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Product Advisor XML input file DTD

This section refers to Product Advisor XML input file.

Directives

• answer

• builder

• category

• columnName

• conceptInfo

• conceptName

• constraint

• display

• elaboration

• feature

• lang_id

• metaCategoryId

• metaphorLink

• metaphorName

• operation

• opVal

• opValue

• opValueType

• order

• orderseq

• passConstraint

• pfRefernce

• productComparer

• productExplorer

• qnaTree

• question

• rootQuestion

• salesAssistant

• sort

• store

• template

• templateName

• templateUsage

• widget

answer

Description

The answer element encapsulates an answer to a question in a Guided Sell metaphor's question and answer tree. There may be multiple answers for any particular question.

Context

• Answer elements can be included in a qnaTree element, but only after at least one rootQuestion element has been created.

• Answer elements can contain only the following elements:

  1. An orderSeq element

  2. One or more conceptInfo elements

  3. Any number of optional constraint elements

  4. Either an optional question element or an optional metaphorLink element

Syntax

<answer> ...answer content...
</answer>

Example

<answer>   
<orderseq>1</orderseq>   
<conceptinfo>       
<lang_id>-1</lang_id>       
<conceptName>none</conceptName>       
<elaboration>null</elaboration>   
</conceptinfo>   
<constraint>       
<pfReference>1</pfReference>       
<columnName>F_CDROM</columnName>       
<operation>1</operation>       
<opValueType>com.ibm.commerce.datatype.DsString</opValueType>       
<opVal>          
<lang_id>-1</lang_id>          
<opValue>none</opValue>       
</opVal>   
</constraint>
</answer>

builder

Description

A required element. This element defines the start of the XML input file.

Syntax

<builder> ...XML input file...
</builder>

Context

• The builder element is the primary element in the XML input file. It is not contained in any other elements.

• The builder element can contain only the following elements:

  • A store element

category

Description

A required element. This element defines the category for which the following metaphors are being defined.

Syntax

<category ID="category_ref_num"> ...XML input file...
</category>

The category_ref_num value identifies the category reference number for which the metaphor applies. This must match the category reference number found in the WebSphere Commerce database.

Context

• Category elements can only be included in a store element.

• Category elements can contain any one of the following elements:

  • productComparer

  • productExplorer

  • delete_productComparer

  • delete_productExplorer

  • delete_salesAssistant

Example

<category ID="1"> ...metaphor content...
</category>

columnName

Description

A required element. This element defines the column name used in the database for the parent element. The columnName must match the columnName used in creating the search space. You should refer to the XML file that you created to generate the search space.

Syntax

<columnName> column_name</columnName>

Context

• The columnName element can be included in constraint and feature elements.

• The columnName element does not contain other elements.

Example

<columnName>F_CDROM</columnName>

conceptInfo

Description

Syntax

<conceptInfo> ...conceptInfo content...
</conceptInfo>

Context

• The conceptInfo element can be included in rootQuestion, question, and answer elements.

• The conceptInfo element can contain the following elements:

  • A lang_id element

  • A conceptName element

  • An optional elaboration element

Example

<conceptinfo>   
<lang_id>-1</lang_id>   
<conceptName>none</conceptName>   
<elaboration>null</elaboration>
</conceptinfo>

conceptName

Description

The question or answer text to be displayed to the customer.

Syntax

<conceptName> concept_name</conceptName>

Context

• The conceptName element can be included in conceptInfo elements.

• The conceptName element does not contain other elements.

Example

<conceptName>Concept 2</conceptName>

constraint

Description

This element defines constraints passed between successive questions and answers in a Guided Sell metaphor.

Syntax

<constraint> ...constraint content...
</constraint>

Context

• The constraint element can be included in the answer element.

• The constraint element can contain the following elements:

  • A pfReference element

  • A columnName element

  • An operation element

  • An opValueType element

  • One or more opVal elements

Example

<constraint>   
<pfReference>1</pfReference>   
<columnName>PPPRC</columnName>   
<operation>3</operation>   
<opValueType>com.ibm.commerce.datatype.DsCurrency</opValueType>   
<opVal>      
<lang_id>-1</lang_id>      
<opValue>6099.0</opValue>   
</opVal>   
<opVal>      
<lang_id>-2</lang_id>      
<opValue>2</opValue>   
</opVal>
</constraint>

delete_productComparer

Description

An optional element. This element indicates that the currently defined product Comparison metaphor should be deleted.

Syntax

<delete_productComparer>

Context

• The delete_productComparer element can only be included in a category element.

• The delete_productComparer element does not contain other elements

delete_productExplorer

Description

An optional element. This element indicates that the currently defined Product Explorer metaphor should be deleted.

Syntax

<delete_productExplorer>

Context

• The delete_productExplorer element can only be included in a category element.

