Cradle 6.3 is now available

3SL are happy to announce that Cradle 6.3 is now available from the 3SL website.

There are 20 new features and enhancements:

Cradle-PDM (Product Data Management)

1. A Cradle/Acrobat PDF link utility has been added to this release. This utility allows you to link a Cradle database to a specific area in a specific page in a PDF file. This utility uses DDE to control Adobe Acrobat and Adobe Reader using a pathname, page number, zoom level, x and y coordinates that are held in a binary frame.
2. A Cradle/Visio link utility has been added to this release. This utility allows you to link a Cradle database to a specific symbol in a Visio document. This utility uses a pathname, page number, and ID that are held in a binary frame. It also searches for a symbol in a document if the page number has not been specified.
3. A third utility has been added (Cradle Capture Utility) which allows a Cradle database to be populated with placeholder items for some or all of the symbols or groups on a Visio diagram. Each of these placeholder items contain the external reference data to be able to reference that symbol or group from within Cradle using the c_visiolink utility.
4. Projects can now be created on any machine providing you have access to the Cradle Database Server (CDS). The CDS may or may not be running when you create a new project locally but if you are creating a project remotely the CDS must be running.
5. Binary frames have now been extended to store up to 6 data items which are available as $DATA1 to $DATA6 Command Directives. These additional data items allow you to reference parts of external information, specifically to reference regions of pages in PDF files and to reference symbols in Visio drawings.
6. System note types, frame names, usernames and passwords can now have a name of up to 40 characters
7. The size of basic item type names has increased to 255. This does not include data definitions.
8. The Toolsuite installer has been improved to help users with mixed Microsoft Office environments.
9. You can no longer renumber PROJECT-owned items.
10. The Teamwork Converter has been improved to attempt to preserve the position of connector labels when converting diagrams.
11. A new Alerts section has been added to Project Setup. Most of this information has been moved from the Miscellaneous section. As well as this a new Alerts… button has been added to the Item Definitions section for Item Types. From here you can choose when item alerts are to be sent, e.g. when items are created, modified, deleted, recovered, etc
12. An error message will now be shown when attempting to create a project via a local CDS on a mapped network share on Windows. The path must be supplied in UNC format. When attempting to create a project remotely on a mapped network share a warning message will appear notifying the user to confirm project creation.
13. Frame types for OpenOffice components have been added to the default schema and the DEMO project. A $OOFFICE Command Directive has also been added which can be used to view/edit OpenOffice frames.
    
    Cradle-GATE (Gateway)
14. This is a new module as of Cradle-6.3. It provides a traceability management interface between Cradle and a wide variety of third party tools. The Cradle Gateway allows data in these sources to be cross referenced to any items in a Cradle Database, and, in effect, allows Cradle data to be linked into any number of data sources held in any number of files or databases for these other tools.
    
    Cradle-WEBA (Web Access)
15. Annotations have now been removed from Web Access and replaced with a new discussions mechanism. This new mechanism allows comments to be added to items. The hierarchy of comments is called a discussion. This new mechanism allows users to propose changes to information, discuss these changes and reach a decision about each change. Please note that any existing annotations in a Cradle Database are now interpreted as individual discussions whose subject is a summary of the discussions content. The decision will be set to Open. A new Discussions tab has also been added to the Query dialog so you can search the database based on discussions.
    
    Cradle-WRK (WorkBench)
16. You can now print the top-level row numbers when publishing a table. There is also an equivalent command line option for c_table (-rownums).
17. When displaying a query in Document style the heading fonts also apply to any linked items in any nested views. This only applies when the identity (number, key or hierarchical attribute) appear in the first column of the view.
    
18. Annotations have now been removed from WorkBench and replaced with a new discussions mechanism. This new mechanism allows comments to be added to items. The hierarchy of comments is called a discussion. This new mechanism allows users to propose changes to information, discuss these changes and reach a decision about each change. Please note that any existing annotations in a Cradle Database are now interpreted as individual discussions whose subject is a summary of the discussions content. The decision will be set to Open. A new Discussions tab has also been added to the Query dialog so you can search the database based on discussions.
    
