Generating Web Views

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What is a Web View?

Web views are different views of an Enterprise HelpDesk project. Each Web view of a project can display different issues and different fields.

For example, employees don't need to see all the issues in the database, just the ones they reported. Also, they don't need to see internal notes and other information entered by the help desk staff. Help desk staff, on the other hand, need access to all the information in the issue database.

Editing Web Views

About the Web View Editor

You use the Web View Editor to create, edit, and generate Web views.

To start the Web View Editor from HelpDesk Admin:

On the Tools menu, click Web, then click Web View Editor.

To start the Web View Editor from the Start menu:

Click Start, point to Programs, point to PC-Duo Enterprise, point to HelpDesk, and then click Web View Editor.

Creating Web Views

You can either create a new, blank Web view or you can copy an existing web view. Copying allows you to reuse all the settings in the existing Web view. For example, when you copy a Web view, all the field attribute settings are copied.

To create a new, blank Web view:

Click New View , type the name of the Web view, and click OK.
In the Project Name list, click a project.
In the View Type list, click the type of view you want to generate.
Set the group access permissions for the view.
Set the Web view attributes.
Export fields to the Web view.
Export queries to the Web view.
Click to save your settings and generate the Web view.

To log on to the Web view, click .

Click to save your settings without generating the Web view.

Copying Web Views

You can create a Web view based on an existing Web view. Note that if you copy a view and then change the project, all view settings are cleared.

To copy a Web view:

In the Project / View list, click a Web view.
Click Copy .
Type a name for the new Web view.

The Web View Editor creates a new Web view that is an exact copy of the selected Web view.

Deleting Web Views

To delete a Web view:

In the Project / View list, click a Web view.
Click Delete .

Deleting a view deletes all the generated files and folders (used by that Web view) on your server.

Renaming Web Views

To rename a Web view:

In the Project / View list, click a Web view.
Click Rename .
Type a new name for the Web view.

Configuring Web Views

Types of Web Views

Normal views allow users to submit and update issues.

Read-only views allow users to review existing issues, but not to edit them. All fields are read-only, and users cannot create or submit new issues.

Submit-only views are used to submit new issues. A submit-only view is basically just a form and a Submit button. Users cannot run queries or edit (or even view) existing issues.

A submit-only view allows an unlimited number of users (such as customers or employees) to submit issues. All you need is a single Enterprise HelpDesk user account. All users automatically log on to the view with this account (in fact, users never see the logon window, they go straight to the view).

This user account must belong to a group that has permission to open the Web view, and to add and update contacts. The account is used to set the Submitter field.

If you have more than one submit-only view for the same project, you may want to create separate accounts for each view. This will allow you to distinguish between issues submitted from different views.

The user submitting the issue is considered the contact. Users must enter their contact information (name, e-mail, and so on) the first time they submit an issue.

Setting Web View Attributes

To set Web view attributes:

In the shortcut bar, click Web View.
Click (beside Attributes) to open the Web View Attributes dialog box.

Display All Read-Only Fields As Text

Read-only fields can be displayed as text (Yes) or as disabled controls (No). In a read-only Web view, all fields are read-only. In normal and submit-only Web views, read-only fields are fields that have been disabled through the Field Editor.

If you change this attribute, you must regenerate the Web view.

Issues per Page

The number of issues to show per page in the Summary List.

Timeout

The number of minutes of inactivity before the browser session times out and the user is logged off.

Setting Group Access Permissions

You can control access to Web views on a group-by-group basis. When users try to log on, they see only the Web views that they have permission to access.

To set group access permissions:

In the shortcut bar, click Web View.
Click (beside Groups Allowed to Open) to open the View Permissions dialog.
In the Groups box, click the groups you want to be able to access the Web view.

If you allow the Users group to open the Web view, then all users can open the Web view.

The Groups box lists the groups that are allowed to open the project (as specified in HelpDesk Admin).

Exporting Fields and Queries

Exporting Fields

To export fields:

In the shortcut bar, click Fields.
In the Tab list, click a tab (a tab is a group of related fields).
In the Available list, click a field and then click . This moves the field to the Export To View list, which lists the fields included in the Web view when it is generated.
Use and to change the order of the fields in the Export to View list. The order of the fields in the list determines the layout of the fields in the Web view.

Click to move all fields in the Available list to the Export To View list.

Required fields are exported by default. You can remove the fields—just ignore the warning.

