NE Tree and Map

The DNE manages four completely different sets of information relations. Two of these sets (affinity relations and contribution relations) are managed on the NE itself and, and a third (the search engine) is accessible in every room. However, cabinet relations are not visible in all rooms (only at DNE center, in the cabinet). Therefore, the DNE makes it possible to view some cabinet relations from any NE in any room. This is done by showing either a map or a tree for the NE.

All NEs are related, directly or indirectly, to one or many cabinets (and hence stand in some cabinet relations), but only certain NEs actually exist in the cabinet structure. A parent map traces the fastest route from an NE to the nearest cabinet. If the NE mapped exists in a cabinet, then this route will only follow cabinet relations. If the NE mapped does not exist in the cabinet, then this route may follow affinities and contributions until the map finds an NE that does exist in the cabinet structure.

A tree presents only the tree structure represented by the cabinet structure itself, so it never includes any affinity or contribution relations. Therefore, whereas every NE has a map, only some NEs have trees. However, the tree is more extensive, and shows the entire tree-structure for any NE that exists in the cabinet structure, including all NEs nested in the cabinet at hand.

You can only find the tree for an NE if it exists in the cabinet. One of the strengths of using affinities and contributions as well as a tree structure is that you are never forced to put any NE into a structure in which it doesn't belong. However, if an NE does not belong in the tree structure represented by the cabinet, then there is no tree for the NE that can be shown.