Setting User Preferences

You can define several settings to personalize your homepage and data entry experience.

This chapter discusses how to:

• Personalize your homepage.

• Personalize pages.

• Change your password.

• Set user personalizations.

Personalizing Your Homepage

For the PeopleSoft Portal and other licensed PeopleSoft portals, you can define and store your own portal homepages and specify your preferences for their layout and content. The first time that you sign in to a PeopleSoft portal, you see the default homepage for that portal until you define a personal homepage.

This section discusses how to:

• Personalize content

• Personalize layout

See Also

Managing Homepages

Pages Used to Personalize Your Homepage

Personalizing Content

Access the Personalize Content page (on your Homepage, click the Personalize Content link).

1. (Optional). Enter a welcome message.

   This message appears in the header of your homepage when you sign in to the portal.

2. Select the check boxes associated with the pagelets that you want to appear on your personalized homepage.

   The portal administrator presets the available selection of pagelets. You can preview each pagelet by clicking the pagelet name, which opens a pagelet preview in a smaller window. If a pagelet is not available to you, you will receive a message in the pagelet. Any links in the pagelet are disabled.

3. Click the Save button.

   Note. You can click Personalize Layout from here to immediately begin laying out how the pagelets will appear on your homepage.

Personalizing Layout

Use either of these two methods to personalize your homepage layout:

• Drag and drop pagelets.

• Configure the Personalize Layout page.

Dragging and Dropping Pagelets

You can rearrange pagelets on your homepage by dragging and dropping them between columns, as you see in this example:

Access your homepage.

Note. Your homepage must be configured to display pagelets.

1. Move your cursor to the pagelet header.

   The cursor changes shape to indicate that you can drag the pagelet.

2. Click the pagelet header.

   The system automatically minimizes the pagelet when you click the mouse button.

3. Drag the pagelet to a new location.

   When your pagelet header is in the new space, the background of the browser window changes color. This color change represents the new location. If you are changing columns, at least 50 percent of the width of the header must be in the new column before the system identifies the new location.

   Note. If your mouse has a scrollable wheel, you can scroll the wheel while you press the mouse button to facilitate the movement of pagelets below the visible area of the browser window.

4. Release the mouse button.

   The pagelet maximizes automatically in the new location unless you manually minimized the pagelet.

Note. You cannot move pagelets that the portal administrator configures as required-fixed. You also cannot move pagelets if you do not have the appropriate permissions to personalize the page.

See Managing Homepages.

Configuring the Personalize Layout Page

Access the Personalize Layout page (from Home, click the Personalize Layout link).

Basic Layout	Select to display the pagelets in either two or three columns on the homepage. A two-column layout results in one narrow column on the left side of your homepage and one wider column to the right. A three-column layout results in three narrow columns of equal width. If you place a wide pagelet in a narrow column, the column stretches to accommodate the wider pagelet. Note. The system moves required pagelets (indicated by an asterisk [*]) from the third to the second column when you switch from a three-column to a two-column layout.
Columns	The pagelets selected on the Content page are listed in the column sections. If the basic layout is two columns, the pagelets are divided into left and right columns. If the basic layout is three columns, the pagelets are divided into left, center, and right columns. Note. A number sign (#) indicates a required fixed position pagelet. An asterisk (*) indicates a required moveable pagelet. For example, #Signon indicates that the Signon pagelet cannot be moved to a different location on the homepage. You cannot assign required fixed pagelets to the right column in a three-column layout.
	Use to position the pagelets. Highlight the desired pagelet and then click the arrows to move the selected pagelet above a pagelet, below a pagelet, to the next column on the right, or to the next column on the left.
Delete Pagelet	Highlight the desired pagelet and then click this button to delete the pagelet from your homepage.
Return to Home	Click to view your new choices. From the homepage, you can choose to minimize a pagelet or remove it altogether. Use the minimize and remove buttons in the pagelet header to do so. When you minimize a pagelet, the system replaces the minimize button with the restore button. Click the restore button to fully open the pagelet again. Clicking the remove button opens the Removal Confirmation page for that pagelet. Select Yes-Remove or No-Do Not Remove.

To arrange the layout:

1. Select a basic layout option.

2. Select the pagelet name.

3. Click the directional arrow buttons to position the pagelets.

4. Click the Save button.

Personalizing Pagelets

You can personalize many of the pagelets on your homepage to show only the information that you want to see. Each pagelet that allows personalization has different personalization options that are based on the type of information that appears in the pagelet. For example, on the Company News pagelet, you can use personalization options to show specific news categories from the list of those that are available or limit the pagelet to a specific number of articles. In the Tasks pagelet, you can choose to see all tasks, only personal tasks, only worklist tasks, and so on. These changes will appear only in your pagelet.

Note. Not all pagelets allow personalization. Your system administrator can disable the pagelet personalization feature.

