Patent ID: 7363263

Claim:
A computerized method for developing and creating a plan through the use of hierarchically arranged objects, the method comprising: accepting input to define a plurality of plan objects, each object comprising a plurality of fields, the fields enabled to contain data, values, offsets, and links; accepting input to define a hierarchical relationship of the objects wherein each object is enabled to be designated as above a particular distinct object in the hierarchy or as below a particular distinct object in the hierarchy; accepting input to define relationships between fields of objects and other fields of objects; accepting input to populate fields of objects with data, values, offsets, or links; accepting input enabling or disabling particular objects; running a simulation wherein all objects hierarchically dependent upon a disabled object are, themselves, disabled, and calculating data, values, offsets and links for each of said object fields based upon the previously defined relationships between said fields of objects and said other fields of objects and the data, values, offsets, and links of said other fields; and producing a plan including data and values having been calculated from the simulation run on the objects.