JSF/EGL Component Properties Deep Dive

1. JSF/EGL Component Properties Deep Dive This section walks you through the options and settings for JSF Component Properties – as well as introducing you to the concept of “explicit page design” principles.

2. JSF/EGL Web Page and Site Design and Development Course Units: • Course Setup • Web/JSF/EGL Overview • JSF Properties Deep Dive • Essential JSF Components • Additional JSF Components • JSF dataTables • Page Flow and State Management • AJAX Controls and JavaScript • JSF Component Tree and Dynamic Property Setting • Web Site Design and Template Pages • Appendices • Internationalization • Page Design Best Practices • Additional Use Cases

3. Unit Objectives • At the end of this unit, you will be able to: • Create new dynamic content web pages • Describe the steps and general lifecycle • Populate the page with: • JSF Components • EGL variable data • Customize the JSF component properties • And discover the richness of the JSF features and facilities you’ve used but may not know about

4. Page Development Methodology – Steps in Creating Pages • Create a new Web Page • Unique name • .jsp extension • Select a .JTPL or .HTPL template • Add static HTML resources • HTML tables (or DIV tags) – layout and design the page • Lines • Graphics • Text • Add dynamic data content from EGL variables – two options: • Option 1 - Implicit Page Design • Drag and Drop the EGL variables from Page Data to create a form or dataTable layout • Option 2 - Explicit Page Design • Drag and Drop JSF components from the Palette – place them “explicitly” on the page • Bind the EGL variables to the JSF components • Customize the JSF properties • View the page in Design mode (optional) • Run the page on the server and test results

5.  1. Create jsfcomptest.jsp • From \WebContent\ • Right-click and select: • New > • Web Page Name the page: jsfcomptest.jsp

6.  2. Add Static Controls • From \WebContent\images\ • Select ibm.gif • Drag and drop it on to the page  • Change the page title as shown  • From the Palette (HTML tags drawer) – add a Horizontal Rule as shown  • Select the Preview tab • If things look okay, re-select the Design tab and continue

7.  3. Add Dynamic Data Content • Open the JSFHandler – and either by coding and using Content Assist, or by copying/pasting the code from the Notes section, modify the default content as shown here…(comments optional as always) • Press Ctrl/S – and fix any syntax errors

8.  4. Bind the EGL Variables – Implicit Design Approach • From Page Designer: • Press Ctrl/S to save and synchronize Page Designer with the EGL Editor Note that if you don’t see your JSFHandler variables in Page Data, you might have to close the .JSP and .EGL pages and re-open them. This can happen when you copy/paste from external files (which will only occur during class) • (By holding down the Ctrl key) Select Drag and Drop: • varTestRec • moveFlds() • From Configure Controls, define an  Updating an existing record • Make fieldOut an Output Field • All other fields: Input Field • Under Options • deselect the submit buttons • Ctrl/s to Save • Run the Page (on the server)  2. ***Notes

9. Customize JSF Properties • In this section we will do a lot of JSF property customization Including – but not limited to: • Adding Helper icons • Over-riding the default style class for a JSF component • We will also revisit selecting and manipulating JSF Components in Page Designer

10.  5. Customize JSF Properties – Add Helper Icons – Date Picker • From Page Designer: • Select the {dateFld} control • From the Properties view: • Change the Format to: Date/Time • Under Input assistance: • Check:  Show helper button

11.  5. Customize JSF Properties – Add Helper Icons – Time Spinner • From Page Designer: • Select the {timeFld} control • From the Properties view: • Change the Format to: Date/Time • Change the Type to: Time only • Under Input assistance: • Check:  Show helper button • Specify Increment: 15

12.  5. Customize JSF Properties – Add Helper Icons – Number Spinner • From Page Designer: • Select the {numFld} control • From the Properties view: • Change the Format to: Number • Under Input assistance: • Check:  Show helper button • Type: Spinner • Increment: 10 • Check:  Integer only Note: For fun, check out the Slider as well (from the Type: drop down)

