data gathering exception on startup
• Standard Eclipse splash and welcome page (should be updated with Modeling project artwork?)
• Initial perspective is Java (should be an AmalgamModelingPerspective?)
• Installed Features list shows missing localization strings for *.m2m.qvt.oml source features
• About dialog: all are using proper modeling image, though some issues:
  • GMF and UML2 Tools (documentation only) features missing buildId token replacement (shows @buildId@)
  • Plug-in org.eclipse.gmf.graphdef.edit shows provider as www.example.org and not Eclipse.org
  • All *.m2m.qvt.oml source plug-ins show provider as providerName and not Eclipse.org
  • UML2 Tools diagram plug-in naming scheme is inconsistent (Activity, Deployment, and Use Case should be prefixed with 'UML2' as are the rest)

User Interface Contributions

• Preferences
  • UML2 diagrams each have a root category, but would be better under a common 'UML Diagrams' root
• Menus
  • Operational QVT Transformation & Library actions available on New menu within Package Explorer view of Java perspective (appropriate?)
  • A Run -> Transformation... top-level menu item is available in all perspectives
• New Dialog
  • Eclipse Modeling Framework > EMF Model wizard would be more appropriately named 'EMF Generator Model'
  • Eclipse Modeling Framework category contains no wizard to create a new Ecore model (found in Example EMF Model Creation Wizards category only)
  • UML Model wizard found in Example EMF Model Creation Wizards category, with UML2 Tools diagrams found in UML 2.1 Diagrams category. Why not have both in general 'UML 2.1 Modeling' category?
  • Operational QVT example view, constraints, datatypes, rdb, and simpleuml models are available in EMF Model Creation Wizards category. Move to Operational QVT category below Examples?
  • Ecore Diagram is in the Other category. With the Ecore Tools project available, and as this remains a GMF example, it should be moved to the Examples category?
  • GMF-Xpand top-level category will eventually go away, but for now more appropriate under the existing Graphical Modeling Framework category?
  • GMF wizard names could use some improvement. How about:
    • New GMF Project -> GMF Project (strike the 'New' as it's redundant with dialog purpose and matches EMF counterpart upon which it's based)
    • Simple Graphical Definition Model -> Graphical Definition Model from Domain
    • Simple Tooling Definition Model -> Tooling Definition Model from Domain
    • Reconcile Graphical Definition Model -> Reconcile a Graphical Definition Model
    • Reconcile Tooling Definition Model -> Reconcile a Tooling Definition Model
    • Guide Mapping Model Creation -> Mapping Definition Model from Domain
    • Default subcategory -> Basic
    • GMFGen Model -> Generator Model
    • GMFGraph Model -> Graphical Definition Model
    • GMFMap Model -> Mapping Definition Model
    • GMFTool Model -> Tooling Definition Model
  • Java Emitter Templates category has no wizard to create new JET Template? (seems odd)
• Show View dialog
  • GMF Dashboard is found in the General category. Perhaps add a Graphical Modeling Framework category? The dashboard is not very 'general'
  • The Operational QVT category has a Metamodel Explorer view, which is fine. As this view is not really QVT specific, but rather a general view for registered metamodels, perhaps it belongs in EMF itself?

UML Modeling

Not looking for usability issues with the diagrams themselves, a few items stand out when creating and working with UML diagrams:

• When creating a new diagram, several !MESSAGE NLS unused message log entries are made
• The file extension for UML diagrams are rather long. Perhaps an abbreviated form would be better, e.g. *.ucd instead of *umlclass_diagram? Or, even just *.umlclass without _diagram would be better.
• Each of the right-click actions for creating a new UML diagram for a *.uml model file are also quite long. Perhaps something like "Create UML Class Diagram" instead of "Initialize umlclass_diagram diagram file" would be better? Also, why not have these off the New menu item?
• Under the *.uml model in the Project Explorer are 5 Package elements for a newly created Class diagram with no content was created, each showing the 4 default Element Imports.
• UML diagrams need a non-synchronized option, particularly the Class diagram.
• UML diagram creation wizards should allow you to select an existing *.uml model file and behave similarly to the "Initialize..." menu action, in this case.

GMF-based Diagrams

• Perhaps opening the Properties view upon diagram creation is a sensible thing to do? Having the Properties view open within a default Modeling perspective is another way to ensure it's open. Otherwise, a user needs to right-click the diagram and select "Show Properties View"
• Add a File -> Save as Image... option to the main menu to augment the hard to find diagram right-click File -> Save as Image File... option. Even an Export menu item would be more easily found.