4.8.1 Drawing mapping lines (connecting Guide Parts and Plugin Parts)
The following describes the procedure for placing I/O Plugin parts and then drawing mapping lines.
- Tip
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You can view and work with Plugin Parts and mapping lines only when the Guide area is in mapping mode. For details about each step, see the Hitachi Navigation Platform Content Editing Guide.
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Specify the following URL on the Web browser to invoke the login window:
http://host-name:port-number/ucnpBase/portal/screen/TitlePortlet/portlet/ucnp/pane/-44Ob44O844Og55S76Z2i/layout_id/default/tab_id/-44Ob44O844Og55S76Z2i?start_editor=true&open_editor=true
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host-name
Host name or IP address of the J2EE server machine in a development environment.
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port-number
Web server port number in a development environment. This value will be specified for ucnp.setup.server.cosminexus.hws.http.port property in the user setup property file (ucnp_setup_user.properties).
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Enter the user ID and password, and then click the Login button.
If you enter incorrect information, click the Reset button to clear the entered information, and then enter information again.
When you click the Login button, the Operational Content Editing Window appears.
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In the Operational Flow area, click the Process Node in which you want to set a plugin.
The Guide corresponding to the Operational Flow appears in the Guide area.
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Click
(Plugin button) in the toolbar.
The Guide area switches to mapping mode.
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In the Plugins palette in the Guide area, click
(Plugin button).
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Click a location in the Guide area.
A Plugin Part is placed.
If you want to place other plugins, repeat steps 5 and 6.
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Draw a mapping line by clicking and dragging from the port (
) of the transition-source Guide Part to an input parameter of the Plugin Part (the port on the left of the Plugin Part).
The cache value of the Guide Part will be passed to the plugin as an input parameter.
For details about cache values of each Guide Part, see 5.2.1 (5) Cache values of Guide Parts.
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Draw a mapping line by clicking and dragging from an output parameter of the Plugin Part (the port to the right of the Plugin Part) to the transition-destination Guide Part.
The value set in the plugin will be passed to the Guide Part as an output parameter.
- Supplementary note:
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Mapping lines appear as colored arrows as shown in the figure below. Because each mapping line has a different color, you can easily identify lines even if they cross over.
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You can draw mapping lines to multiple input parameters from one Guide Part.
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You cannot draw mapping lines from multiple output parameters to one Guide Part.
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It is not mandatory that you draw mapping lines to the ports of a Plugin Part.
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If you have placed a Plugin Part, plugin processing is invoked when a transition occurs between nodes containing the plugin in the Operational Content Editing Window, even if no mapping lines are drawn to the Plugin Part.
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Mapping lines or Plugin Parts set in this task are not displayed in the Operational Content Execution Window.
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- Notes on cache values of Guide Parts
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The cache values of Guide Parts are shared between Guide Parts of the same type. When the Operational Flow includes a Branching node, if a Process Node that has already been displayed is displayed again via another route, the cache value used when the Process Node was first displayed is used.
You can use I/O Plugins (server processing implementation interface) to change the cache value according to certain conditions. For details about the server processing implementation interface, see 5.2 IIoPluginController (server processing implementation interface).
- Notes on associating Plugin Parts with drop-down parts in a parent-child relationship
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To associate Plugin Parts with drop-down parts that are configured in a parent-child relationship, define the Operational Content so that the parameter linked to the parent drop-down part is above the parameter linked to the child drop-down part. The parameters of parent and child drop-down parts need not be contiguous.
The following figure shows an example in which output parameters (the ports on the right side of a Plugin Part) are associated with drop-down parts in a parent-child relationship.
Figure 4‒4: Example of associating output parameters with drop-down parts in parent-child relationship In this example, outputItemName1 is associated with the parent drop-down part, and outputItemName2 is associated with the child drop-down part. Because the parameters associated with drop-down parts in parent-child relationships need not be contiguous, for example, outputItemName3 could also be associated with the child drop-down part.
These notes do not only apply to output parameters. They also apply when you associate input parameters with parent-child drop-down parts.
- Operations after editing plugins
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If you edit a plugin after associating its Plugin Part with parameters, you need to place the Plugin Part for the edited plugin again and redraw the mapping lines.
For details about how to enable edited plugins without placing them and redrawing mapping lines, see the description about updating User Plugins in the Hitachi Navigation Platform Setup and Operations Guide.