7 Creating and Designing Pages

7.1.5.1 Creating a JSP Through the Page Creation Wizard

To create a JSP through the Page Creation Wizard:

1. In the Portal Builder, click the Build tab to bring it forward.

2. Go to the Page Groups portlet, and select the page group that will own the new page from the Page Group drop-down list.

3. Click the Create a Page link.

4. From the Page Type list, select JSP.

5. In the Name field, enter a name for the page. The name can be used in a URL to directly access the page. Direct access URLs take the following format:

   http://<hostname>:<portnumber>/pls/<dad>/url/page/<pagegroupname>/<pagename>
   
   

   For example:

   http://mymachine.mycompany.com:5000/pls/portal/url/page/myportal/mypage
   http://mymachine.mycompany.com:5000/pls/portal/url/page/myportal/mypage/mysubpage
   
   

   The name is limited to 40 characters, and can contain any alphanumeric character (A-Z, a-z, 0-9), spaces, and the following special characters:

   - _ . ! , ; = + ~ @ ( ) [ ] { } ^ $

6. In the Display Name field, enter a descriptive name for the page.

   The display name is limited to 40 characters. This is the name that is displayed In the Portal Navigator.

7. (Optional) In the Description field, enter a description for the page.

   The description is displayed only when you edit the page. It does not appear to the user.

   The description must not exceed 2000 characters.

8. Select a caching option for the JSP.

   For more information, see Section 7.10.3, "Page Caching Options"

9. Click Next.

10. In the File Name field under JSP Source, enter the path and file name of the JSP, JAR, or WAR file to upload for the page.

    Optionally, click Browse to locate and select the file.

11. In the Initial JSP for JAR or WAR Files section, enter the name of the JSP file to execute when the user first views the page in the Initial JSP File field.

    Do this only if you uploaded a JAR or WAR file in step 8.

12. Click Next.

13. Select Display Page to Public Users to allow all users to view this page, even users who are not logged on.

14. In the Grantee field under Grant Access, enter the name of the users or groups who should have access to this page.

    Optionally, click the Users or Groups icon and select from the list provided.

15. From the list next to the Grantee field, select an access level for the selected user or group.

16. Click Add.

17. Repeat steps 14 through 16 until all relevant users and groups have been granted access.

18. Click Finish.

7.1.5.2 Creating a JSP By Copying Another Page

To create a JSP by copying an existing page:

1. In the Portal Navigator, click the Page Groups tab to bring it forward.

   To get to the Portal Navigator, click the Navigator link at the top of the Portal Builder. If the link does not display, ask your page group or portal administrator for access to this link.

2. Click the page group that owns the page you will copy as a JSP.

3. On the resulting page, click the Pages node.

4. Click the Copy as JSP link next to the page you will copy.

5. Enter a Name and a Display Name for the JSP.

   The name you enter into the Name field is used by OracleAS Portal in the creation of direct access URLs. The Display Name becomes the title of the JSP.

6. Under Content Options, choose from:

   • Use original page’s portlet instances. Select this option to copy the customizations that were made to portlets on the original page to portlets on the JSP.

   • Create externally published portlets. Select this option to create an externally published portlet for each portlet on the original page, and then use the externally published portlets on the JSP. If you select this option, any customizations made to the portlets on the original page will not affect the portlets on the JSP.

7. Click OK.

7.1.6.1 Mobile Support in OracleAS Portal

A mobile page is a page that is specifically designed for display on a mobile device. Mobile pages are presented in a hierarchical tree structure. The structure is defined by levels. Any level, including the top level, can contain any number of portlets, items, and levels. This provides the flexibility to represent a large amount of content, yet limit the list displayed at any one time to fit the limited display sizes of most mobile devices. Mobile pages give page designers complete control of how a page will look on a mobile device.

When creating a mobile page, the page designer can choose to start with a blank page or to base the page on an existing standard page. If the page designer chooses to base the mobile page on an existing standard page, the mobile-enabled portlets on the standard page are shared with the mobile page. This means that any customizations made to the portlets on the standard page will also apply to the portlets on the mobile page.

Some things to consider before you create your pages:

• If you use standard pages exclusively, they may not display optimally on the small screens available on mobile devices. On the other hand, if you decide to create a standard and a mobile version of pages, you’ll end up maintaining two sets of portal pages.

• If you anticipate heavy traffic on your mobile pages, it will probably be worth it to risk the overhead and create two sets of pages. On the other hand, if only a few users will access your portal through mobile devices, or if mobile access will be infrequent, it’s probably not worth the overhead.

• If you anticipate any mobile access, be sure to test how your standard pages will look on mobile devices. Go to your standard page; switch to Edit mode; and click the Mobile: Preview link in the toolbar at the top of the page.

If the portal administrator has enabled the mobile access global setting, any standard page can be displayed in a mobile device. The structure of a standard page is flattened into a list of portlets and items from which users can make selections. Any tabs on the page are converted into levels, which users can drill down into to view more content. When a standard page is requested by a mobile device, only those portlets and items that are mobile-enabled are displayed. Mobile-enabled portlets are those portlets capable of handling MobileXML. It’s easy to know which portlets are mobile-enabled by noting which portlets are available in the portlet repository when you add a portlet to a mobile page. Mobile-enabled items include any items based on BaseURL, BasePageLink, and BaseSubPageDisplay.

When editing a standard page, page designers can preview how the page will look in a mobile device by clicking the Mobile: Preview link in the toolbar at the top of the page.

7.1.6.2 Creating a Mobile Page

Before you can create a mobile page, your portal administrator must enable their creation via the Global Settings link in the Services portlet. For information on setting up OracleAS Portal for mobile support, see the Oracle Application Server Portal Configuration Guide. You’ll find this guide on Portal Center, http://portalcenter.oracle.com. Click the Search icon in the upper right corner of any Portal Center page.

Mobile pages provide a way to design pages to display portlets and items specifically within mobile devices, such as cell phones. Standard pages can also be displayed in mobile devices; however, the standard page design environment is more suited to creating pages for larger display devices, such as computer monitors.

If you base your mobile page on an existing standard page, the layout of the existing page is flattened so that it is more suitable for display on mobile devices:

• The standard page is examined and its regions are arranged in a logical order.

• The mobile content in these regions is copied over into the single region of the new mobile page. Non-mobile content is not copied over to the new mobile page. Non-mobile content includes any portlets that are not mobile-enabled, and any item types that are not based on the BaseURL, BasePageLink, and BaseSubPageDisplay item types.

• The portlet customizations on the mobile portlets are shared between the standard page and the mobile page. This means that any customizations made to either page affect the other page. For example, if a user customizes a stock portlet on a page with a specific portfolio, and that page was used as the initial content for a mobile page, then the user will see the same customizations on the mobile page. Even though the portlets are shared, they will not be listed in the Portlet Repository.

• Any tabs on the standard page are converted into levels on the new mobile page.

• The access control settings on the standard page are copied to the new mobile page. You can edit the mobile page to change these settings later. Privileges that do not apply to mobile pages are converted as follows:

  • Manage Items With Approval becomes Manage Content

  • Manage Style becomes Customize Portlets (Full)

  • Customization (Style) becomes View

To create a mobile page:

1. In OracleAS Portal, click the Build tab to bring it forward.

2. Go to the Page Groups portlet, and select a page group that will own the new page from the Page Group drop-down list.

3. Click Create a Page.

4. In the Page Type list, choose Mobile.

   If Mobile is not included in this list, the mobile page design global setting is not enabled, or the Mobile page type has not been included in the page group. If you have administrative privileges, you can add this type to the list of available types by clicking the Configure link next to the Page Type field. Use this to configure the page group that owns this page to include the Mobile page type.

5. In the Name field, enter a name for the page. The name can be used in a URL to directly access the page. Direct access URLs take the following format:

   http://<hostname>:<portnumber>/pls/<dad>/url/page/<pagegroupname>/<pagename>
   
   

   For example:

   http://mymachine.mycompany.com:5000/pls/portal/url/page/myportal/mypage
   http://mymachine.mycompany.com:5000/pls/portal/url/page/myportal/mypage/mysubpage
   
   

   The name is limited to 40 characters, and can contain any alphanumeric character (A-Z, a-z, 0-9), spaces, and the following special characters:

   - _ . ! , ; = + ~ @ ( ) [ ] { } ^ $

6. In the Display Name field, enter a descriptive name for the page.

   The display name is limited to 40 characters. This is the name that is displayed In the Portal Navigator.

7. (Optional) In the Description field, enter a description for the page.

   The description is displayed only when you edit the page. It does not appear to the user.

   The description can contain up to 2000 characters.

8. Select a page caching option.

   Caching at the system level places a single copy of the page's structure (or structure and content) in the system cache for all users. Consequently, all page customization options are disabled.

   For more information, see Section 7.10.1, "Changing How a Page Is Cached" and Section 7.10.3, "Page Caching Options"

9. Click Next.

10. Select:

    • Blank Page to create a blank mobile page.

    • Base On Existing Page to pre-populate the mobile page with the same content as an existing page.

      Click the Browse icon next to the Existing Page field, and the Return Object link next to the page you will use as the starting point for your mobile page.

      
      

      Note: You can base a mobile page only on a Standard page. If you want to create a new mobile page based on an existing mobile page, copy the mobile page, then edit the copy.

      
      

11. Click Next.

12. (Optional) Select Display Page To Public Users if you want everyone, including users who are not logged into the portal, to be able to view the page.

13. (Optional) To explicitly grant privileges to specific users or groups:

    1. In the Grantee field, enter the name of the user or group you will allow to access this page.

       Alternatively, click the Users or Groups icon, and select from the list provided.

       
       

       Note: Because Oracle Internet Directory (OID) can include multiple containers that can use the same group names, the distinguished name (DN) is displayed next to any group that does not belong to the local OracleAS Portal instance.

       
       

    2. In the list, choose a privilege level.

       Alternatively, click the Users or Groups icon, and select from the list provided.

       
       

       Note: If you based your mobile page on an existing page, the new page uses the same access settings as the existing page. You can change these settings later. Privileges that do not apply to mobile pages are converted as follows: Manage Items With Approval becomes Manage Content Manage Style becomes Customize Portlets (Full) Customization (Style) becomes View

       
       

    3. Click Add.

14. Click Finish to create the page.

    If you based your mobile page on an existing page, and the existing page is complex, the page creation process may take a while as the existing page is converted into a layout more suited for display on mobile devices. When you click the Finish button, you are given the opportunity of continuing the page creation process in the background so that you can move on to other tasks. If you attempt to edit the mobile page before the creation is completed, a pop up window will inform you that the page is not yet complete.

