Skip Headers
Oracle® Application Server Portal User's Guide
10g Release 2 (10.1.4)
B13809-04
  Go To Documentation Library
Home
Go To Product List
Solution Area
Go To Table Of Contents
Contents
Go To Index
Index

Previous
Previous
Next
Next
 

2 Interacting with Your Portal

This chapter contains information that public users and users with Personalize privileges need to know. It includes the following main sections:

Intended Audience

The content of this chapter is intended for public users and users with Personalize privileges. If a particular task requires different privileges, the required privileges are listed before the steps of that task.

2.1 Viewing Pages

This section contains information on how to display pages and describes other actions available while viewing pages. To perform the actions described here you must be logged in to OracleAS Portal:

2.1.1 Logging in to OracleAS Portal

Your page may display a Login link (or icon) or the Login portlet. To log in to OracleAS Portal, either:

  • Click the Login link (or icon) and then enter your user name and password.

  • Use the Login portlet to enter your user name and password.

If you do not know your user name or password, contact your portal administrator.

2.1.2 Displaying a Page

If you are logged in to OracleAS Portal, you can view any page on which you have been granted at least View privileges. If you are not logged in to OracleAS Portal, you can view only pages that are available to public users.

When you display a page, you see only the content that you are authorized to see.

To display a page:

  • In the Address or Location field of your browser, enter the URL for the page. The URL will look something like this:

    http://portalmachine:1000/myportal/page/mydad/myPageGroup/mypage
    
    

If you do not know the URL of the page, you might be able to access the page using navigation tools on your home page.

If you do not see the page that you want to display, you probably don't have appropriate access privileges on the page.

2.1.2.1 Refreshing a Page

If your page contains a Refresh link, click the link to regenerate the page and view the most up-to-date version of the page.


Note:

Page designers with at least Manage Content/Manage Items With Approval privileges on a page can add Refresh links. See Section 14.6.6, "Adding a Portal Smart Link Item".

2.1.2.2 Refreshing a Portlet on a Page

If your portlets contain a Refresh icon in the portlet header, you can refresh the portlet content without having to refresh the entire page. See Section 11.2, "Configuring Region Display Options".

2.1.2.3 Viewing New Items on a Page

If a New icon is displayed besides any item on a page, click New to display a list of all newly created items in the page group. See Section 6.5.4, "Displaying the New and Updated Icons".

2.1.3 Understanding Page and Item URLs

In OracleAS Portal, two types of URLs are used to access or bookmark portal objects: path-based URLs and durable URLs.

Path-based URLs

A path-based URL identifies the path taken through the portal to get to a particular object. It is an easy-to-read URL but as it contains the names of portal objects, the URL becomes invalid if the name of any object within the path changes.

For example, if you navigate to an item and look in your browser's address bar, the format of the path-based URL will look something like this:

http://<host>:<port>/portal/page/<dad>[/lang-<language>][/ver-<version>]/<page_group_name>/<page_path>/<item_name>

For a detailed description of this URL format, see Appendix C, "Formation of URLs in OracleAS Portal".

Here are some examples:

  • URL to access the top-level page (mypage) in the page group MyPageGroup:

    http://mymachine.mycompany.com:5000/portal/page/mydad/MyPageGroup/mypage
    
    
  • URL to access the current, English version of myDocument.htm on page1:

    http://mymachine.mycompany.com:5000/portal/page/mydad/lang-en/MyPageGroup/
    mypage/page1/myDocument.htm
    
    
  • URL to access the third, English version of myDocument.htm:

    http://mymachine.mycompany.com:5000/portal/page/mydad/lang-en/ver-3/
    MyPageGroup/mypage/page1/myDocument.htm
    
    
  • URL to access a draft or pending version of myDocument.htm:

    http://mymachine.mycompany.com:5000/portal/page/mydad/lang-en/ver-STAGE/
    MyPageGroup/mypage/page1/myDocument.htm
    
    

Durable URLs

A durable URL uses a globally unique identifier (GUID) to identify portal objects. Because the GUID of an object never changes, the URL will continue to be valid if the object name changes.


Note:

You can find out the durable link for any item or page by looking in its property sheet. See also Section 8.3, "Viewing Information About Pages and Page Content".

This is the durable URL format for an item:

http://<host>:<port>/portal/page/<dad>[/lang-<language>][/ver-<version>]/<item_guid>

For example, you may be given this URL to access the English version of a page with the GUID A47D41ECA23648A9E030007F0100118A:

http://mymachine.mycompany.com:5000/portal/page/mydad/lang-en/
A47D41ECA23648A9E030007F0100118A

For a detailed description of this URL format, see Appendix C, "Formation of URLs in OracleAS Portal".

When you click a durable link, OracleAS Portal converts the durable URL to a path-based URL and this is why your browser address bar always displays path-based URLs.

Your page designer controls the URL format used for object links in a particular region, for more information see Section 15.2.6, "Specifying How Item URLs Are Formed". If you right-click a link and copy its target address, you can determine the URL format by pasting the copied link into your browser's address bar.

2.1.4 Choosing Your Home Page

Your home page is the first page displayed when you log in to OracleAS Portal, or when you click the Home link or icon. If your page contains the Account Info link, you can choose your own home page.

For example, if you are a page designer you might want the Build tab (Portal Builder) to be the first page that you see when you log in.

2.1.4.1 Changing Your Home Page

To change your home page:

  1. Click Account Info.

  2. Next to the Default Home Page field, click the List icon to see a list of pages from which to choose.

    You cannot enter a value in this field; you must select one from the pop-up list.

  3. Click Return Object next to the page you want to make your home page.

  4. Click OK.


Note:

Click Reset to remove this setting.


Tip:

To check that you set your home page correctly, log out of OracleAS Portal and log back in again. When you log back in, you should be taken to the page that you specified as your home page.

2.1.4.2 Changing Your Mobile Home Page

If mobile devices may access your portal, you can specify the home page to be displayed when you access OracleAS Portal from a mobile device. The mobile home page is independent from the desktop home page.

To change your mobile home page:

  1. Click Account Info.

  2. Next to the Default Mobile Home Page field, click the List icon to see a list of pages from which to choose.

    You cannot enter a value in this field; you must select one from the list provided. All the pages displayed in this list are mobile pages.


    Note:

    If you do not see the Default Mobile Home Page field, mobile access is not enabled for the portal. See also Section 10.1, "Mobile Support in OracleAS Portal".

  3. Click Return Object next to the page you want to make your home page when you access OracleAS Portal from a mobile device.

  4. Click OK.


    Note:

    Click Reset to remove this setting.

2.1.5 Changing Your Password

For security purposes, your password is set to expire after a certain number of days, as specified by the OracleAS Single Sign-On administrator. As the expiration date of your password approaches, you will be prompted to change it.

If you think someone may know your password, change it immediately.

If you forget your password, ask the OracleAS Single Sign-On administrator to reset it for you.


Note:

Changing your password here affects all the OracleAS Single Sign-On applications you access, not just OracleAS Portal.

If you do not change your password before its expiration date, you will not be able to log in until the OracleAS Single Sign-On administrator resets it for you.

