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Appendix A. Component and widget descriptions and settings
HATS provides host components and widgets that are used to convert elements
of a host screen to objects that can be displayed on a Web page. Some component
and widget settings can be modified using the wizards and editors in the HATS Studio. This appendix describes HATS host components and widgets and
the settings you can modify.
Component and widget settings
The components and widgets supplied by HATS have default settings that
you can modify, either for an entire project using the project editor, or
for an individual transformation using the Insert Host Component wizard. Not
all components and widgets have customizable settings.
Host component settings
The settings for a host component specify how that component is to be recognized
on the host screen. Some components' settings are very simple. For example,
the only setting for a command line is the string of characters that identify
a command line on the host screen. The default value is ===>. If the command lines on your host screens are preceded by ==>, they would not be recognized using the default setting. In this
case, you would need to modify the setting so that the command lines would
be recognized.
Some host components have more complicated settings. For example, several
settings are used to recognize a function key or a selection list. These settings
will be described under each host component.
HATS provides the following host components:
Command line
Consists of a string and an input field with the format:
==> [input field]
The ==> is called the token.
- Token
- You can specify the token HATS uses to identify the command line.
Type the value of the token that identifies the command line in the entry
field.
Default
The contents of the selected region of the host screen. There are no customizable
settings for the default component.
Field
A section of the host screen defined within a user-defined region of the
host screen. There are no customizable settings for the field component.
Field table
A table in which each cell is a field that is defined on the host screen.
Each field becomes a cell of the field table. HATS determines the table
size based on the number of cells in a user-defined rectangular area of a
3270 or 5250 host screen. There are no customizable settings for the field
table component.
Function key
A horizontal list of function key names (F or PF) and host screen string
descriptions with a delimiter between them (usually in the last row of the
host screen). For example, the host screen could contain the following function
keys:
| F3: Exit |
F4: Back |
F5: Fwd |
Function keys can have many different appearances on a host screen. To
give you flexibility in recognizing function keys, HATS breaks down the appearance
of a function key string into four parts. For example, a function key might
look like this: PF12=Exit. In this example, the leading token (also
known as the start delimiter) is PF, the delimiter (which separates
the key number from the description) is =, and the description
is Exit. There is no string before the leading token.
- String before the leading token
- This value is optional. If there is a string that always precedes the
start delimiter, such as "option", enter it here.
- Start delimiter
- This is the string that marks the beginning of a function key string
on the host screen. You can specify more than one value, separated by the
"|" (vertical bar) character. Any of the values will be recognized as beginning
a function key.
- Delimiter
- This is the string that divides the function key number from its description.
You can specify more than one value, separated by the "|" (vertical bar) character.
- String after the description
- This string defines the end of the function key string on the host screen.
It might be a blank character or the beginning of another function key string.
You can specify more than one value, separated by the "|" (vertical bar) character.
Input field
A field in which text can be entered, with or without the field label.
There are no customizable settings for the input field component.
Menu
Similar to the Function key host component; A menu is
a list of choices, in which each choice is typically preceded by a letter
or a number, with a delimiter character separating the letter or number from
the text describing that choice. A menu choice might look like this: option 12.Exit. In this case, the word "option" is a string that precedes
all the choices in the menu, and it is called the string before the leading
token. The number 12 is the leading token, the period is the delimiter, and
"Exit" is the description. Alternatively, you could have a menu whose choices
look like this: M: OPEN MAIL, where the leading
token is a letter, the delimiter is the colon, and "OPEN MAIL" is the description.
There is no string before the leading token in this example.
- Delimiter
- This is the string that divides the menu choice's leading token from
its description. You can specify more than one value, separated by the "|"
(vertical bar) character.
- String before the leading token
- This value is optional. If there is a string that always precedes the
start delimiter, such as "option", enter it here.
- Minimum required options
- If you do not want to recognize a menu with fewer than a certain number
of options, enter that number here.