If you add a portlet to a page that was used as the starting point for a mobile page, that portlet will not appear on the mobile page. If you want the portlet to also appear on the mobile page, you must add it to the mobile page. Additionally, if you want to share any customizations made to the portlet between the two pages, you must explicitly share the portlet on one page, and then add that shared portlet instance to the other page. For more information, see Section 7.6.2.5, "Sharing a Portlet Across Multiple Pages".

7.1.6.3 Adding Content to a Mobile Page

To add content to a mobile page:

1. Go to the mobile page you will work with.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Click Edit.

3. Click the Add Portlet icon to add a portlet to the page.

   Navigate through the Portlet Repository to find the portlet you want to add, click the portlet name, then click OK. In the mobile page’s Edit mode, click Edit Defaults next to a portlet to change the portlet properties.

   
   

   Note: You can add only mobile-enabled portlets to mobile pages. If you publish a page as a portlet, if that page does not contain any mobile-enabled portlets, URL items, Page Link items, or tabs, it will not appear as a mobile-enabled portlet.

   
   

4. Click the Add Item icon to add an item to the page.

   You can add any item type that is based on BaseURL, BasePageLink, and BaseSubPageDisplay. This means the item types potentially available for mobile pages include Simple URL, URL, Simple Page Link, Page Link, and SubPage Display. This also means that any item types that users create that are based on these types are also potentially available for adding to mobile pages.

   Once an item has been added to a page, click the Create or Edit link next to an item to create a new item or change the item properties.

   
   

   Note: When a page group is first created, none of these item types are available. You can edit the properties of the parent page group to make these item types available.

   
   

5. Click the Add Level icon to add a level to the page.

   A level is displayed on the page as a link that users can click to drill down to more content. Levels provide the flexibility to represent a large amount of content while limiting the displayed list to fit the small display sizes of most mobile devices.

6. Click the Level Properties icon to change the name of the level, or to specify who can access a particular level.

   Levels are the equivalent of tabs on a standard page, and the same access rules apply; see Section 7.5.3.3, "Controlling Access to a Tab" for more information.

7. Click the Rearrange icon to rearrange the order of portlets, items, and levels within the current level.

8. Select the check box next to one or more portlets, items, and levels and click Hide to hide them on the page.

9. Select the check box next to one or more hidden portlets, items, and levels (displayed in gray) and click Show to show them on the page.

10. Select the check box next to one or more portlets, items, and levels and click Delete to remove them from the page.

11. Select the check box next to one or more portlets and items, and click Move to move them to a different level of the page.

    
    

    Note: You cannot move levels.

    
    

12. Select the check box next to one or more portlets, and click Share to make these particular instances of the portlets available to other pages.

    For more information, see Section 7.6.2.5, "Sharing a Portlet Across Multiple Pages".

You can use a mobile device to access a portal page that contains a page portlet within another page portlet. However, when a user navigates to the inner page portlet, it may not be possible to navigate back without going back to the Home page. The Back link context is lost when page portlets are nested on mobile pages and when viewing a standard page on a mobile device.

7.1.6.4 OracleAS Portal and MobileXML

MobileXML is well-formed XML that conforms to the Oracle Application Server Wireless MobileXML DTD. The Oracle Application Server Wireless gateway transforms MobileXML generated by OracleAS Portal portlets into device-specific markup (such as tinyHTML and WML). This allows your MobileXML portlet to be displayed on a variety of mobile devices automatically.

OracleAS Portal includes a MobileXML portlet in its portlet repository. Use it to write MobileXML.The following steps describe placing the MobileXML portlet on a standard page.

For more information on MobileXML and the MobileXML DTD, see the Oracle Application Server Wireless documentation on the Oracle Technology Network, http://otn.oracle.com.

7.5.1.1 Adding a Region to a Page

If you have Full Customization privileges on a page, you can add regions to the tabs you created when you customized the page. You cannot add regions anywhere else in the page.

To add a region to a page:

1. Go to the page where you will add a region.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Use the Add Region icons to add a region to the page.

   For example, a page currently has a single region (Figure 7-3):

   Figure 7-3 A Region

   
   Description of the illustration h_mcreg7.gif
   
   

   Click the Add Region Below icon in region 1 to create a second region (region 2) of the same width directly below region 1 (Figure 7-4):

   Figure 7-4 Two Regions

   
   Description of the illustration h_mcreg2.gif
   
   

   Click the Add Region Right icon in region 1 to create third region (region 3) to the right of region 1 (Figure 7-5):

   Figure 7-5 Three Regions

   
   Description of the illustration h_mcreg3.gif
   
   
   
   

   Note: Region 3 is the same height as region 1 (the region next to 3), not the height of the entire page.

   
   

• When you add a region while editing a page, the region type is undefined.

  The new region has the potential to contain either portlets, items, sub-page links, or tabs. It does not matter what the region type was where you clicked the Add Region icon. When you designate the region as a portlet, item, or sub-page link region, the new region will use the same property settings as the source region. If you change the new region to be the same type as the source region, the new region will use the same attribute list as the source region. If you change the new region to be a different type than the source region, the new region uses the default attribute list for that region type.

• When you add a region while customizing a page, the new region type defaults to portlet. In Customize mode, you can add new regions only to newly created tabs (i.e., customized tabs you see only in your view of the portal). And you can add only tab or portlet type regions to it (that is, you can add a portlet or a subtab to a custom tab).

If a page is based on a page template, region configuration is determined by the page template. You will not be able to add more regions directly to the page. To add more regions, you must add them to the page template (provided you have the required privileges).

7.5.1.2 Deleting a Region from a Page

Deleting a region from a page changes the entire landscape of the page. Once you've deleted a region there is no way to reinstate it, so be sure that is the action you want to take.

If the region you are deleting contains portlets or items, you are prompted to specify where you would like to relocate them. If the region contains tabs or sub-page links, you cannot relocate them within the Delete Region screen. With tabs, you must either delete the region and all its content, or cancel and relocate the content before deleting the region. With a sub-page links region, you must add another region of the same type.

If you have Full Customization privileges on a page, you can delete regions from your own tabs when you customize the page; you cannot delete regions anywhere else in the page.

To delete a region from a page:

1. Go to the page where you will delete a region.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Delete icon in the region you want to delete.

4. If the region contains portlets or items, you are prompted to specify where you would like to relocate them.

   Use the radio buttons to make your selection, then click Move Content. Alternatively, click Delete Content to remove the region and its content.

   
   

   Note: You can move portlets only to another portlet region; you can move items only to another item region.

   
   

5. If the region contains tabs, you are reminded that deleting the region will delete all the tabs within that region and remove all the content on those tabs.

   Click Delete Region to continue, or Cancel if you want to move the portlets or items before deleting the region.

7.5.2.1 Changing the Region Name

Providing a name for a region is useful for at least two reasons:

• To identify the content of a region for your users

  You can display the region name in a banner at the top of the region to let users know what kind of content to expect in the region.

• To provide descriptive names for regions during region mapping

  Regions names are also useful for identifying specific regions when you map the regions in an existing page to the regions in a new template you are applying to that page. The name appears above the region in lieu of an automatically assigned number.

To change the region name:

1. Go to the page where you will change a region name.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Edit icon in the relevant region.

4. Go to the Region Display Options section, and enter a name in the Display Name field.

   
   

   Note: The region display name must be no more than 40 characters.

   
   

5. If you want to display the region name in a banner at the top of the region, select Display Region Banner.

6. Click OK to return to the page.

7.5.2.2 Changing the Region Type

The region types are item, portlet, sub-page links, tab, and undefined. Region types accept only their related type of content. For example: Add portlets to a portlet region and items to an item region. You cannot add portlets to an item region, nor can you add items to a portlet region. You cannot add anything to a sub-page links region; these regions automatically populate with links to sub-pages of the current page. You cannot add anything to a tab region; although you can configure the tab to include, for example, rollover images.

If you have Manage privileges on the page, you can add a portlet or an item to an undefined region. Once you add content to an undefined region, the region becomes defined: it becomes a portlet region if you add a portlet, an item region if you add an item.

Users who do not have Manage privileges on the page cannot add content to an undefined region. For them, undefined regions display without edit controls. To enable such users to add content, a user with Manage privileges on the page must explicitly change the region type to item or portlet, or add an item or a portlet to the region.

You can change the region type of portlet and item regions only if the region is empty. You can change the region type of sub-page link regions at any time, whether or not the region contains any links to sub-pages. You cannot change the region type of a tab region. You cannot change a region type in a page template if a page that is based on the template already includes content in that region.

To change the region type:

1. Go to the page where you will change a region type.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Edit icon in the relevant region.

4. Go to the Region Type section, and from the Type radio group, select either:

   • Items

   • Portlets

   • Sub-Page Links

   • Undefined

   
   

   Note: If you do not see the radio buttons, your region already contains items, portlets, or tabs; so you cannot change the type. Delete the tabs, or delete or move the items or portlets; and try again. You can change the type of a sub-page links region at any time, provided you have the privileges to do so and the region is not part of a template applied to the page you are working with.

   
   

5. Click OK to return to the page.

7.5.2.3 Freezing the Content of a Region

You may want to freeze the content of a particular region so that users cannot change what appears in that region. For example, your page might be divided into regions that contain navigational elements and a main content region. You want users to be able to edit or customize the content in the main content region, but you don't want them to be able to edit or customize the other regions.

In page templates you can freeze the content of regions so that users cannot change it when they are editing or customizing a page that is based on the template.

You can also freeze the content of regions in pages. This means that users cannot change the content in these regions when they customize the page. Users with Manage privileges can still change the content of these regions when they edit the page.

To freeze the content of a region in a page template:

1. In the Portal Navigator, click the Page Groups tab to bring it forward.

   To get to the Portal Navigator, click the Navigator link at the top of the Portal Builder. If the link does not display, ask your page group or portal administrator for access to this link.

2. On the resulting page, click the page group that owns the template you will change.

3. Click the Templates node.

4. Click the Edit link next to the template you will change.

5. On the resulting page, click the Edit icon in the relevant region.

6. Go to the Region Content section, and clear the check box Enable Users To Include Content In This Region.

7. Click OK to save your changes and return to the page template.

When users edit or customize a page based on this template, they will not be able to add content to the region, or hide, show, delete, or move existing content.