19. A new type of report has been added, Baseline Comparison. This lets you choose a named baseline and then produces a report showing what has changed in the baseline compared to previous baselines.
    
20. When a reference frame is displayed the identity that is stored inside the frame is displayed instead of .

For more information, visit www.threesl.com and download the release notes

Visit www.threesl.com today to download Cradle 6.3

Friday Round Up

We are very busy here at 3SL developing the next updates and features. For my part I am developing an online training module for the website that will allow people who attend training courses to access the training material online for a period of time after the course.

This is step one in developing a bespoke full CBT module for the www.threesl.com website.

Friday round up

Friday again and the news this week is that we have had a very successful release of Cradle-6.2 this week.

The news of which is being picked up around the world and it is meeting with the approval of evaluators.

We have several companies renewing their maintenance agreements with us again and who have been happy users of Cradle for more than 10 years.

In upcoming news, a new feature to be added to the website soon is the online Cradle Computer Based Training Courses. In addition to this there will be a new Official Cradle Certification test which can be taken online and comprises a multiple choice section and a set of exercises to be completed and an export file produced which we analyse.

Email us for more information on becoming an Officially Certified Cradle Engineer.

PRESS RELEASE

PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION:

Mark Walker

3SL
1.256.971.9500
mark.walker@threesl.com

3SL® Inc. Releases Cradle®-6.2 Requirements Management and Systems Engineering Software

New Version Supports XML and RIF 1.1a; Adding Document Import Functions and New Licensing Options

HUNTSVILLE, Ala., March 2nd 2010 – 3SL, a developer of innovative systems engineering products, today announced the release of Cradle-6.2. Cradle-6.2 implements the first of many planned steps to ensure interoperability, supporting both current and up and coming data formats. The newly added support for XML and RIF 1.1a highlights this commitment. XML allows for consistent and predictable mapping of data between Cradle and other data sources, while RIF 1.1a builds on the XML functionality, extending Cradle data schema to match the Requirements Interchange Format heavily used in European auto manufacturing.

Cradle software has long supported the import and publication of data from Microsoft® Word documents, breaking down large documents into individual, workable requirements within Cradle projects and publishing reports such as formal specification documents. Cradle-6.2 allows for the import of documents in segments versus the previous method of ingesting the entire document at once. This allows for sections of a document to be imported at a time when the data is relevant and as different item types without having to manually assign each change in item type across what is in many cases a multi-hundred page document. This support in Cradle-6.2 dramatically increases the efficiency and accuracy of data imports for a project.

3SL historically offered only a cost effective method of licensing based on concurrent users; permitting a larger collection of users to access the software throughout the day and across projects. Taking cues from customers, 3SL has added a named user licensing option which offers less expensive licenses tied to a particular user. The combination of concurrent and named user licenses presents 3SL customers with one of the most flexible and cost effective solutions for requirement management and systems engineering tool suites.

About 3SL
3SL is an acclaimed developer of leading-edge systems engineering processes and products. Most notably Cradle software, an evolutionary approach to formulating and executing a systems engineering environment. 3SL is headquartered in Huntsville, AL. For more information, visit www.threesl.com.

# # #

3SL and the 3SL Logo are registered trademarks of Structured Software Systems Limited and used with permission by 3SL Inc. Other brands are trademarks of their respective owners.

© Copyright 2010, 3SL Inc.

3SL is proud to announce the official release of Cradle-6.2

All the staff at 3SL and 3SL inc. and our global distributors and partners are proud to announce the official release of Cradle-6.2

New Version Supports XML and RIF 1.1a; Adding Document Import Functions and New Licensing Options

This release, 'Cradle-6.2' is a major release of the Cradle environment. It provides many enhancements and bug fixes.

