Enterprise Architecture Practice 6 - How to do EA Impact Analysis in Casewise 3

- Meta Model Design:
1. Be familiar with Casewise Corpoate Modeler Suite through the Casewise online training of Draw Diagrams and Manage Models, and those Extensions & Models from Casewise website as well.
2. Out of the box POLDAT Object Types, Associations Types and Property Types, could not be deleted (This is the natural of Casewise), but could be rename (Casewise uses SCRPT_NAME handling behind the scene).
3. User Defined Object Types, some associated out of the box Property Types (i.e. Category, Description and etc) could not be deleted, but User Defined Property Types (i.e. Name_English, Description_English and etc) could be deleted.
4. Use out of the box or User Defined Association Types for the association, even hierarchy links used in the diagram (since hierarchy links only display on the digram, this is also why diagram also consider as a report).
5. Before creating an User Defined Object Type, always verify whether an existing Object Type with a User Defined Category could solve the problem as well. Taxonomic sense will be helpful.
6. Be familiar with Casewise Corporate Modeler Suite Report to feel Casewise dynamic one layer based, out of the box Reporting mechanism, which is a multi bi-dimensional information stems from a same Object Type.

Based on Casewise Corporate Modeler Suite dynamic one layer based, out of the box Reporting mechanism, and with more practice of this tools. Wondering somehow there should be a chain (To Be) existed somewhere ties all of those one layer based bi-dimensional information stems from a same Object Type together through (unlimited) indirect Association Types Chain and providing real multi-dimensional information for Impact Analysis.

Enterprise Architecture Practice 5 - How to do EA Impact Analysis in Casewise 2

- Impact Analysis Report Capabilities (To Be)
Every Casewise implementation intends to fit the organization's unique needs. With Casewise implementation, lots of User Defined Object Types, Association Types, Property Types and associated Objects are brought into Casewise model, even some other User Defined with the out of the box Object Types, Association Types, Property Types and associated Objects.
Casewise Corporate Modeler Suite Report handles those User Defined Association Types, User Defined Property Types for every Object Types dynamically at one layer base.
For instance, as the diagram below in Model (Casewise Framework Example), a Object Type (Applications) has Properties (i.e. General, Description and etc), Associations (i.e. Entities, Processes, Technologies and etc)

But as you can see, Casewise Corporate Modeler Suite Report only supports Object Type at one layer base, doesn't come out with next layer Object Type, next next layer Object Type, even next n layers Object Type through Association Types.
Is there a simplest best practice approach, which will have unlimited layers (indirect levels) limitation and do Enterprise Architecture Impact Analysis in Casewise in real time besides the currently Casewise Corporate Modeler Intelligence (2009.1) Reporting (which only supports a maximum of seven indirect levels for indirect associations and impact analysis)? If so, what will be a doable mechanism (an Intelligent Mathematics Model) behind this simplest best practice approach with unlimited layers (indirect levels) limitation and do Enterprise Architectur Impact Analysis in Casewise in real time?
This doable mechanism (an Intelligent Mathematics Model) 

• should be a real intelligent mechanism, which will handle User Defined Object Types, User Defined Association Types and Userd Define Property Types in one for all reporting pattern automatically. This is the first and the most key point to do Enterprise Architecture Impact Analysis in Casewise.
• should be able to build all possible Object Types chains via Association Types based on inputs (i.e. Model Name, Ascendant/Descendant, Start Object Type Name, End Object Type Name - optional).
• based upon the Object Type chains, should be able to build all of possible unlimited layers (indirect levels) Object Type associated Objects if one of Object associated with Start Object Type is given
• each of Objects should be able to include its own Properties (i.e. General, Description and etc), Associations (i.e. Entities, Processes, Technologies and etc) as Casewise Corporate Modeler Suite Report does.
• should also be able to flexible display report in specified language as well if bilingual (for instance, English, French) was implemented into Object Type.

Enterprise Architecture Practice 4 - How to do EA Impact Analysis in Casewise 1

- Physical database
What kind of Enterprise Architecture Impact Analysis are we expecting from Casewise? Is there an out of the box solution from Casewise ready to use for Impact Analysis? ...

Before answering these kind of questions, we'd better to understand some basic concepts of Casewise Corporate Suite.

Out of the box, Casewise has:

Object Types (i.e. Process, Organization, Location, Attribute, Domain, Entity, Application, Technology, etc)

Association Types between Source and Target Object Types (i.e. Source -> Target, Application -> Location, Organization -> Process, etc). Association Types are also part of Object Types.

Each of Object Type has its own Property Type (i.e. Id, Name, Category, Description, etc), and also might have multiple Objects.

After Casewise implementation, new Object Types (with associated Objects), new Association Types, new Properties (i.e, Single-line text, Multi-line text, Drop-down list, Check-box, etc), new Property Types for Out of the box Property Types, new Objects for Out of the box Object Types are defined, all of these are User Defined.

POLDAT is the abbreviation of Process, Organization, Location, Data, Application, Technology, which maps to Casewise Object Types: Process, Organization, Location, Attribute, Domain, Entity, Application and Technology.
In the hierarchy rule based diagram, Hierarchy Link only link 2 Objects on the diagram, doesn't provide any hierarchy associations from the database. But you could create an User Defined Association Type to enable this kind of associations (i.e. Used by, Using for) since Casewise's bi-dimensional associations feature dynamic make it possible.

Enterprise Architecture Practice 3 - Casewise Reporting Capabilities

In general, Reports often use persuasive elements, such as graphics, images, voice, or specialized vocabulary in order to persuade that specific audience to undertake an action.

What are the Casewise Reporting Capabilities?

1. Within Casewise Corporate Modeler Suite - Model Explorer, there are Reports associated with Object and  Administration. This Report mechanism provides a bi-dimensional associations between between Source Object Type and Target Object Type. 

For instance, Application (Source Object Type) could have lots of direct associations (Target Object Types, such as, Entities, Technologies, Process, Location and etc).

This Report mechanism results could save as a Microsoft Execl file. It's a very useful verification mechanism for the migration.

2. Based on the general Reporting definition, Diagrams also are reports.

3. Within Casewise Corporate Modeler Suite - Automodeler, Unload objects from a model as below could lead to File, Microsoft Word document, Microsoft Excel Spreadsheet and Microsoft Project. 

Note:

Automodeler has a command utility (called CWAM.exe), somebody might use this utility to export Excel file, batch parsing Excel file and delivery final Excel format reports. Actually this won't be a best practice, especially with indirect associations object types.

4. Casewise Corporate Modeler Intelligence came into market since October 2009, basically it autoloads (snapshots) from the live Casewise physical DB into a separated Casewise logical DB for reporting, Casewise CMI also provide a (SQL Server Reporting Services based) sample reports. The most impressive one is InDirectAssociationType for Impact Analysis, unfortunately which only has 7 layers (associations) limitation. During the autoloading, an extra Casewise CMI license is acquired. Even based on the Casewise logical DB (with more tables, extra views, functions, stored procedures), the customization for the reporting will still be required.

As an Enterprise Architecture Tools, Reporting capability become more and more crucial for Enterprise Architecture impact analysis.