Contents
The following tips and tricks describe features that can make some tasks easier or quicker in StreamBase Studio.
In Eclipse, a perspective is a collection of windows that are arranged to facilitate the completion of a specific task. A perspective can have one primary window, such as an editor, where most tasks are performed, and one or more windows (called views) that support the work in the primary window. StreamBase Studio has three perspectives:
- Authoring Perspective
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Use this perspective to design StreamBase applications.
- Test/Debug Perspective
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Use this perspective to test and debug your application by running it with simulated input data.
- Demo perspective
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Use this perspective to learn about StreamBase. The Demo perspective provides views and tools that demonstrate important StreamBase capabilities for the first-time user.
You can also define you own perspectives, as described in Custom Perspectives.
StreamBase provides specialized editors for certain StreamBase file types. When you click on such a file in the Package Explorer, the file opens in its associated editor. For further information about the Studio editors, see these topics:
- EventFlow Editor
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Provides a canvas on which you can create StreamBase EventFlow applications graphically.
- StreamSQL Editor
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Provides a text-based editor in which you can create StreamSQL applications.
- Feed Simulation Editor
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Provides a set of forms in which you can define and save a feed simulation with which to test your StreamBase application.
- Text Editor
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Provides standard text editing within Studio for text files that are not associated with the specialized StreamBase editors above.
More information about each StreamBase Studio view is available in the following topics:
Studio also takes advantage of views provided by the underlying Eclipse installation. Consult the Eclipse Help for information on views provided by Eclipse.
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Problems View
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Console View
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Debug View
Notice that Eclipse provides the generic Debug View, while StreamBase Studio provides the StreamBase Debugger View.
StreamBase Studio adds entries to the Eclipse menus. As with all Eclipse menus, the available menu entries change, based on the perspective or editor you are currently using.
Some menu entries also have keyboard equivalents. When a keyboard shortcut is available, you will see it displayed in the menu after the menu entry.
The following sections describe the entries added by StreamBase Studio in the Eclipse menu, or clarify an Eclipse menu's behavior in StreamBase Studio. For menu entries not discussed here, consult the Eclipse Help.
- New
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Allows you to create a new StreamBase resource, as well as standard Eclipse resources.
- Switch Workspace
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Closes the current StreamBase Studio and reopens it using a different workspace.
- Open File
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Opens a selected file in your file system, using the program associated with the file in your system. For example, a CSV file might be opened in your favorite text editor. Some StreamBase files have specialized editors:
sbapp,ssql, andsbfs. To open one of these resources in its associated editor, do not use → ; instead, double-click the file, or right-click the file and choose . - Load StreamBase Sample
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Opens the Load Sample Projects dialog, which allows you to import sample StreamBase projects.
- Import
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Opens the Eclipse Import dialog. The StreamBase section of the import source tree allows you to import saved schemas into Studio, or to import projects from StreamBase 3.x.
- Export
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Opens the Eclipse Export dialog. The StreamBase section allows you to export saved schemas.
- Exit
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Closes StreamBase Studio.
- Select All
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This option selects all components in the currently active editor.
The following entries are added to the Edit menu when you are editing in the StreamSQL Editor:
- Content Assist
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In the StreamSQL Editor, shows a drop-down list of keywords and functions that you can choose to insert in a line of StreamSQL code. It may also display syntax and brief help for the current item. To select an item from the list, you can scroll to locate the desired item, or you can begin typing its name. The typeahead feature completes the item when it can do so unambiguously. If you have begun typing a word, Content Assist may complete the word without displaying a list, as with Word Completion.
- Parameter Hints
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Displays brief help if you hover your cursor over a function name in a StreamSQL statement.
- Word Completion
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Completes a StreamSQL term when you have partially entered its name, if the remaining text is unambiguous. If the result is not satisfactory, try typing more text or using Content Assist.
- Open StreamBase Resource
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Allows you to locate and open StreamBase-specific resources anywhere in your workspace, without having to go from project to project.
- Stop StreamBase Application
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Stops the currently running StreamBase application.
- Run Last Launched
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Runs the last application you ran that used a saved launch configuration.
- Debug Last Launched
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Runs in debug mode the last application you ran that used a saved launch configuration.
- Run History
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Provides a menu of recent application runs that used launch configurations. (Entries are not placed in the history list when you use → .)
- Run As
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Runs the selected application using Studio's default launch configuration, either locally or remotely.
- Run
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Opens the Eclipse Run wizard, where you can create, edit and run launch configurations for Eclipse-hosted applications, including StreamBase applications.
- Debug History, Debug As, Debug
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These options are the same as their Run counterparts, except that they run the selected application in debug mode.