The Field list in Ad-hoc Query Editor lists exported fields only, plus the Issue field

Layouts show only exported fields.

Exporting Queries

Queries control which issues a user can see in a Web view. For example, if "My Submitted Issues" is the only query available in a Web view, then users can see only the issues they submitted.

To ensure that users cannot access any issues other than the ones found by the exported queries, you should hide the ad hoc query editor. The Ad-hoc Query Editor allows users to see any issue (for example, by running a query like Issue Number > 0, which returns all issues).

In the Queries section, the Available box lists all the queries that you can export to the Web view. The Export to View box lists all the queries that will be exported to the Web view.

To export queries:

In the shortcut bar, click Queries.
In the Available list, click a query.
Click to move the query from the Available box to Export To View.

To move all queries from Available to Export To View, click .

Working with Fields

Editing Field Attributes

The fields on a Web view are arranged in a two-column layout inside an HTML table. The order of the fields is determined by the order in which they are listed in the Export to View list.

The appearance and layout of the fields can be customized through field attributes, which control options such as alignment, width, and height.

To edit field attributes:

In the shortcut bar, click Fields.
In the Tab list, click a tab. Then in the Export to View list, click a field.
Click Attributes to open the Attribute Editor.

The Attribute Editor displays the attributes for the selected field.

After you open the Attribute Editor, you can edit the attributes for another field by clicking the field in the Field Name list.

Using Field Variables

Field variables allow you to insert the name, value, or id of a field into an attribute. The field variables are particularly useful with the Html code after control and URL attributes.

Variable	Inserts
%fieldvalue%	The current value of the field. For choice lists, %fieldvalue% is the ID of the choice.
%fieldname%	The name assigned to the input control (for example, cbo_18_cboPriority).
%fieldid%	The numeric ID of the field (this is the nID of the field in tblDtsFIelds).

Aligning Fields

Alignment

Aligns a field (both the caption and the input control). Possible values are Left, Right, or Center. By default, all fields are left-aligned.

Aligning Fields

Vertical Alignment

Sets the vertical positioning of a field (both the caption and the input control). Possible values are: Top, Middle, and Bottom. The default is Top.

Vertical Alignment of Fields

Automatically Updating Choice Lists

Automatically Update List

If Yes, the choice list is updated each time a user logs on to the Web view. To turn on the automatic update of choice lists, you must regenerate the view.

If No, the choice list is updated only when the Web view is regenerated.

Automatically updating a large number of choice lists may affect performance. You should automatically update only the choice lists that change frequently.

Changing Field Captions

The Caption attribute specifies a text label for a field. Note that reports and the Field list in the Ad-hoc Query Editor still use the original field name, not the value of the Caption attribute.

Spanning Columns

Set Column Span to 1 to have the field span a single column, or 2 to have the field span the entire width of the page.

To make a field span 2 columns, you must also set the CSS Class to MemoFieldWidth. Use the SpanTwoWidthOne class if you want a field to span two columns but still be one column wide (that is, be alone on a line).

For example, in the default HelpDesk Web view, the Priority field uses the SpanTwoWidthOne class.

Applying CSS Styles

CSS Class

Name of a style class defined in the cascading style sheet (CensusMain.css) used by the Web view. This class is applied to the controls (for example, the <input> form element for a text box). By default, fields use the classes ComboBoxWidth, MemoFieldWidth, and TextFieldWidth. These classes set the width and border of the control. ComboBoxWidth, and TextFieldWidth set the width to one column, and MemoFieldWidth sets the width to two columns.

The CSS Class attribute does not apply to read-only/disabled fields. These fields use the readOnlyStyle class.

Displaying Read-Only Fields

You can display read-only fields as either text or as disabled controls.

Read-only field displayed as text

Read-only field displayed as a disabled control

In a read-only Web view, all fields are read-only. In normal and submit-only Web views, read-only fields are fields that have been disabled through the Field Editor.

To set the default for all read-only fields in the Web view:

In the shortcut bar, click Web View.
Click (opposite Attributes) to open the Web View Attributes dialog box.
Set Display All Read-Only Fields As Text to either Yes or No.

By default, this setting applies to all read-only fields in the Web view.

To override the default for a specific read-only field:

In the shortcut bar, click Fields.
In the Tab list, click the tab that contains the field.
In the Export to View list, click the field and then click Attributes.
Change Display Read-Only Field As Text to either No or Yes.