13.  Run the Page • Run the page on the Server • Test out each of the new helper icons

14.  Over-riding the Default .CSS Properties for individual JSF Controls In order to customize an individual control’s look and feel, you may: • Select a different .CSS style element (which contains the visual properties/settings you are looking for) • Modify (over-ride) the .CSS settings – for this specific page’s HTML To select a different .CSS style element for a control  With jsfcomptest.jsp loaded into the Content Area, click the control in question • From Properties; click the Style Props: icon. From the Set Style Properties --- window: • In the left-hand Style Navigator select a property to customize • Set/Customize properties specific to your selection new Examples: - {fieldIn} Font: Courier New Font color: Maroon Background: Blue - {fieldOut} Font-weight: Bold Font color: Orange

15. OPTIONAL – More Style Properties You Can Set For a Field Feel free to experiment with different aspects of this wizard – as your application may either require these U.I. features, or could benefit from them: Note – customized properties: • background-color: #6096BF; • margin: 2px; • color: #CFDCE6; • border-style: groove; • border-width: thick; • Font-weight: bold; • Border-color: #CFDCE6; • padding: 2px; • cursor: help;

16.  Run the Page • Run the page on the Server • Check out the new colors!

17.  Over-riding the Default .CSS Properties – Width and Masks  You can change the size (width) of an Input Field, and give it a format mask that user data MUST adhere (or JSF throws an error). • Try it out: • Select fieldIn From Properties: • Specify Size: Width: 44 • Format: Mask • Mask: (###) ###-#### • Check:  Show prompt character

18.  Change the JSFHandler and Run the Page  Edit the JSFHandler • Change the fieldIn assignment as shown here   Save your work (Ctrl/S) and from run the page on the Server  Click the moveFlds button. Note that the mask does NOT affect the data on the server. • The mask affects the presentation only.

19.  JSF Properties – Set Field Focus and Assign Clicked Action You can have JSF select a specific field in a form upon rendering in the browser, as well as assign the Enter key to Mouse Click of a button. This is a common input form requirement. Let’s try it. From Page Designer: • Select the dotted-line border around all the fields on the page. This is the page’s h:form (JSF Form property). From Properties-Keyboard Assist: • Specify:  Specific fields: Id: textNumFld1 • Click the Add button, and from the combo-boxes, specify: • Key: Enter Action: Click Target: buttonMoveFlds1 • Run the page: • Note that: • numFld is selected • upon page open • And you can • click the Enter key, • to submit the form.

20.  JSF Properties – Input Field Validations • You can have JSF generate a large % of standard data-entry types of Validations. Let’s have a look at what it’s capable of. Before we start, you will define a new EGL variable to experiment with: • Edit the JSFHandler code. Add a string variable, named; fldIn2: • Save your changes (Ctrl/S) and from Page Designer/Page Data: • Drag the field on the page, and create an • Input text field • Delete any extra Submit Buttons From Page Designer • Select the fldIn2 field From Properties/Validation – specify: Value is required Display validation error Minimum length: 3 Maximum length: 8 Constraint Uppercase letters Run the page on the server Test all of these conditions! Read the Notes for this slide!

21.  JSF Properties – Input Field Accessibility You can also have JSF: 1. Provide tabbing and hot-keys for a field, 2. Provide Mouse over help – even help that’s bound to server-side data  • Select fieldIn – and from Properties/Accessibility • Specify: • Access Key: A • Tab order index: 2 • Title: Please refer to the Notes for an explanation of this syntax. Specify different Access keys and Tabs for the other input fields on the page Run the page. Test with Alt/A, Alt/B, etc. to try out the Access keys. If you want to tab, you’ll have to remove the Setting of field focus (previous slide). Hover your mouse over fieldIn #{jsfcomptest.varTestRec.fieldIn}

22.  JSF Properties – Input Field Behavior You can also have JSF generate Client/Side JavaScript – that does all of these validations in the browser (and can save considerable server cycles) • Select fldIn2 – and from Properties/Behavior • Check Validate field value in the browser • On success, Run action: Disable field. On failure: Run action: Focus, select contents Run the page Check Out The Behavior Try both good and bad values infldIn2 Note – Tab out of the field At run-time. Don’t hit Enter