To change your password:

  1. Click Account Info.

  2. In the top right corner of the Edit Account Information page, click Change Password.

  3. In the Old Password field, enter the password that you currently use to log in.

  4. In the New Password field, enter your new password. Enter the same password in the Confirm New Password field to confirm that you entered it correctly.


    Note:

    Choose a password that you can remember, but is not obvious to others.

    There may be restrictions on what you can use as a password. For example, passwords may be restricted to a minimum number of characters or require at least one number. If you are having difficulty changing your password, contact your OracleAS Single Sign-On or portal administrator.


  5. Click OK to return to the Edit Account Information page.

  6. Click OK to return to your home page.

The next time you log in, use your new password.

2.1.6 Choosing a Default Page Style

A style controls the colors and fonts used by portal pages. If your page contains an Account Info link you can specify a default page style of your choice.

When a page is created, the page designer has the option of imposing a page style or allowing individual users to supply their own. See Section 12.8, "Applying a Style". When you display a page that allows for individual page styles, the page style you select through the Account Info link is applied.

To change your default page style:

  1. Click Account Info.

  2. Choose the Default Style from the list.

  3. Click OK.

If you do not specify a default style, the style of your default group is used instead. If you do not have a default group, or the group default style is also not set, the system default style is used. See also Chapter 12, "Working with Colors and Fonts".

2.1.7 Viewing Translated Content

If you want to view portal content in a particular language, you must either log in to OracleAS Portal in the appropriate language, or change the current language using the Set Language portlet.

If your portal contains content that has been translated into the selected language, it is displayed on the page. Any content that is not translated into the chosen language is displayed in the default language (this is the language in which the page group was originally created).

Searching Translated Content

When you search OracleAS Portal only one translation of a particular item is returned within search results. You do not see several different translations in the search results, even if they all match the search criteria. Content translated for the current language is returned first, if it exists. If no match is found in the current language, content for the default language may be returned if a match is found.

2.2 Finding Information in Your Portal

This section contains information on how to find information in OracleAS Portal.

2.2.1 Searching For Content

OracleAS Portal provides a basic search facility for performing simple searches and an advanced search option for performing more complex searches. Both can be used to find items, pages, categories, or perspectives in OracleAS Portal. For more details, see:

If you enter a search term and Oracle Text is enabled in your portal, all text attributes associated with the portal content, and the content of documents and URLs are searched. Out-of-the-box, Oracle Text is always enabled. Although we do not recommend that Oracle Text is disabled, it can be disabled by your portal administrator. If your portal administrator has disabled Oracle Text, only the following metadata is searched: item attributes (Display Name, Description, Keywords, Author), page attributes (Display Name, Description, Keywords), and category/perspective attributes (Display Name, Description). For more detail, see Section A.2.4, "Base Searchable Attributes".

Contact your portal administrator for more information on Oracle Text, or refer to the Oracle Application Server Portal Configuration Guide available from the OracleAS Portal Documentation page on OTN http://www.oracle.com/technology/products/ias/portal/documentation.html).

2.2.1.1 Performing a Basic Search

If your page contains a Basic Search portlet, you can search for content that contains specific words. For example, if you enter weights aerobics, the search finds content (items, pages, categories, perspectives) that contains the word weights and the word aerobics.

Figure 2-1 shows an example of the Basic Search portlet:

Figure 2-1 Basic Search Portlet

Description of Figure 2-1  follows
Description of "Figure 2-1 Basic Search Portlet"

Alternatively, your page may contain a Basic Search box item, similar to that shown in Figure 2-2. This item may be set up to search in all page groups, or one specific page group.

Figure 2-2 Basic Search Box

Description of Figure 2-2  follows
Description of "Figure 2-2 Basic Search Box"

To perform a basic search:

  1. Enter the words that you want to search for.

    Basic search finds content that contains all the specified words. For example, if you enter weights aerobics, basic search finds content that contains the word weights and the word aerobics. For more helpful hints and tips on entering search criteria, read our Search Tips in the following section.

  2. Choose which page groups are searched:

    • Basic Search portlet - In the Search In Page Groups field, select one or more page groups in which to search. If this field does not display, all page groups are searched. See also, Section 2.2.1.1.1, "Personalizing the Basic Search Portlet".

    • Basic Search Box item - The page groups to be searched are pre-selected. You can change this only if you have the privileges to edit the Basic Search Box item.

  3. Click Search or Go.

Search Tips

Here are some notes and tips to consider when searching:

  • Searches are not case sensitive.

  • To search for multiple words, separate each word with a space, for example: weights aerobics. Content containing the word weights and the word aerobics is returned.

  • To search for a phrase, enclose the phrase in single quotes, for example:'weight lifting'.

  • The % character is interpreted literally, so do not include it as a wildcard.

  • If Oracle Text is enabled:

    • If you enter multiple terms, all the terms must appear within the item metadata, or URL content, or document content. For example, if you enter weights aerobics, search results are returned only when both these terms are found in item metadata, URL content, or document content. If the term weights is found in URL content and the term aerobics is found in document content, this does not result in a match.

    • The stem operator is used to search for words that have the same linguistic root as the specified word. For example, if you specified the word lift, content containing the words lift, lifting, or lifted is returned.

    • The % character is interpreted literally, so do not use it as a wildcard. For example, if you enter the search term 100%, content containing the text 100% is returned, not 100 (without % appended), 1000 or 10000. Instead, use the advanced search operator that performs partial matching, that is, partially match all of the terms (%term%).

  • If Oracle Text is disabled:

    • Only metadata is searched, that is, item attributes (Display Name, Description, Keywords, Author), page attributes (Display Name, Description, Keywords), and category/perspective attributes (Display Name, Description). See also Section A.2.4, "Base Searchable Attributes".

    • If you enter multiple terms, all the terms must appear within the same attribute. For example, if you enter weights aerobics, search results are returned only when both these terms are found in a single attribute, such as Description.

    • The % character is interpreted literally, so do not use it as a wildcard. For example, if you enter the search term 100%, content containing the text 100% is returned, not 100 (without % appended), 1000 or 10000. Wildcards are automatically added to the beginning and end of your search term, so searching for 100 automatically returns content that contains 1000 and 10000.

  • If you want more advanced search features, click the Advanced Search link (if there is one).

2.2.1.1.1 Personalizing the Basic Search Portlet

If this portlet displays the Search In Page Groups field, you can restrict your search to one or more page groups. When this field is not available, all page groups are searched. You can choose whether the Search In Page Groups field appears on this portlet, by clicking the Personalize link. When you personalize the Basic Search portlet, you can also change the name displayed in the portlet header if you wish.

2.2.1.2 Performing an Advanced Search

Use the Advanced Search portlet to:

  • Find portal content that contains all (or any) search words.

  • Search across one or multiple page groups.

  • Restrict the search to a particular page, category, perspective, item type, or various other attributes.

  • (Oracle Text enabled) Perform near, like, soundex, and fuzzy searches.

  • (Oracle Text enabled) Search across one or more selected perspectives.

Figure 2-3 shows an example of the Advanced Search portlet:

Figure 2-3 Advanced Search Portlet (Oracle Text enabled)

Description of Figure 2-3  follows
Description of "Figure 2-3 Advanced Search Portlet (Oracle Text enabled)"

You may access the advanced search in several ways, such as:

  • Clicking the Advanced Search link on a page or Basic Search portlet.

