Compaq ACMS for OpenVMS
Managing Applications


Previous Contents Index

3.4.3 Defining the Initial Menu Display

Menu displays help users to select tasks. Upon signing in, each ACMS user sees either a menu and a selection prompt, or just a selection prompt. For users who need a menu and a selection prompt, specify a default menu in the user definition by assigning each user a menu database file with the /MDB qualifier, and a menu path name with the /MENU qualifier. If you do not include this information in the UDU definition, the ACMS default is to assign the user the top-level menu in the menu tree. This feature provides security to the system, because it enables you to restrict certain menus to selected users.

Menus offer a limited amount of task protection, since a menu can restrict the tasks that a user can select (if the SELECT command is disabled). However, other measures are required for adequate task protection. For more information on task protection, refer to Compaq ACMS for OpenVMS ADU Reference Manual.

For users who need only the selection prompt, specify that no menu be displayed by using the /NODISPLAY_MENU qualifier in the user definition. For example, you might want to suppress the menu display for more experienced users. Or, if the default menu is the highest menu in the menu tree, you might want to reduce the need to page through several levels of menus by having the initial menu display be lower in the menu tree.

The following example shows how the /NODISPLAY_MENU qualifier suppresses the menu display for the user name WINSTON:


UDU> SHOW WINSTON
User name:        WINSTON      DISPLAY MENU
Default menu:
Default MDB:      EMPLOYEE
Initial Task:                       
  Application:         
  Task:  
  Selection:
Final Task:                    IGNORE ERROR
  Application:    PAYROLL
  Task:           SHOW_CHANGES
  Selection:      PAYROLL.DAT
 
Language:
Printfile:
 
 
UDU> MODIFY WINSTON /NODISPLAY_MENU
 
UDU> SHOW WINSTON
User name:        WINSTON                  
Default menu:
Default MDB:      EMPLOYEE
Initial Task:                       
  Application:         
  Task:  
  Selection:
Final Task:                    IGNORE ERROR
  Application:    PAYROLL
  Task:           SHOW_CHANGES
  Selection:      PAYROLL.DAT
 
Language:
Printfile:

The sign-in display you define with UDU is only the initial display characteristic. Users can modify their sign-in displays at run time by selecting the MENU and NOMENU commands in the ACMS command menu. The online ACMS Terminal User's Guide describes the MENU and NOMENU commands. It is available in the SYS$HELP directory.

3.4.4 Specifying a Language for a User

With DECforms, you can create a number of different layouts for a form. One way to use the multiple-layout feature is to specify a natural language for each layout in a form. For example, within the same form, use one layout for panels in French, another layout for panels in Spanish, and a third layout for panels in English.

Note

If you define several layouts in a form, you must specify a language for each layout if you want to display any layout other than the first one.

To specify a language for an existing form, first select the "Modify Layout" option on the DECforms FDE Main Menu. DECforms then displays the Modify Layout Screen, where the "Language" prompt appears. To assign a language to a layout, enter the name of the language, for example:


Layout Name: FRENCH_PANEL
.
.
.
Language: FRENCH

You can use the language specification for purposes other than to associate a natural language with a layout. You can, for example, use the layout language specification to distinguish panels designed for novice, experienced, and expert users.

To select a layout for each user of DECforms forms, you assign a language to a user by adding a language specification to the UDU utility database. You do this by using the MODIFY command with the /LANGUAGE qualifier. To select panels in French for the user LeBlanc, for example, you enter the following:


UDU> MODIFY LEBLANC/LANGUAGE=FRENCH

When you specify a language for a user in UDU, the language is used to select the appropriate layout among DECforms forms and to display the correct panels to the user. The name of the language also appears when you use the SHOW command to display a user's record, for example:


UDU> SHOW LEBLANC                  
User name:         LEBLANC           DISPLAY MENU
.
.
.
Language:   FRENCH

You can specify a language for DECforms forms that is used both in ACMS tasks and in ACMS menus. The DECforms menu form supplied by ACMS contains a standard layout without any language name. You need to specify a language in a menu form to display the menu to users who enter through the Command Process (CP) and who have a corresponding language specified in the ACMSUDU.DAT file.