To freeze the content of a region in a page:

1. Go to the page where you will freeze region content.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Edit icon in the relevant region.

4. Go to the Region Content section, and clear the check box Enable Users To Include Content In This Region.

   
   

   Note: Users cannot customize the content of item regions; consequently, this check box appears only for portlet and tab regions.

   
   

5. Click OK.

When users customize the page, they will not be able to add content to the region, or hide, show, delete, or move existing content. Users can still add, hide, show, delete, and move content when they edit the page (rather than customize).

7.5.2.4 Changing the Height and Width of a Region

By default regions are all equal widths. For example, here is a page with a single region (Figure 7-6):

Figure 7-6 One Region Using 100% of Available Space

Description of the illustration h_mcreg1.gif

If you add another region to the right of the existing region, each region will take up 50% of the width of the page (Figure 7-7):

Figure 7-7 Two Regions, Each Using 50% of Available Space

Description of the illustration h_mcreg6.gif

If you want each region to take up a different amount of space, you can explicitly set the width of each region. You can set the width of a region to a specific number of pixels or to a percentage of the overall width of the page.

You can also set the height of a region.

To change the height and width of a region:

1. Go to the page where you will change the height and width of a region.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Edit icon in the relevant region.

4. In the Width field, enter the width of the region in pixels (a number, such as 20) or as a percentage of the overall width of the page (a number and a percent sign, such as 20%).

   
   

   Note: You must include a percent sign (%) if you want the number you enter to be interpreted as a percentage of page width, rather than a number of pixels.

   
   

5. In the Height field, enter the height of the region in pixels.

6. Click OK to return the page.

If you choose to have the width of some regions expressed in pixels and others on the same page expressed in percentages, the page may look slightly different in different browsers.

If you enter a height or width of 1 in an attempt to make the region as small as possible, the region will expand to display the full content of the region.

If you add another region to the right or left of an existing region, the region widths are automatically reset to be equal. For example, if you have a page with two regions side-by-side, one with a width of 40% and the other 60%, if you add a third region on the same line, all the regions will be reset to a width of 33%.

You might have a region configuration that looks something like Figure 7-8:

Figure 7-8 Region Divided to the Right, Then Below

Description of the illustration h_mcreg4.gif

In this case, even if you set regions 1 and 3 to have different widths, the actual width of the column will be as wide as the widest region in that column. So if region 1 had a width of 40% and region 3 had a width of 20%, when viewing the page, the column containing regions 1 and 3 would be 40% of the width of the page.

Pixel widths take precedence over percentage widths. Therefore, if region 1 had a width of 40% and region 3 had a width of 200 pixels, when viewing the page, the column containing regions 1 and 3 would be 200 pixels wide.

7.5.2.5 Displaying or Hiding Banners

You can choose whether or not to display banners in a region. There are two types of banners:

• The region banner appears at the top of the region (Figure 7-9).

  Figure 7-9 Region with Banner

  
  Description of the illustration h_regrbn.gif
  
  

• Group By banners appear above each group of items in the region (Figure 7-10).

  
  

  Note: For more information about grouping items in a region, see Section 7.5.2.12, "Grouping Items in a Region".

  
  

  Figure 7-10 Group By Banners Appear Above Each Group of Items in the Region

  
  Description of the illustration h_reggbn.gif
  
  

To display or hide banners:

1. Go to the page where you will display or hide banners.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Edit icon in the relevant region.

4. Go to the Region Display Options section:

   • To display a region banner, provide a region Display Name, and select Display Region Banner. The region banner appears only if you have given the region a name.

   • To hide a region banner, clear the Display Region Banner check box.

5. Go to the Item Display Options section:

   • To display a Group By banner, choose a Group By option, and select Display Group By Banner. The Group By banner option is available only for item regions. The group by banners appear only if you have selected to group items in the region.

   • To hide a Group By banner, clear the Display Group By Banner check box.

6. Click OK to return to the page.

7.5.2.6 Changing the Number of Columns and Rows in a Region

If you have many items or portlets in a region, you may want to arrange the items or portlets into multiple columns to conserve space. You can specify how many columns and rows you want to include in a region.

Regardless of how many columns you include in the region, the number of rows dynamically expands to accommodate all the items or portlets in the region, provided you have not defined a specific number of rows.

If you specify a number of columns and a number of rows, and the number of items in the region exceeds the number of placements this allows, the overflow items will not display until you change the number of columns or rows to accommodate them. For example, if you have eight items, and you specify two columns and three rows, only six items display. The other two do not. The items that do not display are retained, rather than lost or deleted. If you change the number of rows to four or the number of columns to three, all eight items will display.

The following examples show the same region with different numbers of columns and rows:

Figure 7-11 Region with Eight Items in Four Columns (Rows not Specified)

Description of the illustration h_rgcol4.gif

Figure 7-12 The Same Region with Two Columns and Three Rows (Two Items Truncated)

Description of the illustration h_rgcol2.gif

To change the number of columns and rows in a region:

1. Go to the page where you will change the number of region columns and rows.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Edit icon in the relevant region.

4. Go to the Region Display Options section, and enter the number of columns you want for the region in the Number of Columns field.

   Leaving this field blank will result in one column in the region.

5. In the Number of Rows field, enter the number of rows you want for the region.

   Leaving this field blank will result in however many rows are required to accommodate whatever content is added to the region.

6. Click OK to return to the page.

7.5.2.7 Changing the Alignment of Items

Align items in a region to the left, center, or right.

The following example shows the same region with different item alignment settings:

Figure 7-13 The Same Region with Different Item Alignment Settings

Description of the illustration h_regial.gif

To change the alignment of items in a region:

1. Go to the page where you will change the alignment of items.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Edit icon in the relevant item region.

4. Go to the Item Display Options section, and choose an item alignment from the Item Alignment list: Left, Center, or Right.

5. Click OK to return to the page.

7.5.2.8 Setting Sub-Page Links Properties

Sub-Page Links regions share many of the same region properties you find with item and portlet regions. Additionally, they have a few that are unique to type. These include:

• Page Level Display

• Sub-Pages (Icon, Description, and Rollover)

• Image (for Sub-Page Display)

Additionally, at the page level, you define which sub-page links will be displayed on the current page and specify link display order. For more information, see Section 7.8.1, "Defining the Display of Sub-Page Links".

You can specify that either one or two levels of sub-page links should display in a Sub-Page Links region.

To set the level of sub-page links:

1. Go to the page that contains the Sub-Page Links region you will change.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Edit icon for the relevant region.

4. Go to the Page Level Display section, and select either:

   • Display One Level Of Sub-Pages to link to one level of sub-pages below the current page

   • Display Two Levels Of Sub-Pages to link to two levels of sub-pages below the current page

5. Click Apply to save your changes, or OK to save your changes and return to the page.

Use these properties to specify the attributes to display along with sub-page links. Choose from a sub-page icon, a description of the sub-page, an image/rollover image for the sub-page.

To specify which sub-page links attributes will display:

1. Go to the page that contains the Sub-Page Links region you will change.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Edit icon for the relevant region.

4. Go to the Sub-Pages section, and select any or all of the following attributes:

   • Display Sub-Page Icon to display an icon next to each sub-page link

   • Display Sub-Page Description to display the content of the sub-page’s description attribute

   • Display Sub-Page Image and Rollover Image to display an image/rollover image in lieu of the page name

     The image and (optionally) rollover image were specified for the sub-page when it was created (or edited). For more information about page images and rollover images, see Section 7.8.4, "Specifying a Representative Image for a Page".

5. Click Apply to save your changes, or OK to save your changes and return to the page.

Use this section to suppress or select the navigation icon to display on sub-pages. This icon displays on the sub-pages themselves. Users click it to navigate back up the hierarchy of pages.

To suppress or select the navigation icon to display on sub-pages:

1. Go to the page that contains the Sub-Page Links region you will change.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Edit icon for the relevant region.

4. Go to the Image section, and select one of the following image options:

   • No Image to suppress the display of a sub-page navigation icon

   • Default Image to display the default sub-page navigation icon (an upward-pointing arrow)

   • Image to display a sub-page navigation icon that you specify

     In the first field, click the Browse button to locate and select a file on your file system.

     OR

     In the second field, either enter the URL and file name of an image on the Web, or enter the internal name of an image already uploaded into OracleAS Portal, for example 1655.gif.

     To obtain the internal name OracleAS Portal has assigned to an image, go to a place within your portal where the image is already in use; right click it; and select Properties from the right-click menu.

5. Click Apply to save your changes, or OK to save your changes and return to the page.

7.5.2.9 Setting a Uniform Height or Width for Item Images

When you add or edit an item, you can specify a representative image for that item. To ensure a consistent look, you may want to set a uniform height and width for these images.

If you set a uniform height and width, some item images may look squashed or stretched if they are larger or smaller than the height and width you specify.

To set a uniform height or width for item images:

1. Go to the page where you will set a uniform height or width for item images.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Edit icon in the relevant item region.

   
   

   Note: The item icon height and width options are available only for item regions.

   
   

4. Go to the Item Display Options section, and enter the height (in pixels) in the Item Icon Height field.

   If you leave this field empty, the height defaults to the actual height of the image.

5. Enter the width in the Item Icon Width field.

   If you leave this field empty, the width defaults to the actual width of the image.

6. Click OK to return to the page.

7.5.2.10 Changing the Attributes Displayed in a Region

Typically, when you add an item to a region, you also enter information about that item into item attribute fields. For both portlets and items, some attributes are populated automatically, such as the creation date; and they do not require any data entry when the item or portlet is added. Through region properties, you can specify which attributes you would like to display along with the item or portlet.

For example, by default, the Display Name and Image and Description attributes are displayed for each item in a region. In some regions you might want to provide more information. For example, you might want to include the Document Size, Expire Date, or some custom attribute specific to your own content. In some regions, you might want to provide less information. For example, you might choose not to include item descriptions.

To change the attributes displayed in a region:

1. Go to the page where you will change the displayed attributes.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Edit icon in the relevant region.

4. Click the Attributes/Style tab (for item regions) or the Attributes tab (for portlet regions).

5. To add an attribute to the region, select the attribute in the Available Attributes list and click the Move Right icon.

   The attribute is added to the bottom of the Displayed Attributes list. Use the rearrange buttons to determine where the attribute is displayed in relation to the other attributes in the region.

   For example, if you want the Description attribute to be displayed first, select Description in the Displayed Attributes list, and click the Move Top icon to move it to the top of the list.

   
   

   Note: The Portlet Content attribute is selected by default for all portlet regions. If this attribute is not selected, portlets do not display in the region.

