Modeling
Tobflow gets the data structures, the web user interfaces (forms) and the task scheduling setups (workflows) from descriptions in XML format (object models).
The following drawing shows 2 objects models (object 2 being a child of object 1) and how their XML code structure relates to the 3 Tobflow application components :
An object model is made of 3 parts :
- Data model : Describes how information is structured and stored. Attributes are defined with their data types (String, Integer, Date, ...) and possible sources (links to other objects).
- Presentation : Describes each form linked to a data model. Each field corresponds to an attribute of the data model. “Views” can be designed to display objects (i.e. instances) of the data model.
- Workflows : Describes activities and transitions (see the workflow engine description).
Modeling can be performed directly in XML according to the TobFlow syntax, or through a separately available modeling tool which permits to graphically design object forms and workflows.