  • Displaying a page containing an Advanced Search portlet.

To perform an advanced search:

  1. Enter the words that you want to search for.

    Try to be precise when entering your search terms as this will increase the accuracy of your search and avoid timeouts caused by searches taking too long.

  2. For Find results that:, choose one of the search operators described in Table 2-1.

    Table 2-1 Search Operators

    Search Operator Description

    Contain all of the terms /Contains all

    Returns content containing all of the specified terms in any order, as entered or as part of a larger word. For example, if you enter the search terms weights aerobics, advanced search finds content that contains the words weights and aerobics.

    The behavior of the operators contain all of the terms and contain any of the terms (in the following section) depends on Oracle Text:

    • If Oracle Text is enabled, the stem operator is used to search for words that have the same linguistic root as the specified word. For example, if you specified the word lift, content containing the words lift, lifting, or lifted is returned.

    • If Oracle Text is disabled and you enter 100% as your search term, content containing the text 100% is returned, not 100 (without % appended), 1000 or 10000. Wildcards are automatically added to the beginning and end of 100 or your search term, so searching for 100 automatically returns content that contains 1000 and 10000.

    Contain any of the terms / Contains any

    Returns content containing at least one of the specified words and may contain more than one, as entered or as part of a larger word. For example, if you enter the search terms weights aerobics, advanced search finds content that contains the word weights or aerobics.

    The behavior of the operators contain all of the terms and contain any of the terms depends on Oracle Text (see preceding section).

    Contain these terms exactly / Contains exactly

    (Oracle Text disabled) Returns content containing the search words exactly as specified in the Search field. For example, a search for weight will not return weights.

    Partially match all of the terms (%term%) / Partially match all

    (Oracle Text enabled) Performs a partial match search of all of the words specified, for example, if you enter 100 it returns results such as 10000 and 1100BC.

    Partially match any of the terms (%term%) / Partially match any

    (Oracle Text enabled) Performs a partial match search of any of the words specified, for example, if you enter age 100 it returns results such as 10000, 1100BC, and stage.

    Contain these terms located close to each other / Terms near each other

    (Oracle Text enabled) Returns a score based on the proximity of the specified words in the content. A higher score is returned for content with the specified words closer together and a lower score is returned for words farther apart.

    Sound like all of the terms / Sound like all

    (Oracle Text enabled) Searches for content containing words that sound similar to all the specified terms. This allows comparison of words that are spelled differently, but sound alike in English such as Smith and Smythe.

    Sound like any of the terms / Sound like any

    (Oracle Text enabled) Searches for content containing words that sound similar to any of the specified words. This allows comparison of words that are spelled differently, but sound alike in English such as Smith and Smythe.

    Are spelled like all of the terms / Spelled like all

    (Oracle Text enabled) Searches for content containing words that are spelled similarly to all the specified words. This is helpful for finding more accurate results when there are frequent misspellings in the content such as there and their.

    Are spelled like any of the terms / Spelled like any

    (Oracle Text enabled) Searches for content containing words that are spelled similarly to any of the specified words. This is helpful for finding more accurate results when there are frequent misspellings in the content such as there and their.

    Match this query language expression / Matches query

    (Oracle Text enabled) Searches for content using an Oracle Text query expression. For examples, see Table 2-2, "Sample Oracle Text Query Expressions". For more detail, refer to the Oracle Text Reference available from the Oracle Technology Network at http://www.oracle.com/technology/documentation.


    Table 2-2 Sample Oracle Text Query Expressions

    Oracle Text Query Expression Searches for content containing...

    policy and benefit

    policy and benefit

    policy & benefit

    policy and benefit

    policy or benefit

    policy or benefit

    policy | benefit

    policy or benefit

    retirement and (policy | benefit)

    retirement and either policy or benefit

    benefit not retirement

    benefit but not retirement


  3. In the Search In field, select one or more Page Groups in which to search.

    If this field does not display and providing that you have not restricted your search to one or more pages (see next step), all page groups are searched.

  4. Select a Page in which you want to search.

    Select Include sub-pages if you also want to search in pages beneath the page you specified.

    Note that searches can be restricted to a single page or one or more page groups. When a page is selected, the Page Groups option is ignored.

  5. In Filter By, click:

    • Match All Of The Following to search for content that matches all the attribute search criteria, for example content that contains the word aerobics in its title and was added after 10-OCT-04.

    • Match Any Of The Following to search for content that matches any of the attribute search criteria, for example content that contains the word aerobics in its title or was added after 10-OCT-04.

  6. From the Perspective and Category lists, choose the perspectives and categories in which you want to search.

    • These lists show only the categories and perspectives relevant to the page group chosen in the Page Group list. If a single page group is selected, categories and perspectives of that page group and the Shared Objects page group are displayed. If multiple page groups are selected, only categories and perspectives in the Shared Objects page group are displayed.

    • These lists may not be labeled Perspective and Category if the page group administrator has changed the labels.

    • If Oracle Text is enabled, you can choose more than one perspective. You can perform a search that Matches All or Matches Any of the perspectives you select. If you choose Include Sub-perspectives you can extend your search to perspectives beneath the perspectives you have chosen.

  7. Optionally, restrict your search to specific attributes of pages and items. For example, if you know that the item you want to find contains the word aerobics in its title, or that it was added some time after 10-OCT-04, you can search for those particular attributes.

    1. Click Choose Attributes to specify additional attribute search criteria.

      Move all the attributes you require for the search to the Selected list, choose the order in which they are displayed, and then click OK. All those you select are displayed on the search form.

    2. For each attribute, choose the appropriate search operator; for example Contains All, Equals, Greater than.

      If Oracle Text is enabled some additional search operators are available. See also Table 2-1, "Search Operators".

    3. For each attribute, enter the words that you want to search for, for example aerobics or 10-OCT-04. You can also enter expressions in this field, including #USER# (for the current user) and #TODAY# (for today's date).

  8. Click Search.

2.2.2 Interpreting Search Results

The Search Results Page can display items, pages, categories, or perspectives that meet your search criteria. It will not display:

  • Content that you are not authorized to view

  • Content that has expired, or is not yet published

  • Page content that is derived from a template

  • Portlet instance items, Portal Smart Links, and Navigation pages


Note:

New or recently modified portal content will not be returned in search results until the changes are reflected in the Oracle Text search indexes. If your portal is installed in Oracle Database 10g, Oracle Text indexes can be set up to synchronize immediately after portal content is added, updated, or deleted. Contact your portal administrator to learn more about the synchronization schedule for Oracle Text indexes in your portal. For more information, see Oracle Application Server Portal Configuration Guide.

Figure 2-4 shows how search results are displayed.

Figure 2-4 Example of Search Results Page

Description of Figure 2-4  follows
Description of "Figure 2-4 Example of Search Results Page"

  • Items: Click the Items tab to display a list of the items that meet your search criteria. Click the item display name to display the item itself.

  • Pages: Click the Pages tab to display a list of the pages that meet your search criteria. Click a page name to display that page.

