Rational Publishing Engine first template: 10 Questions and Answers

1) How to add elements?

There are two ways of doing this task:

a. Select the element in the palette by clicking on it. Point the mouse in the template to the location where the element should be inserted and click. The element will be inserted in the template to the selected location.

b. Point the mouse to the location where the element should be inserted. Right click the mouse and from the contextual menu select Insert. Select from the open submenu the desired element. The element will be inserted in the template to the selected location.

2) How to add a Data source Schema?

Select Add New Data Source Schema … from the Data menu. The Add New Data Source Wizard will start. The fields Data Source Name, Type, Schema file (mandatory) must be completed.  The field Description (not mandatory) can be filled also. After successfully finishing the wizard, the Data Source Schema will be added in the Data Source Schemas view.

3) How to add a Master Page?

Select New Master Page … from the Master Pages menu. In the new open window, fill the name of the Master Page (mandatory), insert the Description (not mandatory), select the Master Page Orientation (Portrait default), select the Size (not mandatory), and click Ok. A new Master Page will be created and added to the template.

4) How to add a Style?

Select New Style from the Style menu. The New Style Wizard will start. Set the Name (mandatory), select the desired formatting properties of the style (mandatory), set the default values for the selected formatting properties of the style (not mandatory) and click Ok. A new Style will be created and added to the template.

5) How to add a Variable?

Select New variable… from the Data Menu. In the new open window, fill the Name of the Variable (mandatory), insert the Description (not mandatory), set the Default Value (not mandatory), select the Access property (internal default),  and click Ok. A new Variable will be created and added to the template.

6) Hot to set the elements content?

Double click on the element of which content is to be set. A new window will open to allow the user to set the content of the element. The content of the element can be plain text (type simple value), variable or attribute (type data expression) and JavaScript expression that can contain variables and attributes (type script expression). Set the desired content and clock OK. The new content is set to that element.

7) How to use data source elements?

To set a query, drag the query from the Data Source Schemas view and drop it in the template to the desired element. The query will be assigned to that element. If the query is related to another existing query in an ancestor element of the target element, RPE will ask to choose if one of the existing related data contexts will be used as parent query.

To set an attribute as content for an element, drag the desired attribute from the Data Source Schemas view and drop it on the selected location in template content. If the target element is of type container (can have children elements), a new Text element will be created having the selected attribute as content and inserted in the target element in the selected location. If the attribute is dropped on a template element that cannot have children but has content, the content of the target element will be the attribute. Attributes can be dropped only in location where the proper data context exists (the parent query of that attribute is set as query for an ancestor element of the target element).

8) How to use Styles?

Drag the desired Style from the Outline and drop it to the desired template element. The style name is set to the corresponding formatting property of the element.

9) How to use Master Pages?

Drag the desired Master Page from the Outline and drop it to the desired template element. The Master page name is set to the corresponding formatting property of the element.

10) How to use Variables?

Drag the desired Variable from the Outline and drop it to the desired template element. If the target element is of type container (can have children elements), a new Text element will be created having the selected Variable as content and inserted in the target element in the selected location. If the Variable is dropped on a template element that cannot have children but has content, the content of the target element will be the Variable.