Release notes
Discover what’s new in Relatics in the release notes below.
Relatics 6.4 - Augustus 2024
Relatics is continually evolving, focussing not only on new features but also on optimizing existing features. We’re excited to announce the release of Relatics 6.4, which is packed with numerous new features and improvements.
GIS integration
Developed in collaboration with Esri we have released a dedicated application integration for ArcGIS. With just a few clicks you can now connect ArcGIS and Relatics. Once ArcGIS is integrated with Relatics you can relate externally managed GIS information with your SE elements.
This new integration enables you to view all your project’s GIS locations on a map directly from the Relatics overview page. By clicking on a specific location, you’ll be taken to its detail page, which also features a map viewer focused on that single location. As with all elements in Relatics, locations can be enriched with properties and linked to other project elements. Additionally, users can select locations directly from the map to create new relationships. Finally, ArcGIS users now receive a direct link for each location within ArcGIS, leading them straight to the corresponding Relatics detail page.
My to-do's
Today’s construction projects demand a lot from users, whether it’s writing or approving requirement texts, reviewing risk control measures, or simply completing tasks from meetings. With the new ‘My to-do’s’ feature, users no longer need to search and filter to find their assigned tasks. A new button in the overview page ribbon gives instant access to their personal to-do list, with a counter showing the exact number of remaining tasks. As to-do’s are completed and their status updated, they won’t be visible anymore in the overview, and the counter automatically adjusts to reflect the remaining workload.
Start page
Every workspace now includes a convenient built-in Start page that provides users with all kinds of useful information. The page features a project image, the project’s time zone, the number of users in the workspace and a list of the Power Users of the workspace with their contact details.
Additionally, the start page displays personalized tables showing recently visited elements and a list of to-do’s, enabling users to start their day quickly and efficiently.
Middle and Derived elements
Significant enhancements have been made to derived and middle elements to boost usability and efficiency.
Swapping origin and target
The middle elements overview page now lets users swap the origin and target element within the first two columns, allowing them to view the information from their preferred perspective. This eliminates the need for separate menu entries, keeping the menu clean and organized.
Improvements on grouping columns
We’ve introduced a filter option for middle and derived element groupings in tables. Users can now apply filters directly within the first two columns of such tables, allowing for more efficient and focused work by filtering on the specific information that matters most.
Additionally, you can now resize the grouping columns by dragging them to be wider or narrower.
Ghost rows
Ghost rows have been introduced to simplify the creation of new middle or derived elements, making your work faster and more efficient. Users can start entering properties directly into the ghost row, and Relatics will automatically create the new middle or derived element for you.
- Improvements have been made to the ‘Back in Time’ feature to ensure it functions properly when the SE model has been changed, to avoid misinterpretations. This means the feature might be unavailable if the SE model has changed significantly, or you may receive a warning indicating that the model has been altered compared to your current version.
- We’ve made enhancements to the copy-paste functionality based on user feedback. Relatics now better interprets pasted values and is more flexible with data validation, increasing the likelihood of successful copy-pasting. If a copy-paste action fails, you’ll receive a detailed error message indicating the row number and part of the text where the error occurred. Additionally, you can now create external relations between two external type elements.
- Entering dates in report parameter fields can now be done in the workspace date format. Previously, this only worked with the yyyy-mm-dd format. This change might affect reports that use dates in other formats (mm-dd-yyyy and dd-mm-yyyy) as they may no longer work.
- We have adjusted the History feature to emphasize live data more than deleted data.
- A new quality reminder called “Required for each relation of” has been added. This quality reminder informs users if there are origin-target relations for which no middle element exists. The previous setting of “Require origin-target relation” will be automatically migrated to the new “Required for each relation of” option.
- We’ve revised the functionality for choosing element icons in your workspace by adding a lot more systems engineering related tags. This enhancement makes it easier to find the right icon for your SE model.
- We upgraded the usability of the type menu organizer. You can now drag and drop items to arrange them in the desired order within the menu.