Selection list
A selection list is a lot like a menu, in that it presents a list of options,
each of which is preceded by a leading token and a delimiter, such as in the
following examples:
| 1. Prepare form |
| 2. Work with forms you submitted |
| 3. Work with forms requiring action |
| or |
| a. Prepare form |
| b. Work with forms you submitted |
| c. Work with forms requiring action |
You can set the values of the following:
- Leading token type
- The leading token can be either a letter or a numeric digit.
- Delimiter
- This is the string that divides the selection's leading token from its
description. In the examples, the delimiter is the period (.) following the
numbers and letters. You can specify more than one value, separated by the
"|" (vertical bar) character.
- String before the leading token
- This value is optional. If there is a string that always precedes the
leading token, such as "option", enter it here.
- Minimum required options
- If you do not want to recognize a selection list with fewer than a certain
number of options, enter that number here.
- Must be field separated
- Check this box if each selection must be in a separate field.
Subfile
An iSeries or AS/400 screen with a pattern containing all of the following:
- A subfile fingerprint in the field attributes
- Subfile actions in the first half of the host screen
- Subfile headings in the first half of the host screen for the data that
follows
- A subfile marker in the second half of the host screen (such as More...).
- Subfile data between the headings and marker, containing input fields
or description text arranged in a table pattern.
There are no customizable settings for the subfile component.
Text
Text that is located within a user-defined region of the host screen. There
are no customizable settings for the text component.
Visual table
A table based on the representation of text within a user-defined region
of the host screen. By default, space breaks between text are interpreted
as cell boundaries.
You can set the values of the following:
- Column delimiter
- For any character to be recognized as a column delimiter of a visual
table, the character must be in the same column of each row in the selected
region of the host screen. For example, a region is selected that includes
rows 10 through 20. Assuming that a space is the column delimiter, and column
12 is assumed to identify a column, a space must be in column 12 of each row
beginning at row 10 and continuing through and including row 20.
In the
following example, a space is the column delimiter, and a space exists in
column 7 of the host screen for the entire selected region of two rows and
10 columns:
rows columns
12345678910
1 aaa cc ee
2 bb ddd fff
For this selected region, HATS displays a
2x2 visual table with the following contents from the host screen:
Select from the drop-down list the string used to separate
columns in the table.
- Include empty rows
- Check this box if you want empty rows in the visual table to appear
in the HTML output. Clear this box if you want empty rows to be omitted.
- Rows to exclude
- Type the numbers of the rows in the table you want to exclude from the
HTML presentation. If there is more than one row to exclude, separate the
row numbers with a comma (,).
- Columns to exclude
- Type the numbers of the columns in the table you want to exclude from
the HTML presentation. If there is more than one column to exclude, separate
the row numbers with a comma (,).
Widget settings
When you customize a host component, you are specifying how it will be
recognized. When you customize a widget, you specify how the widget will appear
on the Web page.
You can customize the settings of the following widgets:
Button
Displays the host component as an HTML button. You can configure buttons to
appear as a vertical or horizontal list by adjusting the number of columns
in the display. For example, a HATS project could display buttons in one
of the following configurations:
| [Prepare form] |
[Work with forms you submitted] |
[Work with forms requiring your action] |
| [Prepare form] |
| [Work with forms you submitted] |
| [Work with forms requiring your action] |
The button widget presents a graphical representation of a link on the
Web page, with a caption that describes its function. A button is created
from a host component such as a function key or an item in a menu or a selection
list. You can customize these settings for buttons:
- Number of columns per row
- Type the number of columns of buttons you want to display in each row.
- Caption type
- The values of the leading token and the description are derived from
the host component. Choose whether you want the caption to display the leading
token, the description, or both. For example, if the button represents a menu
item that read 4.Mail, you can have the caption
display 4, or Mail, or 4.Mail.
- Caption substitution
- If you want to replace strings from the host component with new strings
in the button caption, type the substitution values in the form of a=b. If
you substitute more than one string, separate the substitutions with a semicolon
(;).
Button table
Displays a table of buttons created from host components such as menu items,
where the first column contains buttons and the second column contains descriptive
text. For example:
| [1] Prepare form |
| [2] Work with forms you submitted |
| [3] Work with forms requiring your action |
You can customize these settings for button tables:
- Number of columns per row
- Type the number of buttons you want to display in each row.
