Siebel Business Process Framework: Task UI Guide > Siebel Task UI User Interface Elements > About the Task Pane >

Task Group

A task group is an object type that groups task UIs that Siebel CRM displays in the context pane. The task group is a required UI element that includes a list of links to related tasks and commands that Siebel CRM displays in the context pane. You can configure a task group to display in a specific view, or across multiple views in an application.

You can use a task group to assign tasks to views according to their grouping. The task group also allows you to configure the following functionality:

• The user can open the task only with record context.
• The user can open the task without record context.

The top-level task group object references task UIs that the user can open if the business component is attached to an applet that is active and visible.

The view task group object type is a child of the view object type. You can use it to define the task group that Siebel CRM displays in the task pane when it displays the current view.

To view an example of a task group, see Figure 8. For more information, see Creating a Task Group.

Display Name of a Task Group

You can use the Display Name property on the task group object to configure the display name of a task group. If you configure a task group across multiple views, then the task group can include the same display name. Siebel CRM gets the display name for a task UI from the task object. While a group display name is the same for all tasks in a task group, an individual task can include the same display name regardless of the task group that it references.

Task Order in Task Groups

The task group item is an object type that allows you to control the order that Siebel CRM uses to display task items. It is a child of the task group. Siebel CRM uses the following priority to sort task items in a task group:

1. In ascending, numerical order according to the Sequence property of the task group item.
2. In ascending, alphabetic order according to the display name of the task group or task group item. Siebel CRM does not require a unique sequence number.

Using a Task Group Across Multiple Views and Applications

You can specify the Siebel application where Siebel CRM displays a task UI. You can also add it to a view, making it available only when Siebel CRM displays this view, or you can add it to the Task Pane View, making it available globally throughout a Siebel application.

Using a Context Business Component with a Task Group

You can use the Context Business Component property of the task group item to associate a business component with a task UI. To run a task, the task can require that the context business component be the business component that an applet references. This applet is part of the current view.

You can configure a context business component for each task group item. However, associating a context business component for each task group item is meaningful only if the item that you associate is part of a task group that requires context. You can only group together task UIs that are context-sensitive.

If these requirements are met, then clicking the context-sensitive task group item causes the task UI to instantiate the task UI, and then pass it the current record of the context business component. If the business object that the task references matches the business object that the current standard view references, then the task shares the business object instance and business components with the standard view. Otherwise, you must use the following system task properties to properly instantiate the business object that the task UI references:

• Context BO Name
• Context BC Name
• Context BC Id

Using the Context Business Component and Task Display

If the Context Business Component property of the task group item is defined, then you must make sure Siebel CRM instantiates it in the current standard view, and make sure the Require Context BC property of the task group includes a check mark.

Siebel CRM uses the Require Context BC property to indicate that a task group can include a task UI that is context-sensitive. If the task group where the task resides is a candidate to render, then the context business component can constrain the display of a task in the following situations:

• If the task UI does not require a context business component, then Siebel CRM displays it.
• If the task UI requires a context business component, then Siebel CRM displays it only on the view where the context business component is the business component that one of the applets references.