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Link Web Content Viewers

Many Web Content Viewers can be added to a single portal page or a series of pages. Sometimes it will be necessary for different Web Content Viewers to interact with each other.

For example, an IBM Lotus Web Content Management menu component could be placed in one Web Content Viewer, and a Web Content Management content item in another. If you would like the content item to change when a different link is clicked in the menu, link the two Web Content Viewers.

You can only link Web Content Viewers of the same type.

For example, you can link a traditional Web Content Viewer to another traditional Web Content Viewer, or you can link a JSR 286 Web Content Viewer to another JSR 286 Web Content Viewer. Links from one type of Web Content Viewer cannot be interpreted by the other type of viewer.


Broadcasting links

The state or context of a Web Content Viewer is not sent directly from one portlet to another. Web Content Viewers can be configured to broadcast their current state or context to other Web Content Viewers on the same WebSphere Portal page, or to Web Content Viewers on other pages. Any information broadcast by a Web Content Viewer will only be received by Web Content Viewers configured to receive this information.


Receiving links

A Web Content Viewer can receive information on the state or context of the current Web Content Management content item or component being displayed within it, or from Web Content Management content items or components displayed within other Web Content Viewers that are "broadcasting".


Example 1 - configuring links for a single portlet

In this scenario a single Web Content Viewer is configured to display a component, such as a menu, that contains links to content. When the link is clicked the component is replaced by the content of the link. The Web Content Viewer then takes on the behavior of the displayed content. The originally displayed component is displayed again until a new portal session is started.


Table 1. Example 1 - configuring links for a single Web Content Viewer

Web Content Viewer content Broadcast Links to:

Receive Links from:

Component None This Web Content Viewer

When adding a component to a Web Content Viewer, you can also select an alternative presentation template in the content view of the content section. When a link is clicked in the component, the content that is then displayed uses the alternate presentation template.


Example 2 - configuring links for a menu and content

In this scenario, one Web Content Viewer contains a Web Content Management menu and another Web Content Viewer contains some Web Content Management content. Links must be created between the two Web Content Viewers to enable the displayed content to change when different links in the menu are selected.


Table 2. Example 2 - configuring links for a menu and content

Web Content Viewer content Broadcast Links to:

Receive Links from:

Menu This page None
Content None Other Web Content Viewers and this Web Content Viewer


Example 3 - configuring links for a navigator and content

In this scenario, one Web Content Viewer contains an item views navigator and another Web Content Viewer contains some Web Content Management content. Links must be created between the two Web Content Viewers to enable the displayed content to change when different links in the navigator are selected. The navigator also changes to reflect the current state of the content being displayed.


Table 3. Example 3 - configuring links for a navigator and content

Web Content Viewer content Broadcast Links to:

Receive Links from:

Navigator This page Other Web Content Viewers and this Web Content Viewer
Content This page Other Web Content Viewers and this Web Content Viewer


Example 4 - configuring dynamic links for a navigator and Web content pages

In this scenario, one JSR 286 Web Content Viewer contains a site views navigator, and several Web content pages that are mapped to the different site areas of the site. Each Web content page contains a JSR 286 Web Content Viewer and is configured to display the default content item of the site area mapped to the Web content page.

Instead of manually creating links between the different JSR 286 Web Content Viewers, a dynamic link broadcasting feature is used to determine which Web content page should be used as the target for the links to the site area in the navigator.


Table 4. Example 4 - configuring dynamic links for a navigator and Web content pages

Web Content Viewer content Broadcast Links to:

Receive Links from:

Navigator Dynamically select a Web content page None
Content on Web content page This page Other JSR 286 Web Content Viewers and this Web Content Viewer


Parent topic:

Display content with Web Content Viewers