Chapter 4 Working with Arena

1
Chapter 4Working with Arena
2
What Well Do ...

• User interface
• Menus (including Running)
• Toolbars
• Help
• Model windows
• Drawing
• Printing
• Running
• Building the simple processing model

3
Basic Interaction

• True Windows 95/NT application
• Usual behavior of mouse, keyboard, selecting,
  dragging, resizing, menus, buttons, folder tabs
• Usual window operations resize, reposition,
  layer, maximize, minimize, close
• Usual file operations
• New, Open, Save, Save As, Print, Print Preview
• Cut/Copy/Paste
• Within an Arena window
• Between Arena windows
• Between Arena, other apps (when sensible)

4
Basic Interaction (contd.)

• Miscellaneous
• Object-oriented select an object, then act on
  it
• Undo/Redo
• Right (secondary) mouse button
• Repeat last action
• Bail out of current action
• Drawing hold Shift to constrain lines to 450,
  rectangles to squares, ellipses to circles, etc.
• Cycle among open Arena windows CtrlTab
• Duplicate selection CtrlD then move it, edit
  it

5
Menus

• File, Edit, View, Tools, Arrange, Module, Run,
  Window, Help
• If no model window open just File, View, Tools,
  Help
• Standard Windows operations in usual menus
• File menu has Open, Save, Save As, etc.
• Edit menu has Cut, Copy, Paste, etc.
• Help menu
• etc.
• So focus below on Arena-specific things in menus
• Many menu items have toolbar buttons too

6
File Menu

• New, Open..., Save, Save As...
• Import CAD DXF files for backdrop
• Color palette
• Print, Print Preview
• Send mail
• Attach .doe files
• Recent models
• Exit Arena

7
Edit Menu

• Undo/Redo
• Cut, Copy, Paste
• Paste Link (OLE link)
• Duplicate, Delete selected object
• Select All, Deselect All
• Find searches through all modules in current
  model for text string (for slobs who forget what
  names theyve chosen, or for poor typists)
• Links info, control links to other kinds of
  documents
• Insert, edit Objects from other applications

8
View Menu

• Zooming In (down), Out (up)
• Named views
• Pre-defined by Arena, you
• Go to defined views (hot keys better)
• Grid display, Snap, settings
• Layers what model objects show up in what mode
• Toolbars what button collections show up
• Status bar (check, uncheck) state, coords.

9
Tools Menu

• Separate applications related to Arena model
  building and analysis
• Input Analyzer
• Output Analyzer
• Scenario Manager
• License information
• Add-Ins installed
• Visual Basic Editor to write VBA code for model
  (see Chapter 10)
• Options control many aspects of how Arena
  works, looks

10
Arrange Menu

• For drawing objects
• Bring selected object to Front, Send it to Back
  for stacking effects
• Group, Ungroup objects
• Flip object around Vertical, Horizontal line
• Rotate object
• Snap selected object to Grid
• Change point on object that gets snapped

11
Module Menu

• Connection controls
• Connect tool
• Auto-Connect newly placed module to selected
  module toggle on/off
• Smart Connections new connections in
  horizontal/vertical segments rather than one
  diagonal segment toggle on/off

12
Module Menu (contd.)

• Template Panel
• Attach (easier to use Attach tab)
• Detach even if model has modules from it
• Show toggle for modules name on screen or just
  its animation picture
• Breakpoint attach to module to interrupt during
  run (for debugging)

13
Run Menu

• Entries to run, check, pause, step through
• Alternatives to watch execution, view results (or
  errors)
• Control how run goes and is displayed
• Most capabilities on Run or Run Interaction
  Toolbar, and will be described a bit later in
  detail

14
Window Menu

• Cascade, Tile multiple open model windows
• Arrange Icons for any minimized model windows
• Use system Background Color use Windows colors
  rather than Arena settings
• List of open model windows

15
Help Menu

• One of several ways to get into Help system
• Arena Help Topics TOC, Index, Find
• Using Help general info about Windows Help
  systems
• List of attached templates click to get Help on
  that one
• Introduction as at startup
• Tip of the Day
• About Arena version number, etc.

