Search ComponentLocate this document in the navigation structure

Definition

A generic design template for displaying search queries and search results.

It is implemented using the Web Dynpro component FPM_SEARCH_UIBB and the Web Dynpro interface view SEARCH_WINDOW.

The information displayed in a search at runtime is determined by the feeder class assigned to the configuration of the Web Dynpro component FPM_SEARCH_UIBB.

You use this design template when you want to make a search page available. You determine the concrete display of the search component when configuring the Web Dynpro component FPM_SEARCH_UIBB.

Structure

The following figure shows how a search component might look at runtime:

A search component consists of the following areas:

  • Search Area

    The search area contains all the fields and functions to specify the search criteria and start the search.

    Each search criterion, or search statement, consists of the following parts:

    • Field Labels

      These are supplied by the feeder class at runtime.

    • Operators

      These are supplied by the feeder class at runtime.

    • Search Fields

      Predefined values are supplied by the feeder class at runtime.

    Search criteria may be grouped; use the collapse/expand icons to view all the search criteria in a group.

    You can hide the search criteria at runtime to provide more space on the screen for the search results.

  • Search Results List

    The search result is displayed below the search query as a results list. The system only shows the search result if you have configured a search result list. If you want to display a search result, you must determine the columns and the initial sorting of the results list in the configuration. The search results list can be provided by a separate component altogether, a list component based on a configuration of the FPM_LIST_UIBB_ATS component.

  • Saved Searches

    If you regularly search for certain items, save time by saving your searches. You can save any searches you define by choosing the Save Search As button. You can call up these searches again by choosing them from the Saved Searches dropdown list box.

In the feeder class of this component, the following properties can be determined:

  • Assignment of multiple search values for one search criterion

    The application can use the feeder class to define for a search criterion whether a user can enter multiple search values at once into a search line. This simplifies, for example, the structure of a search for the qualifications an applicant must fulfill. Instead of defining a separate search line for each individual qualification (such as English = fluent, work experience = 3 years), the user can now merge all of the qualification characteristics into one search line. The user does this with a selection box provided by the application. You can open this selection box using the Edit button.

  • Free text search

    Using the feeder class, the application can define whether a free-text search is possible in the application. If a free-text search is enabled, the system reserves the top search line in the search dialog box for the free-text search. In the standard system, three more search lines are available for additional search criteria. In the search dialog box, the user can choose how the search works with the entered free text.

  • Exclude Criteria

    The search query can be enhanced by using criteria to exclude certain records from the results list. If an application uses the exclude criteria, an Add Criteria To Exclude hyperlink is visible under Search Criteria during runtime, and an Exclude Criteria dropdown list is visible in the General Settings panel in FLUID, the FPM configuration editor. You can use this dropdown list to enable or disable the Exclude Criteria hyperlink that appears at runtime.

  • Saved Searches

    The feeder class determines whether or not the Saved Searches or Save Search As buttons are displayed at runtime.

  • Search Operators

    Which search operators are permitted for each field label is determined in the feeder class.

Integration

You configure this component using the FPM configuration editor, FLUID.

You can configure, amongst others, the following properties of this component:

  • Number of Search Rows on Open

    You can determine how many search rows the system displays when the search component is opened. If there are more than four search rows, a message is displayed by the system to indicate this.

  • Maximum Number of Results to be Shown by the Search Query

    The default value of 100 is set by the system if no other entries are made, or if the Maximum Number of Results field remains blank. This figure appears at runtime and can be changed by the user. At runtime, the user may also remove the check in the Restrict Selection field to display all the results.

  • Search Variant (Saved Search)

    The Save Search As field allows the user to save a particular search query. When the user starts the application, the system loads all of the search variants assigned to that user. The user selects a particular variant from the Saved Searches dropdown list.

  • Search Operators

    For each search criterion, you can specify which operator should always be shown at runtime by choosing the Default Operator field. The Exclude Operators button in the Attributes panel shows you which operators are permitted; you can exclude those operators that you no longer want to appear at runtime.

  • Group Criteria

    When you select this field, search statements are automatically grouped together when three or more consecutive search statements containing the same field label are chosen at runtime. An expand/collapse icon appears next to the group title.

    Note that you can also create and configure new search groups using the toolbar of the Search UIBB Schema. You can choose the title of the group and whether the group is expanded on open at runtime.

For more information on the attributes of this component, choose Field Help from the context menu in the system.

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