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"She knows what is
the best purpose of education: not to be frightened by the best
but to treat it as part of daily life." John Mason Brown (1900
- 1969) |
Read
first then play the video:
FRM-VIDEO -Introduction
to complete Hands-On 13 to 16
FRM-VIDEO -(Hands-On
13) How to use Main Menu
Main Menu
Introduction
Main Menus
Main Menus do have
their own module file. They are independent of form modules. It will
be very useful to look at the code underlying the default menu used by
the Forms Runtime program. This module was created by Oracle and it is
used as a default main menu. The source file for this menu is stored
in the FORMS directory in a file named "menudefs.mmb." You can
easily customized this file or use it as a basis for a new menu
module.
Global Variable
You can use Global Variable
to shares objects from one form to another. A Global variable is a
binding variable that can be used by multiple Form Modules.
NAME_IN and COPY built-in
subprogram
You need to use the NAME_IN
built-in subprogram to read a value from a global variable or an
indirectly referenced object and the COPY built-in subprogram to place
a value into a global variable or an indirectly referenced object.
Always start with the default
created menu, instead of creating a main menu from scratch.
Hands-On
Your client loves what you
have done for them. But they would like you add the same functionality
you did at Hands-On 12 to have it on the main menu of the "Customer
Order" application.
You have been assigned to
modify the main menu and add functions from Hands-On 12 to their
window's main menu.
See Figure 15.
Your tasks are:
1- Modify the default main
menu and add a menu item as "Data" and a sub-menu item as "Product
Price" on the "Customer Order" Form.
2- Delete some unused menu
items.
3- Pass product ID as a
parameter between these two Form applications.
4- Run and test all user
functional requirements.
F You will learn how
to: create or modify default main menu, use and assign global variable
from one form to another, use global variable to execute query base on
its parameter, create and use the "WHEN-NEW-FORM-INSTANCE"
trigger, use tab canvas, use "object navigator," use "Data
Blocks," use "Layout Editor," use "Property Palette," use
"Run Form," and "Execute Query."
Figure 15
Open a Module
In the "Object Navigator"
window, highlight Forms. Go to the Main menu and choose "File,"
select "Open" to open an existing form (customer_orders_V12)
from the "iself"
folder.
Save a Module
Click on the "CUSTOMER_ORDERS_V12"
form. The color changes to blue. The change its name and save the Form
name as version 13 (customer_orders_v13). This way the original
form is untouched.
We are going to change the
application to invoke the "Product History Prices Data Entry" FORM
from the application main menu.
Create a Menu
Highlight the "Menu"
item in the "object navigator" and open the predefined "Oracle
default menu" from the Forms folder. To save your programming time,
you should start with default menu than you start from scratch. All
menus have extension "mmb." You can search for all files that
their extension are "mmb."
Default Menu
Your default menu could be
on different Oracle sub-directory version to version. On one version
you may have it in
c:.mmb or
c:ii.mmb , etc.
Open the default menu.
Save a Menu
Save it as "cust_menu"
in the "iself" folder. Highlight the menu name and click again to
change the color to blue. Now, change the menu name to "Cust_menu."
And open its property palette. Notice that the name was changed. Then
close the window.
Menu Editor
Double click on the "cust_menu"
icon. In the Menu Editor, the whole menu structure layout will be
displayed. Here you can change the layout and property of each item in
the menu. You can add, remove, and change the sub-menus.
Menu Editor"s Toolbar
In the toolbar of the Menu
Editor, you can find very useful icons. There are the "Create Right"
icon, "Create Down" icon, and "Delete" icon. If you move your
cursor on them, a tooltip will display their functions.
Next to sub-menus, you will
find the Down Arrow, and Up Arrow icon. Clicking on the "Up
Arrow" icon collapses each menu list item. Clicking on the
"Down Arrow" icon expands each menu list item.
Create a sub-menu
Select the "Field"
sub-menu, and then click on the "Create Right" icon. That
will create a new sub-menu next to the Field sub-menu. Change its name
to "Data."
Create an item in a
sub-menu
Click on the "Create
Down" icon to create an item under new sub-menu (Data). Change
"new item" to "Product History Prices," then right
click on it and open its property palette.
This is another way to
change the item name and other properties. Close the window.
PL/SQL Editor
Right click on the "Product
History Prices" and open the "PL/SQL Editor."
In the PL/SQL Editor, write
a PL/SQL block to store the "product id" item into the "global
product id" item and then call the new version of the "Product
Price Data Entry" Form from the iself folder.
(PL/SQL Editor)
:GLOBAL.prodid := NAME_IN("item.prodid");
OPEN_FORM("c:_de_v02");
Compile a PL/SQL block
Compile and close the
window.
Delete an item from a Main
Menu
To delete an item, select
the item and then click on the "Delete" icon in the toolbar. When
you delete an item on the menu, you should confirm your action.
Delete the "Edit"
sub-menu item.
Try to delete some other
sub-menu items if not needed.
Exit Menu Editor
Close the menu editor.
Highlight "cust_menu,"
save the changes.
Compile a Menu
Then go to File >
Administration > Compile File to compile the menu. The compile
module is saved in the same folder of its source module.
Open a Form"s property
palette
Now, go back to the
CUSTOMER_ORDERS_V13 form.
Right click on the "Customer
Orders" Form and open its Property Palette to assign the new menu.
In the Form Property
Palette, change the "Menu Module" value to c:_menu. Close the
window.
Run the application
Run the Form.
Notice that the Main menu
was changed. The "Data" sub-menu was added.
Click on "Execute query."
Navigate through the application Form. Highlight a product id, and
then click on the "Product Data Entry" button.
Close the window.
Do the same by using the
Main menu option.
You should get the same
result as push button.
Now, close the windows and
save the changes.
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"Fathers send their
sons to college either because they went to college or because
they didn't." L. L. Henderson |
Questions:
Q: What is a main menu in
the Form Builder?
Q: Are the main menus
independent of form? How?
Q: What is the default main
menu name?
Q: How do you use NAME_IN
and COPY build-in subprogram?
Q: How do you create a
default main menu?
Q: How do you modify a
default main menu?
Q: Your client loves what
you have done for them. But they would like you add the same
functionality you did at Hands-On 12 to have it on the main menu of
the "Customer Order" application.
You have been assigned to
modify the main menu and add functions from Hands-On 12 to their
window's main menu.
See Figure 15.
Your tasks are:
1- Modify the default main
menu and add a menu item as "Data" and a sub-menu item as "Product
Price" on the "Customer Order" Form.
2- Delete some unused menu
items.
3- Pass product ID as a
parameter between these two Form applications.
4- Run and test all user
functional requirements.
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