  • Categories: Click the Categories tab to display a list of the categories that meet your search criteria. Click a category display name to list the items associated with that category.

  • Perspectives: Click the Perspectives tab to display a list of the perspectives that meet your search criteria. Click a perspective display name to list the items associated with that perspective.

If the search criteria includes a specific category or perspective, you can ignore the results on the Categories and Perspectives tabs. When you search by category or perspective, only the Items and Pages tabs display valid results.

Bulk Action Link

If you are searching in a single page group, a Bulk Action link may be displayed to allow you to perform actions on multiple search results simultaneously. This link is not displayed for searches on the Shared Objects page group. The Bulk Action link is a configurable option on search results pages, it is not displayed by default. For more information on displaying the Bulk Action link, for Custom Search portlets only, see Section 17.3.3, "The Custom Search Form".

Search Result Information

Figure 2-5 shows the default information that is displayed alongside item links returned in search results.

The page designer determines which attributes are displayed with each search result and whether the attributes display links, see Section 17.3.4.3, "Customizing Search Results". The default attributes include the object's Create Date, its page group, and its classification category and perspective(s). If you click a link but you do not have the required access privileges then access to the object will be denied.

Figure 2-5 Search Result Information

Description of Figure 2-5  follows
Description of "Figure 2-5 Search Result Information"

To display the item, click the Display Name. To display information about the item, click the property sheet icon.

Figure 2-6 Property Sheet Icon

Property Sheet icon

Oracle Text

When Oracle Text is enabled, additional icons may be displayed with your search results.

Figure 2-7 Oracle Text Search Result Icons

Display HTML Version icon

Click to display an HTML version of any file item.

Display HTML with Highlighting icon
Click to display an HTML version of any file item with the search words highlighted.

Display Gists icon
Click to display an item summary generated by Oracle Text, also called the item's gists.

Display Themes icon
Click to display the nouns and verbs appearing most often within the item, also called the item's themes.

<Score value>%

Displays the Oracle Text relevancy score, rating how well each result matches the search word (or any other textual search criteria), for example, 70%. The score is high when terms are found in the title. If there are multiple terms in the title, the result ranks even higher. Weighting is also given when multiple terms are found close together, or when search results contain the most matches.

Date/numerical search criteria is not included in the Score calculation, so results that only match date/numerical search criteria, do not display a score value.

2.2.3 Saving and Reusing Searches

When you save a search, you save all the search criteria under a single name. This enables you to repeat the search at a later time by clicking a link in the Saved Searches portlet, rather than re-entering the criteria manually.

Saved searches are displayed in the Saved Searches portlet shown in Figure 2-8.

Figure 2-8 Saved Searches Portlet

Description of Figure 2-8  follows
Description of "Figure 2-8 Saved Searches Portlet"

If you cannot see the Saved Searches portlet and you have the appropriate privileges, add the portlet to a page. See Section 2.3.1, "Adding a Portlet to a Page". If you do not have the privileges to add the portlet to a page, ask your page designer to add it for you.

You must be logged in to OracleAS Portal to save a search and see the Saved Searches portlet.

2.2.3.1 Saving a Search

To save search criteria:

  1. Perform your search.

  2. On the search results page, click the Save Search link.

    Save Search is the default text for this link. If the Custom Search portlet on the search results page has been customized, the link text may be different, or may not be displayed at all. See also Section 17.3.4.3, "Customizing Search Results".If you are not logged in, you will not see the Save Search link.

  3. In the Display Name field, enter a name under which to save the search criteria.

  4. Click OK.

The name assigned to this search is displayed in the Saved Searches portlet. To re-submit a saved search, click the name entered here. Do not enter a display name that just contains blank spaces as no link text will be displayed.

2.2.3.2 Adding a List of Saved Searches to a Page

If you save one or more searches, you can access them from your home page, or from any page, as long as you have the privilege to add the Saved Searches portlet to that page.

To add a list of saved searches to a page:

  1. At the top of the page, click Personalize.

  2. In the region where you want to display saved searches, click the Add Portlet icon.

  3. Click Portal Content Tools in the Portlet Repository.

  4. Click Saved Searches.

    Saved Searches is now included in the Selected Portlets list.

  5. Click Close to return to the page.

  6. Click OK.

  7. In the Saved Searches portlet header, click Personalize.

  8. Change the name of the portlet, if desired, in the Display Name field and set other options if required.

  9. Click OK.

2.2.3.3 Reusing a Saved Search

When you save a search, you save all the search criteria under a single name. This enables you to repeat the search quickly, by choosing the saved search name rather than re-entering the criteria manually.

You must be logged in to OracleAS Portal to reuse a saved search.

In the Saved Searches portlet, a list of saved searches is displayed. To reuse a saved search:

  • Click the name of the search you want to perform.

    If you cannot see the Saved Searches portlet, add it to a page. If you do not have the privileges to add the Saved Searches portlet to a page, ask your page designer to add it for you.

2.3 Personalizing Pages

When you personalize a page, you make changes to a page that are visible only to you. This section describes the personalize options that are available and Table 2-3 outlines the privileges required to perform these page personalizations:

Note that you cannot personalize the items on a page.

Table 2-3 Personalize Page Privileges

Privilege Description

Personalize Portlets (Full)

If you have the Full Personalize Portlets privilege you can change the style of the page, add portlets to the page, and delete, move, hide, or show any portlet on the page.

Notes:

  • These changes are visible only to you. For example, if you delete a portlet from a page, other users will still be able to see that portlet on the page. Likewise, if you add a portlet to a page, other users will not see it.

  • To change the style of a page, the page group option Allow Privileged Users To Personalize Page Style must be set. See Section 4.3.2, "Controlling Who Can Apply a Different Style to a Page".

Personalize Portlets (Add-Only)

If you have the Add-Only Personalize Portlets privilege you can change the style of the page, add portlets to the page, and remove, hide, or show the portlets that are added.

Notes:

Personalize Portlets (Hide-Show)

If you have the Hide-Show Personalize Portlets privilege you can change the style of the page, and hide, show, or rearrange any portlet on the page.

Notes:

Personalize (Style)

A user with the Personalize Style privilege can apply a different style to the page.

Notes:

  • These changes are visible only to the user who made them. For example, if a user with the Personalize Style privilege applies a different style to a page, other users will still see the page with the fonts and colors of the original style.

  • For a user with this privilege to change the style of a page, the Allow Privileged Users To Personalize Page Style option must be selected at the page group level. When this option is selected, users with this privilege on a page can apply a different style when personalizing the page.

  • If a page is based on a template, users with this privilege may not be able to control the style of the page. The template level option, Enable Pages To Use Different Style, controls whether page designers can specify different style settings for the page. This option must be selected, otherwise, the page's style settings cannot be changed by users with this privilege. See Section 4.3.2, "Controlling Who Can Apply a Different Style to a Page".

  • This privilege is not available for mobile pages.

View

A user with the View privilege can view the content of the page, but cannot add, remove, show, or hide any of that content.


2.3.1 Adding a Portlet to a Page

You can add portlets to your version of the page. Each region on a page may contain one or more portlets.

