Skipper (computer software)

Skipper (former ORM Designer)

Developer(s)| Inventic, s.r.o.
Initial release| December 2009
Operating system| Cross-platform[1]
Available in| English, Czech
Type| Visualization software
License| Proprietary software
Website| www.skipper18.com

Skipper is a visualization tool and code/schema generator for PHP ORM frameworks like Doctrine2, Doctrine, Propel, and CakePHP, which are used to create database abstraction layer.[2][3][4][5] Skipper is developed by Czech company Inventic, s.r.o. based in Brno,[2] and was known as ORM Designer prior to rebranding in 2014.[6]

## Overview

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* Generates visual model from the schema definition files[2][3][4]
* Repetitive import/export of schema definitions in supported formats (XML, YML, PHP annotations)[2][3][4]
* Schema definition files are automatically generated from the visual model[2][3][4]
* Visual representation uses ER diagram extended by concepts of inheritance and many-to-many[2][3][4]
* Supports customization using .xml configuration files and JavaScript[2][7][8]
* Does not support direct connections to the database[9]
* Crude and simplistic visual representation and menus[10]

## Architecture

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Skipper was built on the Qt framework. Import/export of the schema definitions uses XSL transformations powered by LibXslt library. Imported source files are first converted to XML format: no conversion for XML, simple conversion for YML, creating the Abstract Syntax Tree and its subsequent conversion to XML for PHP annotations. The import/export scripts are configured in JavaScript and can be freely customized.[11]

## Supported ORM frameworks

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Frameworks supported for visual model and schema files generation:[12]

* Doctrine2
* Doctrine
* CakePHP

## History

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Skipper was created as an internal tool for the web applications developed by Inventic. It was first published as a commercial tool under the name ORM Designer in 2009.[13][14] Application was reworked and optimized in January 2013, and released as ORM Designer 2.[11][15] In May 2013 ORM Designer became part of the South Moravian Innovation Center Incubator program (support program for innovative technological startups).[14][16][17] In June 2014, ORM Designer version 3 was released and rebranded under the name of Skipper[6]

## See also

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* List of object-relational mapping software
* Comparison of object-relational mapping software
* Object-relational mapping
* Database abstraction layer

## References

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1. ^ Supported platforms Archived 2014-05-30 at the Wayback Machine
2. ^ a b c d e f g "ORM Designer". Archived from the original on 2014-02-22. Retrieved 2014-07-15.
3. ^ a b c d e "ORM Designer". 12 May 2010.
4. ^ a b c d e "PHP5 Magazine: ORM Designer Reviewed". php5.phpmagazine.net. Archived from the original on 16 September 2010. Retrieved 6 June 2022.
5. ^ "Symfony2 cheat sheet". www.symfony2cheatsheet.com. Archived from the original on 2014-07-03.
6. ^ a b "Press Release: Skipper Skipper - the ORM Designer Blog".
7. ^ "Extending ORM Attributes | ORM Designer". Archived from the original on 2014-06-10. Retrieved 2014-07-15.
8. ^ "Extending script files | ORM Designer". Archived from the original on 2014-02-23. Retrieved 2014-07-15.
9. ^ "MySQL Workbench | ORM Designer". Archived from the original on 2014-04-19. Retrieved 2014-07-15.
10. ^ "ORM Designer – Quick Review « Stacktrace('dev-KRTCS.net')". Archived from the original on 2014-02-21. Retrieved 2014-07-15.
11. ^ a b "Magic behind ORM Designer | ORM Designer Blog". Archived from the original on 2014-04-26. Retrieved 2014-07-15.
12. ^ "Supported Platforms | ORM Designer". Archived from the original on 2014-05-30. Retrieved 2014-07-15.
13. ^ "New tool – ORM Designer | ORM Designer Blog". Archived from the original on 2014-02-23. Retrieved 2014-07-15.
14. ^ a b "goaleurope.com/ORM-Designer-raises-funding-from-angel-investor". Archived from the original on 2014-07-26. Retrieved 2014-07-15.
15. ^ "Mladí programátoři z Brna zdražili svůj software trojnásobně. Prodeje zůstaly stejné". 10 July 2013.
16. ^ "Do JIC Innovation parku se hlásí 41 firem, nejlepší vyberou Rostock, Všianský a Berdár". 12 March 2013.
17. ^ "Companies in the Innovation Park". Archived from the original on 2014-02-25. Retrieved 2014-07-15.

## External links

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* Official website
* Symfony cheatsheet[usurped]