• The delete_productExplorer element does not contain other elements

delete_salesAssistant

Description

An optional element. This element indicates that the currently defined Guided Sell metaphor should be deleted.

Syntax

<delete_salesAssistant SACID="SA_category_ID">

The SA_category_ID value identifies the Guided Sell metaphor to be deleted. This must match the category ID number found in the WebSphere Commerce database.

Context

• The delete_salesAssistant element can only be included in a category element.

• The delete_salesAssistant element does not contain other elements

display

This element defines whether or not the parent feature should be displayed.

Syntax

<display> display</display>

Description

Context

• The display element can be included in feature elements.

• The display element does not contain other elements.

Example

<display>1</display>

elaboration

This element is reserved for future use, and should always be set to NULL.

Syntax

<elaboration> elaboration</elaboration>

Context

• The elaboration element can be included in conceptInfo elements.

• The elaboration element does not contain other elements.

Example

<elaboration>NULL</elaboration>

feature

Description

A required element. This element defines the feature that is the basis for comparison using this metaphor.

Syntax

<feature> ...feature specification...
</feature>

Context

• The feature element can be included in the productComparer and productExplorer elements.

• The feature element can contain the following elements:

  • A columnName element

  • An order element

  • An optional display element

  • An optional sort element

  • An optional widget element

Example

<feature>   
<columnName>PPPRC</columnName>   
<order>4</order>   
<display>1</display>   
<sort>1</sort>   
<widget>com.ibm.commerce.pa.widget.DropDownListFormElement</widget>
</feature>

lang_id

Description

An optional element. This element defines the language for the parent element.

Syntax

<lang_id> language_identifier</lang_id>

Context

• The lang_id element can be included in conceptInfo and opVal elements.

• The lang_id element does not contain other elements.

Example

<lang_id>-2</lang_id>

metaCategoryId

Description

The metaCategoryId specifies which category's metaphor should be used for this metaphor link.

Syntax

<metaCategoryId> metaCategoryID_number</metaCategoryId>

Context

• The metaCategoryId element can be included in metaphorLink elements.

• The metaCategoryId element does not contain other elements.

Example

<metaCategoryId>1</metaCategoryId>

metaphorLink

Description

This element defines the link for a Guided Sell answer, or the default link to use when an answer does not have one defined.

Syntax

<metaphorLink> ...metaphor_link_content...
</metaphorLink>

Context

• The metaphorLink element can be included in salesAssistant and answer elements.

• The metaphorLink element can contain the following elements:

  • A metaCategoryId element

  • A metaphorName element

  • A templateName element

  • A templateUsage element

  • A passConstraint element

Example

<metaphorLink>   
<metaCategoryId>1</metaCategoryId>   
<metaphorName>com.ibm.commerce.pa.metaphor.ProductComparerMetaphor</metaphorName>   
<templateName>/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/pc51.jsp</templateName>   
<templateUsage>0</templateUsage>   
<passConstraint>1</passConstraint>
</metaphorLink>

metaphorName

Description

This element defines the target metaphor's name.

Syntax

<metaphorName> metaphor_name</metaphorName>

Context

• The metaphorName element can be included in metaphorLink elements.

• The metaphorName element does not contain other elements.

Example

<metaphorName>com.ibm.commerce.pa.metaphor.ProductComparerMetaphor</metaphorName>

operation

Description

This element defines the operation to be performed to evaluate the constraint.

Syntax

<operation> operation_number</operation>

Context

• The operation element can be included in constraint elements.

• The operation element does not contain other elements.

• Accepts a number between 1-4. These values have the corresponding meaning:

  1

  This corresponds to the 'equal to' (=) operation

  2

  This corresponds to the 'not equal to' (<>) operation.

  3

  This corresponds to the 'greater than or equal to' (>=) operation.

  4

  This corresponds to the 'less than or equal to' (<=) operation.

Example

<operation>3</operation>

opVal

Description

This element defines language specific constraint information.

Syntax

<opVal> ...opVal content...
</opVal>

Context

• The opVal element can be included in constraint elements.

• The opVal element can contain only the following elements:

  • A lang_id element

  • An opValue element

Example

<opVal>   
<lang_id>-1</lang_id>   
<opValue>6099.0</opValue>
<opVal>

opValue

Description

This element defines the value for the feature that you want the constraint based upon. This is the value that would be found in the <columnName> element specified for the parent <constraint> element.

Syntax

<opValue> opValue</opValue>

Context

• The opValue element can be included in opVal elements.

• The opValue element does not contain other elements.

Example

<opValue>6099.0</opValue>

opValueType

Description

Valid types can be found in the ICDATAREG table.

Syntax

<opValueType>op_value_type</opValueType>

Context

• The opValueType element can be included in constraint elements.

• The opValueType element does not contain other elements.

