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Explorer Window

The Explorer window is a hierarchical representation of the data within the current database. The window displays the database contents as a tree and provides a range of facilities to manage this tree data.

The Explorer window is a special type of window called a Dockable Window. For more information on using this type of window, see Using Dockable Windows.

To display the Explorer window, select New Explorer window from the Window menu or click on the icon in the Docking Windows Toolbar.

Example of Explorer Window in InfoWorks ICM

When the Explorer Window is first opened, the tree view will display the database at the top level of the tree. Double-click on a Group or Model group icon in the tree to move the selected group to the top of the display. Click the icon on the Explorer Window Toolbar to move one level up the tree view.

Multiple Explorer windows can be opened. To open a Group or Model Group in a separate Explorer Window; right-click on the group and select Open from the context menu. A new Explorer Window will be opened with the selected group as the top level displayed in the window.

The Explorer Window is composed of the following parts:

Title Bar

The Title Bar displays the name of the top level in the tree view currently being displayed.

This will either be 'Database' or the name of the Group or Model Group currently displayed.

Toolbar

The following commands are available from the toolbar:

Toolbar Icon Description of functionality

Up

Move one level up the tree view. For example, a parent Model group or Group.

This button is disabled if the top level (Database) is already displayed.

Refresh

Refresh the tree view to take account of recent changes.

Show Details

Display or hide details for each item in the tree.

The details displayed are:

  • Type - type of item (network for example)
  • ID - item identifier as displayed in the item's Properties Dialog
  • User - name of the user who created the item. (When viewing items in the Recycle Bin, this is the name of the user who deleted the item.)
  • Description - user-defined description added via the item's Properties Dialog
  • Date - date when the item was last modified. (When viewing items in the Recycle Bin, this is the date when the item was deleted.)
  • Hyperlink - the first hyperlink associated with the item via the item's Properties Dialog. If there is more than one hyperlink associated with the database item, '(more)' will also be displayed to indicate that there are additional hyperlinks
  • Role - role of the current user in relation to the item e.g. Owner. (A role marked with a '*'indicates that the role has been set directly for that object, a role marked with a '+' indicates that the role has been inherited from a Windows group) See User Permissions for further information.

Sort Columns

Enable items in columns to be sorted by name when you click on the column header.

Sort By

Sort tree items alphabetically by a selected parameter within their Model groups. The options are:

  • Default - items are sorted by type and in the order in which they were created
  • Item - items are sorted alphabetically by name
  • Type - items are sorted by type (network for example)
  • ID - items are sorted by identifier as displayed in the item's Properties Dialog.
  • User - items are sorted by name of user who created the item
  • Description - items are sorted by user-defined description added via the item's Properties Dialog
  • Date - items are sorted by the date last modified
  • Hyperlink - items are sorted by hyperlinks associated with the item via the item's Properties Dialog
  • Role - items are sorted by role of the current user in relation to the item e.g. Owner. See User Permissions for further information

Version controlled items are only sorted at the top level. Any branches below that level are not sorted

The above details can be displayed in the by clicking on the button, or by right clicking in the white space in the tree view section of the Explorer Window and selecting Show Details from the context menu.

Find

Select on option to find items in the tree. The options are:

  • Find Modified - searches for items with uncommitted changes and displays them in the Find Window
  • Find Associated - searches for items associated with the item currently selected in the tree and displays them in the Find Window. For example, click on a Network in the database tree and use the Find Associated option to find any Workspaces or runs that use the network.
  • Find - displays the Find in Database Dialog. Type in text to search for and the property to search e.g. Name or type. Items found will be displayed in the Find Window.

Show Find Window

Display the Find Window in the bottom part of the Explorer Window.

Show Hidden

Display or hide objects in the tree.

Tree view

Database items are displayed in a hierarchical tree view:

  • To open or close a group in the tree, click on the or symbols to the left of the group name or double-click on the group name.
  • To perform a task on an item in the tree, click on the item and select an option from the InfoWorks ICM menus or right-click on the item and select an option from the context menu.
  • Hover the mouse cursor over the item in the tree to display a tooltip listing the item's details

For a full description of the meaning of the different icons displayed in the tree, see Database Items.

For details on working with items in the tree see the Working with Database Items topic.

There are a number of options available in the window by right clicking in the white space at the bottom of the tree view section and selecting from the context menu. These options are also available from the Explorer Window Toolbar.

Menu Option

Description

Refresh view

Refreshes the view to take account of recent changes.

Show Details

Details can be displayed or hidden for each item in the tree when Show Details is checked or unchecked in the menu or when you click .on the window toolbar.

The details displayed are:

  • Type - type of item (network for example)
  • ID - item identifier as displayed in the item's Properties Dialog
  • User - name of the user who created the item
  • Description - user-defined description added via the item's Properties Dialog
  • Date - date when the item was last modified
  • Hyperlink - hyperlinks associated with the item via the item's Properties Dialog
  • Role - role of the current user in relation to the item e.g. Owner. (A role marked with a '*'indicates that the role has been set directly for that object, a role marked with a '+' indicates that the role has been inherited from a Windows group) See User Permissions for further information.

Sort Columns

Enables items in columns to be sorted by name by clicking on the column header.

Sort By

Sorts items by selected parameter. The options are:

  • Default - items are sorted in the order in which they were created
  • Item - items are sorted alphabetically by name
  • Type - items are sorted by type (network for example)
  • ID - items are sorted by identifier as displayed in the item's Properties Dialog.
  • User - items are sorted by name of user who created the item
  • Description - items are sorted by user-defined description added via the item's Properties Dialog
  • Date - items are sorted by the date last modified
  • Hyperlink - items are sorted by hyperlinks associated with the item via the item's Properties Dialog
  • Role - items are sorted by role of the current user in relation to the item e.g. Owner. See User Permissions for further information

Version controlled items are only sorted at the top level. Any branches below that level are not sorted

Details can be displayed or hidden for each item in the tree by checking / unchecking Show Details from the menu or by clicking on the button on the toolbar.

Show Hidden Items

Hidden objects can be displayed or hidden in the tree by checking / unchecking the Show Hidden Items menu option.

Properties

Displays the InfoWorks ICM About Box.

(Displays the Properties Dialog for the item when selected from the item's context menu)

Find window

The Find Window displays the results of searches carried out on the database tree. Search for database items by using the icon on the Explorer Window Toolbar or by clicking on the Find button in the Find Window.

The options are:

  • Find Modified - searches for items with uncommitted changes
  • Find Associated - searches for associated items. For example, click on a Network in the database tree and use the Find Associated option to find any Workspaces or runs that use the network.
  • Find - displays the Find in Database dialog. Type in text to search for and the property to search e.g. Name or Type.

The following actions can be performed on a selected search result via the context menu:

  • Open - Opens the selected Database Item in the GeoPlan Window.
  • Select in Tree - Selects the Database Item in the tree view.
  • Note: When the Select in Tree option is selected for a database item within a Database for which the Show Hidden toolbar option has not been activated, the Selected Hidden Object dialog gets displayed. This dialog allows you to select an option to view the database item.
  • Properties - opens the Properties dialog for the selected Database Item.

In addition, version control menu options are available for version controlled objects.

See the Finding Database Items in the tree section of the Working with Database Items topic for detailed instructions on how to search the Database tree.

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