Some of the new features of the ProjectWise Connector for Oracle V8 XM Edition include:
Time-Enabled Features
A new enhancement in the ProjectWise Connector for Oracle is the capability to register a table as a “time-enabled” feature. Oracle Workspace Manager allows tables to be version enabled with the time enable option. ProjectWise Connector for Oracle supports this capability, allowing organizations to keep track of editing history and make historical queries back in time; for example: “show me some aspect of a municipality in 2003.” Conversely, it is possible to perform editing now and have the edits reflected only in a future query, such as “show me that aspect of the city as it will be in 2010.”
Live Spatial Database Connection
Previous versions of the Oracle Connector operated solely in an extract, modify, post workflow. This approach is excellent for problems that require disconnected editing scenarios, but did not allow for version managed live editing of the Oracle Spatial database. In the V8 XM Edition, the ProjectWise Connector for Oracle has been enhanced, allowing live connection to the spatial database. This enhancement allows you to create an XFM DGN using ProjectWise that is dynamic rather than static, thus enabling the live database connection. This approach is highly advantageous because of the control it provides to administrators and users in database editing workflows.
Here’s how it works: When creating a new DGN document for extraction, the Extract Wizard allows you to specify either a Disconnected Spatial Database Connection Document or a Live Spatial Database Connection Document. Live Spatial Database Connection Documents can be opened from ProjectWise Explorer or Bentley Map. If opened in Bentley Map, a connection to Oracle is automatically established and editing can commence.
Pessimistic Locking Mode
In previous versions of the ProjectWise Connector for Oracle, only an optimistic approach to multi-user editing was supported. This approach is very flexible, however, and conflicts could arise. In some workflows, it is preferable to lock features in the database while work is being performed. This is what in the V8 XM Edition is called the pessimistic locking mode. This approach prevents conflicts from occurring by allowing only one user at a time to edit the data for a given extent.
Oracle Topology Model Support
Beginning with version 10g, Oracle introduced a persistent topology model as part of commercial relational database. Persistent topology has numerous advantages, including very fast spatial operations and shared editing of the topology. With a persistent topology model, editing tools can maintain the topological relationships which are shared among different features. For example, it becomes very simple for an application to move the shared corner of two lots and have the two properties updated accordingly.
Bentley also supports persistent topology inside XFM DGN files, making it easy to enable fully connected and disconnected workflows. For disconnected workflows, ProjectWise Connector for Oracle will extract topology into the XFM DGN for editing. For live viewing and editing, the Live Spatial Database Connection approach is used.
Data Loading Utility (DGN2SDO)
This new utility was developed to enable easy migration from file-based MicroStation Geographics projects to Oracle Spatial or to facilitate quick loading of any information into Oracle. Using command parameters, the DGN2SDO utility allows conversion of existing DGNs, XFM DGNs, or MicroStation GeoGraphics legacy project in sets of scripts compatible with the SQL Loader application provided by Oracle. These scripts are simple text files and allow for creation and population of geometry and topology tables in Oracle. The workflow is simplified by the automatic creation of a batch file that can then run to automatically create the right table structure, Oracle Spatial metadata, spatial indexes, and foreign key constraints. The DGN2SDO utility is distributed as part of Geospatial Extension to MicroStation and Bentley Map.