versioning

[Jim McKim]

Can someone explain the commands on the Part & Assembly menu "Make version" and "Make original"? I was helping another user figure out why some of his shared parts and shared assemblies were locked (read-only), knowing that it wasn't a result of being loaded as a version. I traced it down to the two functions above, but there doesn't appear to be anything in the v11.65 help files. I figured out how to lock and unlock parts using the commands, but I don't quite understand CoCreate's intent. Is "Make version" their way of saying "Make read-only"? If it is, it is a poor choice of terminology.

[John van Doorn]

Copied text from the help file:



CoCreate/OneSpace Designer - Simplification and Model Versioning Concepts and User's Guide

Using Model Versioning

This section includes the following topics:
Loading a Part as a Version
Making a Version from an Original
Making an Original from a Version
Replacing an Original with a Version
Highlighting a Version
Highlighting an Original
Saving Versions
Loading a Part as a Version
The Load dialog (File / Load) includes the option As Version to let you load a part as a version. The part becomes a version only when the original has already been loaded. Note: This switch sets the load mode until it is switched off.
The As Version option, together with the Make Vers command lets you decide before loading which part is to become a version (either the currently loaded one or the about-to-be-loaded one).
Making a Version from an Original

To use model versioning, click Part & Assy in the main menu. The Part & Assy menu opens to display the versioning buttons in the bottom half of the menu.
To make a version of the currently-loaded part, click Make Vers and specify the original part or assembly. Click OK to create the version. Notice that the version is now read-only and prevented from modification (this is indicated by the lock symbol in the browser.
When you make an assembly a version, all of its children also become versions. Note: Since versioning is done at contents level, all shared parts are also affected.

Version is Read-Only
Making an Original from a Version
To make an original of the currently-loaded version, click Make Orig and specify the version. Click OK to create the original. Notice that the lock symbol disappears from the browser. You can now modify this part in the usual manner.
When you make an assembly an original, all of its children also become originals. Note: You can only make a version an original if an original not yet exists. This is true even for children of the assembly. Those children having already an original in memory are left unchanged, that is, they keep their version status. However, they can be processed later on by another call to Make Orig.
Replacing an Original with a Version

You can replace an original by a version if you decide that a version is now more current and want to make it the original.
P1 = Original, P2 = Version The Original Part is Replaced by the Version
To replace an original by a version, click Replace and specify the original. Next, specify the version. Click OK to complete the operation. Notice that the lock symbol disappears from the browser. You can now modify this part in the usual manner. The replacement follows the same rules as for making an original.
Notice that when the version is at the top, it will be deleted after replace. Otherwise it will become a share of the new original.
Highlighting a Version

Use the Highlight Vers command to highlight a version of an original part. Click the command and specify the original. The version is highlighted in the defined color and the original in yellow. Specifying the version, highlights the version only. In the following graphic, P1 is the original and P2 the version.

Highlighting a Version
Highlighting an Original

Use the Highlight Orig command to highlight the original part. Click the command and specify the version. The original is highlighted in the defined color and the version in yellow. Specifying the original highlights the original only. In the following graphic, P1 is the original and P2 the version. (In this case the defined color has been changed.)
Highlighting an Original
Saving Versions

Versions can be saved to the file system in the usual manner. When they are reloaded, they are loaded as a version with the icon in the browser showing it is locked. Saved versions retain their status independent of the load mode (As Version option) when being loaded back.

[Jim McKim]

Thanks, John. I'm guessing you found that information in the v12 help files, because I see nothing in the v11.65 concepts guide nor task guide.

As usual, the help files tell one how to do something, but not why to do it. In this case, it tells me pretty much what I figured out on my own - that clicking on the buttons will change the status of a part from "version" (read-only) to "original" or vice-versa - but does not give any guidance about how or why that can be used to one's advantage. In other words, not much help to anyone but the most novice user. (Are you reading this, CoCreate?) The best I can deduce in this case is that a "version" is just a soft read-only lock to keep a part or assembly from being inadvertently changed.

[John van Doorn]

Indeed this was copied from the 12.0 hel files.

I try to explain what CoCreate intended to do with the versioning concept:

Every part in OSDM has an unique ID, which is called sys-ID.
With this ID OSDM can decide if a second loaded part has to be reloaded or shared. When a second part with the same sys-ID is loaded, the system will first look at its sys-ID and then decide if it has to read the whole file or just make an shared copy of an existing model in our session.

This means when you store a part eg a blok 100x100x100 and save it to the filesystem, the system attach a sys-ID.

Now modify the model e.g. 100x100x200 and save it with a different name and OSDM will keep the original sys-ID (unless you make a copy)

when we delete everything from our session and try to load the parts, you will notice that the second part will always being shared with the first one, because it has the same sys-ID

This is why load as version was developed, with load as version, you can load a second part alltough it has the same sys-ID and still being able to see the differences.

When using load as version, one part has to be locked. preventing you from accedently overwriting an older version. But if you decide that the older version is the one that you want to work with in you assembly you can make that the original, doing so unlocks the part for you and locks the newer version.

[Jim McKim]

Thanks again, John. I am knowledgable on the Sys ID subject and what happens upon sequential loads of parts/assemblies with the same Sys ID, but I was having trouble relating that to the "make original/make version" commands. Your last sentence makes it all clear.

The odd thing in the case I was helping with is, the user had not done any sequential loads of parts with the same Sys ID, so he (and I) was really confused as to why the parts were locked. That's when I discovered you could force one instance of a shared part to be a "version". The new commands can be very useful to overide the default versioning process, though I suspect many users will have a hard time understanding the addition to an already complex situation, one that is compounded by the Sys ID being completely hidden.

[dszostak]

We're reading you loud and clear. Thanks for the feedback on Help for this subject.