16
Toolbars

• Collections of buttons for frequent operations
• Most (not all) are duplication of menu entries
• Standard, View, Arrange, Draw, Color, Animate,
  Template, Run, Run Interaction, Integration
• View/Toolbars (or right-click in a toolbar area)
  to decide which ones show up, which to hide
• Toolbars can be torn off (floating palettes),
  or docked to an edge of screen
• Arena remembers your Toolbar configuration for
  next time

17
Help

• Extensive, comprehensive online system replaces
  traditional manuals
• Interlinked via hypertext for cross referencing
• Multiple entry points, including Help menu
• Welcome screen described in Chapt. 3
• button for context-sensitive help
• button in many dialogs
• button (Whats This?) for info on items
• Tool tips leave mouse motionless on something,
  get little yellow sticky note

18
Model Windows

• Where you build, edit, run a model
• Can have several open at once
• Really a window on the world (x, y)
  coordinates in world units
• Open existing models (default .doe extension)
• Create new (blank) model windows
• Save, Save As...
• Add modeling constructs click from template,
  drop into model

19
Drawing

• Draw via toolbar buttons only (no menus)
• Line, Polyline (hold Shift key for 450), Arc,
  Bezier Curve
• Box, Polygon, Ellipse (fill, line, shade)
• Text (font, size, style, color)
• Visible/Hidden setting show during animation?
• Change position, size, color
• By far best way to learn just play around

20
Printing

• Can print directly from Arena
• Supports color
• Big models many pages
• Also will print any Named Views separately
• Print Preview, select only what you want for
  printing
• PrintScreen key sends screen to clipboard,
  paste into another application
• AltPrintScreen sends only active window to
  clipboard

21
Running

• Run Menu Run Run Interaction Toolbars
• Go ( ) run simulation normally (depends on
  Options... selected from Tools menu)
• Step ( ) one step at a time (verify, debug)
• Fast-Forward ( ) disable animation (faster)
• Pause ( ) freeze run, resume with Go
• Start Over ( ) go back to beginning of
  simulation
• End ( ) get out of run mode

22
Running (contd.)

• Check Model ( ) like compiling
• Review Errors for most recent Check
• View Results Summary for most recent run
• SIMAN see, save underlying SIMAN .mod, .exp
  files generated from your Arena model
• Command ( ) bring up interactive
  command-line window to control run
• Break ( ) set times, conditions to
  interrupt for checks, illustration

23
Running (contd.)

• Trace ( ) generate detailed history
  (debugging)
• Watch ( ) bring up a window to watch a
  variable or expression during run
• Report ( ) see a numerical status when
  Paused
• Setup alter run conditions (animation on/off,
  full-screen during run animation)
• Speed control speed of animation display (lt and
  gt keys easier)

24
Building the Simple Processing Model

• Open a new model window
• Attach Common template (if not auto-attached
  check Tools/Options/Toolbars tab)
• Drop in Arrive, Server, Depart, Simulate, two
  Animate modules
• Double-click, edit modules as indicated in text
• Connect logic modules as required
• Dress up with drawing, text
• Run
• The Display notation used from here on
• Module handle/animation, completed dialog(s),
  table showing what to enter (omitting defaults)

25
Display for the Arrive Module
Enter Data Station In Door Arrival Data
Time Between EXPO(5.0) Mark Time
Attribute Time of Arrival Leave Data
Connect select
26
Display for the Server Module
Enter Data Station Machine Server Data
Process Time TRIA(1,4,8) Leave Data
Connect select
27
Display for the Depart Module
Enter Data Station Out Door Count
Individual Counter select
Counter Production Tally Individual Tally
select Tally Flowtime
Attribute Time of Arrival
28
Animate Module and PlotQueue Length
29
Animate Module and PlotNumber Busy
30
Display for the Simulate Module
Project Title Simple Processing
System Analyst Desdemona Rocketship
Replicate Length of Replication 15