This menu is only available when the EventFlow Editor has focus. It provides a keyboard-based alternative method to dragging and dropping components from the Palette View. Notice that each item in the Insert menu lists a keyboard shortcut.
This commands in this menu are available only when the EventFlow Editor has focus. It provides you with a keyboard-based alternative method for invoking certain EventFlow-specific operations, including the functions of the Studio EventFlow toolbar. Many of the same commands are also available in right-click context menus, when you right-click the appropriate element or location within an EventFlow application. See the section on EventFlow Editor commands in EventFlow Editor for descriptions.
This menu provides methods to manage the various views and perspectives in Eclipse, including those contributed by StreamBase Studio.
This menu provides help on using StreamBase and StreamBase Studio.
- Welcome
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Opens the StreamBase Welcome page.
- Help Contents
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Displays Help contents in an Eclipse Help window or external browser. The help contains books, topics, and information for StreamBase together with information about Eclipse-contributed components.
- Search
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Opens a Help view in which you can search the Help systems of all current Eclipse plug-ins. To narrow the search to include only StreamBase Help, use the Search scope control.
- Dynamic Help
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Opens a Help view where you can browse Help within the Eclipse IDE.
- Key Assist
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View key bindings available for StreamBase Studio commands. To change a binding, select its name in the Key Assist list and press SHIFT-CTRL-L
- Tips & Tricks
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Opens the topic you are reading, as well as tips and tricks pages for other Eclipse plug-ins.
- StreamBase Expressions Guide
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Opens the core reference document for the StreamBase Expression Language.
- StreamBase Functions Guide
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Opens the core reference document for the StreamBase embedded functions you can use in expressions.
- Software Updates
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Accesses the mechanisms for installing and managing Eclipse plugins and updates.
- About StreamBase Studio
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Displays feature, license, and plug-in information about the current version of StreamBase. The button displays informations about your running system and any current error condition. Use this when communicating with StreamBase Systems Customer Support.
The standard Eclipse context (right-click) menus are available for each file and most folders displayed in the Package Explorer. A number StreamBase-specific commands are also available. They are described in Package Explorer.
StreamBase Studio contributes a group of buttons to the Eclipse toolbar. The placement of toolbar groups may change when you switch from one perspective to another.
The primary StreamBase Studio toolbar is shown here:
The six buttons on the right are only on the toolbar when an EvenfFlow Editor or one of its views has the current focus. When a StreamSQL Editor has the focus, only the Debug and Run buttons are present. All of the toolbar's buttons are greyed out unless an EventFlow or StreamSQL Editor has the current focus:
From left to right, the buttons are:
- Debug StreamBase Application (default launch)
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Runs in debug mode on the local StreamBase Server, the EventFlow application with current focus.
- Run StreamBase Application (default launch)
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Runs on the local StreamBase Server, the EventFlow application with current focus.
- Rearrange layout
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Rearranges the components and connections of the current EventFlow application diagram.
- Reroute connections
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Rearranges the arcs of the current EventFlow canvas to route around components cleanly.
- Zoom in
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Zooms in the current EventFlow canvas.
- Zoom out
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Zooms out the current EventFlow canvas.
- Zoom to fit
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Zooms in or out to best fit the current EventFlow canvas in the Editor view.
- Typecheck
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Runs a typecheck operation on the current EventFlow application.
Do not confuse the StreamBase Studio Run and Debug buttons described above with the standard Eclipse Run and Debug buttons in the standard Eclipse toolbar shown here:
Studio adds three buttons to the standard Eclipse Open-Save-Print toolbar, which is usually found on the far left side of the toolbar row:
After the Eclipse Open, Save, and Print buttons, there are three Studio-specific buttons:
- New StreamBase Project
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Opens the New StreamBase Project dialog. This is the same as invoking → → .
- New EventFlow Application
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Opens the New StreamBase EventFlow Application dialog. Or click the down-arrow next to this button to invoke the New StreamBase StreamSQL Application dialog.
- New Feed Simulation
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Opens the New StreamBase Feed Simulation dialog.
Studio adds one button to the Eclipse Search toolbar:
To the left of the Eclipse Search button flashlight is:
- Open StreamBase Resource
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Opens the Open StreamBase Resource dialog that lets you locate StreamBase-related file types anywhere in your workspace without having to search project by project.
View toolbars contain actions that apply only to the view in which they appear. The view toolbar also contains a context menu that includes other actions for that view. Open the context menu by clicking on the down pointing triangle. If there is enough space, view toolbars are in the view's title bar. Otherwise, they appear inside the view.
