Direct to Web Reusable Component Specifications

Introduction

The Direct to Web reusable components perform the basic tasks provided by the Direct to Web framework: editing objects, inspecting objects, listing objects, querying for objects, and selecting objects from a list. You can embed a Direct to Web reusable component within your WebObjects component to perform these tasks. The "Customizing a Direct to Web Application" chapter of Developing WebObjects Applications With Direct to Web shows you how.

The Direct to Web framework defines five Direct to Web reusable components:

D2WEdit

D2WInspect

D2WList

D2WQuery

D2WSelect

How to Use These Specifications

Each component specification that follows is divided into three sections: a synopsis, a description, and a set of bindings. The synopsis is designed to give you ready reference to the element's attributes, showing which ones are mandatory and which ones optional. The description explains the purpose of the element. Finally, the bindings describe in detail each of the component's attributes.

The synopses use several conventions that you should be aware of. For example:

WOSubmitButton { action=submitForm; value=aString; [disabled=YES|NO;] [name=aName;] };

• Italic denotes words that represent something else or that can be varied. For example, submitForm represents a method in your script-the exact name of the method is your choice.
• Square brackets ([ ]) mean that the enclosed attribute or attributes are optional. The name attribute and its value are optional in the synopsis above.
• A vertical bar (|) separates two options that are mutually exclusive, as in disabled=YES|NO where the attribute's value must be either YES or NO.
• The remaining words or characters are to be taken literally (that is, they should be typed as they appear). For example, the action and value attributes are to be taken literally in the synopsis above.