General conventions

Before starting a model, especially when working on the same model with a team of people, it is useful to agree to a number of basic rules and conventions.

For example, specify choices for:

• Language to be used

  • Requirements - which language best guarantees the clarity of the requirements?

  • Data model - important because reports can be directly created on the database, for instance.

• Screen resolution

  • Thinkwise screens are constructed relatively and therefore always work, but they can be optimized for specific resolutions.

• Use of one subname group for all models

  • A subname group (list with used terms) is useful if there are different applications with the same topics. In that case, a company standard can be established. See also Subnames.

• Use of shortcuts for tasks, reports and filters

  • Use of Alt, Ctrl+Alt, Ctrl+Shift, etc. for standard tasks for copying, editing and removing, standard reports and common prefilters, for example, for statuses.

• Conditional layout

  • Standard color combinations, formatting across cell or row and font or background color

• Style

  • House style, color schemes and icon set[2] for tables, tasks, reports and prefilters