Working with the model builder

Create and set models using drag and drop in the canvas view (visual interface) or using the model list view (table view).

The data model icon is located as shown in the example below on the builder bar. You can work with either a:

Visual overview (model canvas view)
Table overview (models list view).

How you navigate to work with models is explained in the following:

The data model quick menu (A) tab is displayed as shown above.

When you open the data model for an application for the first time, the role and user model (B) are already displayed in the quick menu tab. These models define your access to the application you are building. These models are also used as the basis for user access with roles and permissions to your live application.

Once you have created additional models, these are also listed in the quick menu display.

As the list expands to reflect your application, you can use the Search model field to quickly navigate to a model that you want to view or update.

You can work with different views of the data model by clicking on the buttons (C):

The Model canvas view button to open the visual schematic view of your data model.
The Models list view button to open a table list view of the models in your application data model.

Click on the New model (D) button to open the Create new model window.

Tip!

The role and user models set up general access to the Betty Blocks platform. These models provide your access and should not be altered or deleted.

Canvas view

The canvas view provides a visual overview of the individual models in a data model. The initial view contains the default role and user models that provide the basis for working with an application.

The following explains some of the navigation features available when you work with the canvas view:

A. The canvas view button is shown as active to indicate that it is the current active view.

B. You can navigate to the data model list view by selecting the models overview button.

C. You can add new models to your data model by selecting the New model button.

D. View your models. Click on a property to view the property details.

E. View the relations between your models. The ending of your relation line, showcases the type of relation to the other model.

When you work in the models canvas view, you can use the mouse point to move around the canvas.

When you press right-click, the mouse pointer hand changes to the grab hand icon and you can then move the canvas as required to bring specific models into focus.

Model list view

The data model list view shows all the models within your data model in alphabetical order. When you first open the data model, the role and user model are shown in the list.

You can use the buttons to navigate between the different views of the data model - the list view and the canvas (visual) view. As shown, the model list (A) view is the currently active button. You can click the Model canvas button to navigate to the canvas (visual) view.

The NAME column (B) displays the unique name for each model in alphabetical order. Click on the arrow buttons to sort the list in ascending/descending order.

Tip! Use the arrow keys to filter the information in a column in Ascending/Descending order as required.

The description (C) column contains any additional information that has been added to support explaining the purpose of the individual model.

Remote models (D) allow you to integrate external data, enriching your application with additional content from various remote sources.

To use remote models, you need to have the data source created or installed in your application via the Block Store as data source blocks.

Some models can be a settings model, for more about settings models click here.

Note: Sandboxes are copies of an application in which you can make and test changes and features before moving (merging) to your live application.