   
   

6. Add <Blank Line> and <Space> attributes to improve the layout of the attributes in the region.

   You can add as many of these attributes as needed. By default, a single space is added between attributes. You can add more if desired. Use blank lines to separate attribute values as required. If an attribute value following the blank line is empty, the blank line is not displayed to avoid unnecessary white space.

7. To remove an attribute from the region, select the attribute in the Displayed Attributes list and click the Move Left icon.

8. Click Apply to save your changes.

9. Click Close to return to the page.

If an item or portlet has no information for a particular attribute, the attribute will not be displayed in the region, even if you selected to display that attribute. For example, if you selected to display the Description attribute in a region, but the Description field has been left blank for a particular item in that region, then the Description attribute will not display next to the item.

Note, however, that no matter what attributes are displayed for the region, navigation item types, such as Portal Smart Links, List of Objects, and the like, do not display any attributes other than Item Content and Display Name (or some version of a display name, such as Search Label). If you remove Item Content or Display Name from the list of Displayed Attributes, navigation item types will nonetheless continue to display the Item Content or the Display Name.

You can display MIME type images next to items on a page to provide users with a visual cue about the item type. For example, a Word MIME type image is a small version of a Word document icon. It would display next to any Microsoft Word documents uploaded to the page. To display the MIME type image before any other attribute (recommended), select Mime Type Image in the Displayed Attributes list, and click the Move Top icon.

7.5.2.11 Specifying the Display Order of Items in a Region

You can specify the order in which items are displayed in a region. If the items are grouped through the Group By option, the display order you specify determines the order of the items within each group.

To order items in a region:

1. Go to the page where you will specify the display order of items in a region.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Edit icon in the relevant item region.

4. In the Sort By list, choose:

   • Default to not order items.

     If you choose this option, items are ordered according to how you explicitly place them in the region.

   • Title to order items alphabetically by their display name

   • Size to order items by their size

   
   

   Note: If you choose to order the items in a region by display name or size, the Arrange Items icon is not displayed in the region toolbar. The order of the items is determined by the Sort By option. If your selection is other than Default, you cannot manually order the items.

   
   

5. In the Sort Order list, choose:

   • Ascending to order items from A to Z (Title), or smallest to largest (Size)

   • Descending to order items from Z to A (Title), or largest to smallest (Size)

6. Click OK to return to the page.

7.5.2.12 Grouping Items in a Region

You can group the items in a region by:

• Category

• Author

• Date

• Item Type

You can also choose to not group the items in the region.

Figure 7-14 shows the same region, first grouped by item type, then grouped by category.

Figure 7-14 The Same Region, First Grouped by Item Type and then by Category

Description of the illustration h_reggrp.gif

To group the items in a region:

1. Go to the page where you will group the items in a region.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Edit icon in the relevant item region.

4. In the Group By list, choose:

   • None to not group items

   • Category to group items by their category

     To change the order of the category groups, see Chapter 5, " Working with Content".

   • Author to group items by their author

     Author groups are ordered alphabetically by user name.

   • Date to group items by their creation date

     Date groups are ordered from oldest to most recent.

   • Item Type to group items by their item type

     For example, File, Text, Image, etc. To change the order of the item type groups, see Chapter 5, " Working with Content".

5. Select Display Group By Banner if you want to display a banner above each group as shown in Figure 7-14.

   
   

   Note: To determine the order of items within each group, see Section 7.5.2.11, "Specifying the Display Order of Items in a Region".

   
   

6. Click OK to return to the page.

7.5.2.13 Displaying or Hiding Portlet Headers and Borders

Portlet headers contain the name of the portlet and any links that are available for display (see Section 7.5.2.14). Portlet borders outline the border of each portlet in a region. You can choose whether or not to display portlet headers and borders.

Figure 7-15 shows the same region, first with portlet headers and borders displayed, then hidden.

Figure 7-15 Same Region with Portlet Headers Displayed, then Hidden

Description of the illustration h_regphb.gif

Because portlet headers contain the Customize link, if you hide headers, users will not be able to access this link nor customize the portlets in the region. Users will still be able to edit the portlet defaults by editing the page.

To display or hide portlet headers or borders:

1. Go to the page where you will display or hide portlet headers and/or borders.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Edit icon in the relevant portlet region.

4. Go to the Portlet Display Options section:

   • To display portlet headers, select Show Portlet Headers. To hide portlet headers, clear the Show Portlet Headers check box.

   • To display portlet borders, select Show Portlet Borders. To hide portlet borders, clear the Show Portlet Borders check box.

5. Click OK to return to the page.

7.5.2.14 Showing or Hiding Portlet Header Links

If you choose to show or hide a portlet header link, all the portlets within the region are affected. You control portlet header links for all portlets within the region, rather than for individual portlets. Additionally, you can display portlet header links in one region and hide them in another.

Choose which links to include in portlet headers.

• The Customize link enables users to customize the way the portlet appears.

• The Help link provides access to help text for the portlet.

• The About link provides access to a description of the portlet.

• The Details link provides access to a more detailed view of the portlet by clicking the portlet title.

• The Remove link enables users to remove the portlet from the page.

• The Collapse/Restore link enables users to minimize and maximize the portlet on the page.

For information on how to specify help text and descriptions for your portlets, see the Portal Developer Kit on Portal Center, http://portalcenter.oracle.com. Click the Search icon in the upper right corner of any Portal Center page.

If you have chosen not to display portlet headers, these links will not be displayed even if you have selected the appropriate check box.

To show or hide portlet header links:

1. Go to the page where you will display or hide portlet headers.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Edit icon in the relevant portlet region.

4. Go to the Portlet Display Options section:

   • To show portlet headers, select Show Portlet Headers, then select the portlet header links you will display.

   • To hide portlet headers, clear the Show Portlet Headers check box.

5. Click OK to return to the page.

7.5.2.15 Changing Portlet and Item Spacing

You can change the amount of space to appear around and between the portlets and items in a region.

Figure 7-16 shows the same region with different portlet spacing. In the first example the space around portlets is set to 4 pixels and the space between portlets is set to 6. In the second example, the space around portlets has been changed to 10 pixels. In the final example the space between portlets has been changed to 15 pixels.

Figure 7-16 The Same Region with Different Portlet Spacing

Description of the illustration h_regpsp.gif

To change portlet or item spacing:

1. Go to the page where you will change portlet or item spacing.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Edit icon in the relevant region.

4. Go to the [Portlet or Item] Display Options section, and enter a value (in pixels) in the Space Between [Portlets or Items] field.

5. Enter a value (in pixels) in the Space Around [Portlets or Items] field.

6. Click OK to return to the page.

7.5.2.16 Applying a Style to a Region

The style you apply to a region governs the colors and fonts used by the region and all the tabs, items, and sub-page links displayed within it. (Note that you cannot apply a style to a portlet region. Portlet regions always use the style assigned to their host page.)

By default, regions use the same style as their parent page. However, you may want to apply a different style to a region to create visual interest or make the region stand out.

To apply a style to an item, tab, or sub-page links region:

1. Go to the page where you will apply a style to a region.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Edit icon in the relevant region.

4. Click the Attributes/Style tab (for item regions) or the Style tab (for tab and sub-page links regions).

5. Choose a style from the Choose Style list.

   The Choose Style list includes all the public styles in this page group and the Shared Objects page group, as well as any styles that you have created in this page group for your own use.

   If you want the region to use the same style that is applied to the page, choose <Use Page Style>.

   If you cannot find a style with the color and font settings that you want, and you have the appropriate privileges, you can edit an existing style to meet your requirements.

6. The style you chose is applied to the region, and Preview is refreshed to show the style's settings.

7. Click Close to return to the page.

7.5.3.1 Adding a Tab to a Page

To add a tab to a page:

1. Go to the page where you will add a tab.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. In the region where you will add a tab, click the Add Tab icon.

   The region now looks like Figure 7-18.

   Figure 7-18 Region with a New Tab

   
   Description of the illustration h_ban8.gif
   
   

   To add more tabs at the same level, click the Add Tab icon that displays to the side of the tab you just added. If you click the Add Tab icon below the tab, you'll start another row of tabs below this row.

4. Click OK to return to the page.

If you add a tab to a region that already contains items or portlets, a single tab is created to hold the items or portlets already in the region.

If there is a portlet or an item you want to appear on every tab—say, a link to your corporate Web page—divide your page into two regions: one containing your tabs, and the other containing the common portlet or item (Figure 7-19).

Figure 7-19 Plain Region and Tab Region

Description of the illustration h_tabs2.gif

7.5.3.2 Changing Tab Text

When you first add a tab to a page, the text displayed on the tab defaults to New Tab. You can change this text to describe the contents of the tab.

Alternatively, you can change the appearance of a tab by uploading images for the tab. For information on how to do this, see Section 7.5.3.7, "Applying Images to a Tab". If you provide images for a tab, the tab’s display name is used as rollover text—that is, it displays when the user moves the mouse pointer over the tab.

To change tab text:

1. Go to the page where you will change tab text.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Edit icon on the relevant tab.

4. In the Display Name field, enter the text to display in the tab.

5. Click OK to return to the page.

7.5.3.3 Controlling Access to a Tab

Tabs can acquire access settings in the following ways:

• Inheriting access settings from the template

  This assigns the tab the same access privileges as the template tab from which the tab is derived.

• Inheriting access settings from the page

  This assigns the tab the same access privileges that have been assigned to the page on which the tab is placed.

• User specified access settings

  This allows users with the appropriate privileges to control access to the tab apart from the page’s access setting. A tab can have its own access setting.

To control access to a tab:

1. Go the to page that contains the tab where you will define access settings.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Edit icon on the relevant tab.

   This is the Edit icon on the prominent part of the tab.

4. Click the Access tab.

5. Select from one of the following:

   • Inherit Access Settings from Template <template name> if you want to assign the tab the same access privileges as the equivalent tab on the template it is based on. Continue at Step 9.

     
     

     Note: This option displays when the tab is on a page that is based on a template.

     
     

   • Inherit Access Settings from Page <page name> if you want to assign the tab the same access privileges that have been assigned to the page on which the tab is placed. Continue at Step 9.

     
     

     Note: You can view these privileges from the Access tab when you edit the page or tab properties.

     
     

   • Specify Access Settings if you want the tab to have its own access privileges, separate from the page itself.

6. Select Display Tab To Public Users if you want everyone, including users who are not logged into the portal, to be able to view the tab.

