Question

What is a Bookmark?

Answer

What is a Bookmark?

A bookmark is - just like it's real-world namesake - a means of putting a marker down for easy access.

In this case the bookmark covers an area of workspace, one that is usually carrying out a specific task, so a user can pick it out of a larger set of transformers and move to it with relative ease.

Why use Bookmarks?

Bookmarks play an important part of FME Best Practice, and this is for a number of reasons:

• For placing a marker for quick access to a certain part.
• For dividing up a workspace into different - clearly marked - sections.
• For organizing a workspace by moving about sections of transformers at a time.

Quick Access

Below: In this workspace a number of bookmarks are defined:



Below: All of the bookmarks are listed in the Navigator pane:



Below: A single click simply selects that particular bookmark in the Workbench canvas:



Below: A double click selects the bookmark and zooms into it:



This gives really quick access in very large workspaces.

Sectioning

A bookmark is a great way of marking out a particular section of workspace and being for a particular purpose. By subdividing a workspace like this the layout is often a lot easier to follow. Think of it as being like the chapter headings in a book!


Below: This workspace illustrates nicely how to mark up different sections:



Below: This workspace is far from large - but is a good example of color coding of bookmarks (all transformers are blue, readers/writers are yellow, etc):

Organization

Below: Notice how each bookmark has a little magnet icon in the top left corner:



Turning on the magnet icon makes the bookmark "sticky"; when you move it around all of the transformers inside happily follow about. This makes it a useful tool for organizing workspaces by dragging entire sections around the canvas until they are in a good layout.


Below: Here - by dragging the bookmark - the entire set of transformers has moved with it:

Creating Bookmarks

Below: To place a bookmark simply use the button on the FME Workbench toolbar:



Below: If you have a set of transformers pre-selected....



Below: ...then the new bookmark automatically encompasses the full extent of them:

Quick Tips

Below: Double-click a bookmark header to get options for renaming it and changing the colour:



Below: You can switch between filled bookmarks and outline bookmarks using a setting under Tools > Options:

The Real Reason to Use Bookmarks

If you are not convinced by the above, here's a couple of reasons to use bookmarks as part of Best Practice:

• Returning to a workspace:
  • Create a disorganized workspace. Leave it for 3 months. Come back to it. Can you still understand precisely how it works? No? Would bookmarks have helped?

• Someone Else's workspace:
  • Take a workspace someone else has created. How quickly can you decipher how it works? Would bookmarks help to clarify it? What if they left their job and you took over?! Would you want to take charge of someone else's mess?

Below: Not convinced? OK - what does this workspace do? I don't really know and I created it. It all made sense at the time, but now..... I can't even remember who I created it for or why!