IBM User Technologies IBM Task Modeler Basics Fred

IBM User Technologies IBM Task Modeler Basics Fred Sampson IBM Silicon Valley Lab May 10, 2006

IBM User Technologies What Is IBM Task Modeler? An Eclipse-based tool for rapidly creating and analyzing a hierarchical model of tasks that a customer performs to achieve a specific goal. …but what is it, really? Task Modeler lets you: § § § 2 Model use cases and scenarios (task models) Create and manage an information architecture using DITA maps Organize task flows Manage DITA topic files Visually edit DITA relationship tables Visually inspect topic links and relationships and other properties Introducing IBM Task Modeler © IBM 2006

IBM User Technologies Where to get Task Modeler § Download and install from www. ibm. com/alpha. Works § Simple installation • Uses Setup program • Optionally uses Eclipse Software Updates § Flexible installation • As standalone application (no JRE or Eclipse prerequisites) • Or as Eclipse 3. 0 plug-in (with own JRE) § See Help for configuration steps • Import samples • Tutorials 3 Introducing IBM Task Modeler © IBM 2006

IBM User Technologies Best practices in modeling tasks § Identify use cases or scenarios § Define user goals that satisfy those use cases § Identify tasks that will help the user achieve those goals § Identify supporting concepts and reference information that will support those tasks § Define relationships between tasks, concepts, and reference topics § Publish your model for review § Generate topic templates (stubs) last § Start writing!! 4 Introducing IBM Task Modeler © IBM 2006

IBM User Technologies Creating a new information model with Task Modeler 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 5 Create your task model, including task topic nodes Create your ditamap from the model Add concept and reference topic nodes Define relationships (reltable) Publish the model for review and sharing Generate stub topics Add metadata Write topics Introducing IBM Task Modeler © IBM 2006

IBM User Technologies Demo. . . 6 Introducing IBM Task Modeler © IBM 2006

IBM User Technologies Task Modeling perspective § Displays all task models § Command Window | Open Perspective| Other … Task Modeling 7 Introducing IBM Task Modeler © IBM 2006

IBM User Technologies Task Modeler perspective Topic type picker Visualization File | New Task Model Metadata properties Open maps Tasks Outline 8 Introducing IBM Task Modeler © IBM 2006

IBM User Technologies DITA perspective § Displays all DITA views Topic files status manager Relationship table editor Relationship table browser § Command Window | Open Perspective| Other … DITA Modeling 9 Introducing IBM Task Modeler © IBM 2006

IBM User Technologies DITA perspective Topic type picker Visualization File | New DITA map Tasks Metadata properties Reference Open maps Concepts Relationship table browser Properties table Outline Relationship table editor Topic file status manager 10 Introducing IBM Task Modeler Node assistant © IBM 2006

IBM User Technologies Create maps, add concepts and references § Create a new ditamap file Copy node from task model Tasks already created § Add topics Add concepts Add references § Edit topics Set or change topic types— • set to task, create all tasks • set to concept, create all concepts • set to reference, create all references Drag-and-drop, cut-and-paste Same keyboard accelerators as task models 11 Introducing IBM Task Modeler © IBM 2006

IBM User Technologies Design and manage relationship tables § Create new reltable with wizard § Edit reltable New relationship table Add missing tasks from map • Use Relationship table editor • Use “Add missing tasks from map” • Drag or copy from model table § Remember: • The reltable is part of the ditamap • Edit metadata after creating reltable, such as source, target linking, collection types, short descriptions—properties can be inherited in ways you don’t want! 12 Introducing IBM Task Modeler © IBM 2006

IBM User Technologies Manage, generate, and edit topic files § Generate stub files § Edit topic files Use Topic file manager From the Topic files manager TM 4 uses node name as file name, topic title, and ID! From the topic context menu Opens default editor for. dita You can specify file name as href or specify folder and leading characters Generate stub files 13 Introducing IBM Task Modeler © IBM 2006

IBM User Technologies Review and edit metadata § Editing all metadata for a topic Use the Properties editor Review in groups Choose allowed values from list § Editing specific metadata for all topics Use the Properties table Review in rows and columns Edit cells in place 14 Introducing IBM Task Modeler © IBM 2006

IBM User Technologies Visualizing relationship tables § Visualizing tables Use the Visualize properties view • All topics, selected table, selected row, selected topic • Files must exist (hrefs) to see relationships! 15 Introducing IBM Task Modeler © IBM 2006

IBM User Technologies Tutorial and documentation § Tutorial Scenario-based Covers creating maps, topic files, and relationship tables § Documentation How to use DITA with Task Modeler What’s new Tasks Concepts References User Experience design Roles and Goals Models 16 Introducing IBM Task Modeler © IBM 2006

IBM User Technologies Thank you to: § John P. Hunt, IBM, DITA Learning Architect § Christal Pomeroy, IBM, Rational Desktop IA § Stephanie Trunzo, IBM, Rational Desktop IA who created the slides that I so liberally repurposed ☺ Contact me: Fred Sampson, fsampson@us. ibm. com Useful reference: Hackos and Redish, User and Task Analysis For Interface Design, John Wiley & Sons, Inc. , 1998. 17 Introducing IBM Task Modeler © IBM 2006