It is important to mention that you need to refresh the browser tabs in which your Relatics workspace is open after the update is rolled out, for all the new features to work properly.
Release webinar
See the latest features and improvements demonstrated in our What’s New release webinar. We show you the ArcGIS integration, the to-do’s, the Start page, and the improvements regarding middle and derived elements.
Relatics 6.3 - May 2024
Relatics 6.3 is now available, packed with exciting new features! Discover all the updates in the release notes below.
Type Graphview
This innovative feature provides users with a quick and visual overview of their type model, helping them understand the interdependencies between individual project disciplines. The Type graphview, accessible to all users, includes type icons and colors for easy recognition. Additionally, derived and middle elements, recursive relations, and multi-relations each have their own graphical representations for easy comprehension.
For Power Users, the Type graphview now serves as the primary interface for expanding or modifying the Systems Engineering model. They can easily reposition type elements by dragging them.
Hide/Show
This new feature allows users to hide specific type elements from the type list and use cases from the overview page. This helps users focus on the disciplines and overviews most relevant to them. As the project progresses or users’ information needs change, they can easily unhide the type elements and use cases.
Individual preferences are stored in the database, ensuring that hidden items remain hidden even when signing in from a different device.
Collapse/Expand
Users can now collapse and expand tables on detail views. This is particularly useful when a user wants to focus on a specific relation or task without being distracted by other information.
Collapsing tables on the detail view is less permanent than hiding type elements or use cases; in a new browser session or after signing in from a different device, all tables will be fully expanded again
No access
In addition to “Create & Delete,” “Edit,” and “View Only” roles, user roles now include a “No Access” setting. By applying this setting to specific parts of your Systems Engineering model, users assigned to this role will be unable to access the associated project information. This is particularly useful for protecting sensitive information from unauthorized access.
Choosing the “No Access” setting ensures that users with this role cannot access the restricted information, even indirectly through for example use cases, reports, the History view, or the Recycle bin.
Webinar
Did you miss our Release webinar with the May 2024 updates? You can catch up by watching it below or via this link.
In the webinar, we thoroughly discuss and demonstrate all the new features.
Relatics 6.2 - March 2024
Relatics 6.2 has been released, introducing a range of new features.
Back in Time
The new ‘Back in time’ feature enables users to view project data at any past moment, providing valuable insights into past situations. This feature also comes in handy for generating reports or publishing data to Excel based on specific historical moments.
‘Back in time’ is accessible on every overview table, including My View and Use Cases.
Compare
Just when you thought ‘Back in time’ was powerful, the new ‘Compare mode’ takes it a step further. With ‘Compare mode’, users can analyze differences in their dataset between two points in time. Using colors, you can quickly identify changes such as new, modified, or deleted requirements.
The feature allows users to compare historic data with either the current moment or another moment in the past, when combined with the ‘Back in time’ feature.
Single Sign-On
The ‘Single Sign-On’ feature allows users to access Relatics using their organization-provided Microsoft user account, improving ease of use by eliminating the need for separate credentials. Moreover, it enhances security as system administrators only need to deactivate a user account in one location when someone leaves the organization.
What makes this feature even more powerful is its ability to support a hybrid setup, allowing certain users to sign in with their Microsoft account while others can still use email and password (e.g., external users).
What's more
Besides these major new features, this update contains a variety of smaller new features and improvements:
- Help users understand the model by using notes
- Publish to Excel, now also for multi-cardinality relations
- The possibility to include or exclude Archived elements in reports
Webinar
Did you miss our Release webinar with the March 2024 updates? You can catch up by watching it below or via this link.
In the webinar, we thoroughly discuss and demonstrate all the new features.
Relatics 6.1 - December 2023
Relatics 6.1 is now officially available, containing all the showcased features from the Relatics Event held on November 14th.
Introduction of a new, third pane
We’ve introduced a new pane, besides the overview and detail pane. This innovative feature facilitates the swift creation of relationships between elements. Simply drag an element from the third pane and drop it onto a table in the detail pane or the overview pane.
