Model design view

How to get to the sheet view / model design view

Home Screen - select project -> left-click on any of its sheets.

(1)   Page bar

Page bar contains tabs corresponding to all open pages: lists, nodes, etc. Navigate between tabs by clicking on them, like in any web browser.

(2)   Toolbar

Toolbar lets you choose between working on Model design, Scenarios, Optimization or to view Reports.

(3)   Project name

(4)   Sheet name

Project name and sheet name are shown to help you locate what you are working at.

(5)   Nodes search field

When you have too many nodes or tags in your project search field helps you quickly find any particular node or tag. You can input any symbol in the search field and it will filter the whole list of your nodes or tags and show only those which contain this particular symbol. To search for nodes select the nodes tab first then type in the search field. To search for tags select the tags tab first and then type in the search field.

(6)   Tabs bar (Nodes, Tags)

(7)   Nodes menu or Tags menu

This menu shows either Nodes or Tags depending on the tab selected above.

(8)   Nodes field

Nodes field is the main space where data nodes and calculation nodes are located and connected together. See below for navigation and actions on the nodes field.

(9)   Mini-map

In the lower right corner of the nodes field there is a mini-map of the nodes field. Mini-map covers the whole area of the open nodes field (400 columns x 400 rows). Blue rectangle on the mini-map corresponds to the part of the nodes field which is currently shown on the monitor. You can quickly navigate on the big nodes field by dragging the blue rectangle on the mini-map with the pressed left mouse button.

Nodes field navigation

To navigate on the nodes field, locate the mouse pointer on the nodes field, press and hold the left mouse button and drag the field in any direction.

Scaling: zoom in and out

To zoom in click on the “+” sign on the mini-map. To zoom out click on the “-’ sign. Another way to zoom in and out is to hover the mouse pointer over the nodes field and scroll the mouse wheel or hold down the Ctrl key and scroll the mouse wheel.

Change connections/arrows direction: left-to-right and right-to-left

While building their models some people prefer to see the calculation flow and connections/arrows direction from right to left and some in the opposite direction. To switch between these two regimens right-click on the mini-map or anywhere between the nodes. In the pop-up menu there is a “Field direction” submenu. Turn on the radio button corresponding to your desired direction and your model will be mirrored. All the structure and data will remain the same, only the visual presentation will be mirrored.

Add/insert and delete row

To add a row to the nodes field hover the mouse pointer between the rows of nodes and press the right mouse button. In the pop-up menu there will be “Edit field” submenu. Click on the “Add row” option. New row will be added at the level where the mouse pointer was. To delete row hover the mouse pointer at a node in the row you want to delete or between the cells in the row you want to delete and press the right mouse button. In the pop-up menu click on the “Delete row” option in the “Edit field” submenu.

Add/insert and delete column

Adding and deleting columns procedure is very similar to the adding and deleting rows. To add a column hover the mouse pointer at the vertical space between nodes or cells and right-click. Choose the “Add column” option in the summoned menu.
To delete a column, hover the mouse pointer at the node or cell and right-click or between the nodes in the column you want to delete. Choose the “Delete column” option in the summoned menu.

Move node

The easiest way to move a node to the blank node placeholder is to drag-and-drop it there. Node connections will follow the node.

To replace one node with the other right click on the latter one and choose “Move node” pop-up menu point. A shortcut with node name will appear near the mouse pointer. Hover mouse pointer on the black space above or aside the node which should be replaced. A white square with black arrow icon will appear. Left click on that icon will place the moving node at its new location. The node which occupied that location before will be moved to the next available free node placeholder either to the right or down. Connections of the old node will still be tied to the old placeholder. Connections of the new node will follow it during the move.

Insert node & shift adjacent nodes

Sometimes there may be a need to insert just one node, not a whole row or column. When one node is inserted then to free space for it nodes which belong to the same row or column have to be shifted. They could be shifted either right, left, to top or in the bottom direction. Hover the mouse pointer over the black space between nodes or nodes placeholders and do a right click. A pop-up menu will appear. If you have clicked between the two vertically aligned nodes the pop-up menu will offer options to shift nodes to top or to the bottom of the nodes field. If you have clicked between the two horizontally aligned nodes the pop-up menu will offer options to shift nodes to the left and to the right.