- Caption substitution
- If you want to replace strings from the host component with new strings
in the button caption, type the substitution values in the form of a=b. If
you substitute more than one string, separate the substitutions with a semicolon
(;).
Default
The default widget is used to represent an area of the host screen that
might contain many different host components (the default component). The
settings for the default widget contain information both about recognizing
host components within the selected area of the screen and about how to present
them.
The default widget includes numerous settings used to recognize and render
PF keys from the host screen. You can specify two different ways of recognizing
and rendering PF keys. These different ways are specified as the first and
second passes. HATS does not make two complete passes of the screen area;
rather, HATS examines each character in the specified area, looking for PF
key strings. If HATS encounters a character that matches the criteria defined
by the first pass, HATS continues checking the characters that follow to
determine whether the string fits the criteria to identify a PF key sequence
of characters. If the first pass does not identify a PF key sequence, HATS returns
to the first character that matched the first pass criteria. Each character
is compared to the second pass criteria, to determine whether the string fits
the criteria to identify a PF key sequence. If a string is recognized as a
PF key sequence according to the first pass criteria, it is not checked against
the second pass criteria.
- Preserve and map field colors
- Click the checkbox if you want to show the same colors for host fields
in the HTML output.
- Use HTML Teletype (monospace) tag
- Click the checkbox if you want the HTML text output to be in a monospace
font, which is close to the text spacing on the host screen.
- Perform 5250 subfile rendering
- Click the checkbox if you want 5250 subfile information rendered as
subfiles in the HTML output.
- Perform selection list rendering
- Click the checkbox if you want selection list information automatically
rendered in the HTML output. This is useful for applications (such as on iSeries)
that use selections lists on many screens.
- Selection list widget
- Select one of the following widgets to use for rendering the selection
list:
- Button
- Button table
- Dropdown list
- Link
- Option list.
- Leading token type
- The leading token can be a letter or a numeric digit.
- Delimiter
- This is the string that divides the selection's leading token from its
description. In the examples, the delimiter is the period (.) following the
numbers and letters. You can specify more than one value, separated by the
"|" (vertical bar) character.
- String before the leading token
- This value is optional. If there is a string that always precedes the
leading token, such as "option", enter it here.
- Minimum required options
- If you do not want to recognize a selection list with fewer than a certain
number of options, enter that number here.
- First row to search for selection list
- Type the number of the first row on the host screen where a selection
list might appear.
- Last row to search for selection list
- Type the number of the last row on the host screen where a selection
list might appear.
- Number of columns per row
- Type the number of buttons, links, or options you want to display in
each row. Unless the captions are short, one per row will look best.
- Caption type
- The values of the leading token and the description are derived from
the host component. Choose whether you want each item of the widget selected
to display the leading token, the description, or both. For example, if the
item represents a menu item that read 4.Mail,
you can have the list item display 4, or Mail, or 4.Mail.
- Submit button caption
- Determines the text displayed on the submit button. You can select one
of the values from the drop-down list (Submit, Go, or #=), or type the text
you want the button to display in the entry field.
- Caption substitution
- If you want to replace strings from the host component with new strings
on the button or link or in the drop-down or option list items, type the substitution
values in the form of a=b. If you substitute more than one string, separate
the substitutions with a semicolon (;).
- Show submit button
- Click the checkbox if you want to show a submit button in the HTML output.
The user must click the button after choosing an option from the drop-down
list or option list.
- Must be field separated
- Check this box if each selection must be in a separate field.
- Use character by character rendering for precise alignment
- Select the one of the following values from the drop-down list:
- Never
- Character by character rendering is never used.
- Only on pages with popups
- Character by character rendering is only used on screens that have pop-up
windows. The pop-up windows often look better with this alignment.
- Always
- Character by character rendering is always used.
- Convert menus to buttons
- Click the checkbox if you want to convert all menus on the host screen
to buttons in the HTML output.
- First row to search for menus
- Type the number of the first row on the host screen where menus might
appear.
- Last row to search for menus
- Type the number of the last row on the host screen where menus might
appear.