By specifying a language for a menu form layout, you can update the prompt and the instruction line of the menu to use the appropriate language. To translate the header and the entries of the menu, however, you must use a different menu definition (.MDF) for each language.

You can display the same menu to all users, whether they have a language specified for them or not. In this case, use only one language for the prompt and instruction line; this saves the step of adding a layout for each language in the menu form. An additional benefit is to keep the size of the menu form to a minimum.

To specify a language for a user for all forms except menu forms, you use the /SKIPMENULANGUAGE qualifier. To select NOVICE forms to be displayed to Smith for tasks but not for menus, you enter the following:


UDU> MODIFY SMITH/LANGUAGE=NOVICE/SKIPMENULANGUAGE

After you add the SKIPMENULANGUAGE qualifier, it appears on the user's record when you issue the SHOW command:


UDU> SHOW LEBLANC                  
User name:         LEBLANC           DISPLAY MENU
.
.
.
Language:   FRENCH       SKIPMENULANGUAGE

3.4.5 Specifying a Printfile for a User

Besides using the /PRINTFILE qualifier to specify a printfile name or a spooled device name for a terminal device (which is explained in Chapter 2), you can also use this qualifier to specify a printfile name or spooled device name for a user.

When a form is enabled, ACMS uses the Printfile characteristic for the terminal device, if it is available. If the characteristic is not found, ACMS uses the Printfile characteristic for the user. If neither has been specified, but a PRINT response and a print key are defined in the form source IFDL file, a file with the name <form-name>.TXT is placed in the SYS$MANAGER directory (if the CP is the agent), or in the default directory of the agent.

To use the /PRINTFILE qualifier for a user, follow these steps:

  1. Use a DECforms PRINT response step in a form source IFDL file wherever a response step can be used; for example, you can place it in a field exit response or in a panel exit response. Also define a print key that users press when they want to print a panel. See DECforms Reference Manual for details about response steps and defining DECforms keys.
  2. To specify a printfile for a user in ACMS, use UDU to enter your printfile specification:


    UDU> MODIFY <username>/PRINTFILE=<print-file-spec>/<spooled-device-name> 
    

    When you enter a printfile specification, ACMS uses this name for the DECforms panel screen. When you enter a spooled device name, ACMS sends any panel screen for this user to the spooled device that you specify.

After you modify a user's record with the /PRINTFILE qualifier, the new specification appears when you display user information using the SHOW command, for example:


UDU> MODIFY WINSTON /PRINTFILE=SPOOLDEV::TXA0:
UDU> SHOW WINSTON
User name:        WINSTON                  
Default menu:
Default MDB:      EMPLOYEE
Initial Task:                       
  Application:         
  Task:  
  Selection:
Final Task:                    IGNORE ERROR
  Application:    PAYROLL
  Task:           SHOW_CHANGES
  Selection:      PAYROLL.DAT
Language:
Printfile:  SPOOLDEV::TXA0:

When a form is enabled, ACMS uses the printfile specification for a device assigned by the Device Definition Utility (DDU), if it is available. If it is not, ACMS uses the printfile specification for the user, as specified in UDU.

3.4.6 Authorizing User Names as Agents

Normally, ACMS users can submit tasks only under their own user names. An agent is an OpenVMS process that submits ACMS tasks for processing on behalf of ACMS users whose user names are different from the agent's user name. For security reasons, you must authorize agents by adding the user name of the agent process and including the /AGENT qualifier.

The CP and the Queued Task Initiator (QTI) are agents supplied by ACMS. ACMS requires that you create separate user definitions using the /AGENT qualifier to authorize the CP and the QTI as agents. If your system does not have any agents created with the ACMS Systems Interface (SI), you need only authorize the user name of the CP and QTI as agents.

