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  Subject: Stylus Studio GUI Mapper compared to Biztalk
Author: Neal Walters
Date: 14 Mar 2005 11:29 AM
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We have decided to use Stylus Studio for all our Microsoft Biztalk(TM)
maps, because of the nice integration between the GUI and the XSLT
source code and the wonderful debugger.
Biztalk also has a utility called the "Biztalk Mapper"
that builds XSLT for you.
In Biztalk, you can view the XSLT generated, and you
add XSLT fragments, but you cannot directly edit the XSLT.
The Biztalk mapper allows for us to include an externally
built XSLT instead of using their mapper, and that's going
to be the XSLTs that we build in Stylus Studio.
Another feature we love is the ability to substitute from schema
for another and the links still work (as long as most of the
xml element/attribute names are the same).
However, Biztalk has a few features of their mapper grid
that you seem to be lacking:
1) The Biztalk grid is very large, with sort of a smaller view
window. Your grid is similar in that if I move the left or
right side of the grid, and I can have icons "off the page".
Yes, I see that you have a button called "Fit in Mapper Canvas",
but that usually creates a very cluttered hard to read GUI.
2) In Biztalk, as you move the cursor towards the boundaries of the
GUI map grid, the cursor changes into a large arrow, and if you
hold down the mouse button at this time, you can "pan" around
the larger grid (i.e. simply change the view window).
You can also right-click and see a small version of the entire
GUI, and then click on the area for which you want to zoom in.
3) Biztalk mapper allows you to create multiple pages or "tabs"
on the grid. You can right click in the grid, and select
"Add new page", then you see "page 1", "page 2" tabs at the bottom,
and you can rename the pages.
4) Biztalk has different icons for different functions.
They call them "functoids". In Stylus Studio, there is no GUI
indication of what a function does, you have to right-click
"go to source" to see the XSLT syntax.
I can let you see one of my Biztalk mapping training-videos
if it would help.
Is there any chance that you are planning any new features along
these lines?
Maybe our motto should be "real programmers" don't use the GUI,
but I still think it is nice.
Neal Walters
http://Biztalk-Training.com
http://XML-Online-Training.com
http://VBScript-Training.com
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