I respectfully would like to ask for a new functionality to enhance Hammocks and to create a new activity type to be called Group Activity as follows:
1-Group Activity: All its members would be summarized similar to the typical WBS activity type but not by using WBS Phases but its own Group that can include activities with different WBS from different WBS Dictionaries, in addition you would be able to add predecessor and successor links to the Group Activity. By adding predecessor or successor links to the Group Activity all members of the group would inherit the predecessors/successors links of the parent Group Activity as additional links to those of their own individual members, even when some already existing it would create an additional link. By deleting the links at Group Activity, members would be detached of their Group Activity links. You will not be able to delete Group Activity links at the individual activity but only at the Group Activity properties.
A Parent Group Activity can have within the group other Group Activities as long as the new Members do not contain within its members the parent Group Activity, this to avoid circular references.
Perhaps Group definition can be done by listing individual activities or by listing WBS or a combination. Then a Group definition based on a single WBS would be equivalent to the traditional WBS activity.
2-Enhanced Hammock; All its members would be summarized similar to the standard Hammock activity type but in addition you would be able to add predecessor and successor links to the Hammock.
Maybe the Enhanced Hammock can be modeled as a Group Activity with only two members, the SS and FF members. If such is the case then the Group Activity will substitute traditional WBS, traditional Hammock and traditional Topic Activities into a single activity type.
Because all member activities will have a SS and a FF link to the Parent Activity when looking the individual activities properties their links created by the parent avtivity, either a Group or a Hammock would be shown as a single link to the Group or Hammockin in cursive as to signal you will not be able to delete the link at the individual member but only at the Group or Hammock.
These are enhancements over some similar functionalities available in other software such as the Topic Activity in SureTrak, software I no longer use. These functionalities can be modeled using actual links functionality but with much effort and prone to error. Here the computer would be of much help. I never used much WBS nor Topic activity but convenient, easier than using many multiple links, perhaps making the logic more transparent.
Best regards,
Rafael