To add a portlet to a page:

  1. Navigate to the page on which you want to add a portlet.

  2. Click Personalize.

  3. Click the Add Portlet icon in the region in which you want to add a portlet.


    Note:

    If the region already includes items, the Add Portlets icon is not available as you cannot add portlets to an item region.

  4. In the Portlet Repository, locate the portlet that you want to add. If you know the name of the portlet, enter it in the Search field and click Go.

    OracleAS Portal provides a number of built-in portlets for you to use. See Section A.5, "Built-in Portlets". If you have the appropriate privileges to access a portlet, it is displayed.

  5. (Optional) To check what a portlet looks like before adding it to your page, click the Preview icon next to the name of the portlet. The Preview feature is not available for all portlets.

  6. To add a portlet to your page, click the portlet name. Multiple selections are not possible.

    The order of the portlets in Selected Portlets reflects the order in which they appear on the page. To change the order of the portlets, highlight the portlet name and use the arrows to specify the new order.

  7. Click OK.

2.3.2 Rearranging Portlets in a Page Region

You can change the order in which portlets are displayed in a page region.

To rearrange portlets:

  1. Navigate to the page that includes the portlet.

  2. Click Personalize to switch to personalize mode.

  3. In the region that contains the portlets that you want to rearrange, click the Arrange Portlets icon.

  4. In the Arrange Portlets list, select a portlet and use the arrows to reorder it in relation to the other portlets in the list. Repeat this step for other portlets that you want to rearrange.

  5. Click OK.

  6. Click Close to display your personalized page.

2.3.3 Moving Portlets to Different Regions/Tabs

You can move portlets to another region or tab on the same page.

To move a portlet:

  1. Navigate to the page that includes the portlet.

  2. Click Personalize to switch to personalize mode.

  3. Select the checkbox for the portlet you wish to move.


    Note:

    You can move several portlets to another region in a single operation by selecting the check boxes next to the portlets that you want to move.

  4. Click Move.

  5. Select a region for the portlet to move to. You can choose a region on a different tab.

  6. Click Move Portlet.

2.3.4 Hiding a Portlet on a Page

If your page contains a portlet that you are not currently interested in viewing, you can hide it. If you need the portlet at a later date, you can restore it. This feature is useful if you do not have the appropriate privileges to delete portlets.

To hide a portlet:

  1. Navigate to the page that includes the portlet.

  2. Click Personalize to switch to personalize mode.

  3. Select the checkbox for all the portlets you wish to hide.

  4. Click Hide.

    Note that the selected portlets are now greyed. To show a hidden portlet in the future, select the portlet and click Show.

  5. Click Close to display your personalized page.

2.3.5 Removing a Portlet from a Page

You can delete a portlet from your view of a page. The actual portlet is not deleted from the Portlet Repository, so you can add the portlet back later if you wish.

If you think that you may need the portlet in the future, consider hiding the portlet instead.

To delete a portlet:

  1. Navigate to the page that includes the portlet.

  2. Click Personalize to switch to personalize mode.

  3. Select the checkbox for the portlet you wish to delete.

  4. Click Delete.

  5. Click Yes to confirm and then Close to display your personalized page.

2.3.6 Rearranging the Order of Tabs in a Region

To change the order of tabs in a region:

  1. Navigate to the page that includes the tabs.

  2. Click Personalize to switch to personalize mode.

  3. Click the Arrange Tabs icon in the relevant region.

  4. In the Arrange Tabs list, select a tab and use the arrows to change the tab order.

  5. Repeat step 4 to rearrange another tab.

  6. Click OK.

  7. Click Close to display your personalized page.

2.3.7 Hiding a Tab on a Page

To hide a tab on a page:

  1. Navigate to the page that includes the tabs.

  2. Click Personalize to switch to personalize mode.

  3. Select the checkbox for all the tabs you wish to hide.

  4. Click Hide.

    Note that the selected tabs are now greyed. To show a hidden tab in the future, select the tab and click Show.

  5. Click Close to display your personalized page.

2.3.8 Applying a New Style to a Page

The style you apply to a page governs the colors and fonts used by the page and all the tabs, portlets, and items displayed within it. If you want to use different colors and fonts, you can apply a different style to the page.

You cannot apply a different style to the page:

  • If the page is based on a template and that template does not allow pages to use a different style.

  • If your page group administrator has disabled the setting Allow Privileged Users to Personalize Page Style.

To apply a new style to a page:

  1. Navigate to the page that requires style changes.

  2. Click Personalize to switch to personalize mode.

  3. Click the Style tab.

  4. The Current Style field shows which style is currently applied to the page. The Preview section includes a preview of the current style's settings. To apply a different style to the page, choose the style you want to use in the Choose Style list. When you choose a new style, the preview is refreshed to show this style's settings.

    The Choose Style list includes all the public styles in this page group and the Shared Objects page group, as well as any styles that you have created in this page group for your own use. The <Use User's Default Style> option sets the page style to whatever style you specified as your default. See Section 2.1.6, "Choosing a Default Page Style".

  5. In the Preview section, click each of the radio buttons to check that colors and fonts used in the style meet your requirements.

  6. Click OK.

2.3.9 Personalizing a Page Parameter

Page parameters are used to pass values to a page. If personalizable parameters are defined for a page, you can change the information displayed on the page to suit your needs. For example, if a page has a Ticker parameter and it displays several stock-related portlets that have parameters for Ticker, you can personalize the page to display different stock information by changing the stock Ticker parameter.

To personalize a page parameter:

  1. Display the appropriate page.

  2. Click Personalize to switch to personalize mode.

  3. Click the Parameters tab (available only if the page has personalizable page parameters).

    For more information, see Section 23.3, "Adding a Parameter to a Page or Portal Template".

  4. In the Value field, enter the value you want to use for a parameter.

    Changing the value of a parameter may change the information displayed in portlets on the page.

  5. Click OK to return to the page.

2.3.10 Removing Your Page Personalizations

To remove page personalizations:

  1. Display the appropriate page.

  2. Click Personalize to switch to personalize mode.

  3. Do one of the following:

    • Click Remove My Page Personalizations to restore the page to its original settings. For example, this removes any portlets or tabs added to the page. It also restores any portlet or tab that was deleted. All personalizations are removed, no matter how long ago they were made.

    • Click Remove My Tab Personalizations to remove any changes made to the currently active tab. For example, this removes any portlets or sub-tabs that were added to the tab through user personalization. (Base portlets, those that were included on the tab prior to personalization, are restored, if they were moved from the tab.) All personalizations are removed, no matter how long ago they were made.

    These options do not remove personalizations made to portlet instances.


Note:

If you cannot perform actions on certain areas (or regions) of the page, the Enable Users To Include Content In This Region option for the region may not be selected. Contact your page designer for more information. See also Section 11.2, "Configuring Region Display Options"

2.4 Subscribing to a Page or Item

If your page contains a Subscribe link and you subscribe to the page, you are notified whenever that page is updated, new items are added to the page, and existing items are updated. Similarly, if Subscribe icons are displayed next to items on a page, you can be notified whenever the items are updated.

To subscribe to pages or items you must be logged in to OracleAS Portal. To view information about subscribed pages or items you must have access to a page containing the My Notifications portlet.

