Linking an object to an object state

Chapter 9 Working with Object-Oriented Models

Linking an object to an object state

The activity diagram represents the object state as an object (instance of a class) in a particular state.

From the property sheet of the object state, you can:

Link the object state to an existing object
Create an object

To link an object to an object state:

Select an object from the Object dropdown listbox in the property sheet of the object state.

or

Click the Create tool beside the Object dropdown listbox to create an object and display its property sheet.

Define the properties of the new object and click OK.

The object name appears in the Object dropdown listbox.

Click OK.

The name of the object state is displayed in the activity diagram, preceded by the name of the object.

You can similarly view the name of the object state in the object property sheet: click the Dependencies tab and select the Object states tabbed page. The name of the object state is automatically added in this tabbed page.

If you regularly use the Check Model feature, it is recommended to fill in the Object dropdown listbox in the object state property sheet with the name of an object, otherwise an error is displayed next time you run the Check Model feature.

Turning an object into an object state
You can drag an object from the Browser and drop it into an activity diagram. This automatically creates an object state. The object state symbol displays both object and object state names.