4.3.1 Common controls in views

Figure 8: Common controls used in most views

1. Most views show metric data for one model element type at a time, e.g. metrics for all classes, all packages, all state diagrams, etc. These views provide a dropdown menu from which to select a model element type. With the "tape deck" controls next to the dropdown menu you can easily browse the various model element types.

2. Many views provide tables of data that can be sorted by columns. To sort a table by a column, click on the column header. This sorts the table rows in descending order. Click the column header a second time to change the sorting order to ascending. Click the column header a third time to restore the original order of the rows (no sort). Alternatively, you can use the control panel provided by these views to sort the table:
   • Select the column to sort by from the first dropdown menu labeled "by".
   • You can also specify a secondary column to sort by from the second dropdown menu labeled "and". Rows with equal values in the primary sort column are then sorted by the secondary column.
   • Press the  or  button to toggle between ascending and descending sort.
   • To restore the original order of table rows, select the first entry "No sort" from the sort dropdown menu.

3. Most views have a save button to export the data presented in the view (tables of data or graphs, see Section 4.15.1 "Exporting Data Tables" and Section 4.15.2 "Exporting Graphs").

4. All views feature a help button to open a description of the view in the user manual.

5. All views feature a close button in the upper right corner to close the view. Alternatively, the tabs of the views feature a popup-menu to close the view or all other views currently opened.