Node Types: Overview (SAP Library - SAP Smart Forms (BC-SRV-SCR))

Node Types: Overview

When you create a Smart Form, the tree structure of the Form Painter already contains two root nodes:

You use the successors of the Global Settings node to maintain Form attributes, the Form interface, and Global definitions.
You use the successors of the Pages and windows node to create the pages of your form, position elements on these pages, and determine the sequence in which you want to process these elements.

Apart from the two root nodes, each node has attributes. You can maintain these attributes on tabs on the right half of the screen. The attributes you can maintain on the tabs General Attributes, Output Options, and Conditions are the same for most of the node types (see: Shared Attributes of the Node Types).

Successors of Node Pages and windows

As direct successors to root node Pages and windows you can create only page nodes. The tables below describe these page nodes and the other successors:

Output areas

Node type	Description	Possible direct successors
Page	A page of the form. Direct successors of this node can be placed directly on the page.	Window, graphic, address
Window	Output area on a page. There are main windows and subwindows.	All except window and page nodes

Elementary nodes (without successors)

Node type	Description
Text	You use this node to print any texts (and table contents), except addresses.
Graphic	You use this node to position graphics in the form. To include background graphics, use node type Page.
Address	You use this node to include an address. The system reads the address data directly from the database tables and formats them for print output.

Table output

Node type	Description	Possible direct successors
Template	Output of a table containing static data	All except window, page, table, and template nodes
Table	Output of a table containing application data	As with template node

Flow control

Node type	Description	Possible direct successors
Command	Executes special commands (next page, paragraph numbering, printer control)	(no successor)
Loop	Processes successor node repeatedly.	All except window and page nodes
Alternative	Branches depending on condition.	Direct successors are automatically the nodes TRUE and FALSE. The direct successors of these are all nodes except window and page nodes.

Other nodes

Node type	Description	Possible direct successors
Folder	Combines successor nodes to logical groups	All except window and page nodes
Complex section	Combines all attributes of the node types template, table, loop, folder	All except window and page nodes
Program lines	Executes ABAP program code (for example, conversion routines).	(no successors)