Although ACMS assigns the user name SYSTEM to the Command Process when you install ACMS, it does not automatically authorize the SYSTEM user name. You must authorize the user name of the Command Process as an agent before it can handle sign-ins, task submission, and interaction between ACMS and ACMS users. (If you wish to change the user name of the Command Process to something other than SYSTEM, you can do so using the ACMSGEN Utility.) To authorize the Command Process with the SYSTEM user name, use these UDU commands:


UDU> ADD SYSTEM/AGENT
User SYSTEM         has been added to the data base
UDU> SHOW SYSTEM
User name:       SYSTEM     DISPLAY MENU      AGENT
Default menu:
Default MDB:
Initial Task:                       
  Application:         
  Task:  
  Selection:
Final Task:                       
  Application:         
  Task:  
  Selection:
 
Language:
Printfile:
 

If your system has agents that were created using the ACMS Systems Interface (SI), you must authorize the user names of these OpenVMS processes using the /AGENT qualifier. For example, to authorize an SI agent with the user name SI_AGENT, use these commands:


UDU> ADD SI_AGENT/AGENT -
_UDU> /MDB=DISK$:[TOPLEVEL]ACMS.MDB - 
_UDU> /MENU=PERSONNEL
User SI_AGENT has been added to the data base
UDU> SHOW SI_AGENT
User name:       SI_AGENT          AGENT
Default menu:    PERSONNEL
Default MDB:     DISK$:[TOPLEVEL]ACMS.MDB
Initial Task:                       
  Application:         
  Task:  
  Selection:
Final Task:                       
  Application:         
  Task:  
  Selection:
 
Language:
Printfile:
 

As the example shows, when authorizing a user name with the /AGENT qualifier, you must explicitly assign the display characteristic and a menu database file to that user name. You can also assign a default menu path name. With its user name defined in the user authorization file, SI_AGENT can submit tasks to ACMS under any user name. See Compaq ACMS for OpenVMS Systems Interface Programming for more information on the SI.

3.5 Working with Existing UDU Definitions

From time to time you have to update UDU definitions. During a UDU session you may need to display, list, delete, or rename the user definitions in the user authorization file. This section shows you how to manipulate existing UDU definitions.

3.5.1 Looking at UDU Definitions with SHOW and LIST

When you add or change user information, you can verify information in the authorization file with either the SHOW or the LIST command.

UDU provides a SHOW command to display information on your terminal and a LIST command to copy UDU definitions to an output file. Use the SHOW and the LIST commands to verify the names and default menus after you have added several users. For example:


UDU> SHOW *
 
User name:      $ALL             DISPLAY MENU
Default Menu:
Default MDB:    INVENTORY
Initial Task:                    IGNORE ERROR   
  Application:  VALIDATE_APPL       
  Task:         ACCESS_RIGHTS
  Selection:
Final Task:                       
  Application:         
  Task:  
  Selection:
 
Language:
Printfile:
 
User name:      CRAWFORD         DISPLAY MENU
Default Menu:
Default MDB:    ACCOUNTING
Initial Task:                    
  Application:         
  Task:  
  Selection:
Final Task:                       IGNORE ERROR
  Application:  PAYROLL
  Task:         SHOW_CHANGES
  Selection:    PAYROLL.DAT
 
 
Language:
Printfile:
 

When you specify the wildcard character (*), UDU displays all definitions in the user authorization file. To see a particular user definition, specify the user name with the SHOW command.

To copy information from the user authorization file to the ACMSUDU.LIS file, type the LIST command with the user name or wildcard character (*) at the UDU prompt:


UDU> LIST GORDON

This command copies the GORDON definition to the ACMSUDU.LIS file in your default directory.

3.5.2 Deleting UDU Definitions

If a user is no longer a valid ACMS user, remove the user definition from the user authorization file with the REMOVE command. The REMOVE command deletes the user definition from ACMSUDF.DAT and displays a message confirming the action. For the user name parameter, you can use an OpenVMS user name or $ALL.

