GUIStyle Product Implementation: Required Screens
Product: Strategi - GUIStyle
Modified Date:

In order to implement the GUIStyle Product for your application, you may have been asked to record a set of screens from your application. These screens will then be played back at ADVANCED BusinessLink, where GUIStyle will be implemented against them. It is important that the screens recorded be representative of the bulk of your application, so that patterns designed based on those screens are more likely to work on screens you have not recorded. This document gives you guidelines on which to base your choice of which screens to record. For instructions on how to record screens, reference Strategi Screen Recording.

It is assumed that your application employs some degree of standardization for how screens have been implemented. If you have multiple standards through your application, it is important to represent these in your samplings. For example, if Function Keys are sometimes denoted as "F5=Refresh" and sometimes as "CK5 Refresh", you should record at least one screen employing each standard.

Below is a list of the most important GUIStyle components which can be recognized through patterns. In addition to describing these components, for each component we give a recommended minimum number of screens which you should record that show that components. If you do not record at least that many screens containing that component, we are unlikely to be able to give you a robust implementation of the pattern for that component.

Component Minimum Screens Description
Popup Windows 3 Also called "Windows", these will appear in 5250 emulation as a rectangle displayed over top of the previous screen, bordered by a specific set of characters.
Subfile 3 A scrolling list of records, organized as a table with rows and columns. Each row (or possibly 2 rows) is a record. Paging up and down scrolls you through the subfile.
Subfile Options 3 One or two characters which can be entered in the leftmost input field of a subfile record, which will take action against that record. These must be documented onscreen to be usable by GUIStyle patterns.
Function Keys 5 Notation on a screen which indicates, for that screen, which function keys are available and what they do.
Titles 5 Text, generally at the top of the screen, that describes the screen content
SubTitles Optional Text, sometimes present below the Title, that elaborates on the screen description
Menus 3 Lists of options in the format of an option number followed by a description. Typing one of the options in a specific input field on the screen executes the option
Checkboxes Optional A single character input field which accepts a binary choice such as "Y" and "N" or "X" and blank, and is noted as such on screen.
Radio Buttons Optional A single character input field which accepts one of several choices, with the choices documented on screen such as "1=Large, 2=Medium, 3=Small"
Comboboxes Optional A multi character input field which accepts one of several choices, with the choices documented on screen such as "*INFO, *INQ, *RQS, *COMP"


Obviously, most screens will contain several components. For instance, recording three subfiles that include subfile options, titles and function keys will satisfy the minimums for both subfile and subfile options, and leave you with only two more screens to record showing titles and function keys.

By providing an adequately balanced and representative set of recorded screens, you will ensure that the resulting GUIStyle implementation more fully GUI-izes your application.

** End of Technical Support Bulletin **