23.  JSF Field Behavior – Invoke JavaScript Sometimes you may want custom JavaScript edits as well. Try this out. Select fldIn2 – and from Properties/Behavior • Check Additional behaviors… From the Quick Edit view • Select the onerror event • Code the following alert  Run the page Check out the behavior Try both good and bad values infldIn2

24.  JSF Properties – All Attributes – Dynamic Style Attributes There’s a list of all of your JSF component’s attributes – that contains not only your current specifications, but allows you to do some additional techniques. All Attributes list   All Attributes is a toggled viewing “mode”. Click the icon again to return to “normal” Properties viewing mode for a JSF component.

25.  Optional Workshop – All Attributes, Dynamic Property Setting – 1 of 2 From the JSFHandler  Add the code shown in the boxes The Notes on this slide contains new JSFHandler code. Save your changes (Ctrl/S) • Notes: • Setting styles dynamically (or programmatically changing a field’s U.I. characteristics) is a • common requirement. • You will learn more about this later. • For now note that the All Attributes Properties view provides you with a way to bind a JSF • component’s style to EGL variables (next slide)

26. Optional Workshop – All Attributes, Dynamic Property Setting – 2 of 2 • From the Page Designer  Select fieldIn • From Properties, toggle to the All Attributes view • For both the style and styleClass attributes: 1. Click the Page Data icon 2. Select: fldInStyle • Run the Page Enter good (alpha data) in FldIn2 Click moveFlds  Note the effect of the dynamic style properties

27. Optional Workshop – JSF Validation Bypass – 1 of 2 • All of these JSF data validations are very nice, but what if your specifications require you to present the user with an option to cancel out of a page and bypass the edits? There are two ways to accomplish this: • Use a Link to immediately redirect to the new URL (but what if your JSFHandler needs to be invoked!!??!!) • Bypass the JSF Validations for a Submit Button that invokes a JSFHandler EGL Function • You can do this by using the Immediate property of a Submit button. Let’s explore! From Enhanced Faces Components drag and drop a new Button – Command on to the page (as shown) • From Properties / Display – change its text to: Cancel • Click the Quick Edit view. Note - for Command Buttons, Quick Edit opens an editor to the EGL function bound to the button (and if one is not bound, it creates a new function). • Add the code shown here to: forwardto"hello1"; Press Ctrl/S

28. Optional Workshop – JSF Validation Bypass – 2 of 2 With your cursor focus still on the Command Button • Re-select the Properties tab • From the All Attributes view  • Find the immediate property • From its combo-box, select: True Modify the Validation Behavior for a control *** Notes*** • Select the FldIn2 input text control • From the Properties tab, return to standard mode • See screen capture below • From the – Behavior sub-tab • Un-check: Validate field value in the browser • Run the page • Test the behavior of the immediate property

29. Optional Topic – EGL Validation Bypass So – for Validations set using the JSF properties you can bypass the framework code’s automatic checking using the technique you just learned (immediate/true). But what about the EGL DataItem validations? • The code generated for them is executed before your JSFHandler’s onConstruction() function is invoked • What if there are EGL Validations tied to input fields (how can you bypass the automatic EGL data-validation framework)? • (as mentioned in the slide notes) the JSF Immediate property will bypass them, but what if you want the EGL Validations (only) to be bypassed? JSFHandlers have a property named: validationBypassFunctions – where you can list/select function names that if invoked from a JSP page – will act like the JSF Immediate property, in that all EGL DataItem validations will NOT be executed – only the function will be executed when the user clicks the button bound to it.

30. Optional Topic – Displaying Date Fields as Blanks • So – for some applications, you will want to display unknown date variable values in pages as blanks. Which can be problematic, as Java initializes date variables to the current date. So what to do? • Declare your date as allowing nulls (add a question mark to the declaration as shown below) • If you want to display the date as blanks, set the variable to null • If you want to find out if the user entered anything, check the variable for a null upon form submit

31. Unit Summary • Now that you have completed this unit, you should have: • Created new dynamic content web pages • Populated the pages with: • JSF Components • EGL variable data • Customized the JSF component properties