This section provides the following information:

For more information on approvals and notifications, see Section 21.1, "Setting Up an Approval Process for a Page".

2.4.1 Subscribing to a Page

To subscribe to a page:

  1. Navigate to the page to which you want to subscribe.

  2. Click the Subscribe link.

Now you will be notified whenever the page is updated. You can check for notifications using the My Notifications portlet. Subscribing to a page automatically subscribes you to every item on that page.

The default label for the Subscribe link is Subscribe; however, the page designer may have given it a different label, or decided to use an icon instead. If you are not sure what to click to subscribe to the page, contact the page designer.

2.4.2 Subscribing to an Item

To subscribe to an item:

  1. Navigate to the page containing the items to which you want to subscribe.

  2. Click the Subscribe icon next to the item.

Now you will be notified whenever the item is updated.

Subscribe icons are displayed if they have been added to the page region. If no Subscribe icons are available, contact the page designer.

2.4.3 Setting Up the My Notifications Portlet to Show Your Subscriptions

If you have the appropriate privileges, you can personalize the My Notifications portlet to display information about items and pages to which you subscribe.

Figure 2-9 My Notification Portlet Example

Description of Figure 2-9  follows
Description of "Figure 2-9 My Notification Portlet Example"

If the notification item subject includes parentheses, such as (Account Info), the item is a Portal Smart Link.

To personalize the My Notifications Portlet:

  1. In the My Notifications portlet header, click Personalize.

  2. In the Display Name field, enter the name that you want to appear in the portlet header. The default is My Notifications.

  3. Choose whether to Show All Notification Items in the portlet, or to Limit the List to a specified number of notifications. The default is 10.

    There is no maximum limit, but you may start to experience performance issues if the number of notifications displayed in your portlet is too large.

  4. Choose Show Subscription Notifications.

    The My Notifications portlet shown in Figure 2-9 is set up to show all three types of notifications: Subscription, Expiry, and Approval.

  5. Select whether to Display Notification Type Icons for notifications listed in the portlet.

    When the My Notifications portlet is set up to show more than one type of notification (Subscription, Expiry, Approval), the Type icons can help you distinguish between these different types.

  6. Select whether to Display Notification Status for notifications listed in the portlet. The subscription status values include:

    Table 2-4 Subscription Notification Status Values

    Status Description

    Item Deleted

    An item to which you subscribe was deleted.

    Item Expired

    An item to which you subscribe has expired.

    Item Updated

    An item to which you subscribed was updated.Note that updates include actual changes to items (for example, additional text added to a file), and also changes in item versioning. If you set an item to be the current version, this is considered an item update for subscriptions.

    New Item

    A new item was added to a page to which you subscribe.

    New Page

    A new sub-page was added to a page to which you subscribe.Note that notifications are not sent for updates to a sub-page.

    New Portlet

    A new portlet was added to a page to which you subscribe.

    New Tab

    A new tab was added to a page to which you subscribe.

    New Version

    An item to which you subscribe has a new version.


    A subscription notification always links to the current version of the item.

    • If you update an existing item, or set an existing version to be the current version, the notification status is Item Updated.

    • If you add an item as a new version and as the current version, the notification status is New Version.

    • If you add an item as a new version, but not the current version, and you update it, a subscription notification is not issued.

  7. Click Apply.

  8. Choose whether to display subscription notification items from All Page Groups in the portal, or a specific set of page group(s). Click the Browse Page Groups icon to select a page group.

  9. Specify a time limit for the subscriptions displayed in the portlet. The default setting is 24 hours.

    Subscriptions older than the specified time limit are not displayed.

  10. Specify a cache time period. The default is 60 minutes.

    This setting determines how frequently subscriptions in the cache are updated. If portal content changes frequently and real time updates are critical, choose a low value, for example, 10 minutes. If portal content is fairly static a longer cache time may be sufficient, for example, if you specify 360 minutes, the cache is updated once every 360 minutes.

    In addition, the cache is refreshed automatically for certain events, such as when you subscribe to an object.

  11. Click OK.

2.5 Accessing OracleAS Portal Page Editing Tools

If you are logged in to OracleAS Portal and have at least Manage Content privileges on a page, you can display the page in Edit mode by clicking the Edit link at the top of the page. In Edit mode you can set page properties and add, modify, or delete portlets and items on the page. Whilst editing a page, the toolbar, shown in Figure 2-10, is displayed at the top of the page.

Figure 2-10 Edit Mode Toolbar

Edit Mode Toolbar
Description of "Figure 2-10 Edit Mode Toolbar"

In Edit mode, the changes you make to page content are visible to all users. If you want your changes to be visible to yourself only, personalize the page instead. See Section 2.3, "Personalizing Pages".

There are several different editing modes in OracleAS Portal: Graphical, Layout, List, Pending Items Preview, and Mobile Preview. To edit your page in a particular mode, click the appropriate link in the toolbar:

Your page group administrator determines which editing modes are available to you, when setting up the page group. See Section 4.4, "Configuring a Page Group's Page Edit Modes".

This section describes:

2.5.1 Accessing Page Editing Tools

To display a page in Edit mode:

  1. Navigate to the page.


    Note:

    If you do not see the page that you want to work with, you may not have the appropriate page access privileges. See your page group administrator to gain access.

  2. Click Edit to switch to Edit mode.

    Edit is the default name for this link. Your page designer may have given this a different name.

  3. Do any of the following:

    • To change to a different editing mode, click an Editing Views link (Graphical, Layout, or List).

    • To see how the page will look on a mobile device, click Mobile: Preview.

    • To review your draft items, or items awaiting approval, click Pending Items: Preview.

      If this link is not available, Approvals and Notifications are not enabled for the page group. See Section 6.4, "Setting Up Approvals".

    Contact your page group administrator, if the editing mode you want to work with is not available. Your page group administrator determines which edit modes are available using Edit Mode settings on the Configure tab of page group properties. See Section 4.4, "Configuring a Page Group's Page Edit Modes".


Note:

When you switch between the various edit modes, the current state of any portlets on the page is not maintained.

2.5.2 Accessing Page Portlet Editing Tools

You may find that page content is exposed to you through page portlets. In this case, it may still be possible to edit the content by switching to Edit mode within the portlet itself. If you have this capability, you will see an Edit link in the portlet header as shown in Figure 2-11.

Figure 2-11 The Edit Link in a Page Portlet

Description of Figure 2-11  follows
Description of "Figure 2-11 The Edit Link in a Page Portlet"

To switch to Edit mode, simply click the Edit link. Although the complete range of editing tools is not available in the page portlet Edit mode, all the tools necessary for publishing content are accessible in this mode (see Figure 2-12).

Figure 2-12 A Page Portlet in Edit Mode

Description of Figure 2-12  follows
Description of "Figure 2-12 A Page Portlet in Edit Mode"

The Page portlet offers a simplified Edit mode that may be more suitable for some content contributors than the full page Edit mode. The Edit Defaults mode of the Page portlet (see Figure 2-13) allows the page designer to select which regions are displayed in the Page portlet, and to hide or show the Edit link. This allows the page designer to select a subset of regions (containing content that needs to be published) while hiding regions (such as navigation bars, banners and other page decoration) that typically are not relevant when the page is published as a portlet.

