Generating an Application

Owned by Brian May
Last updated: Aug 16, 2023 by Jessica Tomkins
7 min read

 

Generating an application using JumpStart is a very simple process. With a few selections, you can have an application up and running in a matter of minutes.

To access the JumpStart interface, navigate to http://yourserver:port/profoundui/jumpstart. You will be presented with a list of options to control the generation of your application.

 

Defining the Application

Application Type and File Selection

  • Application Type - This setting controls type of application to be generated.  There are currently four options:

    • Subfile - This option generates a CRUD style subfile application.  This application should include a subfile grid for record selection and any options selected under the "Actions" setting.

    • Data Entry - This option will generate an application with only one screen used to add a record to the file for which the application was generated.

    • Lookup - This option will generate a simple view only application.  The user will be prompted for key fields to find the record and that record's data will be displayed.

    • Webservice - This option will generate a Universal Display File application for use as a web-service. The user can choose which fields to use for the web-service. Only "Webservice" templates should be chosen when this application type is selected.

  • Subfile Type - When the Application Type is set to "Subfile", this setting will determine if the application will load all data into the grid at once or only load one page of data at a time.

  • Actions - When the Application Type is set to "Subfile", these check boxes control what actions are available to the user to perform against the file. 

  • View/Edit/Add - When the Application Type is set to "Subfile", this setting determines if separate record formats are used for viewing, editing, and adding records or if a single record format is used for all.

    • One Combined Screen - A single record format is generated with the same fields for all actions.  Fields are protected in view mode.

    • Separate Screens - Different record formats are generated for each action selected.  In the next step, fields can be selected to be included on each format individually.

  • Language - This option tells JumpStart what programming language and syntax should be used.  Currently, there are four options:

    • RPGLE Free (All Specs) - This option will generate an RPG application using the new full free format syntax introduced in IBM i 7.1.  PTFs for the RPG compiler are required on IBM i 7.1 in order to use this option.  IBM i 7.2 included this functionality at release.

    • RPGLE Free (C Specs Only) - This option will generate and RPG application with free format calculation specs, but all other lines will be fixed format.  

    • PHP - This option will generate PHP code to drive the Rich Display application.

    • Node.js - This option will generate Profound.js code to drive the Rich Display application.

  • Template - This setting is used to choose the template files to be used by the generation engine to build the application.  The JumpStart product currently ships with several templates, but customers may create their own templates as well.

    • Standard - This template generates a standard desktop browser application.

    • Mobile - This template generates an application designed to operate more easily on a mobile device.

    • TinyMVC - This PHP template generates a standard desktop browser application running atop the TinyMVC PHP framework.

    • Input Capable Subfile - This desktop browser application uses an input capable subfile.

    • Webservice to do Autocomplete - this Universal Display File template provides customized auto-complete results for a textbox or combo box widget.

    • Webservice to load Dropdown Data - this Universal Display File template provides data for populating a combo-box or select-box widget.

    • Webservice to load Grid Data - this Universal Display File template provides data for populating a grid. Using this may be necessary when the DB-driven or handler-populated grids do not work for a particular set of physical files.

    • Webservice to load Chart Data JSON - this Universal Display File template provides JSON data for use in a Chart widget.

    • Webservice to load Chart Data XML - this Universal Display File template provides XML data for use in a Chart widget.

    • Webservice to perform file maintenance - this Universal Display File template allows you to call web services to perform file maintenance (CREATE, READ, UPDATE, DELETE) on a file.

    • PJS Webservice to do Autocomplete - this Profound.js template provides customized auto-complete results for a textbox or combo box widget.

    • PJS Webservice to load Grid Data - this Profound.js template provides data for populating a grid. Using this may be necessary when the DB-driven or handler-populated grids do not work for a particular set of physical files.

  • Database File - This is where you tell JumpStart what table you want your application to maintain.  Currently JumpStart can only target a single table or view.  The templates shipped with JumpStart use embedded SQL for database access.  You should not enter a logical file or index name here.  In normal circumstances, you should always point JumpStart to the actual table or an SQL view.  There is also a link next to this option to maintain the library list used by JumpStart.

  • Application Title - This will be the title inserted at the top of the record screen for your application.

Once these options are set, clicking the "Retrieve Fields" button will bring up additional settings.

Field Selection

This section allows you to control which fields appear on different screens in your application.  The check boxes allow you to include certain fields on the grid in a subfile application as well as any of the required detail screens.  The options available will vary based on the Application Type and View/Edit/Add settings.

  • Subfile - One Combined Screen

    • The Grid column allows you to choose which fields to include in the subfile grid.

    • The Search column specifies which fields to check when the user enters a search on the screen.

    • The Detail Screen column controls which fields are viewed/edited.

    • The Description column controls what labels are used for the fields. JumpStart retrieves these description from the file definition for you, but you can override them by just clicking on the description and editing it.

    • The Unique Key column is used to specify the files unique key. The product will populate this automatically using the file's primary key if available.  If not, or incomplete, just check the boxes next to the fields needed for a unique compound key.  This step is critical for JumpStart to correctly handle record retrieval and update.

    • The Move Field Up/Down buttons are used to determine the order that the fields will appear on screen.

  • Subfile - Separate Screens

    • The options here are the same as the combined with the exception of the Detail Screen column.

    • The View Screen column determines which fields are on the View record format.

    • The Edit Screen column determines which fields are on the edit screen as well as which fields are editable.

    • The Add Screen column determines which fields are available when adding a new record.

  • Data Entry


    The Data Entry application type only requires a screen to add records. The fields to be entered are chosen in the Add Screen column.

  • Lookup


    The Lookup application type requires the fields to be displayed on the Detail Screen as well as the Unique Key.

Code Generation

  • RPG


    When generating an RPG application, this section is used to specify where to store the generated source and compiled objects for your application.

  • PHP


    For PHP applications, this section is used to enter the name and location that should be used when generating the PHP script and the Rich Display.

Building the Application

Once all of your settings are entered, just click the Generate Application button and JumpStart will begin the process of building the application.  While the generation engine runs, you will see status messages to allow you to track the progress.

Once the process is finished, an alert box will display.

At this point, your application has been generated.  In the case of RPG, it has also been compiled.  You will run the application in the same manner as any other Rich Display application.

The source for the application will be found in the location you specified during the setup process.  You can open this source and make modifications just like any other application.

Important!

JumpStart is intended be used as an initial step in building your application.  Running JumpStart again with the same settings will overwrite any manual modifications you may have made.

 Warning Messages

Read-Only Files or Views

By default JumpStart will not allow you to use a read-only field in the Detail, Edit, and Add screens. If you attempt to click one of those checkboxes when the field is not editable, then a warning appears:

Programmers who are developing highly specialized templates may wish to force the field to appear on the Detail, Edit, and Add screens regardless of whether the field is editable or not. To suppress the warning and allow the fields to be used, check the "Override Non-Editable" checkbox:

With "Override Non-Editable" checked, the field may be used in Detail, Edit, and Add screens.