- Substitute buttons or links for PF keys (first pass)
- Click the checkbox if you want to substitute buttons or links for PF
keys identified by the criteria specified for the first pass.
- First pass HTML control for PF key
- You can replace PF keys with links or with buttons. On a link or a button,
you can display the number of the key (such as PF12) or its description (such
as "Exit"). Choose one of these options from the drop-down list.
- First row to search for PF keys
- Type the number of the first row on the host screen to search for PF
keys using the first-pass criteria.
- Last row to search for PF keys
- Type the number of the last row on the host screen to search for PF
keys using the first-pass criteria.
- PF key substitution start delimiter
- Type the characters that define the beginning delimiter for a PF key
for the first pass through the host screen. For PF12=Exit, PF# is the start delimiter.
- PF key substitution middle delimiter
- Type the characters that define the delimiter between a PF key and its
description for the first pass through the host screen. For PF12=Exit, = is the middle delimiter.
- PF key substitution end delimiter
- Type the characters that define the ending delimiter for a PF key for
the first pass through the host screen. The end delimiter could
be something as simple as the space. However, if there are function key descriptions
that contain a space, such as PF8=Shift Right, a space is not good
to use as the end delimiter. In the example PF8=Shift Right, the
end delimiter would have to be defined as the start of another function key, PF#, or more than a single space.
- Substitute buttons or links for PF keys (second pass)
- Click the checkbox if you want to substitute buttons or links for PF
keys identified by the criteria specified for the second pass.
- Second pass HTML control for PF key
- You can replace PF keys with links or with buttons. On a link or a button,
you can display the number of the key (such as PF12) or its description (such
as "Exit"). Choose one of these options from the drop-down list.
- First row to search for PF keys
- Type the number of the first row on the host screen to search for PF
keys using the second-pass criteria.
- Last row to search for PF keys
- Type the number of the first row on the host screen to search for PF
keys using the second-pass criteria.
- PF key substitution start delimiter
- Type the characters that define the beginning delimiter for a PF key
for the second pass through the host screen. For PF12=Exit, PF# is the start delimiter.
- PF key substitution middle delimiter
- Type the characters that define the delimiter between a PF key and its
description for the second pass through the host screen. For PF12=Exit, = is the middle delimiter.
- PF key substitution end delimiter
- Type the characters that define the ending delimiter for a PF key for
the second pass through the host screen. The end delimiter could
be something as simple as the space. However, if there are function key descriptions
that contain a space, such as PF8=Shift Right, a space is not good
to use as the end delimiter. In the example PF8=Shift Right, the
end delimiter would have to be defined as the start of another function key, PF#, or more than a single space.
- Highlight tables
- Click the checkbox if you want to highlight the rows of the table, using
two alternating colors, in the HTML output.
- Even tables row color
- Shows the background color to use for the even rows in the table. Click
the button to display a color palette if you want to change the color.
- Odd tables row color
- Shows the background color to use for the odd rows in the table. Click
the button to display a color palette if you want to change the color.
- Table title color
- Shows the color to use for the title of the table. Edit the entry if
you want to change the color. The Table title color only applies if either the First line of table
is the title or the Line above table is the
title box is checked.
- Minimum row count in table
- If you do not want to recognize a table with fewer than a certain number
of rows, enter that number here.
- Minimum column count in table
- If you do not want to recognize a table with fewer than a certain number
of columns, enter that number here.
- First row to search for tables
- Type the number of the first row on the host screen where a table might
appear on the host screen.
- Last row to search for tables
- Type the number of the last row on the host screen where a table might
appear on the host screen.
- First line of table is the title
- Click the checkbox if you want the first line of the table to be used
as the title of the table.
- Line above table is the title
- Click the checkbox if you want the line above the table to be used as
the title of the table.
Drop-down list
A drop-down list widget is a way of representing a large number of choices
from a host menu or selection list without taking up a lot of room on the
Web page. In the following example, HATS displays a drop-down list that
shows three items.
| Work with forms |
| Work with forms you submitted |
| Work with forms requiring your action |
You can customize these settings for drop-down lists:
- Show submit button
- Click the checkbox if you want to show a submit button in the HTML output.
