Linux, Git and MetaEdit+: how three Finns brought versioning, models and code together

MetaCase launches MetaEdit+ 5.5 for Linux bringing collaboratively created models to Git and other version control systems. The new release is available for trial, and there is an online walkthrough on combining models with code and version control.

MetaEdit+ is aimed at expert developers looking to gain productivity and quality by generating tight code directly from domain-specific models. First, experts define the modeling languages and generators in a few days, then others can create models and automatically get expert-specified code. The generated code can be freely combined with hand-crafted code, versioned either separately or together.

MetaEdit+ 5.5 for Linux brings the benefits of version control to models, without ever requiring a merge or locking users out. Users work on a consistent, up-to-date view of the models, and can commit a set of changes to make it available to others. They can see what changes they have made, viewing them graphically, textually or as a tree, and can comment and name these as a version. The versions can be automatically stored in any major version control system: a local Git repository, GitHub, Bitbucket, personal / team / hosted SVN etc. Users can inspect and compare versions to see other users’ changes or older states, both within MetaEdit+ or using the version control system’s own functions.

"Our new Smart Model Versioning makes collaborating and versioning easy for all working with models, bringing them in line with code. Changes are viewed in the same format as the models themselves, or as text or trees. Integration of different users’ changes is fully automatic: no merging of XML files, and no users are locked out. Bringing models to Git or SVN is now painless and easy for the whole team," says Dr. Juha-Pekka Tolvanen, CEO of MetaCase.

MetaEdit+ 5.5 provides support for the latest Linux kernels and IDEs. Users get unparalleled model scalability, enhanced modeling editors, project-specific access rights for models, and an extended API providing over 30 new integration functions. Low-ceremony IDE integration is provided with a free, open source plug-in for Eclipse. Full script source code for the integration with Git and SVN is provided, so users can modify it to match local needs and practices.

MetaEdit+ is available to download for evaluation at www.metacase.com/download with full manuals, tutorials and examples.