When Display Read-Only Field As Text is set to Default, the field uses the value of the Web view attribute Display All Read-Only Fields As Text.

Notes

If you display a read-only memo field as a disabled control, the scroll bar is disabled, so the user may not be able to see everything in the field.
You must regenerate the Web view after you change either the Web view attribute or the field attribute.

Width and Height

Height (Lines)

Number of lines in a memo field.

Width

Width in characters of a single-line text box, or width in pixels of a list box.

The CSS classes assigned to text boxes and list boxes override the Width attribute. These CSS classes (TextBoxWidth and ComboBoxWidth) specify the widths of the input controls.

Inserting Custom HTML Code

Html code before/after control

HTML inserted before and after the control in the generated HTML page. Must be a single line of text.

For example, suppose you want to add a help icon that displays a tooltip.

A simple way to implement field-level tooltips is to put this HTML in the Html code after control attribute:

<img src="help.gif" title="Tooltip text goes here"> 

This inserts a help icon that displays a tooltip when a user points to the icon.

A more generic approach would be to write a javascript function in CustomCode.js that returns a string of HTML.

function getHelpIcon ( tooltip ) { 
	var str; 
	str = '<img src="help.gif" title="' + tooltip + '">'; 
	return str; 
} 

The Html code after control would then call this function to get the HTML:

<script type="text/javascript" language="javascript">document.write(parent.objCustomCode.getHelpIcon( 'Tooltip text'));</script> 

Important You must declare your function in CustomCode.js. Look for the public declarations at the bottom of the file, and add this line:

	this.getHelpIcon = getHelpIcon; 

In the Html code before/after control attributes, you can use the string %fieldname% to refer to the name of the control. (The name of a control is the value of the name attribute on the form element.) For example, you could pass %fieldname% into the getHelpIcon() function, which would then return the help for that field.

Text Boxes

Number of Characters

Maximum number of characters per line in the text box.

Multi-Choice Lists

Number of Visible Items

Number of items visible in a multi-choice list. Users can always see items that are outside the visible window by scrolling the list box.

Show Selected Items In Text

Shows a comma-separated list of the selected items in a text box above the multi-choice list. This helps users see what items are selected.

Show Selected Items In Tooltip

Shows a comma-separated list of the selected items in a tooltip. This helps users see what items are selected in a multi-choice list.

Adding URL Buttons

A URL button opens a new browser window and loads the document specified by the URL attribute. A URL button is associated with a field, and can use the field value as part of the URL.

For example, suppose you wanted to record the ID number of a Microsoft KB article that explains how to resolve a problem.

To add a URL button that opens the specified KB article in a browser window, set the URL and URL Button CSS attributes as follows:

URL = http://support.microsoft.com
		/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;%fieldvalue% 
URL Button CSS = URLButton 

In the URL attribute, %fieldvalue% is a placeholder for the KB article ID number entered in the field.

If you omit the “http://” prefix from the URL, Enterprise HelpDesk automatically adds it when you generate the Web view.

The URL Button CSS attribute identifies the CSS classes used for the button. Enterprise HelpDesk includes several different URL button classes you can use:

URLButton
MailToButton
RemoteControl

A URL button always opens a new browser window, even if you specify a URL like “mailto:support@vector-networks.com”.

Hiding Fields

Setting the Visible to No hides the field in the Web view. The field is still included in reports and listed in the Field list of the Ad-hoc Query Editor.

Web View URLs

Pointing Users to Web Views

The URL for a normal or read-only Web view is displayed in the Web View Editor.

The default page at the URL is logon.asp.

For submit-only views, you have to add the logon.asp file name and a query string to the URL displayed in the Web View Editor. For example:

http://server/helpdesk/logon.asp?View=HelpDesk%2FReport%20Issue 

The query string (the part after the question mark) specifies the project and view:

View=<project>%2F<view> 

%2F is the escape sequence for a forward slash (/). Spaces in the view name are replaced with the escape sequence %20.

Changing URLs and Directories

A Web view is accessed through a URL like //server/HelpDesk, where server is the name of the Web server computer, and HelpDesk is the name of a virtual directory.

On a Web site hosted by Microsoft Internet Information Services (IIS), a virtual directory is an alias (a short, descriptive name) that is mapped to a directory on the Web server.

The Web View Editor includes a Web View wizard to help you:

Change the URL (for example, change //nan/HelpDesk to //nan/CallTracking) by changing the virtual directory.
Change the directory where the Web view is published.

