Setting Path Length and Relevant Concepts

You can use the path length to set the current range of a dynamic viewpoint. Concepts which can be reached via such a path length are not automatically added to the diagram. Those concepts which no longer reach diagram elements if the path length is reduced are not automatically removed. Irrelevant nodes can be ignored so that they are not taken into consideration when adding.

Prerequisites

A dynamic viewpoint can only show relationships configured for it and concepts which can be reached by these.

Context

You can define the viewpoint's context by setting the relevant concepts within a certain range.

Use the path length to set how far configured relationships should stretch, starting from one or more start concepts. Dynamic viewpoints have a predefined path length of 4.

Changing the path length automatically activates the Design>Display>Context toggle command.

If further potential concepts exist for a start element due to an increased path length or new concepts which have been added to the model, then a corresponding message appears to the left in the diagram's header and the Add Elements dialog can be called.

Select the relevant concepts in the diagram to add them. Click in the same dialog for irrelevant concepts on the icon after the element's name if you no longer want to take the display completeness into consideration for these elements.

If diagram elements can be removed from the diagram due to a reduced path length, then a corresponding message appears to the left in the diagram's header and the Remove from Diagram dialog can be called. Concepts not in the path length are marked with a smart icon in the diagram.

You can select and remove obsolete concepts in the Remove from Diagram dialog. Unlike with ignored concepts, removed concepts appear so that they can be added again when increasing path length.

How to proceed

Enter the maximum context length starting from the start element in the Path Length property in the Properties tool window and confirm with [Enter].

The Design>Display>Context toggle command is activated.

Messages and icons appear in the diagram's header for concepts which can be added or removed due to the modified path length.
To open the dialog to add relevant concepts or concepts which should be ignored, click in the diagram's header on the Add Elements icon.

The dialog of the same name appears.
To add a concept to the dynamic viewpoint, activate the respective check box in the Add Elements dialog.
To ignore a concept in the dynamic viewpoint, click on the icon after the concept's name in the same dialog.

The concept is adopted in the list of ignored nodes.
Confirm settings in the Add Elements dialog with OK.

The selected concepts are added or ignored.

Ignored concepts are shown as Ignored Nodes properties in the diagram.
To open the dialog to remove currently obsolete concepts, click in the diagram's header on the Remove Elements icon.

The dialog of the same name appears.
To remove a concept from the dynamic viewpoint, activate the respective check box in the Remove from Diagram dialog and confirm selection with OK.

The selected concepts are removed. They are available for selection once again when the path length is increased.