Thanks for your answer. However this is fine as a technique to enable me to fire an 'action' to lookup the customer but I was hoping that the customer browser would be a nice action/jsp combo to itself which could be told to 'return' back to the originating calling action.
I might want to include the ability to lookup a customer in 20 or 30 forms, not just order entry. It's the modular approach known to console-based and gui based applications. My question is: how does this translate in struts? Does it? Stuart On Fri, 2004-08-20 at 15:06, struts lover wrote: > You can have a variable called action in your action > form. You can set that variable as view or edit. Now > for the first time, the action can be view. You lookup > for the customer. If you find, you display. If you > dont find, (check this with some <c:if> tag ) you > display a text field and a ADD CUSTOMER button. You > enter the customer name, and click the add button. > Again it takes you to the same action class. This > action class extends the LookupDispatchAction class. > You have different methods for different buttons in > that class.(lookup,add etc.). You need only one jsp, > one action form and one action class that extends from > the LookupDispatchAction class. > HTH > > > > --- Stuart Guthrie <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > > This is a general 'how do you do it if you do it' > > question about web > > application design. > > > > Here is the scenario. > > > > Web Form: > > ----------------------------------------- > > ORDER HEADER > > > > Order No: 0010 > > Order Date: 15/08/2004 > > Customer: ______ <LOOKUP CUSTOMER> > > Customer Name: ? > > ----------------------------------------- > > > > So the user has entered a new order date and > > requests the <LOOKUP > > CUSTOMER> button to search the 1,000,000 customers > > in the database. > > (Note, I picked a cool million deliberately to stop > > the 'just use a > > combo' suggestions) > > > > The customer is found and selected. The user is > > returned to this form in > > exactly the same 'state' they left it. ie with the > > date entered as > > 15/08/2004, except their customer code is now filled > > in. As is the > > Customer name. > > > > ----------------------------------------- > > ORDER HEADER > > > > Order No: 0010 > > Order Date: 15/08/2004 > > Customer: ABC123 <LOOKUP CUSTOMER> > > Customer Name: ABC Inc. > > ----------------------------------------- > > > > > > This example gets more complex if you consider that > > once the user > > reaches the lookup, they might find no customer > > there and need to ADD a > > customer, taking them to a new 'stack' level. > > > > > Order Entry (1/2 complete) > > -> Lookup Customer > > --> Add Customer as not found in lookup > > --> Return to lookup Customer > > -> Select newly added customer from list > > > Order Entry Form re-populated with new customer > > code and description > > as well as original 1/2 complete fields. > > > > > > Ways to do this: > > > > 1. Some sort of 'stack' where the state is > > maintained in a 'level' of > > the > > stack with all the form values from the web page. > > The user goes off and > > searches on the next level of the 'stack' and once > > sorted, pulls (or is > > it pops) the stack back to the previous 'level' and > > re-populates the > > form. > > > > 2. Something else. > > > > 3. Can't be done. Don't go there! > > > > > > I'm all ears, unless I hear otherwise, I'll probably > > write the > > 'stack'technology. > > > > TIA > > > > > > Stuart Guthrie > > > > > > > --------------------------------------------------------------------- > > To unsubscribe, e-mail: > > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > For additional commands, e-mail: > > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > > > > > > __________________________________________________ > Do You Yahoo!? > Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around > http://mail.yahoo.com > > --------------------------------------------------------------------- > To unsubscribe, e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > For additional commands, e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > --------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe, e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] For additional commands, e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
