How to use the Jump Operation

by Ombretta Malinverno
13,081 views Published on May 02, 2018
Applies to: 7.2 or higher
Table of contents

Introduction

The Jump Operation permits to jump forward and backward within the application without modeling an explicit navigation flow. A forward jump redirects the user to the specified Parameter Collector Operation. A backward jump redirects the user to the last visited Jump Operation and follows that operation’s outgoing OK flow.

In the next sections, practical examples of how it is used will be provided.

How to use the Jump operation with the Forward mode

In a Web application, the management of the data can be split in two site views. Suppose you want to let the user move between these site views using a dedicated button. The navigation flow cannot be used since the site views are designed in different tabs of the project. You need to use the jump operation for this function.

The following IFML model shows a Master Page that shows the link to jump to the other site view in all pages of the site view.

The jump operation is associated with the  "Start Administration" parameter collector operation that is present in the "Administration" site view.

The Jump Operation has two direction modes:

  • Forward. The user is redirected to the specified Parameter Collector Operation.
  • Backward. The user is redirected to the last visited Jump Operation and follows that operation's outgoing OK flow.

In the Collector Component property, you need to define the target parameter collector component where to jump.

If the operation is in "Forward" mode, the Ignore History property is available also. If this property is checked, the history of the visited jump will not be preserved during the navigation.

The same model is present in the "Administration" site view, which allows to user to return to the "Home" site view.

How to use the Jump Operation with the Backward mode

The following example shows how you can jump from one part of the model to another and come back.

Suppose you have the IFML model as the search product pattern in which the user can decide to see related details or edit information from the resulting list.

The "Product Management" page is modeled in different site view of the Web Project (e.g., the "Administration" site view). The navigation flow is not enough to get to another site view, for this purpose you need to use the jump operation to pass from one site view to another. In this case, the operation is associated with the "Go to Product Management" parameter collector operation present in the "Administration" site view.

The Jump Operation can pass some parameters to the Parameter Collector Operation if necessary. In this example, the product key is passed to allow the user to edit its information correctly.

When the user press the "Save" button, the product information is updated and the user is redirected to the "Home" site view so that the user can see the product details that were updated. This management is also modeled with the jump operation but with "Backward" jump direction. In this way, the operation redirects the user to the last visited jump operation and follows that operation’s outgoing OK flow. In this example, the last visited jump operation is the "Jump to Product Management" operation present in the "Home" site view, which allows the user to return to the "Search Product" page.

If you want to see the changes in the "Product Details" page, you need to add a Backward Parameter (e.g., "productKey") to both jump operations to pass the product key information: right-click on the jump operation, choose the Add > Backward Parameter option.

The following image refers to the Parameter Bindings dialog that is related to the incoming OK flow of the "Back to Home Site View" jump operation.

Instead, the following image refers to the Parameter Bindings dialog that is related to the outgoing OK flow of the "Jump to Product Management" jump operation.

The name of the Backward Parameter must be the same for both the Jump Operation in way to have the referention.

How to use the Jump Operation in an Enterprise Project

Suppose that you have an Enterprise Project that manages the companies and the modeled pages are divided into two WebModel Projects (e.g., "Administration" and "Sales Manager").

In this case, you need to use the Jump Operation associated with the Parameter Collector Operation.

The following IFML model is present in the default WebModel Project (e.g., "Sales Manager" webmodel project).

In the search pattern, the user can decide to see related details or edit information from the resulting list. When the user decides to edit the information, he or she will be redirected to the company management present in the other WebModel Project. The "Company Management" jump operation is associated with the "Company Management" parameter collector operation.

The jump operation can pass parameters to the parameter collector operation, if necessary. For this example, the company key is passed to allow the user to edit its information correctly.

Instead, the following IFML model is present in the second WebModel Project (e.g, "Administration" webmodel project).

The company search page is modeled in another WebModel Project (e.g., "Sales Manager" webmodel project). For this purpose, the operation is associated with the "Search Companies" parameter collector operation.

If the user edits or creates a new company and then saves the information, he or she will be redirected to the "Search Companies" page which will show the details. In this case, the "Go to Details" jump operation is associated with the "See details" parameter collector operation present in the first WebModel Project.

In this case, the company key is passed to allow the user to edit its information correctly.

How to use the sample project

You can use the "JumpSample.zip" file attached to this article, to test the usage of the Jump Operation in a Web Project, or you can use the "JumpSampleEnterprise.zip" file to the test the usage of the operation in an Enterprise Project.

Follow these steps to use the "JumpSample" project:

  1. Import the sample project into the WebRatio Platform. You can learn how to do this by watching the "Organize the Workspace" online lesson.
  2. Generate the project with the "Generate and Run on Cloud" command if you have a WebRatio Community Platform version; otherwise, use the "Generate and Run" command.
  3. Visit http://localhost:8080//JumpSample/ or http://freeXXXXX-freeapp.eu.webratio.net/ with any browser, and follow the instructions to test the operation.

Follow these steps to use the "JumpSampleEnterprise" project:

  1. Import the sample project into the WebRatio Platform. You can learn how to do this by watching the "Organize the Workspace" online lesson.
  2. Open the "JumpSampleEnterprise" enterprise project.
  3. Change the value of the "jboss_loc" variable by setting the "deployments" folder of your jBoss application server.
    1. Go to the Properties View of the Project tab.
    2. Press on the Browse button next to the Output Path property.
    3. Press on the Variables… button.
    4. Select the "${jboss_loc}" variable and press the Edit Variable… button.
    5. Change the value.
    6. Press the OK button.
    7. Press the Apply button and then the OK button.
  4. Generate the project with the "Generate Full Enterprise Project" command.
  5. Execute the "standalone.bat" file to start the jBoss application server.
  6. Visit http://localhost:8080/JumpSampleEnterprise/ with any browser, and test the operation.