Show your customers comprehensive visual models in PDF or PNG

Problem: How to show work to non-programmer clients?

Since programmers in Manifest Interactive develop custom PHP & MySQL web applications, they need to show their customers some concept of the whole planned application. Developers in the company use ORM-based programming and there wasn't a way to visualize it for clients. The company needed a tool that would generate previews for customers or another way to manage it.

Solution: Make visual models with Skipper

Peter Schmalfeldt from Manifest Interactive sees the biggest attraction with Skipper in the ability to show clients what the development team had planned for their software. Peter knows that he can do ORM based programming without a GUI, but it's nearly impossible for him to visualize work to clients. Since clients probably won't be software engineers, having a tool that developers could use to show exactly how they are taking data and connecting it is a huge help.

Common project workflow with Skipper

The common workflow at Manifest Interactive begins with sitting down with clients and understanding all the pieces of data that will be passing through the new system. Then, they work out "use case" diagrams illustrating how the data will flow through the new system, as well as what permissions might need to be in place.

Once developers know enough, they start to create modules and entities that reflect the future data in the new application. Then, they export a PNG file from Skipper into a web-based project tool that the client can use similarly to Google Maps (zooming and panning - some of their projects are HUGE). Manifest Interactive also exports a PDF file with Skipper for developers as reference.

Once the designing is complete in Skipper, developers export YML files and have a custom PHP framework import the YML files via Doctrine and automatically build the PHP Models and MySQL tables. This is the best usage for their company because they know they have a 100% relationship between PHP models and MySQL tables since it was created from the same process.

Peter also made a video where he describes his typical work with Skipper:

Frequency of using Skipper

The development team uses Skipper at the start of every large project where they need to flesh out the database schema. Once developers need to make changes to the database, they revisit Skipper to make updates and use custom framework of Manifest Interactive to take the newly created YML files to generate a Doctrine Migration.

Manifest Interactive uses Skipper anytime they work with a rather complex set of data. Their developers have used Skipper to build out the first versions of websites for Nike (NikeSkateboarding.com & NikeSnowboarding.com).

What Skipper brings

Since Skipper can export PNG, PDF & YML files, it becomes an incredibly powerful tool that they can use to connect to whatever they want. What Manifest Interactive appreciates is the fact that Skipper team has always been responsive to support issues.