General tips and tricks

This section contains general tips for using Business Integration Modeler.

Changing the number of panes

You can change the number of panes shown on the screen by clicking the buttons on the main toolbar.

Click the Apply 1-pane layout button to show only the diagram.
Click the Apply 2-pane layout button to show the diagram and the Attributes View.
Click the Apply 4-pane layout button to show all four panes.

Note: If you click one of these buttons, the pane that displays the views defaults to the Attributes View, the Control Panel, and the Error View. Any other views in the pane close.

Restoring the default layout of views

If you have accidentally closed a view such as the Attributes View or the Error View, or you have moved a view to a position you do not like, you can restore the views using the layout buttons.

To restore the default layout of views, click the 4-pane, 2-pane, or 1-pane layout button, depending on which layout you prefer. The buttons restore the views to the appropriate layout.

Maximizing a view or editor

You can maximize a view or editor by double-clicking on the view's title bar or the editor's tab. Double-click again to restore it to its previous size.

Quickly adding items to editor tables

Some editors contain tables that allow you to quickly add a row that contains default values.

To quickly add default values to a table in an editor, double-click a cell in an empty row. The editor fills the row with default values, which you can then modify.

Zooming for viewing timelines

When you are creating a timetable, you can view the recurring time intervals and exemption periods as a timeline in the Attributes View.
Screen capture of the Timeline view

To zoom in on the timeline, left-click anywhere in the view. To zoom out, right-click anywhere in the view.

Changing the language used by Business Integration Modeler

You can change the language that Business Integration Modeler uses in its user interface and messages. By default, the language displayed is the language that you selected when you installed the product.

To change the language, complete the following steps:

Restart Business Integration Modeler.
Click Show Details on the WebSphere Business Integration Modeler dialog box that appears when you start the product.
Select a language from the drop-down list.

Note: Business Integration Modeler maintains the values you provide in one language even if you change to another language. That is, if you are running Business Integration Modeler in French and you name a model element, the name remains in that language. If you switch to English, the model element's name remains French. However, you can edit the model element to translate its values if needed. Simulation profiles behave similarly in that they maintain the currency associated with the locale in which they were created.

Improving performance by changing the heap size

The heap is the amount of memory that the JVM running WebSphere^® Business Integration Modeler is allowed to use. It is recommended that you increase the heap size to its optimal size to prevent out of memory errors from occurring when you are working with large and complex models. However, if the heap size is too large, the system does not have enough physical memory and must start using virtual memory to hold the data that it is using. Virtual memory can also be used sooner than expected if you are running other memory intensive applications at the same time as Business Integration Modeler. Virtual memory is significantly slower than physical memory.

System memory (physical)	Optimal heap size
512 MB	256 MB
1 GB	512 MB
1. 5 GB	768 MB
2+ GB	1024 MB

The default size of the heap is 512 MB. Note that for systems with smaller amounts of physical memory, reducing the size of the heap to improve performance may cause out of memory errors.

To change the JVM's heap size, complete the following steps:

Click Start.
Select Programs > WebSphere Business Integration Modeler and then right-click WebSphere Business Integration Modeler.
Click Properties. The properties window for the shortcut appears.
Append the following to the command string in the Target field:
```
-vmargs -XmxM
```
where is the heap size in megabytes.
Click OK.

When you start Business Integration Modeler, its JVM uses the heap size you specified.

Getting help fast

You can press the F1 key to get context-sensitive help about fields, buttons, views, and check boxes.

Pressing F1 displays some help about the widget, and usually a list of links to related information. You can close the help box by clicking outside it or by pressing the Esc key.

If you want more information, click a link to the related information. This opens the Help browser to the selected topic. The list of related topics stays in the left frame, so you do not have to press F1 again if you are interested in other topics related to the same widget.

To see how the topic you have chosen fits into the Help system, click the Show in Table of Contents button on the toolbar. Clicking this button matches the Help table of contents up with the current topic.