Modeling tools

As we saw in Chapter 4, Modeling Data for Neo4j, modeling for Graph databases is just as important as ever. Even though there is no external schema overlooking our data model by default, there is still a clear and important need to model. The way to define the structure of the data that we are planning to store in Neo4j needs to be documented in a clear and understandable fashion. In this section of our book, we will outline two frequently used tools that we can suggest for the development of our graph models:

• The homegrown open source toolset developed by Alistair Jones and GraphAlchemist, appropriately called Arrows

• The commercially developed and supported toolset of OmniGraffle

Let's provide a bit more detail on each of these tools.

Arrows

Originally started by Neo Technology's, Alistair Jones (www.apcjones.com) as a side project for graph documentation and visualization, the Arrows toolset today enables very easy and useable documentation of graph database models. The tool...