Example

<opValueType>com.ibm.commerce.datatype.DsCurrency</opValueType>

order

Description

This element defines the order in which different features are displayed.

Syntax

<order> order </order>

Context

• The order element can be included in feature elements.

• The order element does not contain other elements.

Example

<order>1</order>

orderSeq

A required element. This element defines the display sequence of questions and answers within a question for the Guided Sell metaphor.

Syntax

<orderSeq> orderSeq_number</orderSeq>

Description

Context

• The orderSeq element can be included in answer and question elements.

• The orderSeq element does not contain other elements.

Example

<orderseq>1</orderseq>

passConstraint

Description

A Boolean variable that determines whether a constraint should be passed to the target link. If the value is set to 0, the constraint is not passed. If it is set to 1, the constraint is passed.

Syntax

<passConstraint> passConstraint_number</passConstraint>

Context

• The passConstraint element can be included in metaphorLink elements.

• The passConstraint element does not contain other elements.

Example

<passConstraint>1</passConstraint>

pfReference

Description

The category or product family id.

Syntax

<pfReference> pfReference_number</pfReference>

Context

• The pfReference element can be included in constraint elements.

• The pfReference element does not contain other elements.

Example

<pfReference>1</pfReference>

productComparer

Description

An optional element. This element defines the start of a Product Comparison metaphor.

Syntax

<productComparer> ...metaphor content...
</productComparer>

Context

• The productComparer element can be included in category elements.

• The productComparer element can contain the following elements:

  • A template element

  • Any number of optional feature elements

productExplorer

Description

An optional element. This element defines the start of a Product Explorer metaphor.

Syntax

<productExplorer> ...metaphor content...
</productExplorer>

Context

• The productExplorer element can be included in category elements.

• The productExplorer element can contain the following elements:

  • A template element

  • Any number of optional feature elements

qnaTree

Description

An optional element. This element encapsulates the entire question and answer tree for a Guided Sell metaphor.

Syntax

<qnaTree> ...question and answer tree content...
</qnaTree>

Context

• The qnaTree element can only be included in a salesAssistant element.

• The qnaTree element can contain the following element:

  • A rootQuestion element

  • Any number of optional answer elements

Example

<qnaTree>   
<rootQuestion>      
<conceptinfo>         
<lang_id>-1</lang_id>         
<conceptName>Price Question</conceptName>         
<elaboration>null</elaboration>      
</conceptinfo>   
</rootQuestion>   
<answer>      
<orderseq>1</orderseq>      
<conceptinfo>         
<lang_id>-2</lang_id>         
<conceptName>Concept2</conceptName>      
</conceptinfo>      
<constraint>         
<pfReference>1</pfReference>         
<columnName>PPPRC</columnName>         
<operation>3</operation>         
<opValueType>com.ibm.commerce.datatype.DsCurrency</opValueType>         
<opVal>            
<lang_id>-1</lang_id>            
<opValue>6099.0</opValue>         
</opVal>         
<opVal>            
<lang_id>-2</lang_id>            
<opValue>2</opValue>         
</opVal>      
</constraint>      
<metaphorLink>         
<metaCategoryId>1</metaCategoryId>         
<metaphorName>com.ibm.commerce.pa.metaphor.ProductExplorerMetaphor</metaphorName>         
<templateName>/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/pe51.jsp</templateName>         
<templateUsage>0</templateUsage>         
<passConstraint>1</passConstraint>      
</metaphorLink>   
</answer>   
<answer>      
<orderseq>2</orderseq>      
<conceptinfo>         
<lang_id>-1</lang_id>         
<conceptName>Low</conceptName>      
</conceptinfo>      
<constraint>         
<pfReference>1</pfReference>         
<columnName>PPPRC</columnName>         
<operation>4</operation>         
<opValueType>com.ibm.commerce.datatype.DsCurrency</opValueType>         
<opVal>            
<lang_id>-1</lang_id>            
<opValue>7099.0</opValue>         
</opVal>      
</constraint>      
<question>         
<orderseq>1</orderseq>         
<conceptinfo>            
<lang_id>-1</lang_id>            
<conceptName>Low</conceptName>            
<elaboration>null</elaboration>         
</conceptinfo>         
<answer>            
<orderseq>1</orderseq>            
<conceptinfo>               
<lang_id>-1</lang_id>               
<conceptName>none</conceptName>               
<elaboration>null</elaboration>            
</conceptinfo>            
<constraint>               
<pfReference>1</pfReference>               
<columnName>F_CDROM</columnName>               
<operation>1</operation>               
<opValueType>com.ibm.commerce.datatype.DsString</opValueType>               
<opVal>                  
<lang_id>-1</lang_id>                  
<opValue>none</opValue>               
</opVal>            
</constraint>         
</answer>      
</question>   
</answer>
</qnaTree>

question

Description

The question element encapsulates a question in a Guided Sell metaphor's question and answer tree.