Here is an example of the view title bar for the Feed Simulations View:
The following table describes the buttons and icons you might see in StreamBase Studio.
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New StreamBase
Project
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Opens the New StreamBase Project dialog, where you can create a project.
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New EventFlow
Application
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Opens the New StreamBase EventFlow Application dialog, where you can create a new, empty EventFlow application.
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New StreamSQL
Application
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Opens the New StreamBase StreamSQL Application dialog, where you can create a new, empty StreamSQL application.
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New Feed
Simulation
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Opens the New Feed Simulation dialog, where you can create a new feed simulation for a specific application.
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New StreamBase
Client (or Embedded Adapter, Java Operator, or Java Function)
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Opens the StreamBase Java Wizard, which generates stub Java code for the specified component. The Java Wizard provides the same functionality as the StreamBase Java Toolkit for Eclipse, which was a separate download kit for StreamBase 3.x. The Java Wizards are integrated into StreamBase Studio starting with release 5.0.
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Open StreamBase
Resource
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The same icon as the previous item is used on the main Studio toolbar as an alias for the Open StreamBase Resource command. This feature allows you to look up and open StreamBase-specific resources anywhere in your workspace, across all current projects in the workspace. The StreamBase resources included in the list are all EventFlow, StreamSQL, and Feed Simulation files in the workspace (that is, all
.sbapp,.ssql,.sbfs, and.sbconffiles). -
Information
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Provides a brief description of a component and its use.
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Warning
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Alerts you to a potential problem and, if appropriate, suggests how to avoid it.
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Error
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Indicates a typecheck error in a component in an EventFlow application, or in a StreamSQL statement. Messages describing typecheck errors are displayed in the Typecheck Errors view, and in some Properties views.
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Apply and
typecheck
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Applies the changes you made for this component's Properties View tabs, without having to save the application. Note that is it normally unnecessary to explicitly typecheck, because StreamBase Studio automatically typechecks your application as you work.
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Revert
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Displayed in the Properties view. This button reverts changes to the current operator since the last time it was saved (reverting to its previous settings).
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Help
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Displayed in several views and dialogs. Opens a help topic specific to the currently selected window or tab.
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Add
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Adds a row to the end of an editable table in the Properties view, Feed Simulation Editor, and other dialogs. If you click the arrow to the right of the button, you can specify whether the row is to be added above or below the currently selected row. When you add a row, the newly created row is highlighted. To start entering information, click in the cell you want to edit. (However, some cells are not user-editable.)
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Remove
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Removes the currently selected row in an editable table (Properties view). Click the arrow to the right of the button to remove all rows in the table.
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Copy Schema
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Displayed in the Edit Schema tab of Properties views that enable you to modify schemas. Pre-fills the table with a schema that already exists in another component. The component can be selected from any application in your Studio workspace.
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Fill All Rows
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Displayed in the Output Settings tab of Map operator Properties view, if you select the explicitly specified fields Output Type option. Prefills the table with all output fields from the previous component. You then specify the changes you want to make by applying the Add, Replace, or Remove action to each field. The arrow to the right of the button lets you load specific input fields instead of all fields.
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Smart Fill
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Displayed in the Output Settings tab of Query Operator Properties view (for write operations only) if you select the explicitly specified fields Output Type option. Replaces any values in the expression column of the table with values that match the operator's input fields, adding a prefix to avoid conflicts. For example, an input field named
Colormay be referenced in the expression asinput.Color.Notes
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Consider using when all or most of the input stream and table fields match and you want to apply the input prefix to all or most fields; otherwise (if you want to change only a few fields, leaving most fields unchanged), it may be more efficient to avoid using , and edit the expressions column manually.
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Clicking Smart Fill overwrites all existing expressions in the grid, including any that you have manually edited.
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Pass All
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Displayed in the Output Settings tab of Map operator Properties view, if you select the
all input fieldsOutput Type option. Clicking the button fills the table with all output fields from the input stream. You can also click the triangle to the right of the button, and select specific input fields to load. You can then modify the default action on each field (which simply passes the input field through unchanged). For example, you can change the Replace expression, or add or remove fields. -
Move Up and Move
Down
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Displayed in the Edit Schema tab of Properties views that enable you to modify schemas. selects the previous row in the schema if one exists; selects the next row.
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Open Perspective
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Displays a short list of perspectives (based on your recent activities) that you might choose to open. To see all perspectives, choose the
Otheroption to open the Open Perspective dialog. -
Assign All
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Displayed in Input Port and Output Port tabs of the Module Reference Properties view. Automatically assigns input streams from the referenced application to the Module Reference input or output ports. The streams are assigned to ports in sorted order. Also creates any missing ports needed for the assignment.
