Chapter 4 Managing Profiles

Creating an extended attribute

An extended attribute is another extension to the definition of a metaclass. You create an extended attribute:

• In the metaclass if you want to apply it to all the instances of the metaclass
• In a stereotype or a criterion, if you want to apply the extended attribute to selected instances of a metaclass

Extended attributes defined in a parent metaclass are inherited by children metaclasses. They appear in the Extended Attributes tab of an object property sheet or in user-defined property tabs (see "Defining Forms in a Profile").

Extended attributes are used during generation in the following way:

If the Template check box is selected The extended attribute is considered as a GTL template and its code is replaced by model values during generation. For example extended attribute roleBContainer contains template %Code%, it will be generated as "Customer".

If the Template check box is cleared The extended attribute is considered as a piece of text during generation. For example extended attribute roleBContainer contains template %Code%, it will be generated as %Code%.

Renaming an extended attribute

You can rename extended attribute A into B if the concept behind the extended attribute is the same. Do not use the rename feature to create a completely new extended attribute concept because the renamed attribute will inherit the values of the original attribute. In this case, you should create an extended attribute.

To create an extended attribute:

1. Right-click a metaclass in the Profile category and select New→Extended Attribute.
   
   or
   
   Right-click a stereotype or a criterion in a metaclass and select New→Extended Attribute.
   
   A new extended attribute is created under the selected category.
2. Select the new extended attribute and type a name, comment, data type and default value in the corresponding boxes in the right pane of the editor.
   
3. Click Apply.

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