Object Models

With the DNE you manage knowledge visually, in maps. These maps might simply trace out relations between whatever NEs you think are related in some way - maps like that are generally built in default or repository mode. Maps can also be made for specific business, research or recreational purposes. When you build a map for a specific purpose in an object model specifically designed for that map (or that type of map), you can add a little extra detail and precision to the map.

These more detailed maps designed for particular purposes are called object models. They can be built for any purpose. Maps built in the DNE can be read in DNE Maps, the free maps reader from Dekstrus, so any map you build can be viewed by anyone, even if they do not a copy of the DNE themselves.

Maps can be built for a variety of reasons. Knowledge maps can be built to present your knowledge visually. Business or research models can be built to plan how you are going to achieve certain goals. Maps come in handy even for more personal projects, like organizing photographs taken on a vacation. The DNE's modeling tool is flexible enough to let you build models for any of these tasks.

Maps do not have to be built in an object model mode - you can build them all in default mode if you want - however, using object models provides certain advantages, especially if you are building maps that you plan to share. Object models let you define types of objects your NEs represent in the map and set rules for what types of relations you are going to allow between NEs.

In a model, each NE has both a role which reflects its function in the plan modeled (for instance, "Sale" might be a role in a business transaction), and a position relative to the other NEs in the model (where does "Sale" fit in the transaction?). An NE's role is indicated by its graphic (in the example, squares, circles and hexagons, although any graphic can also be given a full-color graphic) and its position relative to the other NE is tracked by the lines that relate NEs (both directly and indirectly via intermediate NEs).

Building and Viewing Maps

An object model is built by linking NEs: simply set the DNE in the desired object model mode and, for each NE, add every NE from which the active NE receives contributions to the active NE's contributions by wing and every NE to which the active NE contributes to the contributes to wing.

Once all the NEs are connected together like links in a chain, it is easy to track the forward and backward impact of every NE in the model. The DNE's Maps room is designed specifically to view  maps and models, and can display up to eight levels of contributions by relations and up to eight levels of contributes to relations at the same time. This makes it easy to assess at a glance the impact of any NE within the model. You can see, for instance, how any change you want to make within the model will affect the other parts of the model. If you can see the impact of potential changes, of surpluses and shortfalls, then you can make informed decisions.

Object model-specific field notes can be added to any NE in any model. This field involves only information specific to the NE in the context of the model, and is not available except in the appropriate object model mode. For instance, the subway-specific information for Union Station would be different from the Amtrak-specific information, so the fields for each model are kept separate. Object model field notes can be added to any NE on an object model in the Maps room, or to the active NE in any room.

While the linking is done in the DNE proper, the graphics you use to represent the different types of objects in your model, are set in a companion application, the DNE's Object  Model Builder.The  object model builder comes with several pre-set models that you can use as templates. You can convert these template models to better suit your needs, or to make new models that use your own graphics.

Models and MultiModels

You can build different models using different sorts of objects and different sets of rules. Because you are in complete control of what models you make and use, you do not need to change your current systems to suit the DNE. Whatever modeling system you or your company currently uses can be replicated in the DNE.

Any particular NE can exist in any number of models. This means that you can integrate separate models where that's appropriate. For instance, you could build both a general overview of a business model, showing in broad strokes what your strategies are, and a more intricate version of the same map, laying out in detail how these strategies are to be accomplished. And these two models would be built using the same NEs (all the NEs on the general overview would also be on the detailed version, although the detailed version would include several NEs that were not on the general overview). Because the two models share actual NEs, you can simply toggle between them, allowing you to answer questions like "how are we going to do that, exactly?" at a mouseclick - just go to the more elaborate model.

You can also view multiple models at the same time. If you are modeling the transit system for a city, you might build one model for the subway stations and a separate model for train stations. These two models are going to intersect at some stations ("Union Station") but not at others. For some purposes you may want to see both the subway stops and the train stations at the same time. The DNE's multimodel capabilities make this easy to do.

Multimodels cannot be exported (nor can they be viewed in DNE Maps), however, each map in a multimap can be exported.

Sharing Models with friends and family, colleagues or the world

Models built in the DNE can be read in DNE Maps, the free map reader from Dekstrus. If you want to model a process that is repeated again and again, you can use the DNE to build the model and DNE Maps to test your model on the ground. For instance, if you are modeling the process of booking airline tickets, you can test the process as you build it, using DNE Maps to test as you build with the DNE.