7. Select Enable Item Level Security to allow item creators to specify access control for individual items on the tab.

   
   

   Note: If you do not select this check box, all the items on the tab inherit access control from the tab. If you select this check box, item creators have the choice of inheriting access control from the tab, or specifying specific access control for individual items. For more information, see Section 7.8.9.1, "What Is Item Level Security?"

   
   

8. To explicitly grant privileges to specific users or groups:

   1. In the Grantee field, enter the name of the user or group that you want to allow to access this tab.

      
      

      Tip: If you are not sure of the name of the user or group, click the Users or Groups icon, and select from the list provided. OracleAS Portal uses the Oracle Internet Directory (OID) for identity management, serving as the repository for users and groups. In OID, groups are uniquely identified by their distinguished name (DN). Each group has a unique DN, though many groups can share a common name, in the same way that two people can share a common name, yet have completely different lineage (i.e., John Smith and John Doe). When working within the portal, groups created from within that portal are displayed simply with their common names. However, when the portal references a group from some other location in the OID—such as a group from some other portal associated with the same Identity Management Infrastructure—the DN of the group is displayed to distinguish it from the portal’s locally defined groups.

      
      

   2. In the list, choose a privilege level.

      
      

      Note: The order of the privileges in the list is not based on any hierarchy of privileges. For more information, see Section 7.12.4, "Page Privileges".

      
      

   3. Click Add.

9. To clear all the Web Cache entries for the tab, click Clear Cache.

   The next time the tab is requested, it will be retrieved from the database rather than the cache.

   If you revoke a user's privileges on the tab, the user will still be able to access the tab if it is in the cache. If you want to make sure that your changes are applied immediately, clear the tab from the cache by clicking this link.

   
   

   Note: This link is available only if one or more of the Web Cache global settings are enabled. For information about global settings, see the OracleAS Portal Configuration Guide, available on Portal Center, http://portalcenter.oracle.com. Click the Search icon in the upper right corner of any Portal Center page.

   
   

10. Click OK to return to the page.

If you create a page that is based on a template, and the Enable Pages To Have Different Access option was selected for the template, the page and its tabs will not inherit the template's privileges by default. To have the page and its tabs inherit the template's privileges, edit the page and select Inherit Access Settings from the Template on the Access tab. Then edit the tabs, and verify that Inherit Access Settings from the Page is selected on the Access tab.

Use the Privilege list under Change Access to change a user or group's privilege level. Click the Delete icon to remove the user's or group's privileges entirely.

7.5.3.4 Rearranging the Order of Tabs in a Region

You can change the order in which tabs are displayed in a region.

If you have full customization privileges on a page, you can also rearrange the order of tabs when you customize the page. However, any changes you make to the order of tabs will be visible only to you.

To rearrange the order of tabs in a region:

1. Go to the page that contains the region where you will rearrange tabs.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Arrange Tabs icon in the relevant region.

4. In the Arrange Tabs list, select a tab and use the arrows to reorder it in relation to the other tabs in the list.

5. Repeat step 4 for the tabs you will rearrange.

6. Click OK to return to the page.

7.5.3.5 Hiding a Tab on a Page

In some situations, you may want to hide a tab from users. For example, you may want to continue work on a tab before you make it available to other users. If you hide a tab, other users are not able to see the tab when they are viewing the page; however, you can see and work with it in Edit mode. Users will be able to see the tab when they customize the page, but it will be identified as a hidden tab.

To hide a single tab:

1. Go to the page where you will hide a tab.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Actions icon on the tab you want to hide.

4. Select Hide.

   The tab now appears grayed out in Edit mode. If you switch back to View mode, the tab no longer appears. You can still edit the tab in Edit mode and show it again, if required.

To hide more than one tab:

1. Go to the page where you will hide multiple tabs.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode, Layout view.

3. Select the check box of all the tabs you want to hide.

   
   

   Tip: At this point, you can also select portlets to hide.

   
   

4. Click Hide.

To show a hidden tab, click the Actions icon on the tab, and select Show.

7.5.3.6 Changing the Alignment of Tabs

You can specify whether tabs appear on the left or right side of a region. You can change the tab alignment only in a region that already contains at least one tab.

Figure 7-20 shows the same region with different tab alignment settings:

Figure 7-20 Same Region with Different Tab Alignment Settings

Description of the illustration h_regtal.gif

To change tab alignment:

1. Go to the page where you will change tab alignment.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Edit icon in the relevant region.

   
   

   Note: Be sure to click the icon in the tabbed region itself (that is, the icon to the right of the tabs), not in a region within the tab.

   
   

4. In the Tab Alignment list, choose whether the tabs are displayed on the left or right side of the region.

5. Click OK to return to the page.

7.5.3.7 Applying Images to a Tab

You can change the appearance of tabs on your page by applying images to them. If you apply images to a tab, the tab’s display name is used as rollover text—that is, it displays when the user moves the mouse pointer over the tab.

Each tab can have two different images: an active tab image and an inactive tab image. An active tab is the one that is currently selected within a tab set. The rest of the tabs are inactive.

If you do not want to use two different images for a tab, apply an active image to the tab without applying an inactive tab image.

The image file must be of a type that can be viewed in browser, for example, JPEG or GIF.

To apply images to a tab:

1. Go to the page that contains the tab where you will apply images.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Edit icon on the relevant tab.

4. Enter the name and location of the image you want to use as the active tab image in the Active Tab Image field, for example:

   c:\webimages\maintab_on.gif

   Alternatively, click Browse to locate and select the file.

   
   

   Note: If the tab rollover effect has been enabled for the region, the active tab image is also used to create the rollover effect—that is, the active tab image displays when the user moves the mouse pointer over the tab.

   
   

5. Enter the name and location of the image you want to use as the inactive tab image in the Inactive Tab Image field, for example:

   c:\webimages\maintab_off.gif

   Alternatively, click Browse to locate and select the file.

   
   

   Note: You need to provide an inactive tab image only if you want the tab to look different when it is not the currently selected tab, or if you want to use a rollover effect.

   
   

6. Click OK to return to page.

   
   

   Tip: If you want to check the result before you return to the page, click Apply rather than OK.

   
   

To delete a tab image, click the Delete icon next to the image. (This icon displays only when there is a tab image.)

7.5.3.8 Adding a Rollover Effect to Tabs

With a rollover effect, the image that displays with an object switches to a different image when users move their mouse pointers over the object. You can add a rollover effect to a tab by enabling the rollover effect in the tab region and applying active and inactive images to the tabs.

You can enable the rollover effect only in a region that already contains at least one tab.

To add a rollover effect to a tab:

1. Go to the page where you will add a rollover effect to a tab.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Edit icon of the relevant region.

   
   

   Note: Be sure to click the icon for the tabbed region itself (that is, the icon to the side of the tabs), rather than in a region within the tab.

   
   

4. Go to the Region Display Options section, and select Use Rollover Effect For Tab Images.

5. Click OK to return to the page.

6. Edit each tab to specify active and inactive images.

   
   

   Note: The active tab image is used as the rollover image—that is, the active tab image displays when the user moves the cursor over the tab.

   
   

7.5.3.9 Deleting a Tab from a Page

If the tab you want to delete includes content, the content is deleted along with the tab. You will not be given an opportunity to move the content during the delete operation. If you want to move the content, make sure you do so before deleting the tab.

To delete a single tab from a page:

1. Go to the page where you will delete a tab.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Actions icon on the tab you will delete.

4. Click the Delete link.

5. In the confirmation page, click Yes.

   The tab and all of its content are deleted.

To delete multiple tabs simultaneously:

1. Go to the page where you will delete multiple tabs.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode, Layout view.

3. Select the check box of all the tabs you want to delete.

4. Click Delete.

5. In the confirmation page, click Yes.

   All of the selected tabs and their content are deleted.

7.6.1.1 Adding Items

To add a content item type to a page:

1. Go to the page where you will add an item.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Add Item icon in the region where you will add the item.

   
   

   Note: If the region already contains portlets, you cannot add items to the region.

   
   

4. Select the type of item you will add from the Content Item Types list or from the Built-In Navigation Item Types list.

5. Click Next.

6. Enter values for item attributes as required.

   Different item types carry different item attributes. For example, for a File or Image item type, you click Browse to locate and select the item from your file system; for a Text item type, you enter the relevant text into a text window. You’ll find additional information about valid values for each attribute by clicking the Help icon on the relevant Portal page.

7. Click Finish to save your changes and return to the page.

7.6.1.2 Adding Dynamic Data (PL/SQL Item)

Use the following steps to add PL/SQL code that executes a PL/SQL procedure and displays the results on a page.

To add a PL/SQL item to a page:

1. Go to the page where you will add the PL/SQL item.

   If you do not see the page that you want to work with, you may not have the appropriate page access privileges. See your page group administrator to gain access.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Add Item icon in the region where you will add the PL/SQL item.

   
   

   Note: If the add item icon does not display next to the region, the region may be a portlet region (and may contain portlets). In this case, you cannot add items to this region.

   
   

4. from the Content Item Types list, choose PL/SQL.

   
   

   Note: You can also choose a custom item type that is based on the PL/SQL item type. If an item type does not appear in the list, contact your page group administrator. Your administrator selects which item types to display here. If you are the administrator or have administrative privileges, you can click the configure the list of available item types link on this page and configure the page group to include this item type.

   
   

5. Click Next.

6. In the PL/SQL Code field, enter the PL/SQL code that executes when this item is clicked.

7. In the Display Name field, enter the item's link text.

   This is what users will click to view the item.

   
   

   Note: Steps 8 through 16 are optional. These attributes may not appear on this page. Item attributes, such as Author, Description, Image, New Item Indicator, and so on, are included in the Add <Item> page only if the item type has been configured to include them. For more information, see Chapter 5, " Working with Content".

   
   

8. Choose a category that describes this item, and enter a Description for this item.

9. Change the Publish Date default to the date and time the item should be published to other users.

   The format is DD-MON-YYYY HH12:MI PM.

   When you upload the item, you can see it immediately, despite the Publish Date you enter here. Other users will not see this item until the date and time you specify.

10. In the Expiration Period field, choose whether you want this item to be always available, available only for a specified number of days (calculated from the publish date), or available up to a specific date and time.

    The format is DD-MON-YYYY HH12:MI PM.

11. In the Perspectives field, click the Move icons to move a perspective from the Available Perspectives to the Displayed Perspectives list.

    Use the up and down arrows to set the order that the perspectives are displayed.

