These icons get their name because they are not only displayed with the affected file, but they bubble up the project tree all the way to the top, thus gaining instant visibility. An alert might signal that a development branch has not been merged or terminated, that not all files modified to affect a change were put back in the directory, or that a revision has been locked by some other user. SOS also lets project managers define their own metrics, and have them tracked automatically. Now they have 300 files in over 20 directories, and no idea of how the project is really progressing. The product's user interface looks like a file browser, and allows users to display directories, files and revision history.
Users can customize the interface to add their own commands and buttons.
SOS currently runs on Unix only, but Windows NT support is planned. Runtime and ClioSoft tools are complimentary, and the companies hope to find ways to tie the tools together, Anantharaman said. In the future, ClioSoft will look for ways to help manage simulation regression testing, Anantharaman said. The company has no immediate plans for Internet or Intranet-enabled products. However, ClioSoft has a Web site.