The DATAFLOW Studio was rebranded to DATAFLOW Designer. The name and the logo have changed. The scope of functions has remained the same. This step was introduced to offer more studio like functionalities in a future release.

Figure 1 - Rebranding to Designer

Multiple TechNote documents and help content can now be accessed from the File > Help menu.
The following TechNote documents are available:

• TechNote Designer
• TechNote Code
• TechNote Runtime
  
  
• DATAFLOW Website
• DATAFLOW Knowledge Base

Figure 1 - Help Document Access

The complete System and Software Architecture can be exported for documentation purposes to a PDF file.
The generated document contains:

• Table of Contents
• Page for each Component
• Detailed Page for each Component
  
  

Access Document Export

Open the Home Ribbon to access this feature.

Home Ribbon -> Export > As a Document

Figure 1 - Export System as PDF Document

Document Export Settings

Open the Settings Menu from Home > Export

Figure 2 - Document Export Settings

Exported Document

The navigation possibilities inside the exported document are similar to the navigation in the DATAFLOW Studio diagram editor. Click the system or any other component (System-Component, Active Container, Active Part) to navigate through the system documentation document.

Figure 3 - Exported PDF Document

You can find more information about this feature in this article.

DATAFLOW Studio version 1.5 introduces a new internal Source Code Editor. This Source Code Editor allows you to implement the logic for Active Parts without the need to leave the DATAFLOW Studio. This comes in very handy when you just want to have a quick look at the code behind an Active Part or if you want to implement the logic or simply add some lines of code.
 

Access the Source Code Editor

CTRL + Right-Click an Active Part to open the Source Code Editor for the selected Active Part.

• Select the source code file you would like to edit from the dropdown in the top left corner of the editor

Figure 1 - Code Editor Window

Setup Default Source Code Editor

You can choose to either use the internal or external Source Code Editor. This set up the can be adjusted in the Application Options.
File Ribbon -> Options > Editor

Toggle the "Use External Editor" to change this setting.

Figure 2- Internal Source Code Editor Setup

Figure 3 - External Source Code Editor Setup

DATAFLOW Simulator Control Elements

The newest DATAFLOW Studio version includes new Simulation controls to make it easier to set up and communicate between the executable application code and the DATAFLOW Simulator.

Simulations can now be linked to DATAFLOW Studio Projects. This can be set up in the settings dialog "Run Configurations". You can access this dialog from the Build Ribbon > Configure Run.

Figure 1 - Run Configurations

Simulations can be run and stopped within the DATAFLOW Studio. 

Figure 2 - Run / Stop Simulations 

DATAFLOW Studio Version 1.5 contains several improvements regarding the usability. Here is a list of the most valuable ones for the program user.

Solution File

The Project Solution File for DATAFLOW Studio and DATAFLOW Simulator is introduced in this version and allows an easier and familiar way to open a solution. Double-Click to open a solution with the DATAFLOW Studio or the DATAFLOW Simulator.
 

Figure 1 - DATAFLOW Solution File

Visually Represent Unassigned Elements

Sometimes it can happen that an element is not properly assigned to a component. This can happen if a component is moved to an interface or the drop-now-indicator is not displayed before dropping an item. We now visualize this sczenario with a dashed border around the item that is not assigned to a component.

Figure 2 - Unassigned Item Highlighting

Tooltips for Ribbon Items

All Ribbon items now show a tooltip when hovering a button. This tooltip explains the functionality of the corresponding button in a few words.
 

Figure 3 - Tooltip Info

Additional Keyboard Shortcuts

Many additional Keyboard Shortcuts are now available in the DATAFLOW Studio. The list of all available shortcuts can be found in here.

Copy Text in About Dialog

We have enabled the select and copy text functionality in the "About Dialog". This comes in very handy when you need to submit the version number you are working with to contact forms or tickets.

Figure 4 - Copy Text from About Dialog

Grid Visibility

When toggling on/off the grid visibility, it is now triggered for all diagrams in the solution.
 

Figure 5 - Trigger Grid Visibility for all Diagrams 

Solution Path

The solution name is and solution path is now displayed in the "File -> Info Ribbon"
 

Figure 6 - Name and Path Info for Solution

DATAFLOW Environment

DATAFLOW Studio Version 1.5 offers the possibility to change the DATAFLOW Server environment. This makes it for example possible to try out new features or bug fixes that can be accessed from the "Preview" environment.

Figure 7 - Select Dataflow Server Environment

Auto-Scroll Message List

The user can toggle to automatically scroll to the end of the "Message List" after starting the code generation step. A pressed arrow down symbol indicates that the message list is automatically scrolled to the end.
 

Figure 8 - Auto-Scroll Message List

Auto Naming Functionality

When adding new components and elements (System Components, Active Parts, Active Containers, Interrupts, Interrupt Handlers, ... ) to the Diagram Editor a unique name for the generated Item is generated. This avoids errors when generating code from the designed architecture.

Figure 9 - Unique Naming when Adding Components and ELEMENTS

Copy from Message List

The user can now copy one or multiple messages from the Message List. This is very helpful to discuss issues with team members or when filing a bug report.

Figure 10 - Copy Messages from the Message List

Build Toolchain Integration

The newly integrated GNU Toolchain allows to create a binary from the desingned system, without the need to install any expensive IDE on your computer.  

Figure 1 - GNU Toolchain available in Toolchain Configuration Templates

All the required settings and files for a successful build are generated in the background when pressing the compile button.

 
Figure 2 - Compile the Application Code from the Build Ribbon

Startup Controller

The newest Code Generator allows to define a "Startup Controller" for projects without Board Support Package. Generate Startup Code can be turned on (default)/off in the project settings dialog. This way you can still use your own Startup files if required.

Figure 1 - Generate Startup Controller Setting

Additional C++ Code Language Support

The following Code Languages were added to the newest Code Generator:

• C++ 11 (ISO/IEC 14882-2011) 
• C++ 14 (ISO/IEC 14882-2014) 

Figure 2 - Code Language Selection

Auto-Start Timer

The new version includes a property setting to toggle the auto-start of a Timer. Turning auto-start on will automatically start the timer when running the application.

Figure 3 - Auto-Start Property Setting

Suppress Warning

Warning messages can be suppressed for element specific elements. All suppressed warning IDs for an element can be seen in the element property "DisabledValidationMessages".  

Figure 4 - Suppress Warning Message in Message List

Figure 5 - Disable Warning Messages - Element Properties and Global Settings 

Enum and Protocol Array

Arrays of Enum and Protocols are now available in the newest version.