Printing a report and the updating objects?

Rem

Hi!

So, almost finnished with my first app. The final question: (I hope).

I want to print out a report with a list of objects. After this is done I want the user to get a question if the printout was ok. If it was, and the user says yes, I want all the printed objects to be marked as printed (so you don´t print them again).

My thought is to have a process to do this, but I´m a bit lost I must admit.

(I have come that far as to make a query find the objects to be printed)

Anyone?

tford

Rem,

I think I would have 2 processes involved.

Process 1:
-Find items to print
-print them
-ask the question
- If OK, call process 2

Process 2:
-update the flag to indicate already printed

Hope this helps -- crunched for time so I have to keep it brief.

Tom

Rem

When you say print, how would you print them? Using the report function to generate a PDF or a document?

If I use the PDF I get the PDF on the screen (and I can print it manually, which is ok) but then nothing else after I close it.

/Rem

aware_support

There is the PRINT action that prints documents on a server. You can also use DISPLAY QUESTION action to ask the user.

tford

Rem,

Did you get it to work?

Tom

Rem

Sorry, havent had time to try yet. Will get back when I have tried!

/Rem

Rem

I start a process which does this:

PRINT DOCUMENT 'Tidrapport - debiterad tid'
DISPLAY QUESTION 'Blev utskriften OK?'

But the first thing that happens is that the program show me a list and asks me to chose a job. I don´t want to chose a job I want to print all jobs (not previously printed that is).

Why does the PRINT DOCUMENT show me a list of jobs? The document I will print is based on a query that works. I can display the query on the screen and it looks fine.

/Rem

aware_support

Most probably your process has Job as a parameter. When the process is started and the parameter is not provided the system asks the user to select this parameter from the results of a query.

You need to either remove the parameter from the process or provide it without forcing the user to do this.

Rem

Thanks!!

Now on to the next question. My rule looks like this:

PRINT DOCUMENT 'Tidrapport - debiterad tid'
DISPLAY QUESTION 'Blev utskriften OK?'
IF Question.Reply = 'Yes' THEN DISPLAY MESSAGE 'Du tryckte på OK!'

But I receive a:

Syntax error at token "IF" (column 40).

I dont understand why ..

Rem

Solved it. I had to make a second rule. Couldn´t have it in the same rule (why?).

But now I have a somewhat "larger" question.

If I make the printout, and it´s OK. BUT I don´t hit the OK button directly, but wait for a time and hit it later. In that time period someone might register a new job.

This is Ok if the new job appear on the next printout. But since I havn´t updated the objects yet, it wont.

So, how do I prevent someone from entering new object while waiting for user input?

Another approach could be to update the records before the printout, but then I would have to roll them back if the printout was not ok.

Ideas??

aware_support

I'm not sure I understand. What is the question that you ask the user (I don't understand Swedish, sorry)? What do you mean by "updating the objects"? What does the entire process look like?

Rem

Well, I´ll try to explain what I am doing.

The users of the system creates jobs. (The users are consultants and when they have helped our customers they report into the system what they have done and that is a job).

Then we print out a report as basis for the invoicing with all the jobs that is marked as "finnished".

When we do this printout the system ask if it´s OK (yes, in Swedish, sorry) and if it is the jobs on the report are updated and flagged as "printed" and here is the question:

If someone enters a new job between the printout and the OK-click that job will also be flagged as "printed" but will offcourse not actually be printed since the printout occured before. Thus we will not send an invoice to the customer (horrible thought..) and eventually become poor people 🙂

See, the problem?

So I think of three ways to solve it: either

1.) Lock the system so new jobs cannot be entered during that time
2.) Update the records before the printout and then roll it back if the printout wasn´t ok
3.) Somehow check if the printout process(es) is started but not finnished and make sure new records are not flagged as "printed"

Hope this makes thing a bit clearer!

/Rem

tford

Hi Rem,

tford wrote
Rem,

I think I would have 2 processes involved.

Process 1:
a-Find items to print
b-print them
c-ask the question
d- If OK, call process 2

Process 2:
a-update the flag to indicate already printed

Hope this helps -- crunched for time so I have to keep it brief.

Tom

In my previous note you will notice there is only 1 FIND statement -- the first action in Process 1. I THINK the process descibed above will exclude any new jobs added to AwareIM after step 1a and the time when the user says "OK" in step 1d. The reason is that there is NOT another FIND statement. The Business Objects that AwareIM FINDs in 1a are the ones that will be passed from 1d-->2a when the user clicks OK. This is an axample of the "context" concept which is explained in great detail in the User's Guide.

When I first started using AwareIM, I just looked at that section of the User's Guide very briefly because I thought it looked obvious. However I found that understanding the whole concept of context is KEY to understanding both the power and simplicity of AwareIM.

Support -- If I have this wrong, please correct me 🙂

Make sense, Rem?

Tom

Rem

I think so too, however I don´t do it like that. I do one query for the printout and then another (but the same) for the updating.

Could it be that simple as to remove the second one? I think, if I remember corectly, that I tried that first, but it didn´t work.

I use two processes by the way.

/Rem

tford

Rem,

Can you give it a try & report back? You'll need to pass the parameter from Process 1 to Process 2.

Tom

aware_support

I agree with Tom conceptually.

One thing I don't understand is why you print the jobs first and then ask the user if it is OK to mark the jobs as printed. Wouldn't it be more logical to ask the user first and then print and set the "printed" flag? This way you will ALWAYS only mark those jobs as printed that were actually printed.

Rem

Well, if there is something wrong with the printout. Printer doesn´t work, or something like that. Since this is the only link between the two systems it´s important that information is correct.

Actually, started to think now, if I replace the "printed" with a number instead, I can go back and print it again, just find the objects with that number and print it. And increase the number for every new printout. That should solve it right?

/Rem

tford

Yes, Rem. That should work easily. You could store the last batch number in a SystemSetting attribute & increment it with each batch printed. I do a batch numbering process in one application where I also store the user who entered the batch & the date/time the batch was entered.

Tom