Colin Ricks
My feedback
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To be clear, changes to the parent can cascade to all child scenarios as long as the same data set is used.
To inheret changes where datasets are different would introduce complexity and room for error in model management.
This seems to be specifically a request for a new parent-child relationship among data sets which could exist parallel and independent of the scenario relationships. This way a child scenario could use a child dataset that varies at certain nodes, but still inherets changes from the parent as long as they're still matching - the same way that InfoWorks software handles scenarios. I see large benefits of this approach but it could certain confuse many modelers.
This is valuable feedback as we discuss model data management in the cloud. Thank you.
An error occurred while saving the comment An error occurred while saving the comment Colin Ricks
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The parent-child relationships in the Bentley "datasets" can easily get really complicated and confusing. As an experienced modeler, I prefer the simpler approach InfoWater currently uses, which I think strikes the right balance.
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6 votesColin Ricks
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An error occurred while saving the comment Colin Ricks
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Renaming selection sets would also be useful
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12 votesColin Ricks
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5 votes
Is there a specific external application you’re looking to export to?
An error occurred while saving the comment Colin Ricks
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Usually PowerBI or Excel. CSV format would probably be most flexible. I know there is an option to export results from a report table, but you have to manually export results for each element type. It would be nice to have InfoSurge do this automatically like InfoWater does.
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1 voteColin Ricks
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3 votesColin Ricks
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I recognize that there are lots of use cases and everyone likes to approach modeling a differently. I use Bentley WaterGEMS about as much as I use InfoWater, so I feel like I can provide some insight on my experience with the way this implmented in WG.
WaterCAD/GEMS has a parent-child relationship for datasets*, and can have records in a dataset that are inherited from the parent, or can be "local" (manual overide of parent data). Because you can have local data, it's hard to know what impact a change you make in one scenario will have on other scenarios that reference a parent dataset.
For example, if I have a parent and child pipe dataset, and I make a change to a diameter in a scenario which uses the child dataset, will that change also be made in the parent dataset (and consequently any scenarios that reference the parent)? If I update the parent, it doesn't update the local data, but how do I know what is local data, or if there is any local data at all? I can figure this out, but it takes time and effort, making it easy to introduce errors by making a change without checking the dataset relationships and local settings.
This is compounded when you also have parent-child relationships with scenarios. Not to mention, if I come back to a model after a few months, it's hard to remember how all those relationships will work and easy to introduce errors by making a change without diving into the dataset relationships.
So I find it's easier and faster to just have separate independent datasets and do the comparison/updates in Excel if I really need to, which is rare. It's also easier for less experienced modelers to understand this approach and harder for them to mess up the model.
Innovyze could certainly come up with a better implementation than Bentley that's easier to use and understand, but I'm just not sure how. Maybe the answer is to add this feature to IW, and some people will make use of it for specific use cases like Joe Lawrence described, and others will ignore it? However, I fear that the added complexity will make it easier to introduce errors to a model.
*Bentley refers to these as "alternatives", but I'll use the term "dataset" here.