STEP Tools News for Monday August 7

[Martin Hardwick]

This newsletter is a brief update of what is going on in STEP and
at STEP Tools, Inc.  If you want to know more, try the STEP Tools
web site (http://www.steptools.com).


------------------------
STEP Translator for NASA 

STEP Tools Inc. is teaming with Applied Research Associates
(ARA) to implement an AP 209 data translator for NASA's NextGRADE
Graphical User Interface. In addition to 3D model data, the
translator will import analysis results data from the STEP file.
STEP Tools will first develop a specification for the mappings
between the NextGRADE data structures and the STEP AP 209 entity
types.  Using ST-Developer v8.0, STEP Tools will execute the
mapping process and deliver source code for a bi-directional
STEP AP 209-to-NextGRADE translator.

	http://www.steptools.com/news/000803ara.html


---------------------------------
Intergraph and Spatial Technology

In recent weeks Intergraph and Spatial Technology have purchased
licenses for ST-Developer v8.0. They join the growing list of CAD,
CAM, CAE and PDM vendors that are using STEP Tools to implement
STEP translators.

	http://www.steptools.com/office/customers.html


-----------------------
Client Server Databases

The Containment Early Binding makes client/server databases
for STEP practical. Client server applications are much
easier to implement than data exchange ones (hence ORACLE and
SAP are multi-billion dollar companies) because the application
can read just the information that it wants instead of being
required to read all of the information in an Application
Protocol. Therefore, the application can share with other
applications (and you know what you learned about sharing
in Kindergarten) and it can get the latest version of the
data instead of making do with a possibly outdated copy.

Two recent developments, one inside STEP and one outside,
make a client server database practical:

1. EXPRESS-X. This language allows the user to write 
   query views to specify the data that an application
   needs. For example, a query to find the data in an
   AP-224 file that defines a round hole feature.

2. Document Object Model Libraries. Unlike the SDAI, the
   DOM lets an application define set and put methods
   in "lazy" fashion meaning they can be added to the library
   as they become necessary. For example, if an application
   wants to display the tolerance of the diameter of a round
   hole a method can be added to the DOM when the new value
   becomes necessary.

The DOM is a tool developed by the XML community and is
included at no extra cost in most operating systems. The
Containment Early Binding for XML has been designed to work
with both EXPRESS-X and the DOM to enable STEP queries and
data updates. The key to this integration is a status attribute
on each XML element that describes what this item represents
in the database.

1. ceb:status = "Read Only"
   This status indicates that the XML element represents a computed
   value in the STEP database. For example, the value of a derived
   attribute or a value computed by an EXPRESS-X view

2. ceb:status = "Read Write" (default)
   This status indicates that the XML element represents a database
   value that can be updated. For example, the value of an instance
   belonging to the AIM of an Application Protocol.

3. ceb:status = "Update"
   This status indicates that the XML element has been updated by an
   application and that the corresponding instance in the database
   is to be updated at the end of the transaction.

4. ceb:status = "New"
   This status indicates that the XML element has been added to the
   XML file by the application and is to be added to the database
   and given an ID at the end of the transaction.

5. ceb:status = "Binding"
   This status indicates that the XML element is a binding to an 
   EXPRESS-X view. The database will compute the value of this
   view and substitute the result of the computation for this
   element.

6. ceb:status = "Truncated"
   This status indicates that the XML element is a truncated value
   containing the ID of an entity instance only. A full copy of
   the instance is elsewhere in the database or XML file.


-------------------
Translation Service - Two more weeks to 10,000 translations!

Summary:
Period Covered: Sun Jul 30 03:25:02 2000 -- Sun Aug  6 03:25:02 2000
Total usage: 63
Successful usage: 57 (90%)
Errors: 6 (9%)


Translator			total	errors success rate

ACIS to STEP:		21	0	100%
STEP to ACIS:		11	2	81%
AP203 Checker:		11	0	100%
Parasolid to STEP:	2	0	100%
STEP to Parasolid:	11	2	81%
STEP to XML:		3	2	33%
Visualization Service:	1	0	100%

=======================================
All-Time stats

------------------------------------
Summary:
Period Covered: Wed Dec 31 19:00:00 1969 -- Sun Aug  6 03:25:35 2000
Total usage: 9880
Successful usage: 8700 (88%)
Errors: 1180 (11%)


Translator			total	errors success rate

ACIS to STEP:		2267	55	97%
STEP to ACIS:		3206	242	92%
STEP to XML:		87	18	79%
AP203 Checker:		637	48	92%
EXPRESS Checker:		11	1	90%
Parasolid to STEP:	366	120	67%
STEP to Parasolid:	437	126	71%
STEP to XML:		366	30	91%
Visualization tools:	492	134	72%
Visualization Service:	100	14	86%
XML to STEP:		91	21	76%


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