OPEN commands are used to "open" an object within an information source domain, which results in one and only one source object. For example, in the Rose domain, the OPEN command connects to a specific Rose model and its associated components.
The OPEN command is used in one of two ways:
§ To specify an initial starting point in a source domain from which further SoDA commands can be defined.
§ To create a direct reference to a particular piece of data.
The OPEN command establishes the context or reference point for other SoDA commands (such as REPEAT commands and LIMIT commands) in your document. An OPEN command can be placed anywhere in a SoDA template, but can influence only those commands that are below it in the command hierarchy. Therefore, most OPEN commands are placed at the beginning of the document.
To use project-specific attributes in a template for a dynamic domain such as ClearQuest or RequisitePro, you must be connected to the source, such as the ClearQuest database or RequisitePro project. That connection triggers the retrieval of the user-defined, dynamic objects so they are available for you to select.
To make this connection, you must supply the arguments in the OPEN command.
If you leave SoDA open while you go to a point product to create additional objects, when you return to SoDA you must click SoDA > Refresh to reload the dynamic schema to see the changes.
To add an OPEN command:
1. Position the cursor where you want to insert the command, normally at the top of the document.
2. Choose Add Command from the SoDA menu.
3. Select the OPEN Command.
4. In the OPEN Command dialog box, choose a source class, fill in the required arguments (unless finalizing for distribution), and click OK.
The name of your OPEN command will default to the name of the class being opened. If you want to change this name, be sure to choose something meaningful. Since SoDA commands are relative to other commands, make their names relative, also. The names will be visible to you in the Template View of your document. When you have many OPEN commands stored in many places within one document, meaningful names will make it easier to define other elements.
You can add multiple OPEN commands to your document. The additional commands can point to information either in the same source domain or in a different domain. The Template Wizard supports a single OPEN command only.
You are creating a document that will extract objects from the File System domain. You would like SoDA to create a document section for each directory in your projects directory.
First, you must "open" your home directory within your document, so you name the OPEN command project_directory. Here is the constructed command:
Name project_directory
Class File System -> Directory
Arguments Filename: C:\PROJECTS
In the example above, SoDA produced the "Filename:" prompt in the Argument area when the directory class was chosen. In the text-entry box provided, specify the object’s filename. You can use an absolute or relative pathname.
To modify the OPEN command, refer to: Modifying Existing Commands