1.0 Introduction
2.0 Changes from the previous release
3.0 Known problems
3.1 Setting database parameters
3.2 Target platforms
3.3 Customized database
3.4 Database column type support
3.5 Database update
3.6 Database column names
3.7 Form entry validation
3.8 Naming limitations
3.9 Wizard modality when using GTK
3.10 Problems connecting to Cloudscape database
3.11 Generated application
The Application Template Wizard introduces a set of templates, each of which stores a description of an application along with customized settings. An application template is really the skeleton of an application - it includes the entire application, and may be either fully configured or have certain settings marked for further configuration. These settings enable wizard-driven specification of parameters and automatic generation of code to produce a complete operational application.
- A new option allows you to preview the generated application. As you progress through the wizard, the preview displays a more customized version of the application, based on your input.
- The wizard pages were restructured to represent the configured application in a more intuitive manner. Labels of menus and Web pages can now be modified directly on the corresponding wizard page. Data fields used only in the internal logic of the application can be mapped in a separate wizard page.
- The widgets of a Web page are now mapped directly to the database tables and columns, without requiring an intermediate stage. In addition, you can now change the order of the widgets on the Web page, and modify the widget type, where adjustable.
- The wizard roadmap of tasks is now clickable. To access previously completed tasks, click on the roadmap icon of the page you wish to open.
- Improved styles are available for generated applications.
When you click the Set Database button on the Database Connection page of the wizard, the dialog box presents the database parameters of the last database you were connected to. These are not necessarily the parameters for the database to which you are automatically connecting via the wizard.
The Template Application Wizard currently generates only Struts applications.
The Template Application Wizard assumes that the database to which you connected during customization, is the same database accessed from the generated application.
Database type support has some limitations - we do not support BLOB, INTERVAL, and REAL types. We also do not support TimeStamp on Oracle. If you use databases from specific vendors that do not support the granularity of SQL type definition, the generated application may fail.
When a database is updated from form A that is mapped to the same data table as some form B, and you previously added new fields only to form B, the content of these fields in the database may get corrupted. You can avoid this problem by presenting the new fields in both forms.
When you add values to a database, and the database table contains non-nullable columns, the operation may fail. You can avoid this problem by presenting all non-nullable columns in the corresponding views and filling in their values.
The sample databases contain some column names that cannot be used in databases of certain vendors, for whom these names are reserved names (e.g., INDEX).
Form entry validation is partially implemented. If invalid data is used in an entry (e.g., an empty string in an integer field), the generated application may fail.
Several limitations exist for database column names. Do not use Java reserved identifiers (such as if, int, etc.) to name database tables and columns, using any combination of letter case and spacing. Do not use non-English characters within the names of the database tables and columns. These limitations are actually more stringent than is necessary in the current version, but following these guidelines will guarantee that the generated application will perform as expected.
When you are using the wizard with GTK, other WebSphere functionality may still be accessible. Please refrain from using other functions while the wizard is running, since this may cause problems.
Using the wizard involves multiple connect and disconnect actions. Due to an inherent problem in the connection to Cloudscape databases, this may cause wizard users to see tables without columns. If this problem occurs, restart WebSphere Studio.
If you run a generated application on the server and then stop the server, the wizard may not be able to establish a connection to the database used by this application. If this problem occurs, restart WebSphere Studio.
If you set your WebSphere Studio preferences so that builds are not done automatically on resource modification, the generated application may not launch properly. To prevent this problem, make sure the option for automatic builds is selected.
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