There are two ways to change the URL. You can create a new virtual directory, or you can use a existing virtual directory.

To change the URL by creating a new virtual directory:

In the shortcut bar, click URL.
Click to open the Web View Wizard and then click Next.
Click Advanced, click Create a new URL and a new Directory, and then click Next.
Type the name of your Web server and click Next.
In the Web Site list, click the Web site where you want to create the virtual directory.
In the Virtual Directory box, type the name of the new virtual directory.
In the Path box, select the directory where you want to put the generated Web view files.
If you need to change the user account used for anonymous access to the virtual directory, select the Show advanced options check box.
Click Next and then click Finish.

To change the URL by using a different virtual directory:

In the shortcut bar, click URL.
Click to open the Web View Wizard and then click Next.
Click Use existing URL and click Next.
In the Web Site list, click the Web site that contains the virtual directory you want to use.
In the Virtual Directory list, click the virtual directory you want to use.

By default, the Virtual Directory list contains only the virtual directories used by Enterprise HelpDesk Web views. To show all the available virtual directories, select the Show all virtual directories from IIS check box.

Click Next and then click Finish.

To change the directory:

In the shortcut bar, click URL.
Click to open the Web View Wizard and then click Next.
Click Advanced, click Update existing virtual directory, and then click Next.
Click Next and then click Next again.

This assumes you want to change just the directory, not the Web server, Web site, or virtual directory.

In the Path box, select the new directory where you want to put the generated Web view files.
If you need to change the user account used for anonymous access to the virtual directory, select the Show advanced options check box.
Click Next and then click Finish.

Changing the Windows Account

Enterprise HelpDesk needs a Windows domain account to use for:

Anonymous access to the virtual directories on the Web server.

Anonymous access is required to run any Web view or HelpDesk Web Admin, which are all stored in virtual directories on the Web server.

Access Enterprise HelpDesk databases in a two-server configuration, where the databases are not on the Web server.
Access to PC-Duo Enterprise site databases.

By default, Enterprise HelpDesk uses the CensusUser account, which is created when you install Enterprise HelpDesk. The default password for the CensusUser account is “resususnec”.

The CensusUser account is a Windows domain account.

If you change the password for the CensusUser account, or delete the user account and use another one, you must update the virtual directories in the Internet Service Manager (Windows NT) or Internet Services Manager (Windows 2000, XP).

To change the Windows account used for anonymous access to a virtual directory:

Start the Web View Editor. In the shortcut bar, click URL.
Click to open the Web View Wizard and then click Next.
Click Advanced, click Update existing virtual directory, and click Next.
Click Next until you get to the Virtual Directory Properties dialog.
Select the Show Advanced Options check box.
In the User Name box, enter the name of the user account.

Click Browse to locate a domain user account.

In the Password box, type the user account password.

You can also use HelpDesk Admin to change the Windows account.

To change the Windows account used by Enterprise HelpDesk:

Start HelpDesk Admin.
On the Tools menu, click Windows Account.
Enter the name and password of the domain user account you want to use.

This user account will be used for anonymous access by all subsequent Web views you generate.

When you change the user account used for anonymous access with the Web View Editor or HelpDesk Web Admin (Notifications tab), all required permissions and rights are automatically set.

Customizing Web Views

Templates and the CustomizedFiles Folder

The files that make up a Web view (such as .JS, .CSS, .HTML, and .ASP files) are generated from templates. If you edit the original templates, your customizations will apply to all Web views. And if you edit the generated files for a given Web view, you'll have to reapply your changes every time you generate the view.

To customize specific Web views without editing the generated files, you put your customized files in a special CustomizedFiles folder. Each time you generate the view, the Web View Editor copies your customized files from the CustomizedFiles folder into the view.

Customizing Web View Files

To customize Web view files:

In the <HelpDeskServer>\CensusWeb folder, create a CustomizedFiles folder.

<HelpDeskServer> represents the folder where your HelpDesk Server is installed (for example, "C:\Program Files\PC-Duo Enterprise\HelpDeskServer").

In the CustomizedFiles folder, create a folder structure to hold the customized files.

To customize files for all Web views of all projects, create this folder structure:

To customize files for all Web views of a specific project, create a folder structure like this:

and replace "HelpDesk" with the name of the project.