    
    

    Note: You can choose more than one perspective for an item. For example, a sales report might belong to both the Sales Representative and Marketing Manager perspectives. You can select multiple perspectives by holding the Ctrl key while clicking each perspective you want. Move the mouse pointer over the Move icons to get hint text.

    
    

12. In the Image field, enter the location of the image that you want to associate with this item.

    Use the first field to enter or browse for the image on your file system. Alternatively, use the second field to enter the URL of an image, or reuse an image that has already been uploaded to the portal. To reuse an image that has been uploaded to OracleAS Portal, enter its internal name (not file name) without a path in this field, for example, enter 1645.GIF.

    To obtain the internal name OracleAS Portal has assigned to an image, go to a place within your portal where the image is already in use; right click it; and select Properties from the right-click menu.

13. In the Image Alignment list, choose how you want the item's image aligned in the page area.

    For descriptions and examples of image alignment options, see Table 6-5.

14. Enter a keyword to locate this item in a basic search, and enter a name for the author.

    
    

    Note: By default, the Author field is filled with the name of the initial logged on user.

    
    

15. Select Enable Item Check-Out to enable users to check this item into and out of the portal.

16. In the Display Options field, choose how you want the PL/SQL item to display in the page area. Choose from:

    • Item Displayed Directly In Page Area to display the execution results in the portlet region that hosts this item.

    • Link That Displays Item In Full Browser Window to replace the displayed page with the execution results.

    • Link That Displays Item In New Browser Window to display the execution results in a second browser window.

17. In the PL/SQL Execute Options field, choose the database schema in which to execute this PL/SQL item: the Public schema, the schema belonging to the item's creator, or another schema.

18. Click Finish to save your changes and return to the page.

A PL/SQL item is executed as the user who created the item. Therefore, only the user who created a PL/SQL item may edit the item. Even page owners or users with the Manage Items privilege may not edit PL/SQL items that they did not create.

7.6.1.3 Uploading Multiple Files Using Zip Files

OracleAS Portal offers a couple of ways you can make good use of Zip files:

• You can upload a Zip file as the Content Item Type File, and make it available to users for downloading multiple files at one time.

• You can upload a Zip file as the Content Item Type Zip File, and unzip it within your portal for a fast upload of many files. If you wish, you can include their directory structure and, in the case of HTML, preserve their relative links and images.

This section explains how to make use of Zip files in your portal. It includes the following subsections:

• Preparing Zip Files for Upload

• Adding a Zip File to a Page

• Extracting a Zip File Within OracleAS Portal

7.6.2.1 Adding a Portlet to a Page

Each portlet region on a page may contain one or more portlets. The steps to add a portlet to a page vary depending on whether you want the portlet to be visible to all users of the page, or just yourself. Edit a page for changes other users should see; customize a page for changes for just yourself.

To add a portlet to a page:

1. Go to the page where you will add a portlet.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

   If you do not see the page that you want to work with, you may not have the appropriate page access privileges. See your page group administrator to gain access.

2. To add a portlet to the view of the page that all (authenticated) users see, click the Edit link to switch to Edit mode.

   To add a portlet to your own view of the page, click the Customize link to switch to Customize mode.

3. Click the Add Portlet icon in the region where you will add a portlet.

   
   

   Note: If the region already includes items, you cannot add portlets to the region. If you are customizing your own version of the page, and there are no existing portlet regions, you can add a tab to the page, then add a portlet to the tab’s default portlet region. For information on adding tabs to a page, see Section 7.5.3.1, "Adding a Tab to a Page".

   
   

4. In the Portlet Repository, enter the portlet name in the Search field, and click Go.

   Alternatively, click the relevant repository links to drill to the portlet’s location.

5. To preview a portlet before adding it to your page, click the Preview icon next to the name of the portlet.

   
   

   Note: The Preview icon displays only for those portlets that support it.

   
   

6. To add a portlet to your page, click the portlet name.

   Multiple selects are not supported.

   The order of the portlets in the Selected Portlets list reflects the order in which they appear on the page. To change the order, highlight the portlet name and use the Move icons to the right of the list.

7. Click OK to return to the page.

7.6.2.2 Hiding a Portlet in View Mode

In some situations, you may want to hide a portlet from view. For example, you may want to continue work on a portlet before you make it available to other users. If you hide a portlet, other users are not able to see the portlet in View mode; however, you can still access it in Edit mode.

To hide a portlet in View mode:

1. Go to the page that includes the portlet you will hide.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

   If you do not see the page that you want to work with, you may not have the appropriate page access privileges. See your page group administrator to gain access.

2. Click Edit Page to switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Actions icon beside the portlet you want to hide.

4. Click Hide to hide the portlet and return to your page.

7.6.2.3 Rearranging the Order of Portlets in a Region

You can change the order that portlets display in a region. You can change everyone’s view of the order (Edit) or just your view (Customize). This section covers editing the region. For information on customizing a region, see Chapter 1, " Viewing and Customizing Pages".

To rearrange the order of portlets in a region for all users of the page:

1. Go to the page that hosts the portlets you will rearrange.

   If you do not see the page you want to work with, you may not have the appropriate page access privileges. See your page group administrator to gain access.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Rearrange icon in the region that contains the portlets you will rearrange.

4. In the Arrange Portlets list, select a portlet and use the Move icons to reposition it in the list.

   Repeat this step for all portlets you will rearrange.

5. Click OK to save your changes and return to the page.

7.6.2.4 Moving a Portlet to Another Region

You can move portlets to another region on the same page. You can do this so that it affects everyone’s view of the portlets (Edit) or just your view (Customize). This section covers editing the region. For information on customizing a region, see Chapter 1, " Viewing and Customizing Pages".

To move a portlet to another region for all users of the page:

1. Go to the page that hosts the portlet you want to move.

   If you do not see the page you want to work with, you may not have the appropriate page access privileges. See your page group administrator to gain access.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Actions icon next to the portlet you want to move.

4. Click Move to another region.

5. Select a new region, and click Move Portlet.

   The portlet is moved, and you are returned to the page.

7.6.2.5 Sharing a Portlet Across Multiple Pages

When a portlet is added to a page, a portlet instance is created that stores information about that particular instance of the portlet, including information about customizations made to the portlet. You can share a portlet instance so that the exact same portlet (including all of your customizations) can be used on another page. This means that when a user customizes the portlet instance on a page, those customizations are reflected on all other pages that include the shared portlet instance. Users do not have to make the same customizations to multiple instances of the same portlet.

For example, there are two versions of the same page: a standard page for use on desktop machines and a mobile page for use on mobile devices. You could share the portlets on the standard page and then add those shared portlet instances to the mobile page. That way, the user just needs to customize the portlets on the standard page, and those same customizations will automatically apply to the portlets on the mobile page.

You can share only portlets; you cannot share items or tabs.

To share a single portlet:

1. Go to the page that hosts the portlet you will share.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Actions icon next to the portlet you will share.

4. Click Share Instance.

5. In the confirmation page, click Yes to share the portlet instance and return to the page.

In Edit mode, the text Shared appears next to the portlet.

To share more than one portlet:

1. Go to the page that hosts the portlets you will share.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode, Layout view.

3. Select the check box next to all the portlets that you want to share.

4. Click Share.

5. Click Yes in the confirmation page to share the portlets you have selected and return to the page.

To add a shared portlet instance to a page:

1. Go to the page where you will add a shared portlet instance.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Add Portlets icon in the region where you want to add the shared portlet instance

4. Click the Shared Portlets link in the Portlet Repository.

   
   

   Note: By default, shared portlet instances are located in the Shared Portlets page of the Portlet Repository. Your OracleAS Portal administrator may have relocated shared instances. If so, either search for the name of the shared portlet instance, or ask your OracleAS Portal administrator for the new location.

   
   

5. Click the portlet name.

6. Click OK to return to the page.

When you create a mobile page, if you base the page on an existing page, any portlets on the existing page are automatically shared with the mobile page. However, new portlets are not implicitly shared between a mobile page and the page on which it was based. If you add a portlet to a page that was used as the starting point for a mobile page, that portlet will not appear on the mobile page. If you want the portlet to also appear on the mobile page, you must add it to the mobile page. Additionally, if you want to share any customizations made to the portlet between the two pages, you must explicitly share the portlet on one page, and then add that shared portlet instance to the other page.

If you want users to add a shared portlet instance to a page rather than the portlet itself, make sure access privileges in the Portlet Repository are set up appropriately.

7.6.2.6 Deleting a Portlet from a Page

You can delete a portlet from your personal view of a page (Customize) of from everyone’s view of the page (Edit). This section covers editing the region. For information on customizing a region, see Chapter 1, " Viewing and Customizing Pages".

To delete a portlet from a page for all users of the page:

1. Go to the page that hosts the portlet you will delete.

   If you do not see the page that you want to work with, you may not have the appropriate page access privileges. See your page group administrator to gain access.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Actions icon beside the portlet you want to delete.

4. Click Delete.

5. In the confirmation page, click Yes to delete the portlet and return to the page.

7.7.3.1 Placing a Custom Search Portlet on a Page

To place the Custom Search portlet on a page:

1. Go to the page where you will add the Custom Search portlet.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

   If you do not see the page that you want to work with, you may not have the appropriate page access privileges. See your page group administrator.

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Add Portlet icon in the region where you will add the portlet.

   If the region already includes items, you cannot add a portlet to the region.

4. In the Portlet Repository, enter custom search in the Search field, and click Go.

5. In the Portlet Repository Search Results list, click Custom Search.

   This places the portlet in the Selected Portlets list. The order of the portlets in this list reflects the order in which they appear on the page. To change the order of the portlets, highlight the portlet name and use the arrows to the right of the Selected Portlets list.

6. Click OK.

   The custom search portlet is added to the page.

7.7.3.2 Setting Custom Search Options

With Custom Search configuration, some options affect all Custom Search portlets, and some affect only a particular instance of the portlet. The options that affect all search portlets are set at the administrator level. The options for a particular instance of the Custom Search portlet are set at the portlet level.

This section discusses the options that are set at the portlet level. You’ll find information about setting options at the administrator level in the OracleAS Portal Configuration Guide, available on Portal Center, http://portalcenter.oracle.com. Click the Search icon in the upper right corner of any Portal Center page.

To set Custom Search options at the portlet level:

1. Go to the page that contains the Custom Search portlet.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

   If you do not see the page that you want to work with, you may not have the appropriate page access privileges. See your page group administrator.

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Edit icon associated with the portlet.

