Navigation API 

The Navigation API provides the methods to navigate inside the portal. More information: Navigation.

Absolute Navigation

For an absolute navigation you have to know the full path name of the component. The full path name starts at the navigation hierarchy root node all the way to the navigation target.

EPCM.doNavigate(String target, [int mode, String winFeat, String winName, int history, String targetTitle, String context])

This method triggers the absolute navigation on the client. By default, when the parameter mode is not specified, the dirty indicator of the component is checked by the WorkProtect feature and the target is opened in a new window or on the current portal page depending on the result of the check.

The optional parameters are new in Enterprise Portal 6.0 and can be used when the target is displayed in the new window.

The method always returns false, for easier use with event handlers like onClick.

Parameter Description

Parameter	Type	Description
target	String	Navigation target that corresponds to the location in PCD or another structure (see details below)
mode (optional)	int	0: The target is displayed in the same window. 1: The target is displayed in an external new standalone window. 2: The target is displayed in an external new portal window. 3: The target is displayed in an external portal window  in a headerless framework page. 4: The target is displayed in an external portal window in a headerless framework page that has an embedded inner page.
winFeat (optional)	String	Window feature string when the target is to be opened in the new window. This is a comma separated list of features with no blanks that has the same syntax as the JavaScript method window.open. Example: "width=400,height=500".
winName (optional)	String	Window title for when new window in which the target is opened
history (optional)	int	history mode 0: Track history entries and allow duplicates. 1: Track history entries and do not allow duplicates. 2: Do not track history entries.
targetTitle	String	Title for the page title bar. In case the navigation target is sent through an integrator, the title is the integrator title. You can specify a specific title for this navigation and optional for the history entry.
Context	String	Navigation context URL.

Usage

<SCRIPT language ="JavaScript">    // navigate.    EPCM.doNavigate(          "ROLES://portal_content/folder1/role1/workset1/iView111") </SCRIPT>      <A HREF="myLink"   onclick="return EPCM.doNavigate         ('ROLES://portal_content/folder1/role1/workset1/iView111')"> This is an HTML Link </A>

 

Result

This starts the navigation to the iView 111 under role 1.

Figure 1: Navigation hierarchy example

 

Relative Navigation

For a relative navigation you specify the relative location of the navigation target to the current navigation node.

EPCM.doRelativeNavigate(String basenodename, int level, List pnamesList,
   int mode, String winFeat, String winName, int history, String targetTitle,
   String context])

This method triggers the relative navigation on the client. You have to know the location of the navigation target relative to the current node. To enable the navigation model to create an absolute path, you have to provide at least the level or the pnameslist parameters in addition to the basenodename parameter.

The optional parameters are new in EP 6.0 and can be used when the target is displayed in the new window.

The method always returns false, for easier use with event handlers like onClick.

Parameter Description

Parameter	Type	Description
basenodeName	String	Current presented URL – current node.
level	int	Number of hierarchy levels to step up.
pnameslist	List	A list with all the atomic names of the children nodes, relative to the node that has been reached by stepping up the number of levels defined by parameter level.
mode	int	0 or not specified: Depending on the setting of the WorkProtect feature the target is opened in a new window or on the current desktop. 1: Open target in a new window, with no a portal header and navigation bar. 2: Open target in a new window, with a portal header and navigation bar.
winFeat (optional)	String	Window feature string when the target is to be opened in the new window. This is a comma separated list of features with no blanks that has the same syntax as the JavaScript method window.open. Example: "width=400,height=500".
winName (optional)	String	Window title for when new window in which the target is opened.
history (optional)	int	history mode 0: Track history entries and allow duplicates. 1: Track history entries and do not allow duplicates. 2: Do not track history entries.
targetTitle	String	Title for the page title bar. In case the navigation target is sent through an integrator, the title will be the integrator title. You can specify a specific title for this navigation and optional for the history entry.
Context	String	Navigation context URL.

Usage

<SCRIPT language ="JavaScript">    // navigate.    EPCM.doRelativeNavigate(          "ROLES:// portal_content/role3/Folder32/Folder33", 2,           {"page3"}, ..., ..., ...); </SCRIPT>      <A HREF="myLink"   onclick="return EPCM.doRelativeNavigate         ('ROLES:// portal_content/role3/Folder32/Folder33', 2,           {"page3"}, ..., ..., ...)"> This is an HTML Link </A>

Result

This starts the navigation from folder 33 under role 3 to page 3 under role 3. See figure 1.

 

If you do not provide the first parameter, the current navigation node, the navigation model will find the current navigation node itself and add it to the path automatically.

 

Object-Based Navigation

The object-based navigation (OBN) feature enables navigation based on actual business objects from productive back end systems. It is based on the concept of business objects that perform certain operations and iViews that can be declared as implementers of these operations. Every operation has a priority. When choosing the link of the object-based navigation, the operation with the highest priority that has an implementing iView in the user role (the default), is executed.

EPCM.doObjBasedNavigate(String systemAlias, String businessObjName,
   String objValue, String operation)

This method allows navigating in a context environment, without a specific URL for a navigation target. For more details, see the OBN documentation.

The method always returns false  for easier use with event handlers such as onClick.

Parameter Description

Parameter	Type	Description
systemAlias	String	The system alias of the business object.
businessObjName	String	Business object name for which the operation was defined.
objValue	String	Any data that has to be transferred to the navigation target when the visualization iView represents relative data. The objValue can be any string that is added to the URL of the navigation target (after the "?" separator) and the target iView can access the objValue via the iView request object.
operation	String	Operation that should be performed when the business object has more than one operation.

 

The parameters businessObjName and sytemAlias define the MetaMatrix name of the object-based navigation business object.

If the object-based navigation uses relation resolving, the objValue parameter is used to transfer the HRNPLink.