To customize files for all Web views accessed through a given URL, create a folder structure like this:

and replace "CensusWeb" with the last part of the URL. For example, if the actual URL is http://SERVER/HelpDesk, replace "CensusWeb" with "HelpDesk").

Copy the files you want to customize from the view into the CustomizedFiles folder.

You must recreate the same folder structure. For example, if you want to customize files in the HTML, JS, and Reports folders of Web views of the HelpDesk project, you must create this folder structure:

Customize the files and generate the view.

Customizing Shared Web View Files

You can also customize the files that are shared by Web views accessed through the same URL. These are the files found in the CensusWebVD folder, such as logon.asp.

To customize the files in CensusWebVD for all Web views:

Put the files in the folder
CustomizedFiles\#AllProjects#
-or-
CustomizedFiles\<virtual directory>

To customize files for all Web views accessed through a given URL:

Put the files in the folder
CustomizedFiles\<virtual directory>

For example, if the URL is //server/HelpDesk, then put the customized files in a folder named CustomizedFiles\HelpDesk.

Overriding Customizations

To override the customizations in #AllWebViews# for a given Web view, you can create a #WebView#<project>_<view> folder. For example:

The files in #WebView#HelpDesk_HelpDesk override all #AllWebViews# customizations.

You can create a #WebView#<project>_<web view> folder in any of the three customization folders (#AllProjects#, #Project#<project>, and CensusWeb).

Customizing the Web View Interface

You can customize most of the HTML and ASP pages that make up a Web view. If you edit the templates, make sure to backup the original files before you begin your customization.

CensusMain.css

Style sheet for a Web view. The normalfield, requiredfield, and disabledfield classes define the appearance of the fields. See About Branding for more information on CensusMain.css.

TmplCensusMain.htm

Defines the frame structure for the frames that make up the Web view page. You can change the size and position of each frame, add and remove scrollbars, and set the frame border size.

TmplToolbar.htm

Defines the Web view toolbar.

TmplSummaryList.htm

Defines the Summary List. You cannot customize this page.

TmplSQE.htm

Defines the Ad-hoc Query Editor.

Tabs.htm

Defines the layout of the tab navigation buttons.

TmplCmdBar.htm

Contains the navigation controls.

When editing these files, do not change references to file names, the <WC@ ... > tags, or any of the Javascript code.

Changing the Date and Time Formats for Web Views

About the Date/Time Formats

The format of the dates and times entered and displayed in a Web view are controlled by the Regional Settings of the Web server, not the Regional Settings of the local computer.

Web views use the short date format.

Microsoft Windows NT 4.0

When no one is physically logged on to the Web server, the Date/Time formats (and other Regional Settings) come from the system default settings (found in the Locale.nls file for the default locale). You can change the system default settings by clicking Set Default in the Regional Settings section of Control Panel.

After you change the default locale, you should restart the computer. Note that changing the default locale changes all regional settings, not just the date and time formats. There is no way to modify a specific setting within the locale.

When someone is logged on to the computer, the Date/Time formats come from the logged-on user's Regional Settings. These settings are read from the user profile settings in the HKEY_CURRENT_USER/Control Panel/International registry key. You can change this setting in the Regional Settings section of Control Panel, after which you must restart the computer.

Microsoft Windows 2000 and XP

The Date/Time formats come from system default settings in the HKEY_USERS/.Default/Control Panel/International registry key. This key contains the Regional Settings options specified during the operating system installation.

To change these default system settings, you must edit the registry. You may need to restart your Web server for the changes to take effect.

HelpDesk Web Admin

About HelpDesk Web Admin

HelpDesk Web Admin is a Web-based administration tool that allows you to:

Add and edit users and contacts.
Define workflow rules.
Create new tabs.
Set up choice fields.
Enable e-mail notifications.
Integrate PC-Duo Enterprise Inventory.

Logging On

You can log on to HelpDesk Web Admin directly from the Web View Editor, using the same logon account you used to log on to the Web View Editor.

To log on to HelpDesk Web Admin:

In the Web View Editor, click Admin.
Click Log On.

Generating HelpDesk Web Admin

When you install the HelpDesk Web Server, the setup program generates a copy of HelpDesk Web Admin. If necessary, you can generate another copy of HelpDesk Web Admin. For example, you may want to change the URL used to access HelpDesk Web Admin.

To generate HelpDesk Web Admin:

In the Web View Editor, click Admin.
If required, change the URL and directory for HelpDesk Web Admin.
Click OK.

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