The user must click the button after choosing an option from the list.
- Submit button caption
- Determines the text displayed on the submit button. You can select one
of the values from the drop-down list (Submit, Go, or #=), or type the text
you want the button to display in the entry field.
- Caption type
- The values of the leading token and the description are derived from
the host component. Choose whether you want each item in the drop-down list
to display the leading token, the description, or both. For example, if the
item represents a menu item that read 4.Mail,
you can have the list item display 4, or Mail, or 4.Mail.
- Caption substitution
- If you want to replace strings from the host component with new strings
in the drop-down list items, type the substitution values in the form of a=b.
If you substitute more than one string, separate the substitutions with a
semicolon (;).
Field
Displays the host component in a field of the HATS project. There are no
customizable settings for the field widget.
Graph
Displays a graph in which the cells of a table (visual or field table)
are divided into data sets.
You can set the values of the following:
- Number of data sets
- Determines the number of data sets to be included in the graph. The
value defaults to the number of data sets found in the extracted data, but
you can change the number to include only a subset of the data sets. This
setting is only displayed in the settings for the Insert Host Component wizard,
because it depends on the extracted data.
- Data set source
- Select one of the following values from the drop-down list:
- Row
- Each row of the table constitutes one set of data to be graphed.
- Column
- Each column of the table constitutes one set of data to be
graphed.
- Width
- Type the width, in pixels, for the graph.
- Height
- Type the height, in pixels, for the graph.
- Background color
- Shows the color to use for the background in the graph. Click the button
to display a color palette if you want to change the background color.
- Background image
- Type the path and name of the image to display in the background of
the graph. Click the Browse button to locate an image on your system.
- X-axis title
- Type the text you want to use as the label for the X-axis in the graph.
- Y-axis title
- Type the text you want to use as the label for the Y-axis in the graph.
- Axis color
- Shows the color to use for the axis in the graph. Click the button to
display a color palette if you want to change the axis color.
- Label color
- Shows the color to use for the label of the graph. Click the button
to display a color palette if you want to change the label color.
As with the Number of data sets,
the following are only displayed in the settings for the Insert Host Component
wizard.
- Extract data point labels
- Click the checkbox if you want to extract row or column labels to show
as labels on the X-axis.
- Row or Column
- Type in the entry field the number of the row or column to use as labels
on the X-axis. The label for this entry field is dependent upon the value
specified for the Data set source setting.
The entry field label matches the value specified for the Data set source setting.
- Extract data set labels (for legend)
- Click the checkbox if you want to extract row or column labels to show
as labels in the graph legend.
- 'Row' or 'Column'
- Type in the entry field the number of the row or column of text to use
as labels in the graph legend.
The label for this entry field is dependent
upon the value specified for the Data set source setting. The entry field label is the opposite of the value for the Data set source setting.
- Data sets
- Click this button to display the Data Source Settings dialog, which
enables you to specify the following additional settings for the data sources:
- Data set 'n', 'row' or 'column'
- The number ('n') of these fields matches the value
specified in the Data set source setting. Type
in the entry field the number of any row or column of data you want to use
for the data set. This enables you to reorder or duplicate sets of data in
the graph.
The last part of the label for this entry field is dependent
upon the value specified for the Data set source setting. The entry field label matches the value specified for the Data set source setting.
- color
- There is a color button for each of the Data
set 'n', 'row' or 'column' settings. The buttons show the color to use
for the data set in the graph. Click the button to display a color palette
if you want to change the data set color.
Label
Displays text for a labeled field on the host screen as a label for an
input field in the HATS project. There are no customizable settings for
the label widget.
Link
The link widget presents a link on the Web page, with a caption that describes
its function. A link is created from a host component such as a function key
or an item in a menu or a selection list. You can configure links to appear
as a vertical or horizontal list by adjusting the number of columns in the
display. For example, a HATS project could display the links in one of the
following configurations:
| Prepare form |
Work with forms
you submitted |
Work with forms
requiring your action |
| Prepare form |
| Work with forms you submitted |
| Work with forms requiring your
action |
You can customize these settings for links:
- Number of columns per row
- Type the number of columns of links you want to display in each row.