In case the element you’re looking for doesn’t exist yet, you can use the pane as well to create it. No more switching between screens or browser tabs.
Similar to the overview and detail pane, users can personalize this pane as well by creating a ‘My view’, allowing them to make their own ‘smart’ selections.
Sections in the type element list
Want to organize the type elements in a more intuitive way? You can now create sections in the type element list.
Easily arrange type elements within these sections, tailoring their positioning and order to your preferences.
For easier navigation, users can simply collapse or expand sections.
Introduction of middle elements
It is now possible to add middle elements to your model. A middle element is a special type element that is distinguished by the fact that these elements are positioned between two elements as an exploited relation.
You can use middle elements for different purposes, a typical and very common one being verifications. Verifying requirements has never been easier!
Just like regular elements, middle elements can be enriched with their own properties and relations.
Tables containing middle elements are automatically grouped in the most intuitive way.
More icons and colors
You can now choose from a large variety of different icons (+1.800) and 15 different colors when choosing the type element settings.
Application integration
Do you want to make use of certain information that is managed in an application other than Relatics? Besides dedicated interfaces with for example document management systems like SharePoint, you can now also create generic interfaces.
Using Excel, XML or JSON, it’s a breeze to stay fully in sync with the third-party application.
Besides manual file upload, the generic interface also supports automated synchronization, making integration smooth and easy through the use of middleware.
Archiving elements
Not all elements need to be visible throughout the entire project. Consider completed actions or discarded requirements, for instance.
The ‘auto archive’ feature provides an elegant solution to hide such elements from the interface. This ensures traceability without cluttering overviews with irrelevant information.
Users can easily identify archived elements and restore them to their normal state if needed.
Relatics 6.0 - November 2023
Relatics 6.0 is now available, offering a variety of new features.
List property value color
As of this release, a Power User has the capability to assign distinct colors to individual values within a list property.
As you would expect, the designated color will be uniformly presented throughout the entire workspace wherever the property is visible. This enhancement contributes significantly to the overall intuitiveness of the user interface.
Element node selection
We’ve made it easier to differentiate between selecting property values and element nodes in a table.
When you select a property value, this is indicated by a highlighted cell border. On the other hand, when you select an element node, you’ll see a highlighted circle around the element icon.
This change makes it clearer for users to understand exactly what they’re selecting. It enhances the overall intuitiveness, especially when users need to copy and paste elements or property values.
Good to know
- Pressing and holding the Shift button enables you to select multiple elements or property values.
- Double-clicking on an element icon allows you to create either a new element or relation, depending on where you perform this action.
Help function
With the next release, a collection of useful ‘help’ articles is accessible to all users. These resources offer guidance to both regular and power users on maximizing the software’s capabilities.
To explore these articles, click on the question mark icon located in the top right corner and employ the search bar to find information about the features you’re interested in.
Export to Excel
As of now, you will have the capability to seamlessly export your table data to Excel.
This feature empowers you to incorporate information from a Relatics table directly into an email, for example, or to conduct standard spreadsheet operations in Excel, such as performing calculations or generating charts and pivot tables.
Role based user access
We are introducing a sophisticated form of role-based user access, designed to empower your team like never before.
Power Users will now have the capability to create and manage Roles within the workspace settings. Each role can be tailored with precise permissions, overseeing the creation and deletion of elements and relations, as well as property editing.
Additionally, you’ll have the flexibility to manage permissions from the ‘opposite end’ by accessing the Type element settings.
Tips:
- Align your Roles with the actual responsibilities within your project. This not only keeps the number of roles manageable but also ensures that most project members require just one role.
- Start simple for new projects: for projects with smaller teams, consider creating a single role with maximum permissions. This can be automatically assigned to new users, providing them with immediate access. As your team grows, you can then refine and specify additional roles.
- Define a “View Only” role: for external users like the project client, or as a default role for new users, consider creating a “View Only” role. This ensures that new users can’t make any edits until they receive a more permanent role.
