General Diagrams

N-Squared Diagram

Innoslate's N-Squared Diagram is a matrix used to visualize the relationships between Actions and Inputs/Outputs.

Using N-Squared Diagrams

Function Description
Creating N-Squared Diagrams Using ‘Diagrams View’ in Innoslate, you can create a new ‘N-Squared Diagram.’
Viewing N-Squared Diagrams You can ‘View an N-Squared Diagram’ of any new or existing entity of the Action class via the ‘Open’ drop-down menu, where available.
Adding an Action Entity An Action entity can be added to an ‘N-Squared Diagram’ via drag-and-drop.
Adding an Input/Output Entity An Input/Output entity can be added to an ‘N-Squared Diagram’ via drag-and-drop.
Removing an Entity An entity can be easily removed from an ‘N-Squared Diagram.’

 

N2_Overall

The ‘N-Squared Diagram’ is a matrix used to visualize the relationships between Actions and Inputs/Outputs.

The ‘N-Squared Diagram’ is not composed of special diagram constructs. In fact, an ‘N-Squared Diagram’ can be generated by Innoslate on the fly based on the current contents of your project’s database. The ‘N-Squared Diagram’ is built using entities in the database of the ‘Action’ and ‘Input/Output’ classes. The actions are displayed as blocks within the matrix and the I/Os are shown as text within the matrix.

Creating N-Squared Diagrams

Within the ‘Diagrams Dashboard,’ users can create a new diagram by clicking the ‘ Create Diagram’ button in the top right corner of the page.

create_activity-2-1

 

Clicking the ‘ Create Diagram’ button will open the Create Diagram dialog where you will be directed through the process of creating a new diagram.

Create an N-Squared Diagram

  1. Choose Which Type of Diagram to Create
    In step 1, select ‘N-Squared Diagram,’ under ‘General’, as your diagram type.

                      creating_nsquared-step1-1

     

    Click the ‘Next’ button.

                     creating_nsquared-step1-2
  2. Specify New Root Action Information
    In step 2, you will be prompted to input a diagram ‘Name,’ ‘Number’ (optional), and ‘Description’ (optional). Then, click the ‘Finish’ button.

                      creating_nsquared-step2

Viewing N-Squared Diagrams

In Innoslate, you can view an ‘N-Squared Diagram’ from wherever the ‘Open’ drop-down menu is available on the toolbar (Entity View, Database View, within a Diagram).

View an N-Squared Diagram

N2_Viewing (1)


  1. Locate and click the ‘Open’ drop-down menu in the toolbar. Select ‘N-Squared Diagram.’
  2. This will navigate you to view an ‘N-Squared Diagram,’ where you can begin adding and removing entities. Click the ‘Save’ button located on the toolbar to persist your changes to your project’s database.

Adding An Action Entity

N2_Adding-New

An entity can be added to an ‘N-Squared Diagram’ via drag-and-drop.

  1. Within an ‘N-Squared Diagram,’ ensure you do not currently have an Action selected, and click the ‘Action’ icon in the ‘New’ tab of the left sidebar and continue to hold down the left mouse button.
    adding action construct nsquared diagram step 1
  2. Drag the ‘Action’ icon over to the adjacent diagram canvas.
    adding action nsquared step 2
  3. Release the left mouse button while over the diagram canvas to drop the new ‘Action’ and add it to the diagram. Notice the ‘Action’ stays selected once it has been dropped. Since it is selected, the toolbar changes to include buttons for functions that can be used on the construct. The sidebar also changes to show the ‘Metadata,’ ‘Attributes’ and ‘Relationships’ tabs.
    add action nsquared diagram step 3
  4. Enter a meaningful ‘Name’ for your new ‘Action’ via the ‘Attributes’ tab of the left sidebar (focused automatically for convenience).
    adding action name nsquared diagram step 4
  5. Click the ‘Save’ button located on the toolbar to persist your changes to your project’s database.
    save action nsuared diagram step 5

* Note: The above process describes using the ‘New’ tab of the left sidebar, which automatically generates a new entity to represent each new block. If you would like to reuse existing entities from your database in your diagram, use the ‘Existing’ tab instead.

Adding An Input/Output Entity

N2_Adding-New_io

An 'Input/Output' entity can be added to an ‘N-Squared Diagram’ via drag-and-drop.

  1. Within an ‘N-Squared Diagram,’ ensure you have an Action in the diagram first then click the ‘Input/Output’ icon in the ‘New’ tab of the left sidebar and continue to hold down the left mouse button.

    select io to add nsquared diagram step 1
  2. Drag the ‘Input/Output’ icon over to the adjacent diagram canvas.
    add io nsquared diagram step 2
  3. Release the left mouse button while over the diagram canvas to drop the new ‘Input/Output’ to your desired highlghted green box and add it to the diagram. The name will automatically change to indicate where the 'Input/Output' is generated by and/or received by. Notice the ‘Input/Output’ stays selected once it has been dropped. Since it is selected, the toolbar changes to include buttons for functions that can be used on the construct. The sidebar also changes to show the ‘Metadata,’ ‘Attributes’ and ‘Relationships’ tabs.
    confirm adding io nsquared diagram step 3a
    When you drop an 'Input/Output' onto the diagram, its name will automatically change to indicate the Actions that generated by it and/or received by. An example of these names for the Input/Output connections are in the white boxes with their respective names they are automatically changed to in the image below. 
    confirm adding io nsquared diagram step 3b
  4. Enter a meaningful ‘Name’ for your new ‘Input/Output’ via the ‘Attributes’ tab of the left sidebar (focused automatically for convenience).
    name io nsquared diagram step 4
  5. Click the ‘Save’ button located on the toolbar to persist your changes to your project’s database.
    save io nsquared diagram step 5

* Note: The above process describes using the ‘New’ tab of the left sidebar, which automatically generates a new entity to represent each new block. If you would like to reuse existing entities from your database in your diagram, use the ‘Existing’ tab instead.

Removing an Entity

N_Removing

An entity can be easily removed from an ‘N-Squared Diagram.’

  1. Within an ‘N-Squared Diagram,’ select the entity you wish to remove. This will make the toolbar appear with applicable functions which can be used on the selected entity.
  2. Click the  ‘Remove’ button to remove the entity from the diagram (as the default action).

    * Note: The  ‘Remove’ button also includes a drop-down menu where you can select ‘Delete from Database’ or the default option of ‘Remove from Diagram.’

remove options from nsquared diagram

 

To continue learning about General Diagrams, Click Here.

(Next Article: N-Squared Diagram Modifications & Settings)