4. Edit the Custom Search options as required.

   Five tabs contain the options for the custom search portlet:

   • Portlet Type—Use the Portlet Type tab to generally define the type of Custom Search portlet you will create. See Portlet Type Tab for more information.

   • What to Search—Use the What to Search tab to specify the content type and range of page groups to be searched. See What to Search Tab for more information.

   • Search Criteria—Use the Search Criteria tab to enter specific search terms and define filters to further refine your search. See Search Criteria Tab for more information.

   • Search Form—Use the Search Form tab to create the search form your users will see when you opt to Display a search form for users to fill in (on the Portlet Type tab). See Search Form Tab for more information.

   • Results Display—Use the Results Display tab to specify the target location of search results and to select display options, including extra services the page will display and the style to be applied to displayed items. See Results Display Tab for more information.

5. Click OK.

7.7.3.3 The Custom Search Form

This section discusses the options available on the default version of a Custom Search Form and explains how to use those options to create a Custom Search Form. It includes the following subsections:

• Understanding the Default Custom Search Form

• Creating a Custom Search Form

7.7.3.3.1 Understanding the Default Custom Search Form

When you place the Custom Search portlet on a page, what you get is the default version of the Custom Search Form. You can edit the portlet defaults to display other content in lieu of the form, such as the search results. But the first thing you see, before you edit defaults, is the default version of the Custom Search Form. Table 7-1 lists and describes the elements that make up the default Custom Search Form.

Figure 7-21 The Default Version of the Custom Search Form (Oracle Text Enabled)

Description of the illustration h_csprlt.gif

Table 7-1 Options available on the default version of the Custom Search Form

Option	Description
Search field and buttons	Enter the term(s) you will search for. Separate terms with spaces. Enclose phrases in quotation marks. Click the Search button to execute the search.
Find results that	Use this list to specify how rigorously the search results should match the terms entered in the Search field. For example, if you enter three terms, policy, benefit, retirement, and you choose: Contain all of the terms, search results must contain all three terms in any order, in any number, as entered or as part of a larger word (i.e., benefit or benefits) Contain any of the terms, search results must contain at least one of the terms and may contain more than one, as entered or as part of a larger word (i.e., benefit or benefits) Contain these terms exactly, search results must contain any of the search terms exactly as specified in the Search field (i.e., a search for benefit will not return benefits)
Page Groups	Use this to limit the range of the search to one or more selected page groups. Click the Browse icon to select from a list of page groups to search. This opens a secondary window where users can move one or more page groups from an Available to a Selected list. Note that searches can be restricted to one or more page groups or pages. When a page is selected, the Page Groups option is ignored.
Page	Use this to select a specific page to search. Clicking the Browse icon opens a secondary window where users may select a page. Note that searches can be restricted to one or more page groups or pages. When a page is selected, the Page Groups option is ignored.
Include Sub-pages	Select this option to include all subpages of the page you selected in the Page field in your search.
Match All/Any Of The Following	Use these options to further restrict your search: Select Match All Of The Following to limit search results to only those objects that include all of the attributes and values listed below these options. In the case of the default Custom Search Form, each result must contain all selected Perspectives and Categories. Select Match Any Of The Following to get search results that contain at least one of the attributes and values listed below these options.
Perspective Match All / Match Any [ ]	(Oracle Text enabled only) Specify which perspective(s) should apply to search results. Choose Match All or Match Any to perform a search that matches all/any of the perspectives you select.
Include Sub-perspectives	(Oracle Text enabled only) Select this option to include all sub-perspectives of the perspectives you select.
Perspective Equals [ ]	(Oracle Text disabled) Specify which perspective(s) should apply to the search results.
Category Equals [ ]	Specify which category(s) should apply to the search results.
More Attributes	Click this button to include more attributes in the list of filters, and to define filtering values for those attributes.
For advice on how to search, read the Search Tips	Click this link to open a list of tips for refining a search.

7.7.3.4 The Custom Search Results Page

This section discusses the options available on a default search results page and explains how to customize those options to create a custom search results page. It includes the following subsections:

• Understanding the Default Search Results Page

• Creating a Custom Search Results Page

7.7.3.4.1 Understanding the Default Search Results Page

The Search Results Page displays the results of a search as well as any number of other services you may care to include. The objects displayed in the default Search Results page (Figure 7-22) are listed and described in Table 7-7.

Figure 7-22 The Default Search Results Page

Description of the illustration h_csrslt.gif

Table 7-7 Elements of the default Search Results Page

Element	Description
Items tab	This tab displays all returned results that are items. Items include files, images, page links, and the like. Users click a result, and the file is opened, the image is displayed, the link is executed, and so on. This and other tabs display only on search results from manual, rather than automatic, searches.
Pages tab	This tab displays all returned results that are pages. Users click a result, and page is opened. This and other tabs display only on search results from manual, rather than automatic, searches.
Categories tab	This tab displays all returned results that are categories. Users click a result, and a page is opened with a list of all OracleAS Portal objects that are classified under that category. This and other tabs display only on search results from manual, rather than automatic, searches.
Perspectives tab	This tab displays all returned results that are perspectives. Users click a result, and a page is opened with a list of all OracleAS Portal objects that are classified under that perspective. This and other tabs display only on search results from manual, rather than automatic, searches.
Results	This informational field displays the range of results on the current page and the total number of results.
Save Search	Users click this button to save the search criteria specified for the current search. Users have the option of adding a Saved Searches portlet to a page. Any time they click Save Search, the current search criteria are added as a new link in the Saved Searches portlet. In the portlet, they click the link to a particular saved search to rerun the search.
result	The result link jumps to the item, page, or category or perspective list that matches the search criteria.
Information icon	Click this icon to view the properties (attribute values) of a particular result, such as its description, its publish date, or its expiration period.
Attributes	These are the attributes that were configured (on the Custom Search Edit Defaults: Results Display tab) to display with each result. On the default Custom Search Results Page, the default attributes include the object’s Create Date, its parent page group, and its classification category and perspective(s).
Search Form	The default Search Results Page includes the Custom Search Form so that users may alter the search criteria and rerun the search without having to navigate back to the Custom Search portlet.

7.7.3.5 Creating a Portlet that Executes a Predefined Query

Using the Custom Search portlet, you can create a portlet that performs a predefined search query and automatically displays the results when the portlet is displayed.

For example, you can create a search portlet that lists items created by a particular user, or one that searches for a list of items that belong to a selected category and that have been modified in the last seven days.

To create a portlet with a predefined search query:

1. Go to the page that contains the Custom Search portlet.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Edit icon beside the portlet.

4. On the Portlet Type tab:

   1. To specify that this portlet is to execute a predefined query, select Automatically display search results.

      With this option, users are not able to enter search submission criteria. Instead, the search results appear when this portlet is displayed.

   2. To cache the results from the automatic query, enter the length of time in minutes that the portlet content is cached.

      The default is 10 minutes.

      Select Do not cache the search results to disable caching. This means, every time the page that hosts the portlet is called, the search is rerun and the results automatically refresh.

   3. Change the Portlet Header Title if you wish.

5. Click the What to Search tab to choose the page groups and content type to be searched:

   1. For What type of content should be searched?, choose whether to search for items, pages, categories, or perspectives.

      In an autoquery search, only one content type can be returned; therefore, the option any of these does not apply.

   2. For Which page groups should be searched?, choose all, or select a subset of page groups.

   For more information see Section 7.7.3.6, "Restricting Portal Content from a Custom Search".

6. Click the Search Criteria tab to define a set of conditions for your search:

   1. In Search For, enter a search term for the automatic query if required.

   2. Select an operator for the query, such as contain all of the terms, contain any of the terms, contain these terms exactly.

      If Oracle Text is in use on your portal, there will be a larger set of operators to select from.

   3. Choose which (if any) of the search submission attributes are needed to define your search query.

   4. Enter a Restriction and Default Value for each selected attribute as required.

      If a search term is not specified, at least one attribute must have a value. With autoquery searches, the Default Value field is named Value.

7. Click the Results Display tab to define how the results are displayed:

   1. For Order search results by, choose the order in which the results are displayed.

   2. Customize how your search results are displayed, as required.

      For more information, see Section 7.7.3.4.2, "Creating a Custom Search Results Page".

8. Click OK to save your changes and return to the page.

When this custom search portlet is displayed, it executes the search query you have specified and automatically displays the results.

7.7.3.6 Restricting Portal Content from a Custom Search

Using the Custom Search portlet, you can restrict the portal content that can be included in a search. Users may not override the restrictions you define.

For example, you can create a portlet that allows users to search for items only, in one specific page group.

To restrict portal content from a custom search:

1. Go to the page that contains the Custom Search portlet.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Edit icon beside the portlet.

4. Click the What to Search tab to choose which page groups and content type to include in the search:

   1. For What type of content should be searched?, restrict the search to items, pages, categories, or perspectives.

      Alternatively, allow any of these.

      If the results are to be displayed in a different portlet, and the Search Results Page is set up to display a particular type of content, the setting for the Search Results Page overrides the content type selected in the Search Form. The user can search only for the type of content that is selected in the Search Results Page.

   2. For Which page groups should be searched?, move the page group(s) you will include in your search from the Available Page Groups list to the Page Groups to Search list.

5. Click the Search Form tab:

   1. Select Choose a page group to search to allow the user to further restrict which page groups are searched.

      The list of available page groups displayed when the user clicks the Browse icon are those selected on the What to Search tab. If you want the user to always search in all the page groups you have selected, do not select this option.

   2. Select Choose type of content to search to allow the user to restrict the search to items, categories, perspectives, or pages.

      For this option to take effect, the custom search portlet setting What type of content should be searched? must be set to Any, on the What to Search tab. If it is not, only search results of the chosen content type are returned. The user is not given the option to choose a content type.

6. Click OK to save your changes and return to the page.

This instance of the Custom Search Portlet returns search items from the portal content you have defined.

7.7.3.7 Setting Search Criteria for a Custom Search

Using the Custom Search portlet, you can define searches that return results that match a set of predefined conditions. You can predefine a set of conditions if you wish, so that they appear on the search form when it is displayed in the portlet. If your custom search portlet displays a search form, users can override the search criteria that you define.

Alternatively, you may want to hide search conditions from portlet users so they cannot be changed.

For example, you can create a portlet that searches for a list of items in a selected category that have been modified in the last 7 days. If you do not display the category details, the user can only search in the category you specify. If you choose to display the Date Updated attribute, the default is provided, but the user can modify the date as required.

