Using the variables view

The Variables view provides insight into the data elements that are used on a web page and helps the developer to better understand where that data comes from, how it is used on the page and to easily incorporate that data into the web page during the development process.

Identifying the scope of variables on a page

1. To identify scriptlet variables look for the scriptlet variable icon:
   • - scriptlet variable name
2. To identify page variables look for the page variable icon:
   • - page variable name
3. To identify application variables look for the application variable icon:
   • - application variable name
4. To identify session variables look for the session variable icon:
   • - session variable name
5. To identify request variables look for the request variable icon:
   • - request variable name

Opening a variable definition

1. Right-click on a variable in the Variables view.
2. If the variable is defined externally to the page, the resulting pop-up menu on the variable will display one or more Open definition menu items.
   Select one of these menu items to open an editor to the source file and location in which the variable definition occurs.

Opening a variable type

1. Right-click on a variable in the Variables view.
2. The resulting pop-up menu will display an Open type menu item. This allows you to navigate to the source file associated with the Java class of a variable.
   Select this menu item to open an editor to the source file in which the variable class is declared (this works only if the source file is available for the variable class).

Inserting a simple variable into a page

1. Right-click on a simple variable in the Variables view.
   A simple variable is a primitive type or Java object without any fields or bean properties.
2. Select Insert in the page from the pop-up menu of the Variables view.
   Alternatively, you can use drag and drop to drag a variable directly from the variables view to the JSP Design Editor.
3. The variable will immediately be inserted into the page with the appropriate tags to output the variable to the page.

Inserting bean variable fields into a page

1. Right-click on a Java bean variable in the Variables view.
   A bean variable is a Java object with fields or bean properties.
2. Select Insert in the page from the pop-up menu of the Variables view.
   Alternatively, you can use drag and drop to drag a variable directly from the variables view to the JSP Design Editor.
3. If the variable is a Java bean, the Insert Fields wizard will be displayed.
4. Select the fields that should be inserted and the order in which they should be inserted.
5. Click OK to insert a table of the selected field names and values output to the page using the appropriate tags.

Formatting your web pages
Viewing included pages
Viewing web pages in a different locale

Insert Fields Wizard