When you “touch” an object, ZOM performs an in-depth analysis of the object and records the resulting information in its knowledge base. Objects are “touched” using a special ZOM service, ZOMTouch. For example, the following command touches the Contracts object :

ZOMTouch Contracts

ZOMTouch determines the object’s current state and discovers any dependencies between the object and the other objects it references. The source of the dependency information is Zim’s standard dependency tracking database. Zim maintains dependency information for all objects and updates this information when an object is created or a program is parsed or compiled.

Once ZOMTouch has finished processing, ZOM has a complete picture of the object and any interdependencies with other objects. This in-depth information enriches ZOM’s knowledge base and is the foundation for the powerful object analysis and manipulation you can perform with other ZOM services.

As you make changes to your application objects, this information is updated automatically if you use ZOM services. As you edit the program code, the ZOM’s knowledge of dependencies between the program object (ie document) and the objects referenced in the program becomes out of date. To update the ZOM knowledge base, “tap” the changed document objects.

Note: For more information on Zim’s dependency tracking, see SET DEPENDENCY.