To set search criteria for a custom search:

1. Go to the page that contains the Custom Search portlet.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Edit icon beside the portlet.

4. On the Portlet Type tab:

   1. To specify that users of this portlet can enter search criteria, select Display a search form for users to fill in.

   2. Change the Portlet Header Title if you wish.

5. Click the What to Search tab to choose which page groups and content type to search:

   1. For What type of content should be searched?, choose whether to search for items, pages, categories, perspectives, or any of these.

   2. For Which page groups should be searched?, choose All, or select a subset of page groups.

   For more information see Section 7.7.3.6, "Restricting Portal Content from a Custom Search".

6. Click the Search Criteria tab to predefine a set of conditions for your search:

   1. In Search For, enter a default search term for the query if required.

   2. Select a default operator for the query, such as contain all of the terms, contain any of the terms, contain these terms exactly.

      If Oracle Text is in use on your portal, there will be a larger set of operators to select from.

   3. Choose which (if any) of the search submission attributes are needed to define your search query.

   4. Enter a Restriction and Default Value for each selected attribute as required.

      With autoquery searches, if a search term is not specified, at least one attribute must have a default value.

   5. If Oracle Text is enabled you can choose more than more perspective. You can perform a search that Matches All or Matches Any of the perspectives you select and if you choose Include Sub-perspectives you can extend your search to perspectives beneath the perspectives you have chosen.

7. Click the Search Form tab to specify whether users can override the search criteria you have defined:

   1. Select Search Terms Box, to allow users to enter their own search terms.

   2. Select Search Terms Restriction Selector, to allow users to choose their own operator for the search.

   3. Hide any search attributes that you do not want users to change, by moving them to the Hidden Attributes list.

8. Click OK to save your changes and return to the page.

The custom search portlet is displayed with your search criteria defined.

7.7.3.8 Defining Separate Portlets for Search Forms and Search Results

You can set up a Custom Search portlet for submitting search criteria and another, separate Custom Search portlet that displays the search results. If you do this, you must configure both portlets. Some configuration values are passed from the search submission portlet to the search results portlet, while others do not. Table 7-8 lists and explains the configuration settings that are passed over and those that are not.

To understand Table 7-8, imagine the following scenario:

• Page A hosts Portlet A, which is used to submit search criteria.

• Page B hosts Portlet B, which is used to display search results from search criteria submitted to Portlet A.

It is also important to understand how page group and perspective selection is resolved when a separate Custom Search portlet is used to display search results and the page groups/perspectives selected on the two portlets do not match.

For example, if you choose page groups (or perspectives) in Portlet A (say PG1 and PG2), but the results Portlet B is configured to search:

• a subset of these (say PG2), then the common page groups are searched, i.e. PG2.

• different page groups (say PG3 and PG4), then result Portlet B settings are used, i.e. PG3 and PG4.

• any page groups (nothing selected), then the search form Portlet A settings are used, i.e. PG1 and PG2.

Similarly, if Portlet A has no page groups selected, then results Portlet B settings are used. The example here describes page group selection, but the behavior is the same for perspective selection.

If you want the results on Portlet B to match the page group/perspective selection in Portlet A, ensure that the options set on Portlet A are a subset or the same as those on Portlet B.

7.8.9.1 What Is Item Level Security?

By default, items inherit the access settings that apply to the page or tab that hosts the item. Only users or groups who are authorized to access a given page or tab can access its items. When you enable item level security for a page or tab, items initially use the same security that is applied to the page or tab. It’s up to item owners to grant access to a given item to specific users and/or groups.

Manage and Manage Content page-level privileges override item level security privileges. However, item level security takes precedence over other page-level privileges, such as Manage Style. If a user has Manage Style privileges on a page where item level security is enabled, and item level access privileges have been defined for the items, the user can work with the items based on the item level privileges.

Users may be granted a higher level of access to an item than they have on the page or tab that hosts the item. For example, users may have View privileges on a page or tab, allowing them to look at the page or tab, but not to change it. If an item owner explicitly grants Manage or Edit privileges to users, the users are authorized to edit the item, even though they can do nothing else to other objects on the page or tab.

You can enable item level security only on Standard pages and custom pages that are based on the Standard page type.

7.8.9.2 Enabling Item Level Security for a Page

To enable item level security for a page:

1. Go to the page where you will set up item level security.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Access link in the page toolbar.

4. Go to the Access Properties section, and select Enable Item Level Security.

5. Click OK to return to the page.

This allows item creators to specify access control for individual items on the page. Item creators have the choice of inheriting access control from the page or setting specific access control for individual items.

7.8.9.3 Enabling Item Level Security for a Tab

To enable item level security for a tab:

1. Go to the tab where you will set up item level security.

   For information on locating a page (where the tab is placed), see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Edit icon on the tab.

4. On the resulting page, click the Access tab to bring it forward.

5. Go to the Access Settings section, and select Specify Access Settings.

6. In the Access Properties section, select Enable Item Level Security.

This allows item creators to specify access control for individual items on the tab. Item creators have the choice of inheriting access control from the tab, or specifying specific access control for individual items.

See also, Section 2.3, "Protecting Your Content" for information on how to grant privileges on an item.

7.10.2.1 When Should You Use System Level Caching?

System-level caching is best used for objects that do not include sensitive data or other information that you do not want to display to all users. For example, use system-level caching on objects that are not part of an approval process. When approvals are enabled and system-level caching is used, all pending items, rejected items, and deleted rejected items are displayed to all users.

With system-level caching, you get one page/one view, so you’ll want to be sure that view is suitable for a wide audience.

In keeping with the idea of one page/one view, use system-level caching for pages that do not need to be available for individual user customizations. Because customizations affect only a particular user’s unique view of a page, they are not available when all users share the same view.

Access privileges on objects are enforced on a user-by-user or group-by-group basis; consequently, they are not enforced on objects that are cached at the system level. This is because those objects are rendered once, on the middle tier, rather than many times for each individual user.

In your system-level caching, include portlets suitable for public users. Portlets cached at the system level are run as the public user, and only public data is shown.

You can cache both page metadata and page content at the system level. Such pages include a Refresh link that users with the appropriate page privileges can click to invalidate the page in the cache for all users. Once Refresh is clicked, a new version of the page is generated for all users.

Consider omitting the Edit link on pages you intend to cache at the system level. When users click that link they will get a runtime error if they do not have the appropriate privileges to enter Edit mode. You can edit the page through the Portal Navigator.

In summary, apply system-level caching to pages and portlets that would properly be available to all users.

7.10.2.2 Setting Up System-Level Caching for a Page

To set up system-level caching for a page:

1. Go to the page where you will set up system level caching.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Properties link next to Page in the page toolbar.

   Be sure to click the link for the page rather than the page group.

4. On the Main tab, go to the Page Caching section, and select one of the following system-level page caching options:

   • Cache Page Definition Only At System Level

   • Cache Page Definition And Content At System Level For [ ] Minutes

   For an explanation of these selections, see Section 7.10.3, "Page Caching Options".

5. Click OK to save your changes and return to the page.

7.10.2.3 Setting Up System Level Caching for a Portlet

You can increase your portal performance by specifying system-level caching for a portlet. The portlet is rendered once for all users, rather than many times for each user. This is also a way of getting the benefit of system-level caching on pages that might otherwise not be good candidates for it. You can set up system-level caching for a portlet, independent of how the rest of the page content is cached.

Note, however, that if the page that includes a portlet uses system-level caching, the portlet will use system-level caching as result. In the same way, if this portlet's Web Provider indicates system-level caching for the portlet, this portlet will use system-level caching. In these cases, you do not need to set up system-level caching for the portlet manually (as described here), nor will you be able to change the cache setting.

To set up system-level caching for a portlet:

1. Go to the page that contains the portlet for which you will set up system-level caching.

   For information on locating a page, see Section 7.2, "Navigating to Pages".

2. Switch to Edit mode.

3. Click the Edit icon next to the portlet.

4. Next to Portlet Caching, select Cache portlet at the system level.

5. Click OK to save your changes and return to the page.

7.11.1.1 What Is a Page Parameter?

Page parameters are used to pass values to a page. Their presence on a page means that the information displayed on a page can be different depending on where the page is called from, or who is viewing the page. For example, a stock ticker portlet could be set up to display a different portfolio depending on who is viewing the page.

You can use parameters in your pages only if the Enable Parameters and Events page group setting is enabled. For information on enabling parameters and events in a page group, see Chapter 4, " Working with Page Groups".

A page parameter can get its value from (in order of precedence):

• The URL used to access the page, for example:

  http://myportal/mypage?a=1&b=2
  
  

  Parameters are case-sensitive, so if your parameter name is a, entering a=1 will work, but A=1 will not.

• The customized value for the current user

• The default value of the parameter, as specified by the page designer

The following subsections describe these uses of parameters in greater detail:

• Page Parameters in URL Pages

• Page Parameters in PL/SQL Pages

http://www.yahoo.com/somepage

http://myportal/myurlpage?a=1&b=2

http://www.yahoo.com/somepage?a=1&b=2

a:=:param1;

http://myportal/myplsqlpage?param1=123

7.11.1.2 What Is a Portlet Parameter?

Portlet parameters pass values to portlets. This means that the information displayed in a portlet can be specific to a particular page or user. A portlet's parameters are specified in the provider.xml file.

There are two types of portlet parameter: public and private. When a portlet is placed on a page, if the parameters and events page group setting is enabled, its public parameters are displayed to the page designer. The page designer can assign values to the parameters to make the information that is displayed in the portlet specific to the page. The page designer can provide a specific value (constant), a system variable (for example, USER), or a page parameter.

Private parameters are used internally by the portlet, for example, for identifying the current row displayed, or the current tab displayed. Private portlet parameters are not displayed to the page designer.

For example, a stock ticker portlet could have a public portlet parameter (ticker) that accepts a stock symbol as its value. When the stock ticker portlet is placed on a page, the ticker parameter is displayed on the Edit Page: Parameters tab. On this tab, the page designer can set the value of the ticker parameter to a specific value, for example, ORCL. When the page is displayed, the portlet shows stock information for the specified company. Alternatively, the page designer could add a page parameter (e.g., symbol) to the page, and pass that page parameter to the portlet parameter. If the page parameter is customizable, users can set the stock ticker portlet to display stock information for any company they choose.

For information on how to add parameters to your portlets, see the Portal Developer Kit on Portal Center, http://portalcenter.oracle.com. Click the Search icon in the upper right corner of any Portal Center page.