The Pending Items Preview edit mode is not available for Page portlets, so it is not possible to see pending items on a page when it is viewed through a Page portlet. If you need to track the progress of pending items, place the My Approval Status portlet on the same page as the Page portlet. All the items that are not otherwise visible in the Page portlet are visible in the My Approval Status portlet until they are approved or published.

Figure 2-13 Page Portlet Edit Defaults Page

Description of Figure 2-13  follows
Description of "Figure 2-13 Page Portlet Edit Defaults Page"


Note:

The Edit link appears only to users who are authorized to edit content on the page portlet (users who have the Manage Items With Approval privilege or higher on the page that is published as a portlet).

2.6 Adding Content to a Page

In OracleAS Portal, you add content to a page by adding items. For example, to add:

There are other types of items that can be added to a page. Your page group administrator determines which item types are available to you, when setting up the page group. See Section 6.2.2.3, "Making an Item Type Available to a Page Group".

OracleAS Portal provides many item-related features which support document collaboration among different users and groups. The main item features include the following:

2.6.1 Adding Content

OracleAS Portal makes it easy to work with items on pages, once the appropriate privileges are established. You can use step-by-step wizards to add, edit, and delete items from your pages, or, if you have a WebDAV client such as Web Folders available, you can seamlessly drag and drop files and folders back and forth between your desktop and OracleAS Portal pages. See Chapter 15, "Working with Items".

2.6.1.1 Adding Items with a Wizard

To find out how to use step-by-step wizards to add content to OracleAS Portal, see Section 15.2, "Adding Items to a Page". A file is a type of item; so is a block of HTML code, a link to another page, a zip file, and so on.

2.6.1.2 Adding Items from Your Desktop

OracleAS Portal supports the use of a Web-based Distributed Authoring and Versioning protocol (WebDAV). Using WebDAV clients, such as Oracle Drive or Web Folders, you can seamlessly drag and drop content, files, and folders back and forth between the desktop and OracleAS Portal. You can also perform in-place opening, editing, and saving of file-type items using desktop applications, such as Microsoft Office and Macromedia Dreamweaver.

To learn more about WebDAV and how to add content to OracleAS Portal using some popular WebDAV clients, see Chapter 19, "Using WebDAV Clients with OracleAS Portal".

2.6.2 Performing Actions on Items

Once you have added content to OracleAS Portal, the items are easy to manage and maintain. You can copy, move, rearrange, and delete items, restore deleted items, or hide items.

You can also set attributes for your items. For example, it is important to classify the content of items as this will help other users to find your content and allow them to determine whether items are of interest. You can also control when people see an item by specifying its publish date, or you can set expiration dates for items so they are hidden when they are no longer relevant or important. For more information on the actions you can perform on items, see Chapter 15, "Working with Items" and Chapter 16, "Working with Portlets".

2.7 Getting Your Content Approved

If you have the page privilege Manage Items with Approval (or the option Require Approval for All Users is set at the page or page group level) any changes and additions that you make to OracleAS Portal content must be approved by one or more people before the modifications become visible to others. To help you keep track of content waiting approval, you'll want to have the My Approval Status portlet on one of your frequently used pages so you can quickly see whether your content has been approved.

It is possible to upload draft content to the portal without having to wait for approval. Drafts are not displayed to other users viewing the page. You can continue to work on drafts until they are finalized and ready for approval. See Section 2.7.1.1.3, "Submitting a Draft Item for Approval". To use the draft feature, approvals must be enabled for your page group. You'll find information on how to do this in Section 6.4, "Setting Up Approvals" in Chapter 6.

If you want to find out whether there are items pending approval on a particular page, you can view the page in Pending Items Preview mode. In this mode, items not yet approved show the status Pending or Update Pending. You can also resubmit or delete rejected items and view draft items from here. For more information, see Section 2.7.1.1, "Using the Pending Items Preview Mode".

If you are part of an approval chain, use the My Notifications portlet to check whether something requires your approval. You may respond by approving or rejecting the item in question.

This section contains the following sub-sections:

2.7.1 Submitting Content for Approval

OracleAS Portal includes a special page privilege Manage Items with Approval. If you have this privilege on a page (or the option Require Approval for All Users is set for the page/page group) you can add items to the page but the items do not become visible to other users until they have been approved. The users responsible for approving the items are specified in the page or page group's approval process. See Chapter 21, "Setting Up an Approval Chain" for more information.

For example, if all product whitepapers must be reviewed by your legal department before they are published you may have an approval process set up that includes the legal department as one of the required approvers.

2.7.1.1 Using the Pending Items Preview Mode

Use the Pending Items Preview mode to preview your items that are pending approval directly on the page.


Note:

Pending Items Preview mode is not available for Page portlets. See Section 2.5.2, "Accessing Page Portlet Editing Tools".

Figure 2-14 The Pending Items Preview Mode Link

Description of Figure 2-14  follows
Description of "Figure 2-14 The Pending Items Preview Mode Link"

To access this mode, click Pending Items: Preview when editing a page. If this option is not available, Approvals and Notifications are not enabled for the page group. See Section 6.4, "Setting Up Approvals".

In Pending Items Preview mode:

  • New items are displayed with the status Pending.

  • Updated items are displayed with the status Update Pending. This mode displays the updated item, whereas other editing modes display the existing item.

  • Draft items are displayed with the status Draft. Draft items are visible to the item owner only.

  • Hidden, deleted, and expired items are displayed along with an indicator of their current status. The Edit Defaults and Actions icons display next to hidden and expired items, enabling you to show and unexpire such items in this view.

Items with the status Pending, Update Pending, or Draft, are not displayed in Graphical or Layout mode because these modes do not display pending items.

2.7.1.1.1 Resubmitting Rejected Items

If your item is rejected, you can edit the item and then resubmit it for approval. Click the Edit icon next to the rejected item to make your changes. After you edit the item, it is resubmitted for approval.

2.7.1.1.2 Deleting and Un-deleting Rejected Items

You can delete rejected items if you wish. To do this, click the Actions icon next to the item and click Delete.

Additionally, you can un-delete a rejected item that was deleted by clicking the Actions icon next to the item and then Undelete. If you do this, the item returns to a rejected status.

2.7.1.1.3 Submitting a Draft Item for Approval

In Pending Items Preview mode, draft items are visible to the item owner only. Once a draft is finalized, you can submit the item for approval and once approved it becomes visible to other users. To submit a draft item for approval, click the Actions icon next to the item and click Submit for Approval.

If item versioning is enabled (Simple or Audit) you must choose the version control option appropriate for your item: Add Item As New version, but not as Current Version, Add Item As New and Current Version, Overwrite Current Version (Simple only). For more information, see Section 6.5.2, "Setting the Item Versioning Level for a Page Group".

2.7.1.1.4 Deleting a Draft Item

You may delete a draft item if you are the item owner. Note that when you delete a draft item, it is irrevocably deleted from the portal; there is no Undelete option. The only way to restore the item is to add it to the page once again. To delete a draft item in Pending Items Preview mode, click the Actions icon next to the item and click Delete.