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Disable
Dequeueing
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When running an application in the Test/Debug perspective (for example, using a feed simulation), prevents output from appearing in the Application Output view. This can speed up the application's performance in StreamBase Studio.
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Show Details or
Expressions Pane
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In the Application Input and Application Output View, displays or hides (toggles) the details pane of the Details pane shows all the fields of a row that you select in the view.
In Properties views where expressions are required, provides a range of information to help you write expressions, such as the names of fields and functions.
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Scroll Lock
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When running an application in StreamBase Studio, prevents the Application Input or Output view from automatically scrolling during execution. You can use the view's scrollbar to navigate rows of input or output.
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Collapse All
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Collapses all nodes nested list of items.
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Follow
Editor
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Selects components in the Outline view when you select them in the EventFlow Editor.
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Clear
(filter)
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In a filter control, deletes any text in the filter and stops filtering. For example, in the Outline view, causes all component to be included.
You can rearrange the layout of StreamBase Studio as follows:
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Drag views to different positions within the StreamBase Studio window.
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Drag views to the shortcut bar to create a fast view.
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Drag editors such that they are simultaneously visible beside, above, or below another editor.
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Resize views and editors by dragging the sashes that separate them.
Drop cursors indicate where a view will dock when you release your mouse button. This indication is relative to the view or editor area underneath the cursor. The following table explains the drop cursors in StreamBase Studio.
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Dock above
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The view will appear above the view underneath the cursor.
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Dock below
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The view will appear below the view underneath the cursor.
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Dock to the right
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The view will appear to the right of the view underneath the cursor.
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Dock to the left
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The view will appear to the left of the view underneath the cursor.
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Stack
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The view will appear as a tab in the same pane as the view underneath the cursor.
From a view's title bar context menu, select Fast View to minimize the view as a button on the shortcut bar.
When a view is minimized, click its button on the Perspective Bar to bring it up in a fast view. To revert the fast view back to a docked view again, select the Fast View button on its title bar.
Double-clicking a view or editor's title bar maximizes the editor or view in the StreamBase Studio window. Double-clicking again restores the previous perspective.
From the context menu of a view or editor's title bar, select how you want the view to appear within the StreamBase Studio window. The following table explains the view and editor title bar context menu options.
- Restore
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Restores the view to its previous (not maximized or minimized) size and position within the StreamBase Studio window.
- Fast View (views only)
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Minimizes the view and places a button for it in the shortcut bar. This option, when used in a fast view, restores the view to its previous (docked) position in the StreamBase Studio window. For more information, see Perspective Bar.
- Move
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Move the editor, view, or whole group.
- Size
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Change the size of the editor or view in the direction specified.
- Maximize
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Maximizes the editor or view in the StreamBase Studio window.
- Minimize
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Minimizes the editor or view in the StreamBase Studio window.
- Close
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Closes the editor or view.
- Close Others (editors only)
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Closes all editors except the current editor.
- Close All (editors only)
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Closes all editors.
The following is an example of a view's context menu :
The following is an example of an editor's context menu:
The perspective bar allows quick access to currently open perspectives, as well as providing an easy way to open a new perspective. If wide enough, it shows buttons for other available perspectives, as in this example:
If your perspective bar is too narrow, try dragging its inside edge to widen it (as indicated by the arrow in the preceding figure).
To open a different perspective, click one of the other perspective buttons
(in the example, StreamBase Test/Debug or
StreamBase Demo). Or, click the
Open Perspective button to select from a drop-down list of available
perspectives.
To change the docking location of the Perspective Bar, right-click the Open Perspective button. In the Dock On list (shown in the next figure), select Top Right, Top Left, or Left.
The fast view bar is the place where fast views are docked. The following example shows the fast view bar with several view buttons in place:
To help you manage the views in a perspective, you can use fast views. To minimize a view and still keep it handy for quick display, consider making it a fast view instead of closing it. For example, you might want to make space for other views or editors. Note that only views can be made fast views, not editors.
A fast view remains open, but is represented by a small icon docked in the
Fast View bar which is indicated by the 
fast view icon (typically in the lower left side of the
StreamBase window). Retrieve a fast view by clicking its icon
in the Fast View bar. The view is restored to its normal display and you
can continue working on it.
Use either of these methods to make a fast view:
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Right-click a view and choose in the context menu:
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Right-click the fast view icon and choose a view from the menu. If the view is open it is minimized and appears as a fast view.
The figure below shows several views docked in a Fast View bar, with the cursor hovering over the Package Explorer fast view.
StreamBase Studio provides several categories of keyboard shortcuts.