Cradle-6.2 can be run in any mixture of Windows® and UNIX/Linux® environments:

• PCs and servers running Windows 2000, XP, Vista and 2003 and 2008 servers
• Workstations and servers running UNIX:
• HP-UX® 11 or later for PA-RISC processor
• AIX® version 5.1 or later for the PowerPC processor
• Solaris® version 2.8 or later for the Sparc processor
• Any Linux with a version 2.4 or later kernel, such as RedHat Enterprise 3, SuSE 10 etc.
  

Any part of Cradle can run on any platform. You can mix platforms. You can move data from UNIX to Windows and vice versa without restriction simply by copying it; the format of all Cradle data, including Project Databases (PDBs), are identical on UNIX and Windows systems.

A total of 55 new enhancements are provided by the Cradle-6.2 release. They are listed in the release notes for this release and include:

• PDM enhancements to the Configuration Management System
• Improvements to the Project Setup interface
• Improvements to Frame Types
• Improvements to HID (Hierarchy Diagram) generation
• Improvements to printing
• Improvements to licensing with the addition of named user licensing
• Improvements to integrity checking
• Improvements to Document Loader's importing capabilities with the addition of the ability to import .docx files
• Improvements to the Document Loader capability allowing multiple captures
  
• Improvements to the support for XML import/export.
• Improvements to the Cradle SYS (Systems Modelling) display modes
• Improvements to the display allowing auto panning in diagrams when selecting, pasting or resising diagrams
• Improvement in the ability to convert Structure Charts to Data Flow Diagrams.
• Improvements in the Cradle Perf (Performance Modelling) module
• Improvements to the Document Generation module
  
• Improvements to the in the Document Publisher tool that allows save templates and publish documents in the .docx format
  
• Improvements in the WEBA Web Access module allowing the support of Frame Picklists
• Improvements in the Custom UI for WEBA
• Numerous improvements in the WorkBench tool

And much much more besides.

Cradle-6.2 is a major improvement in the ability to manage and control your requirements management and systems engineering projects.

Ask for an evaluation of Cradle-6.2 or book a Webinar.

We are now formal on the Kratos/ Madison Research AMCOM EXPRESS contract.

3SL is now able to bid on service task orders for AMCOM. On the Kratos and Stanley contracts we can bid any service position they have on their GSA schedules. With AMS we can use our GSA schedule.

Friday round up.

Welcome to the Friday round up.

This week I have added a function to the website to allow our customers create and print a genuine Cradle Licence Certificate.

To do this, log-in to the 3SL Website as a registered user. When logged in, got to Support and on the navigation menu on the left of the page select the 'Cradle Security Certificate' menu item.

On the next page you enter your Cradle Licence Code in the text box and then click the 'Create My Certificate' button.

Cradle Gateway

The Cradle Gateway will allow data in these sources to be cross referenced to any items in a Cradle database, and, in effect, will allow Cradle data to be linked into any number of data sources held in any number of files or databases for these other tools.

We have had some expressions of interest from some customers about this facility. We are interested to collate a list of organisations who can allocate engineering time during January 2010 to be a Beta tester of this new module. This will mean that you will receive a Beta test copy of Cradle-6.2 including the Cradle Gateway and you will be asked to exercise the Cradle Gateway in relation to one or more of the above tools.

We will be particularly interested to receive expressions of interest from organisations who currently use one or more of DOORS, RequisitePro, Rhapsody, Artisan or Quality Center.

If you are interested in being a Beta tester for Cradle Gateway, please send us an e-mail by clicking here.

Contact Us Live

3SL are proud to announce that we now offer a new service to our customers and evaluators and other registered visitors to our website.

We now have staff standing by to answer your queries live via the website with Contact Us Live, powered by NTR Support.

We are dedicated to providing the best and most timely assistance possible and we are sure that this new service will help us to serve you better.

Simply login to the 3SL website and click on the Online Help icon at the bottom of the home page menu.

This will open a chat console, where our staff are waiting to look after you.

Friday round up

Welcome to the Friday round up.