Syntax

<question> ...question content...
</question>

Context

• The question element can only be included in an answer element.

• The question element can contain the following element:

  • An orderSeq element

  • One or more conceptInfo elements

  • Any number of optional answer elements

Example

<question>   
<orderseq>1</orderseq>   
<conceptinfo>      
<lang_id>-1</lang_id>      
<conceptName>Low</conceptName>      
<elaboration>null</elaboration>   
</conceptinfo>   
<answer>      
<orderseq>1</orderseq>      
<conceptinfo>         
<lang_id>-1</lang_id>         
<conceptName>none</conceptName>         
<elaboration>null</elaboration>      
</conceptinfo>      
<constraint>         
<pfReference>1</pfReference>         
<columnName>F_CDROM</columnName>         
<operation>1</operation>         
<opValueType>com.ibm.commerce.datatype.DsString</opValueType>         
<opVal>            
<lang_id>-1</lang_id>            
<opValue>none</opValue>         
</opVal>      
</constraint>   
</answer>
</question>

rootQuestion

Description

The rootQuestion element encapsulates the primary question in a Guided Sell metaphor's question and answer tree. The primary question is the question that is always displayed first whenever a new Guided Sell session is started.

Syntax

<rootQuestion> ...root Question content...
</rootQuestion>

Context

• The rootQuestion element can be included in qnaTree elements.

• The rootQuestion element can contain only the following elements:

  • One or more conceptInfo elements

Example

<rootQuestion>   
<conceptinfo>      
<lang_id>-1</lang_id>      
<conceptName>Price Question</conceptName>      
<elaboration>null</elaboration>   
</conceptinfo>   
<conceptinfo>      
<lang_id>-2</lang_id>      
<conceptName>Price Question2</conceptName>   
</conceptinfo>
</rootQuestion>

salesAssistant

Description

An optional element. This element defines the start of a Guided Sell metaphor.

Syntax

<salesAssistant SACID="category_ID"> ...metaphor content...
</salesAssistant>

The SACID value identifies the category for the Guided Sell metaphor being created.

Context

• The salesAssistant element can be included in store elements.

• The salesAssistant element can contain the following elements:

  • A template element

  • An optional metaphorLink element

  • A qnaTree element

sort

This element defines the sequence in which the feature values display. If the value is set to 1, the features are sorted in ascending order. If it is set to 2, the features are sorted in descending order.

Syntax

<sort> sort</sort>

Description

Context

• The sort element can be included in feature elements.

• The sort element does not contain other elements.

Example

<sort>1</sort>

store

Description

A required element. This element defines the store for which the contained metaphors apply. Metaphors apply to individual stores, and have a unique store element for each store that has metaphors defined in the XML input file.

Syntax

<store SID="store_ref_num"> ...XML input file...
</store>

The store_ref_num value identifies the store reference number for which the metaphor applies. This must match the store reference number found in the WebSphere Commerce database.

Context

• Store elements can only be included in a builder element.

• Store elements can contain the following elements:

  1. Any number of optional category elements

  2. Any number of optional salesAssistant elements

Example

<store SID="1"> ...XML input file...
</store>

template

Description

A required element. This element defines the JSP to be used as the template for all pages generated using this metaphor.

Syntax

<template>template file</template>

Context

• The template element can be included in productExplorer, productComparer, and salesAssistant elements.

• The template element does not contain other elements.

Example

<template>/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/sa51.jsp</template>

templateName

Description

This element defines the JSP to be used as the template for the target metaphor.

Syntax

<templateName> template_name</templateName>

Context

• The templateName element can be included in metaphorLink elements.

• The templateName element does not contain other elements.

Example

<templateName>/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/pc51.jsp</templateName>

templateUsage

Description

This element defines how the template for the target metaphor should be displayed.

Syntax

<templateUsage> templateUsage_number</templateUsage>

Context

• The templateUsage element can be included in metaphorLink elements.

• The templateUsage element does not contain other elements.

• Accepts a number between 0-3. These values have the corresponding meaning:

  0

  Use the default metaphorLink defined for the parent Guided Sell metaphor.

  1

  Go to the previous metaphor page.

  2

  Use the templateName from this metaphorLink (instead of the default).

  3

  Link to a URL.

Example

<templateUsage>0</templateUsage>

widget

Description

A required element. This element defines which widget will be used to display the feature values.

Syntax

<widget> widget_name</widget>

Context

• The widget element can be included in feature elements.

• The widget element does not contain other elements.

Example

<widget>com.ibm.commerce.pa.widget.DropDownListFormElement</widget>

Related concepts

Product Advisor

Related tasks

Create search space for Product Advisor

Create a Product Comparison metaphor

Create a Product Exploration metaphor

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