Propagating Renamed Methods

General Questions/Discussions
1

I have a communication diagram where an object sends a message (that has a “message type” of “call”) to a class object. I then went and renamed the same method in the class itself. As a result, I expected to see the method name updated in the message shown on the communication diagram, but that did not happen. Did I do something wrong?

2

Along the same lines, I noticed that adding arguments to the “Call (Action)” spec of the message in a communication diagram, does not result in the arguments being shown on the diagram. For that matter, the arguments don’t show in the properties window when I select that message. I can only see the arguments if I open the message specification and select the “Call (Action)” ellipses.

Perhaps the thought of Visual Paradigm was that such arguments quickly clutter a communication diagram, and so the arguments are best presented elsewhere - such as in a table that accompanies the diagram in the Report Writer. Thoughts?

3

Hi Brent,

Thanks for the enquiries about Call Message in Communication Diagram.

As a result, I expected to see the method name updated in the message shown on the communication diagram, but that did not happen. Did I do something wrong?

Sorry but I am unable to repeat the problem as you described. Here are the steps I performed:

  1. Create a Class Diagram
  2. Create a Class (Class1) with an operation (operaion1)
  3. Create a Communication Diagram
  4. Create two LifeLines in the Communication Diagram - LifeLine1 and LifeLine2
  5. Select Class1 as the base classifier of LifeLine2
  6. Establish a link with Call Message from LifeLine1 to LifeLine2
  7. Specify operation1 as the method to be called by LifeLine
  8. Modify the operation name in Class Diagram
  9. The changed name is correctly displayed in Call Message on Communication Diagram

I suspect that I have missed something… Could you please provide me with the steps for repeating the problem? Thank you very much.

Along the same lines, I noticed that adding arguments to the “Call (Action)” spec of the message in a communication diagram, does not result in the arguments being shown on the diagram.

I will forward this issue to our developers to follow-up. Once there is any feedback, I will get back to you immediately.

Best Regards,
Jick

4

The steps you followed, 1 through 9, are just as I had done myself - with one exception. In step 8 you modified the operation name on a class diagram. Instead, I had modified the operation name in the Class Specification dialog under the “Operations” tab.

BTW, a topically similar question is: How do I get a communication diagram message to show the return value on the diagram? I can specify a return value in the lifeline spec, but it doesn’t show on the communication diagram.

5

Hi Brent,

I tried again but still could not repeat your problem. I notice that you are using build 20051111, which is quite an old release. The one I am testing on is build 20051211, so I guess that the bug has already been fixed. Please perform a product update to advance to the latest release. To update VP Suite, please run the update program that can be found under %VP Suite_HOME%/bin

BTW, a topically similar question is: How do I get a communication diagram message to show the return value on the diagram? I can specify a return value in the lifeline spec, but it doesn’t show on the communication diagram.

Currently, the return message shows only the name but not return value. I will forward this issue to our developers and see if this is appropriate to show the return value. Thanks for asking!

Best Regards,
Jick

6

I am working with a trial/evaluation copy of VP-UML, which I downloaded from VP about 10 days ago. I may have made a mistake in my download selection, or perhaps VP has not yet posted its latest VP-UML build for eval downloads.

Anyway, just now I used the product update feature and I now have build 20051211h. And yes, the bug has now gone away. :slight_smile:

Merry Christmas!

7

Hi Brent,

I just received a reply from our developers about how to display argument of a message in communication diagram.

Here are the steps:

  1. Right-click on the communication diagram and select Presentation Options | Show Messages Operation Signature from popup menu.

  2. Define the parameters for the operation of the call message.

  3. Define the arguments for the call message.

  4. Commit the changes. The method name now becomes:
    operation(p1 = a1, p2 = a2)

Remember you need to ensure you have the same number of arguments and parameters, otherwise the minumum number of parameters and arguments are taken, say you have 10 parameters and 8 arguments, only 8-pair of param-arg are shown.

Hope this has helped.

Best Regards,
Jick

8

Hi Brent,

BTW, a topically similar question is: How do I get a communication diagram message to show the return value on the diagram? I can specify a return value in the lifeline spec, but it doesn’t show on the communication diagram.

Regarding your request, the new version can now show the return value on a communication diagram message. Please feel free to try it and let me know if it satisfy your need. Thank you.

Best Regards,
Jick