A connectable is a special kind of symbol element that defines an outline around the symbol that the incoming role lines connect to. Normally connectables are not shown as part of the symbol in the editors, but in the Diagram Editor they are shown briefly during the relationship creation, marking the connection possibilities on the objects.

A connectable consists of two parts: a target point and an optional connectable outline. The target point is the position which the role lines connecting to the symbol aim towards. The target point is shown as a red circle with a cross hair. The connectable outline is displayed as a red polyline around the target point. Role lines stop where they intersect the connectable outline. If no connectable outline is defined, the role lines stop at the target point. Such point connectables are mostly used in Relationship symbols that only have text elements, as then all role lines meet in the middle of the relationship.

There are four ways to create connectables:

Firstly, as each object or relationship symbol must have exactly one default connectable, if there is none when a symbol is saved then one will be automatically added. If it is the only connectable, it will be a rectangle enclosing the whole symbol; if there are other connectables with ports, it will be a point connectable.

Secondly, often you will want a connectable to fit around a certain symbol element, more accurately than the default rectangle would e.g. around a circle. To do this select the element and choose Duplicate as | Connectable from its pop-up menu. This will create a connectable with an outline that fits around the selected symbol element.

Thirdly, to manually create a connectable with an outline:

Fourthly, to create a point connectable, i.e. a connectable without an outline:

Editing a connectable is also a little different from other symbol elements. To select a connectable, you have to click the left mouse button exactly on top of the target point. To move the target point and the outline, first make sure that the connectable is not selected, then press and hold down the left mouse button on top of the target point and drag the connectable to the new location. If you want to move only the target point, select the connectable first, then press and hold down the left mouse button on top of the target point and drag the target point into the new position. The target point moves, but the outline polyline remains in the original position. It is also possible to move or resize the connectable by changing the settings on the Position and Size tab in the Connectable’s Format Dialog.

For other editing purposes, Connectables follow the behavior of polyline elements. You can make a connectable open or closed by toggling the Closed menu item in its pop-up menu. To edit individual breakpoints of the outline polyline, select Edit Points from the pop-up menu. For more information about these commands, see Section 3.2.5.

The target point of the default connectable is used as the center of objects or relationships when positioning them in a Diagram Editor. For instance, when an object is aligned to a grid, the target point of the default connectable is placed on a grid point. Similarly, when a relationship is straightened, the target point of its connectable is placed at the intersection of its role lines.

On the Connectable tab (as shown in Figure 3–13) in the Format Dialog for Connectables, it is also possible to set two behavioral aspects of target points. The first one is the Sticky targetpoint setting, which controls what happens when the mouse cursor is brought on top of the connectable during the relationship creation in Symbol Editor.