ODS Design Studio

Solution Designer Menus

Across the top of the solution designer window is a main menu consisting of several drop down menus that provide access to important global functionality.

Main Menu Options

Main menu options

Menu	Description
Solution	Contains options that relate to the currently loaded ODS Solution.
Generate	Provides options for generating source code from the currently loaded ODS Solution.
Settings	Contains general ODS system settings. Some of these settings are saved in the currently logged on users profile and others in the ODS global settings XML file.
Help	Provides access to the ODS Design Studio help, the update checker and the About dialog.

Solution Menu Options

Solution Menu options

Option	Shortcut	Description
New	Ctrl+N	Create a new ODS Solution. If the currently loaded solution has been modified since it was last saved then the option is given to save the current solution first. Launches the New Solution Wizard. At the end of the new solution wizard the currently loaded solution is closed and the newly created solution opened in the designer.
Open	Ctrl+O	Open an existing ODS Solution. If the currently loaded solution has been modified since it was last saved then the option is given to save the current solution first. Opens the windows file open dialog so that an ODS Solution file can be selected. The solution file is then opened in the solution designer.
Save	Ctrl+S	Saves the currently loaded solution. Will overwrite the solution files even if there are no changes.
Close		Closes the currently loaded solution. If the currently loaded solution has been modified since it was last saved then the option is given to save the current solution first. Closes the designer dialog and displays the start-up dialog.
Recent		Lists all the solutions opened in ODS Design Studio, most recent first. Select a solution to open it in the solution designer. If the currently loaded solution has been modified since it was last saved then the option is given to save the current solution first. Each recent solution also has a sub menu that allows you to remove it from the list. The "Clear List" item removes all recent solutions from the list.
Properties	Ctrl+P	Allows you to view or change the properties of the currently loaded ODS Solution. Opens the Solution Properties dialog.
Database Import		Allows you to import tables as classes from an existing database into this solution. Opens the Database Import dialog.
Version History		Allows you to view a history of builds and versions for the currently loaded solution. Opens the Version History dialog.

Generate Menu Options

Build Menu options

Option	Shortcut	Description
Generate Code	Ctrl+Shift+B	Generates source code from the currently loaded solution. Displays the build dialog.
Generate Code with Options		Displays the build options dialog before generating source code. The build options dialog provides options useful for generating release source code. This includes creating a new version number and generating upgrade code directly from one version to the next, skipping individual builds.

Settings Menu Options

Settings Menu options

Option	Description
Check for product updates once a week	When this setting is enabled ODS will check for product updates once a week when ODS Design Studio is started. This check is performed over TCP/IP port 80 to avoid firewall issues. This is a user specific setting.
.NET Framework 2.0 Folder	The location of the .NET Framework 2.0 Folder. The .NET Framework 2.0 is usually found in the folder "WINDOWS\Microsoft.NET\Framework\v2.0.50727". ODS should detect the location automatically but you can manually change it here. This is an application wide setting.
.NET Framework 2.0 SDK Folder	The location of the .NET Framework 2.0 SDK Folder. This SDK is installed as part of Visual Studio 2005 and is usually found in the folder "Program Files\Microsoft Visual Studio 8\SDK\v2.0". Alternatively, it can be downloaded from the Microsoft website. ODS should detect the location automatically but you can manually change it here. This is an application wide setting.
Edit the default source code Copyright settings	Allows you to specify the copyright text that should appear at the top of each source code file. These are the default settings for all new solutions. The settings can be overridden for individual solutions from the solution properties dialog.

Solution Designer Toolbar

There are four sections on the toolbar that provide quick access to commonly used global functions. The toolbar can be dragged and docked to any side of the window.

There are also toolbars embedded within the design area that are specific to different parts of the solution design. These toolbars provide context specific functionality not found in either the main menu or main toolbar. These toolbars are described later.

File Section

File Section Toolbar Buttons

Icon	Name	Description
	New Solution	Create a new ODS Solution. If the currently loaded solution has been modified since it was last saved then the option is given to save the current solution first. Launches the New Solution Wizard. At the end of the new solution wizard the currently loaded solution is closed and the newly created solution opened in the designer.
	Open Solution	Open an existing ODS Solution. If the currently loaded solution has been modified since it was last saved then the option is given to save the current solution first. Opens the windows file open dialog so that an ODS Solution file can be selected. The solution file is then opened in the solution designer.
	Save Solution	Saves the currently loaded solution. This will overwrite the solution files on disk even if no changes have been made.

Solution Section

Solution Section Toolbar Buttons

Icon	Name	Description
	Solution Properties	Allows you to view or change the properties of the currently loaded ODS Solution. Opens the Solution Properties dialog.
	Import From Database	Allows you to import tables as classes from an existing database into this solution. Opens the Database Import dialog.
	Version History	Displays the version history of the currently loaded solution. Shows each version and the corresponding build.

Code Generation Section

Code Generation Toolbar Section Buttons

Icon	Name	Description
	Generate Source Code	Generates source code from the currently loaded solution. Displays the build dialog.
	Generate Source Code with options	Displays the build options dialog before generating source code. The build options dialog provides options useful for generating release source code. This includes creating a new version number and generating upgrade code directly from one version to the next, skipping individual builds.

Clipboard Section

Clipboard Toolbar Section Buttons

Icon	Name	Description
	Paste	Paste the item currently held in the clipboard into this solution. Use the copy icons found throughout the application to copy Classes, Properties, Predefined Objects, Enums or Enum Values into the clipboard. Properties, Predefined Objects or Enum Values are pasted into the currently selected Class or Enum. If an item already exists with the same class name, property name, predefined object Id, enum name or enum value id then a default name/id will be used instead. In many cases you should also be able to use Control-V to paste.

Solution Designer Design Area

The design area can be used to design classes and enums. The "classes" and "enums" tabs at the top left of the design area can be used to switch between the two.

The design area is split into two main areas. Down the left hand side is a list of either classes or enums. Down the right hand side are the properties of the currently selected class or enum. In-between the two areas is a splitter bar that can be dragged left and right to adjust the width of the two areas.

The properties area on the right hand side is also broken down into two main areas. The top area shows the main properties of the class or enum. The bottom area displays more detailed properties broken down into sub-areas using a set of tabs.

For more information see the classes and enums pages.