<chapter label="5" id="special-objects-chapter">
<title>Special Objects</title>
 <sect1 id="special-objects">
 <title>Special Objects Introduction</title>
   <para>
     The previous discussion explained what a basic object is.  The next section
     goes a step further and teaches how to create objects, how to use pre-made
     objects which are more detailed than just shapes, and much more!
   </para>
 </sect1>
   <sect1 id="special-object-categories">
   <title>Special Object Categories</title>
     <para>
       Special objects are broken into different categories or sheets.  
       This way, someone creating a diagram of a circuit board is shown 
       only the objects which apply to them.  
       <application>Dia</application> supports numerous
       pre-defined categories.    

<!-- Please try to keep the list Alphabetically sorted.  -->
       
       <variablelist>
         <varlistentry>
           <term>Assorted</term>
           <listitem>
             <para>
               Assorted Geometric Shapes.  The purpose of this sheet is to 
	       provide a selection of simple and convenient preset shapes so 
	       that users need not create spend time creating their own basic 
	       shapes.  The set includes shapes with constrained ratio such as 
	       perfect Circles, Squares, various type of Triangle and Crosses.  
             </para>
           </listitem>
         </varlistentry>
         <varlistentry>
           <term>Chemical Engineering</term>
           <listitem>
             <para>
	       A collection of shapes for modelling the process of Chemical 
	       Engineering.  
             </para>
           </listitem>
         </varlistentry>
	 <varlistentry>
           <term>Chronogram</term>
           <listitem>
             <para>
               Uses objects to be used in a chronographic design.  
	       These are common place in time lines.
             </para>
           </listitem>
         </varlistentry>
         <varlistentry>
           <term>Circuit</term>
           <listitem>
             <para>
               A group for people interested in creating diagrams of electrical
               circuits.
             </para>
           </listitem>
         </varlistentry>
         <varlistentry>
           <term>Civil</term>
           <listitem>
             <para>
               Civil Engineering components.  
             </para>
           </listitem>
         </varlistentry>
	 <varlistentry>
           <term>Cybernetics</term>
           <listitem>
             <para>
               Shapes for creating diagrams of Cybernetic Circuits.  
             </para>
           </listitem>
         </varlistentry>
        <varlistentry>
           <term>Cisco</term>
           <listitem>
             <para>
               Cisco includes shapes representing equipment from Cisco a 
	       manufacturer of Computer Networking Equipement.  
	     </para>
           </listitem>
         </varlistentry>
	 <!-- TODO fully describe all four of the Cisco Sheets -->
         <varlistentry>
           <term>Ladder</term>
           <listitem>
             <para>
               Components for Ladder Circuits.  
             </para>
           </listitem>
         </varlistentry>
         <varlistentry>
           <term>ER</term>
           <listitem>
             <para>
               Editor for Entity Relations (ER) Diagrams. 
	       Entity Relationship diagrams are used to represent high level 
	       descriptions of conceptual models in terms of how each data 
	       entity relates to other data in the model.  
	       They are most commonly used to model the structure of data to 
	       be stored in a database.  
             </para>
           </listitem>
         </varlistentry>
         <varlistentry>
           <term>Function Structure, FS. </term>
           <listitem>
             <para>
               Editor for Function Structure (FS) Diagrams.  
	       Note that the Objects require the use of the 
	       <interface>context menu</interface>  
	       to access much of the funtionality of these objects.  
	       <!-- TODO this needs to be explained much more clearly
	       that it is the middle click context menu, unless the 
	       main menubar is turned on for each document window 
	       but this will be enough of a warning for now.  -->
             </para>
           </listitem>
         </varlistentry>
         <varlistentry>
           <term>Flowchart</term>
           <listitem>
             <para>
               A group dedicated to providing the user shapes which are
               commonly used in flow charts.  Flow charts can be routinely
               found in computer programming, marketing, economics, and any
               other semi-linear operation which requires planning.
             </para>
           </listitem>
         </varlistentry>
         <varlistentry>
           <term>GRAFCET</term>
           <listitem>
             <para>
               A chart which shows the step, the action, the transition, and
               the condition associated with the transition.  
               GRAFCET is a Sequential Function Chart created in 1975.  
	       The name comes from graph because the model had a graphic basis,
	       and from AFCET (Association française de cybernétique économique 
	       et technique) 
	       the scientific association which supported the work. 
	       <!-- still needs more work see 
	       http://www.lurpa.ens-cachan.fr/grafcet.html
	       -->
             </para>
           </listitem>
         </varlistentry>
         <varlistentry>
           <term>Istar</term>
           <listitem>
             <para>
               Istar is agent-oriented modelling framework.  
	       Istar is also written as i*.   
	     </para>
           </listitem>
         </varlistentry>
         <varlistentry>
           <term>Jackson</term>
           <listitem>
             <para>
	       Jackson Software Design (JSD) method Diagrams.  
	     </para>
           </listitem>
         </varlistentry>
         <varlistentry>
           <term>KAOS</term>
           <listitem>
             <para>
	       KAOS Diagrams.  
	       <!-- provide a help description that is actually helpful! -->
	     </para>
           </listitem>
         </varlistentry>