Unless the link captions are short, one link per row will look best.
- Caption type
- The values of the leading token and the description are derived from
the host component. Choose whether you want the link caption to display the
leading token, the description, or both. For example, if the link represents
a menu item that read 4.Mail, you can have
the link caption display 4, or Mail, or 4.Mail.
- Caption substitution
- If you want to replace strings from the host component with new strings
in the link caption, type the substitution values in the form of a=b. If you
substitute more than one string, separate the substitutions with a semicolon
(;).
Option list
The option list widget is a way of presenting a list of mutually exclusive
choices as radio buttons. For example:
| O Prepare form |
| O Work with forms you submitted |
| O Work with forms requiring your action |
You can customize these settings:
- Number of columns per row
- Type the number of options you want to display in each row.
- Show submit button
- Click the checkbox if you want to show a submit button in the HTML output.
The user must click the button after choosing an option from the list.
- Submit button caption
- Determines the text displayed on the submit button. You can select one
of the values from the drop-down list (Submit, Go, or #=), or type the text
you want the button to display in the entry field.
- Caption type
- The values of the leading token and the description are derived from
the host component. Choose whether you want each item in the drop-down list
to display the leading token, the description, or both. For example, if the
item represents a menu item that read 4.Mail,
you can have the list item display 4, or Mail, or 4.Mail.
- Caption substitution
- If you want to replace strings from the host component with new strings
in the drop-down list items, type the substitution values in the form of a=b.
If you substitute more than one string, separate the substitutions with a
semicolon (;).
Table
Displays the selected information on the host screen as an HTML table.
You can set the values of the following:
- Header row
- Type the number of the row in the table on the host screen whose contents
should be used as column headers on the Web page.
- Header column
- Type the number of the column in the table on the host screen whose
contents should be used as row headers on the Web page.
- Read only
- Check this box if you want to prevent users from entering text into
the table fields in the HTML output. Clear this box to enable users to enter
text in the table cells.
- Row fill
- If a row does not have as many cells as other rows, it can be filled
in by expanding the last cell to the end of the table (span) or by adding
empty cells (empty). Choose one of these options from the drop-down list.
Text input
Displays the selected information on the host screen as an input field,
with or without the description. There are no customizable settings for the
label widget.
Component and widget mapping
The widgets supplied in HATS Studio for use in displaying host components
on a Web page are mapped to those components. The following table lists the
existing HATS host components and their corresponding widgets.
Table 4. HATS host components and
their corresponding widgets
| Host component |
Widget |
| Command line |
Text input |
| Default |
Default |
| Field |
Field |
| Field table |
Table
Horizontal bar graph
Vertical bar graph
Line graph
|
| Function key |
Button
Button table
Link
Option list
|
| Input field |
Text input |
| Menu |
Button
Button table
Dropdown list
Link
Option list
|
| Selection list |
Button
Button table
Dropdown list
Link
Option list
|
| Subfile |
Subfile |
| Text |
Label |
| Visual table |
Table
Horizontal bar graph
Vertical bar graph
Line graph
|
HATS:Component tag type and widget attributes
The type and widget attributes of the HATS:Component tag are as follows:
- Attribute
- Description
- type
- The host component type. Valid values (and their corresponding host component) are:
- Type
- Host component
- CommandLine
- Command line
- Default
- Entire host screen
- Field
- Field
- FieldTable
- Field Table
- FunctionKey
- Function key
- InputField
- Input field
- Menu
- Menu
- SelectionList
- Selection list
- Subfile
- Subfile
- Text
- Text
- VisualTable
- Visual table
- widget
- The widget style. Valid values (and their corresponding widgets) are:
- Widget
- Widget
- Button
- Button
- ButtonTable
- Button table
- Default
- Entire host screen
- DropdownList
- Drop-down list
- Field
- Field
- HorizontalBarGraph
- Horizontal bar graph
- Label
- Label
- LineGraph
- Line graph
- Link
- Link
- OptionList
- Option list
- Subfile
- Subfile
- Table
- Table
- TextInput
- Text input
- VerticalBarGraph
- Vertical bar graph
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