2.7.1.1.5 Submitting Versioned Items for Approval

You can edit an earlier version of an item and submit it for approval. The older version, rather than the current version, is overwritten.

2.7.1.2 Personalizing the My Approval Status Portlet

You can track the progress of items requiring approval using the Approval Status portlet. In the portlet, click the subject to view the item, click the status to view the approval history, and click the page name to view the page that includes the item.

Figure 2-15 The My Approval Status Portlet

Description of Figure 2-15  follows
Description of "Figure 2-15 The My Approval Status Portlet"

If you have the appropriate privileges on the page, you can personalize the title of the My Approval Status portlet and the way status information is displayed. To do this, click the Personalize link and set the options as required.

2.7.2 Approving or Rejecting Content

After a user adds or modifies an item, approvers in the approval process receive a message in the My Notifications portlet indicating that an item requires an approval.

Approval notifications are sent to the list of approvers identified in an approval process. An approver may respond to the notification by approving or rejecting the item in question.

2.7.2.1 Setting Up the My Notifications Portlet to Show Approval Status

You can also personalize the My Notifications portlet to show the status of items pending approval.

Figure 2-16 The My Notifications Portlet

Description of Figure 2-16  follows
Description of "Figure 2-16 The My Notifications Portlet"

To personalize the My Notifications portlet:

  1. Edit the page that contains the My Notifications portlet.

  2. Click the Personalize link.

  3. In the Display Name field, enter a different title for the portlet if required. For example, if the portlet will be used only to display approval notifications, you might change the display name to Items Requiring My Approval.

  4. In the Display Limit radio group, select whether to display all notifications or limit the portlet to display only a specified number of notifications.

  5. Make sure the Show Approval Notifications check box is selected.

    The portlet can also display expiry and subscription notifications.

  6. Select the Display Notification Type Icon in Portlet check box if you want to display an icon to illustrate whether the notification is an approval, expiry, or subscription notification. This is useful if you intend to use the portlet to display other types of notifications.

  7. Select the Display Notification Status in Portlet check box if you want to display the status of the notification in the portlet. This is useful if you intend to use the portlet to display other types of notifications. For approval notifications there is only one status: Request Pending.

  8. Click OK.

2.7.2.2 Approving or Rejecting an Item

When there is an item that requires your approval, you receive a notification in the My Notifications portlet. You must decide whether to approve or reject the item. If you approve the item, a notification is sent to the next approver in the approval process. If you are the final approver in the approval process, the item will be published to the portal after you approve it. You may instead decide to reject the item. If you reject the item, the approval process is halted even if there are remaining steps (approvers). After you approve or reject the item, the notification is removed from the My Notifications portlet.

In the My Notifications portlet, the approver can click the subject title to display the approval page. From this page, the approver can view the item, enter comments, and decide whether to approve or reject the item. The approver can also view the approval history of the item.

The powers of approval and rejection are distributed as follows:

  • You must be one of the current approvers, a page group administrator, or a page or content manager (with the Manage or Manage Content privilege on the page), to approve or reject an item.

  • An approver can also approve (or reject) an item directly on its page using the Pending Items Preview mode. See Section 2.7.1.1, "Using the Pending Items Preview Mode".

  • An approver can also update a pending item and directly make changes before approving the item. Only approvers who have Manage Content privilege or higher are able to update pending items. See Section 2.7.1.1, "Using the Pending Items Preview Mode".

    If a translated item requires approval, it can be updated by an approver but to do so, the approver must be logged in to the portal with the same language as the translated item and have the necessary privileges.

  • The portal administrator can approve or reject any pending item. On approval by the portal administrator, the process skips the current approver and moves onto the next approver. On rejection, the approval process ends. This is a useful way of bypassing a user in an approval process who is unavailable.

  • Page group administrators can approve or reject any pending item in their page groups from Pending Items Preview mode, or from the Pending Approvals Monitor portlet.

  • Page or content managers (with the Manage or Manage Content privilege on the page) can approve or reject any pending item on their pages from Pending Items Preview mode, or from the Pending Approvals Monitor portlet.

  • If you do not have the appropriate access privileges for the page that includes the item you approved or rejected, you are redirected to the OracleAS Portal home page after you approve or reject the item.

Approving an Item

To approve an item:

  1. In the My Notifications portlet, click the item's subject (see Figure 2-16) to access the Approval Notifications Detail page.

  2. To review the item, click the Item Link.

  3. Enter your approval comments and click Approve.

Rejecting an Item

To reject an item:

  1. In the My Notifications portlet, click the item's subject (see Figure 2-16) to access the Approval Notifications Detail page.

  2. To review the item, click the Item Link.

  3. Enter your rejection comments, and click Reject.

Alternatively, you may approve or reject items in Pending Items Preview mode and List mode:

  • Pending Items Preview mode - To access this mode, click the Pending Items: Preview link in the page. Click the Approve icon next to a Pending item to access the Approval Notifications Detail page, where you can approve or reject the item.

  • List mode - To access this mode, click the List link for the page. Select one or more pending items and then choose Approve/Reject from the actions list.

What If an Item Is Rejected?

If you created the item that is rejected, the item appears in your My Approval Status portlet with the status Rejected. Also, when you view the page that includes the item in Pending Items Preview mode, you will see that the item was rejected. You, as the item creator, can edit the rejected item from the Pending Items Preview mode. After the item is edited, it is automatically resubmitted for approval. See Section 2.7.1.1, "Using the Pending Items Preview Mode".

A rejected item can be deleted by the item creator, the page group administrator, or a page or content manager (with the Manage or Manage Content privilege on the page). The item's status changes to Deleted. A rejected item that was deleted can be un-deleted, provided it hasn't been purged. When you un-delete (or restore) a rejected item, the item's status changes back to Rejected. Rejected items that are deleted will be purged when all other deleted items are purged in the page group.

All actions performed on the rejected item appear in the approval history for the item.

2.8 Troubleshooting

The Search page group selection box does not seem to be working properly. Some page groups are not displayed and some display incorrectly.

Do any of the page group names contain a comma? If the name of a page group contains one or more commas it does not display properly in search-related page group selection boxes. This is because the comma character is used as the delimiter between page group names. For example, a page group named Sales, London, UK, might appear as three, separate, selectable page group names instead of just a single page group. The extra, invalid page group entries get displayed instead of valid page groups and therefore you might also find that some page groups appear unavailable. Report your problem to the page group administrator. Page group administrators are advised not to use commas within page group names due to this issue.

If page group names are not the issue, you might find that the search portlet is set up to exclude certain page groups. Contact the page owner, to see if the page group restriction can be removed.

When I edit the page, the Pending Items Preview link does not display in the page toolbar.

When a tab that is on a public page has restricted access, such that users cannot add items to the tab without approval, the Pending Items Preview link does not display. This is because the page toolbar displays according to page settings and not tab settings. You can still get to preview mode:

I uploaded a draft item but cannot see it on my page. Pending, rejected, and deleted rejected items are not displayed either.

Drafts do not display as expected when the page that contains the draft item is cached at the system level. To avoid access problems, do not cache pages (or templates) at the system level when Approvals and Notifications are enabled. See Section 22.1, "Page Caching".