Some of the commands in the StreamBase menus have keyboard shortcuts. To learn the keyboard equivalent of a menu command, select the menu to display the command. When a shortcut is available, the keystrokes are shown next to the command name. For example, the Run menu shows the Run Last Launched command with the shortcut Ctrl-F11.
StreamBase Studio provides keyboard equivalents for most mouse actions. For example, with an EventFlow Editor open and selected, you can add a new Filter operator to the canvas in two ways:
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Mouse: open the Operators palette, and drag the Filter icon to the canvas.
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Keyboard: press the O key (letter Oh, not zero), then the F key (both without pressing the Shift key).
In most cases, the Studio keyboard equivalents are mnemonics, based on the first letter of the palette name, followed by the first letter of the component name. In cases where two components share an initial letter, an alternate letter is used.
The following shortcuts are not mnemonics, but can be time savers:
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After adding a component to the canvas, press X O to add an output stream to it. (This is the keyboard equivalent of right-clicking the output port of a newly added component, and selecting Add Output Stream to Port
n.) The X O shortcut works on the currently selected single item, or the last added item, even if unselected. -
Select two components in the canvas, then press X X to draw an arc between them. The arc is created from left to right, regardless of the order of selection.
To see the complete list of EventFlow keyboard shortcuts, start with an EventFlow Editor open and its tab selected, then press Ctrl-Shift-L. Press Esc to close the shortcut list.
Note
In the keyboard shortcut list, and in menu reminders of keyboard shortcuts, alphabetic characters are shown for clarity and by industry convention in uppercase form. This does not mean you need to use the uppercase form of the character when using the keyboard shortcut. For example, in StreamBase Studio's Insert menu, the reminder of the keyboard shortcut to enter an Output Stream is shown as S, O. To use this shortcut, type: s o
Keyboard shortcuts are available for basic operations in StreamBase Studio table editors. You use tables in many StreamBase views, for example, to define schemas, output settings, dynamic variables, or operator functions. The following figure is an example of a table that you edit to define Map operator properties:
Instead of using your mouse to click the table editing buttons on the tab, navigate and edit the table using your keyboard. By learning a few keyboard shortcuts, you can edit tables more quickly and easily than using the mouse.
To understand keyboard editing, be aware that your actions are always in one of two modes:
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Select mode
In select mode, you can navigate, create, and remove rows, but you cannot enter data in any table cells.
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Edit mode
In edit mode, you can enter data in the selected cell, but cannot to use select mode shortcuts to navigate.
| Key | Function |
|---|---|
| F2 | If a table row is selected, toggles to edit mode: opens the first editable cell in the row. You can now enter data in the cell. You can also tab to the next editable cell in the current row (or next row). |
| Enter or Esc | If a table cell is open for editing, toggles to select mode: selects the entire current row. You can now navigate and create or remove rows using the Insert, Delete, and arrow keys. |
| Insert |
If the table header is selected, a new row is created at the
bottom of the table. If a row is selected, a new row is created
below the current row. Also, the first editable cell in the new
row is opened for editing.
Remember that the Insert key does not work when you are in edit mode. If a cell is open for editing, press Enter or Esc to switch to insert mode, then press Insert to create a new row. |
| Delete |
In insert mode, deletes the selected row after displaying a
confirmation dialog.
In edit mode, immediately deletes the contents of the current cell. |
| Up arrow |
If a row is selected, selects the preceding row.
In edit mode, if a row exists above the current row:
|
| Down arrow |
If a row is selected, selects the next row if it exists.
In edit mode, if a row exists below the current row:
|
You can create one or more custom perspectives based on your display preferences. For example, in the default Authoring perspective, you may prefer to not display the Focus Selector and Component views so that more space is available for the EventFlow Editor's canvas.
To customize a perspective, click → to define a new perspective that captures your preferences. Enter a new name for a custom perspective; do not overwrite the default perspectives provided by StreamBase Studio.
Note
If you inadvertently overwrite a default perspective, you can reset it to its originally installed layout and contents as described in Resetting a Default Perspective.
When the new perspective is added, select it from the Perspectives button like any other perspective:
To reset an overwritten Authoring, Test/Debug, or Demo perspective to its originally installed layout and contents:
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Close StreamBase Studio
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Navigate to the StreamBase Studio configuration directory:
- On Windows
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C:\Documents and Settings\username\Application Data\StreamBase\StreamBase Studion.mConfiguration\.metadata\.settings - On UNIX
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~/.streambase/streambase-studio-n.m-configuration/.settings
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Delete this file:
org.eclipse.ui.workbench.prefs. -
Open StreamBase Studio.
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From the menu, select → .