Tom Sawyer Perspectives, Java Edition

Release 9.2.0

Overview

This release features support for schema extraction for OpenAPI RESTful endpoints, improved performance, improved hierarchical layout with orthogonal routing, and action items and JavaScript commands for creating dialogs. In Tom Sawyer Business Process Execution, it is much easier to track activity status and update activities that require action.

Release 9.2.0 also includes improved integrator performance by up to 28%, a dedicated integrator for OrientDB, improved viewport capabilities, and improvements to incremental layout of disconnected nodes to better preserve the user's mental map. And in hierarchical layout with orthogonal routing, edge crossings have been reduced. Tom Sawyer Business Process users will enjoy new table views in Modeling and Execution that make it easy to review and update process elements and spot activities that require action. In Tom Sawyer Model-Based Engineering, the appearance of edge labels in item flows and nested connectors has been improved. In Tom Sawyer Graph Database Browser, the Neo4j connection form has been updated to handle the new HTTP URL format for named databases.

New

Designer

• Added more options for viewport behavior

Integrators

• Added schema extraction for OpenAPI RESTful endpoints
• Added OrientDB integrator

Views

• Added capability to invoke an HTML or view dialog from a toolbar or context menu item or a JavaScript command
• Drawing
• Added Directed Not Looping option for edges in hierarchical layout with orthogonal routing to directly route edges to a node in a previous level and avoid bends
• Map
• Added JavaScript callback for notification of new tab selection in the client browser to support zoom fit operations

Business Process

• In Business Process Modeling, added editable table view to display and update details for all flow elements in process definition
• In Business Process Execution:
• Added editable table view to display and edit activity details of process instance
• Added All Activities tree view with filtering capabilities
• Added ability to quickly view activities that are overdue or need assignment in activities tree views
• Added ability to update activities directly from activities tree views

Documentation

• Added tutorial to show how to integrate with OrientDB database
• Added tutorial to show how to use Open View Dialog and Open HTML Dialog action items

Improvements

System

• Fine-tuned performance of a wide variety of frequently used software development kit (SDK) methods

Integrators

• Improved integrator performance by up to 28%
• Reduced integrator peak memory usage by up to 10%
• Improved results caching of REST integrator
• Improved schema extraction merge process for Neo4j databases

Views

• Drawing
• Improved drawing view update performance by up to 8%
• Reduced drawing view update peak memory usage by up to 7%
• Reduced rendering peak memory usage by up to 4%
• Improved placement of disconnected node clouds in incremental hierarchical, orthogonal, and symmetric layouts
• Improved stability of incremental hierarchical layout with orthogonal routing resulting in better initial position retention for disconnected nodes
• Reduced crossings in nested drawings in incremental hierarchical layout with orthogonal edge routing
• Updated default edge color
• Improved default spacing between expanded node border and other drawing elements
• Tree
• Improved tree view update performance by up to 14%
• Reduced tree view update peak memory usage by up to 7%

Analysis

• Improved performance of topological sort

Business Process

• In Business Process Execution:
• Auto-expanded subprocesses and call activities with initiated or in progress activities upon opening a process instance
• Improved default naming of automatically started processes
• Added activity names to tooltips

Graph Database Browser

• Updated Neo4j connection to support named databases with the new HTTP URL format

Documentation

• Improved organization of tutorials
• Replaced Basic tutorial with Creating a Simple Project and Drawing View tutorials

System Requirements

• Added support for Oracle Linux 7.6
• Added support for the following versions of Java:
• Oracle Java 14
• OpenJDK 14
• Added support for Google Web Toolkit (GWT) 2.9.0
• Added support for Neo4j 4.1.1
• Added support for OrientDB 3.1.2
• Dropped support for Oracle Linux 7.4
• Dropped support for the following versions of Java:
• Oracle Java 12
• OpenJDK 12
• OpenJDK 13
• Dropped support for GWT 2.8.2

Fixes

Integrators

• Fixed warning messages for named graphs in RDF integrator
• Fixed schema extraction error for very large Neo4j databases
• Improved schema extraction for Amazon Neptune, Apache TinkerPop, Microsoft Azure Cosmos DB, and Neo4j databases

Business Process

• Fixed execution issues for processes containing gateways and loops when Tom Sawyer Business Process was used with a Neo4j database
• Fixed filtering of results from interval date filters in All Processes tree view
• Removed redundant information from My Activities tree view, greatly improving its usability
• Resolved issues when linking documents to tasks
• Fixed issues displaying images in HTML editor
• Resolved issues when displaying lanes and calling undo action

Model-Based Engineering

• Fixed missing item flows and item flow labels
• Fixed missing connectors between inherited ports
• Fixed missing inherited and redefined elements
• Fixed appearance of invisible stereotype names

Graph Database Browser

• Fixed loading of namespace definitions from prefix clauses in SPARQL queries

Issues

• When installing Tom Sawyer Perspectives on Microsoft Windows 10, this warning may display: "Windows protected your PC: Windows Defender SmartScreen prevented an unrecognized app from starting. Running this app might put your PC at risk." We confirm that our installer is signed with a valid Tom Sawyer Software digital certificate, and you can safely click the "Run anyway" button to install the software.
• Uninstalling or reinstalling Tom Sawyer Perspectives removes all files from the installation directories, even those created after the initial installation. Therefore, it is not recommended to store any additional files in the installation directories.
• Tom Sawyer Licensing does not always run automatically after the installation of Tom Sawyer Perspectives on Apple macOS and must be run manually. From the Tom Sawyer Perspectives installation directory, open bin/Tom Sawyer Licensing Setup.
• The integration with MongoDB Atlas requires Java 8, or Java 11.0.6 or later.
• There is an issue using the default configuration for the https protocol with the Neo4j integrator. Contact Support for assistance in using this configuration.
• Use of OpenJDK 11 can cause issues with multiline, vertical, and diagonal edge labels in desktop applications on Windows. This issue does not occur when Tom Sawyer Perspectives is used with OpenJDK 14.
• Starting the Designer through the command shell with OpenJDK 9 or later can cause an "Illegal Access" warning caused by third-party library use of Apache Groovy 2.6 or earlier, while using the Neptune or TinkerPop integrator with Apache Gremlin 3.4.1, or while using GWT 2.9.0.