We start this week's round up with an appeal for the Victims of the earthquake in Haiti. The scale of the disaster is said by some to be on a par with the December 2004 Tsunami. Please give all you can to help alleviate the suffering.

Links:
https://www.ircuk.org/haitiappeal
http://www.redcross.org.uk/
http://www.unicef.org.uk/

A google list of other Haiti appeals you may wish to donate to

On to matters Cradle...

3SL is pleased to announce that our next Cradle release, Cradle-6.2, will support XML.

• We have adopted an open and extensible approach to Cradle’s XML support. Specifically:
• We will publish a schema for the exchange of model-based systems engineering data
• We will support emerging XML schemas in our domain, particularly RIF
• We will support XSLT-based transformations of XML data into the 3SL schema

The combination of these capabilities will mean that:

• Cradle directly supports RIF
• Cradle directly supports the 3SL schema for full model-based systems engineering
• Cradle XML data can be transformed into other any other data representation, including other documents based on other XML schemas, using the transformation utilities that we will provide.
• XML data in other schemas from other applications, databases and tools can be transformed into schemas that Cradle can import directly, including 3SL’s schema for full model-based systems engineering data and RIF for the requirements-related subset of systems engineering data

We will continue to develop and extend these capabilities in future Cradle releases.

These initial capabilities, and their future developments, are a substantial increase in the data exchange facilities between Cradle and other tools and databases. Together with our involvement in the open standards community, this demonstrates 3SL’s long term commitment to vendor-neutral data exchange and storage mechanisms.

3SL was the first tool vendor to support AP233. Now, we are the first vendor to support not only a specific XML schema based format, but to also provide mechanisms that you, the end user, can control to move data in any XML based format into Cradle and to get data out from Cradle into any format.

Cradle Gateway

The Cradle Gateway will allow data in these sources to be cross referenced to any items in a Cradle database, and, in effect, will allow Cradle data to be linked into any number of data sources held in any number of files or databases for these other tools.

We have had some expressions of interest from some customers about this facility. We are interested to collate a list of organisations who can allocate engineering time during January 2010 to be a Beta tester of this new module. This will mean that you will receive a Beta test copy of Cradle-6.2 including the Cradle Gateway and you will be asked to exercise the Cradle Gateway in relation to one or more of the above tools.

We will be particularly interested to receive expressions of interest from organisations who currently use one or more of DOORS, RequisitePro, Rhapsody, Artisan or Quality Center.

If you are interested in being a Beta tester for Cradle Gateway, please send us an e-mail by clicking here.

Contact Us Live

3SL 'Contact Us Live' will be available soon. Testing of the new system is progressing well and we are finalising the internal systems we will be implementing to offer the best level of service and support to our customers and evaluators.

For more information on our requirements management tools and systems engineering tools be sure to visit www.threesl.com

Friday round up

The 3SL January newsletter is now available. It is a bumper issue with lots of useful information related to Item Hierarchies and importing and exporting data from Cradle.

We welcome a new distributor in Canada. They can be contacted by clicking here and clicking on Canada.

The Cradle Gateway will allow data in these sources to be cross referenced to any items in a Cradle database, and, in effect, will allow Cradle data to be linked into any number of data sources held in any number of files or databases for these other tools.

We have had some expressions of interest from some customers about this facility. We are interested to collate a list of organisations who can allocate engineering time during January 2010 to be a Beta tester of this new module. This will mean that you will receive a Beta test copy of Cradle-6.2 including the Cradle Gateway and you will be asked to exercise the Cradle Gateway in relation to one or more of the tools listed in the latest January newsletter.

We will be particularly interested to receive expressions of interest from organisations who currently use one or more of DOORS, RequisitePro, Rhapsody, Artisan or Quality Center.

If you are interested in being a Beta tester for Cradle Gateway, please send us an e-mail by clicking here.

We are looking forward to launching our new live support soon, so watch our website for that.

For requirements management tools and systems engineering tools, with strong requirements traceability, Choose Cradle-6 from 3SL.