Links explorer

Edit online

The links explorer displays linked artifacts in a graphical diagram. Use the links explorer to view linked artifact information to create, delete, and explore linked artifacts, and to remove and modify links.

When you open the links explorer, the artifacts you selected are displayed at a display level of 1.
linked artifact example
To dynamically change the link level of the entire diagram, click the relations menu relations menu and from the Levels to expand list, select a different link level.
levels to expand
To dynamically expand the link level of a specific artifact, click the Expand links icon of the artifact:
expand link node
To dynamically collapse the link level of a specific artifact, click the Collapse links icon:
collapse link node
To view the details of a specific artifact, hover over the artifact; information is displayed in hover text. To edit an artifact, add a link, or delete an artifact, highlight the artifact, and click the respective artifact icon:
hoover text

Linking requirement artifacts

You can create link between requirement artifacts with other artifacts across Engineering Lifecycle Management applications by using the drag-and-drop and copy-and-paste methods. When you link requirement artifacts, OSLC link types are created between the applications.

You can drag the requirement artifact from the link explorer by using the drag handle that appears when you hover the artifact.
Drag and Drop_Link Explorer
You can also use these methods to link requirement artifacts to work items in IBM® Engineering Workflow Management or test artifacts in IBM Engineering Test Management.
You can drag the artifact into another tab or window that uses the same browser instance and drop the artifact into an editor or grid view. When you drop an artifact on the drop target, you can create links between the artifacts. You can select the link types from the Create Link dialog box and then click Create Links.
Create Link Dialog box

Similarly, you can drag work items from Engineering Workflow Management and test artifacts from Engineering Test Management onto the Link explorer to link the artifacts with requirements artifacts.

You can use the following keyboard shortcuts for the copy-and-paste feature everywhere drag and drop is available:
  • Copy Link: Ctrl+C (Windows) or Command+C (Mac)
  • Paste as link: Ctrl+Shift+V (Windows) or Command+Shift+V (Mac)
Other information display options
You can further change the information that is shown in the links explorer by clicking the following icons in the toolbar.
  • To change the layout type, click the Layout Type menu Layout Type menu item. You can choose from the layout types that are shown in the following table.
    Table 1. Links explorer layout types and examples
    Layout Type Example
    Basic basic graphic
    Walker walker graphic
    Radial radial
  • To change the artifact arrangement, click the Appearance menu Appearance menu item. You can choose from the appearance choices that are shown in the following table.
    Table 2. Links explorer appearance choices
    Appearance choice Description
    Portrait Display graphical artifacts in portrait style.
    Landscape Display graphical artifacts in landscape style.
    Paris Skyline Displays link lines as angular connections.
    Curvy Wires Displays link lines as curved connections.
    Enable Compact View Reduces the space that is used by artifacts.
    Enable Quick Create Mode Enables the quick creation of artifacts. When you enable this mode, you are prompted to select a default link type, artifact type, and directory. After making these selections, click the add link icon on the toolbar of the tree nodes to create a new blank artifact, which is represented through a tree node that is in edit mode.
  • To filter the diagram by link type, adjust the primary link levels that are displayed, or specify the link level for the entire diagram, click the Configure Link Display menu Configure Link Display menu item.

For more information, see Keyboard shortcuts.