3.5.3 Renaming UDU Definitions

Use the RENAME command when you want to change a user name. Because the RENAME command uses the same qualifiers as the ADD, COPY, DEFAULT, and MODIFY commands, you can change any of the original characteristics while you change the user name.

3.6 Summary of UDU Commands and Qualifiers

UDU commands allow you to create, change, and remove user definitions, and change user names. Table 3-1 lists the UDU commands and qualifiers and provides a brief description of each command. For a complete description of the UDU commands and qualifiers, see Chapter 18.

Table 3-1 Summary of UDU Commands
Commands and Qualifiers Description
ADD
/[NO]AGENT
/[NO]DISPLAY_MENU
/[NO]FINAL
/[NO]INITIAL
/LANGUAGE[=language-name]
/MDB=menu-database-file
/MENU[=menu-path-name]
/PRINTFILE[=print-file-spec/spooled-device-name]
/[NO]SKIPMENULANGUAGE
Adds a new user record to the user authorization file. Unless qualifiers are included, the user information comes from the DEFAULT definition.
ADD /PROXY Adds a user proxy to the ACMS proxy file (ACMSPROXY.DAT). Before you can use the ADD /PROXY command, you must have already created a proxy file with the CREATE /PROXY command.
COPY
/[NO]AGENT
/[NO]DISPLAY_MENU
/[NO]FINAL
/[NO]INITIAL
/LANGUAGE[=language-name]
/MDB=menu-database-file
/MENU[=menu-path-name]
/PRINTFILE[=print-file-spec/spooled-device-name]
/[NO]SKIPMENULANGUAGE
Authorizes and assigns sign-in characteristics to new users by copying information from an existing UDU definition.
CREATE /PROXY Creates an empty ACMS proxy file (ACMSPROXY.DAT).
DEFAULT
/[NO]AGENT
/[NO]DISPLAY_MENU
/[NO]FINAL
/[NO]INITIAL
/LANGUAGE[=language-name]
/MDB=menu-database-file
/MENU[=menu-path-name]
/PRINTFILE[=print-file-spec/spooled-device-name]
/[NO]SKIPMENULANGUAGE
Changes information in the DEFAULT definition. If you omit one or more qualifiers from the ADD command, the new definition takes information from the existing DEFAULT definition.
EXIT Ends the UDU session and returns you to the DCL prompt.
HELP
/[NO]PROMPT
Provides online information about UDU commands.
LIST
/BRIEF
/output=[file-spec]
Writes UDU definitions to ACMSUDU.LIS in your default directory or to an output file you specify.
LIST /PROXY
/OUTPUT=file-spec
Writes all the proxies in the ACMS proxy file to the output file ACMSPROXY.LIS. You can use the /OUTPUT qualifier to specify a different output file name.
MODIFY
/[NO]AGENT
/[NO]DISPLAY_MENU
/[NO]FINAL
/[NO]INITIAL
/LANGUAGE[=language-name]
/MDB=menu-database-file
/MENU[=menu-path-name]
/PRINTFILE[=print-file-spec/spooled-device-name]
/[NO]SKIPMENULANGUAGE
Changes information in UDU definitions.
REMOVE Removes UDU definitions from the user authorization file, ACMSUDF.DAT.
REMOVE /PROXY Removes the specified proxy from the ACMS proxy file (ACMSPROXY.DAT).
RENAME
/[NO]AGENT
/[NO]DISPLAY_MENU
/[NO]FINAL
/[NO]INITIAL
/LANGUAGE[=language-name]
/MDB=menu-database-file
/MENU[=menu-path-name]
/PRINTFILE[=print-file-spec/spooled-device-name]
/[NO]SKIPMENULANGUAGE
Changes the user name and, with qualifiers, other information in UDU definitions.
SHOW
/BRIEF
Displays UDU definitions at your terminal.
SHOW /PROXY Displays one or more proxies in the ACMS proxy file (ACMSPROXY.DAT).


Previous Next Contents Index