	 <varlistentry>
	 <term>Map 3D Isometric</term>
           <listitem>
             <para>
               Pseudo 3D isometic shapes for creating Directional Maps.  
	       Microsoft Visio calls these shapes Map, Directional Map 3D. 
	     </para>
           </listitem>
         </varlistentry>
	 <varlistentry>
	 <term>Misc. </term>
           <listitem>
             <para>
               Miscellaneous shapes that do not fit into any of the other 
	       groups.  Includes some Filesystem shapes and an animated clock 
	       object that updates in real time.   
	     </para>
           </listitem>
         </varlistentry>
	 <varlistentry>
	 <term>MSE</term>
           <listitem>
             <para>
	        Mobile Subscriber Equipment Components, 
		as used by the United States Army.  
	     </para>
           </listitem>
         </varlistentry>
	 <varlistentry>
           <term>Network</term>
           <listitem>
             <para>
               Used by network administrators to create a design of their
               network. 
             </para>
           </listitem>
         </varlistentry>
         <varlistentry>
           <term>Electric</term>
           <listitem>
             <para>
               Shows flow of electricity. 
             </para>
           </listitem>
         </varlistentry>
         <varlistentry>
           <term>Pneumatic/Hydraulic</term>
           <listitem>
             <para>
               Allows diagraming of a device which employes hydraulics.
             </para>
           </listitem>
         </varlistentry>
         <varlistentry>
           <term>SADT</term>
           <listitem>
             <para>
               Structured Analysis Design Technique.  
             </para>
           </listitem>
         </varlistentry>
	 <varlistentry>
           <term>SDL</term>
           <listitem>
             <para>
               Specification and Description Language (SDL)
	       SDL is used to describe the behaviour of interactive 
	       time based systems.  
               SDL was originally focused on telecommunication systems, but 
	       has also come to be used to describe process control and 
	       real-time applications in general.  
	     </para>
           </listitem>
         </varlistentry>
       </variablelist>
       <variablelist>
         <varlistentry>
           <term>Sybase</term>
           <listitem>
             <para>
               Designs diagrams display the flow of a Sybase computer
               network.
             </para>
           </listitem>
         </varlistentry>
         <varlistentry>
           <term>UML</term>
           <listitem>
             <para>
               Unified Modelling Language (UML).  
	       UML is a modelling and specification language commonly used to 
	       create diagrams showing the structure of object-oriented 
	       computer programming code, particularly for large scale 
	       projects.  
             </para>
           </listitem>
         </varlistentry>
       </variablelist>
     </para> 
 </sect1>
</chapter>                   
