Flow form
Completing the Process tab

Field

Description

Reserved. Do not select this box.

Select to allow this flow to be started (applied to) an open work object created by a previous flow execution. For example, application users can determine which additional flow executions are added to an open work object by selecting the  StartNewProcess   button. (This button is supported by the standard section rule Work-.Flows. That section is included in most standard Update and Confirm harness rules.)

When this box is selected, you can complete the Parameters tab to define any parameter values needed when the flow is started.

Select if this flow rule when started creates a new work object. Informally, flow rules that create new work objects are called starter or top-level flow rules.
If selected, the Short Description field of this flow rule becomes visible on the Process Work navigation panel, in the New.. box, for those users who hold at least one of the privileges listed in the Privileges array on this tab. (Your changes to the Short Description text may become visible only after the flow rule is checked in.)

Choose text that will be meaningful to users selecting a flow. See More about Flow rules and How to create a flow.

This field is not available for a flow rule with a Category of ScreenFlow. Screen flow rules never create a new work object; the flow rule is started by a branch, call, or similar mechanism.

Field

Description

These settings are meaningful only if Creates a new work object? is selected, and appear only for regular flow rules, not screen flow rules.

Select to indicate that this flow creates a temporary work object. A temporary work object is created and resolved by a single operator or through straight-through processing and is never saved as a database object.

Select to indicate that the application can create a work object can from properties defined in a model rule and with processing by the NewDefaults activity, without other sources of property values. If the model rule and the activity supply values that pass validation, the system creates the work object; the work object form based on the harness rule identified in the next field appears only when validation fails.

Select to cause Process Commander to search next for another assignment for the same work object (and same flow execution) on the user's worklist. This feature is sometimes called back-to-back assignment processing.

The system only finds and presents assignments that the current user is qualified to perform and for which the value of Assign-.pyActionTime is past.

Clear this box to bypass the search.

As a best practice, select this box. In many situations, two or more assignments may be open for one work object, assigned to the same person.
When a user who performs one of these assignments is also qualified to perform other assignments, it is usually most efficient to have that user perform the assignments one after another, because the user is familiar with the work object.

For example, a flow may require three items of outgoing correspondence to be edited and sent out. In the flow rule, a Split-Join shape may cause Process Commander to create three correspondence editing assignments, all in a single worklist. After a user edits the first correspondence item, completing one of the three assignments, it usually is productive to have that user complete the other two assignments.

This box appears only when the Look for an assignment to perform after create? box is selected.

Select to include assignments in workbaskets in the search for back-to-back assignment processing. The search scope expands to examine the assignments in the workbaskets associated with the user's work group (through the Work Group field on the Workbasket tab of the Workbasket form), as well as assignments on the user's worklist.

Clear this box to bypass the search of workbaskets.

Optionally, your application can override the detailed search criteria that the system uses when this box is selected. The standard decision tree rule Assign-Workbasket.PerformCriteria defines these criteria.

Indicate what the system is to present to users if no search for assignments occurs, or search occurs but none is found. Select:

• Show Harness — The system presents a refreshed harness form for the current work object, using the harness rule identified in the adjoining field. Typically, the new harness displays the results of processing or computations based on the user input.

  Select the Purpose key part of a harness rule to be used. Typically, a post-assignment harness rule has Confirm as the Purpose key part.

  Don't specify a "Perform-type" harness here — one that presents the work object in read-write mode.

• Close the Work Object — Close the work object form, returning to an earlier workspace contents, such as the Process Work home view. No confirmation form appears.

Optional. Identify the second key part — Purpose — of a harness rule to identify the rule that the system presents when a user begins to enter a work object for this flow rule. (The system uses the Applies To key part of this flow rule as the first key part of the harness rule.)

If you leave this blank, the system looks for a harness rule with New as the Purpose.

Optional. Identify the second key part — Model Name — of a model rule that the system is to apply to each new work object created with this flow rule. (To find available models, the system uses the Applies To key part of the flow rule as the first key part of the model rule.)

If you leave this blank, the system looks for a model named pyDefault.

Optional. Identify the second key part — WorkParty — of a work party rule to define which party roles can participate in a work object. (To find available work parties, the system uses the Applies To key part of the flow rule as the first key part of the work party rule.)

If you leave this blank, the system looks for a work party named Default.

Optional. If this flow can create work objects that belong to a cover work object (an object of a work type derived from the Work-Cover- class), identify here the class or classes of the cover objects. Order in this array is not significant.

These fields are not available if Temporary object? is selected. Temporary work objects cannot be members of a cover.

Optional. Identify the second key part — the Purpose — of the harness rule displayed when a user enters a new work object that will become a member of the cover. (The class identified in this row provides the Applies To key part.)

Identify the second key part of a model rule — the Model Name — used to create a work object. The class identified in this row provides the Applies To key part.

After you complete this rule and save it, click  Start Flow   to test the rule.

Field

Description

Security restrictions on flow rules can limit when, and by whom, the flow may be started. Order is not significant in these two arrays.

Optional. To restrict use of this flow rule to only those users who hold a specific privilege, enter a class that the system can use during rule resolution to locate the Applies To key part of a privilege rule.

When this array is not blank, a user must hold at least one of the privileges listed to start an execution of this flow rule.

Optional. Enter the second key part —Privilege — of a privilege rule to limit which users can start this flow rule.

The system uses the Privilege Class and Privilege Name values with class inheritance to look for the privilege rule.

Optional. Enter the second key part — When Name — of a when condition rule that specifies conditions under which this flow rule can be started. The system uses the Applies To key part of this rule as the Applies To key part of the when condition rule.

For example, you can restrict starting of this rule to mornings only, or to only those users in a specific department.

When this array is not blank, the flow execution can start only if at least one of the listed when condition rules evaluates to true.