State Properties

To view or edit a state's properties, double-click its diagram symbol or Browser or list entry. The property sheet tabs and fields listed here are those available by default, before any customization of the interface by you or an administrator.

The General tab contains the following properties:

Property

Description

Name/Code/Comment

Identify the object. The name should clearly convey the object's purpose to non-technical users, while the code, which is used for generating code or scripts, may be abbreviated, and should not normally include spaces. You can optionally add a comment to provide more detailed information about the object. By default the code is generated from the name by applying the naming conventions specified in the model options. To decouple name-code synchronization, click to release the = button to the right of the Code field.

Stereotype

Extends the semantics of the object beyond the core UML definition. You can enter a stereotype directly in this field, or add stereotypes to the list by specifying them in an extension file.

Classifier

Classifier linked to the state. It can be a use case, a class or a component. When a classifier is selected, it is displayed in between brackets after the state name in the Browser. Use the tools to the right of the list to create, browse for, or view the properties of the currently selected object.

Composite status

If you select the Decomposed state option, the state becomes a decomposed state. If you select the Atomic state option, the state becomes an atomic state, and all its child objects are deleted

Keywords

Provide a way of loosely grouping objects through tagging. To enter multiple keywords, separate them with commas.

Actions Tab

You can specify a set of internal actions on an atomic or decomposed state on the Actions tab. These represent actions performed within the scope of the state when some events occur. You can create and define the properties of the action from the Actions tab, or double-click the arrow at the beginning of a line to display the action property sheet.

Note: You can open the Actions tab by right clicking the state symbol in the diagram, and selecting Actions from the contextual menu.

For more information on actions, see Actions (OOM).

Deferred Events Tab

The Deferred Events tab contains an Add Objects tool that allows you to add already existing events but not to create new events. This list is similar to the list of Business Rules that only reuse elements and does not create them.

The difference between an event and a deferred event is that an event is always instantaneous and dynamically handled by a state, whereas a deferred event is an event that occurs during a particular state in the object life cycle but it is not directly used up by the state.

A deferred event occurs in a specific state, is then handled in a queue, and is triggered by another state of the same classifier later.

Sub-States Tab

The Sub-States tab is displayed when the current state is decomposed in order to display a list of child states. You can use the Add a row and Delete tools to modify the list of child states. The Sub-States tab disappears if you change the current state to atomic because this action deletes the children of the state.