This example shows a Personalization page:

See Also

Using Pagelet Wizard to Create and Manage Pagelets

PeopleSoft Applications Portal Solutions 9 PeopleBook: Applications Portal Pagelets

Personalizing Pages

This section provides an overview of page personalization and discusses how to:

• Control initial page display.

• Change the tabbing order.

• Copy, share, and delete page personalization settings.

Understanding Page Personalization

The page personalization feature helps you tailor your transactions to specific business processes and to your personal data entry style. The Personalize Page option in the pagebar located just below the navigation header is available for most PeopleSoft pages.

Note. Page personalizations may be superseded if the order of the grids in the underlying page definition is changed in Application Designer.

This example shows the pagebar:

Pagebar

Select the Personalize Page link to open the Page Personalization page for the current page.

Note. Your system administrator can disable the page personalization feature. Disabling this feature may be necessary if your company is concerned about database growth.

Controlling Initial Page Display

The Page Personalization page includes four settings that enable you to control how the current page initially looks when you open it:

Changing the Tabbing Order

The tabbing order is the order in which you move from page element to page element when you press the Tab key. You can change and save the default tabbing order of a page from the Page Personalization page, which displays an image of the current page with tabbing order numbers in the upper-left corner of each page element that you can change. (Page elements with smaller numbers precede page elements with larger numbers in the tabbing order.) You can modify collapsible section buttons and page elements within collapsed sections as long as the collapsed section is expanded when you select the Personalize Page option.

Note. Tab order numbering may not begin with 1 and may appear to have gaps for page elements that are not currently visible.

The options Include In Tabbing Order, Remove From Order, Move Up In Order, and Move Down In Orderenable you to control the tabbing order. Click the appropriate radio button and then click the page element you want to change.

To change the tabbing order:

1. Select the Clear Tabbing Order button to remove all tabbing order settings for the page.

   The system replaces each tabbing order number with an X, indicating that the page element is no longer included in the tabbing order.

2. Select the Include In Tabbing Order radio button.

3. Select the page elements in the tabbing order you want.

   The system numbers each field that you select sequentially, beginning with 1.

4. (Optional) If necessary, select the Move Up In Order or Move Down In Order radio buttons and click the page elements as needed to adjust the tab order you just set.

   These options either promote or demote a page element one step in the tabbing order sequence. The system automatically adjusts all other page element tabbing order numbers accordingly.

To remove specific fields from the current tabbing order:

1. Select the Remove From Order radio button.

2. Click each page element that you want to remove from the tabbing order.

   The tabbing order number for each element that you click is replaced with an X. At runtime, the system skips this page element as you tab through the page.

To save the new tabbing order:

1. Make sure the Save tabbing order personalized below option is selected.

2. Click the OK button.

   The original page appears with your new tabbing order and other personalizations applied.

Tabbing Order Exclusions

Tabbing order personalization applies only to elements within the page, such as edit boxes, grids, drop-down list boxes, push buttons, and so on. You cannot personalize the tabbing order for these elements:

• Header icons.

• Browser elements.

• Page and related page links.

• HTML areas.

• Charts.

• Grid columns that you hid using the grid personalization feature.

  If you unhide a column after you set the tabbing order personalization, you must personalize the page again to include that field in the tabbing order.

Collapsible Sections

You must expand all collapsible sections on a page before clicking the Personalize Page link for page elements in those sections to be available for tab ordering.

You can personalize the tabbing order of any allowed page elements within a collapsible area. However, if you then collapse this section, the system skips the page elements contained in the collapsed area. Collapsing an area effectively removes any of its page elements from the tabbing order.

Grids and Scroll Areas

Page elements within a grid are treated as a group at runtime, even if they are not numbered consecutively. For example, if a page has four fields, two of which are in a grid, then the tabbing sequence will keep the grid fields together regardless of the tabbing order that you specify. If fields A and B are outside the grid, fields C and D are inside the grid, and you set the tabbing order to be A, C, B, and D, then the system will automatically revert to an A, C, D, and then B tabbing order to keep the items within the grid (C and D) together.

Note. If you select View All from the navigation bar when multiple levels of scroll areas exist, then the page tabbing order may not behave as you would expect after tabbing through the page for the first time.

Grid and scroll area navigation bar elements such as First, Previous, View All, and so on are included in tabbing order personalization.

Copying, Sharing, and Deleting Page Personalization Settings

Access the Page Personalization page by clicking the Personalize Page link on the page you want to personalize. The page personalization toolbar at the top and bottom of the Page Personalization page enables you to save, cancel, copy, share, and delete your page personalization settings. The share and delete options appear only after you have personalized and saved the page.

Page personalization toolbar

Note. If you make changes to any of these pages, you must also click the Save button on the Page Personalization page for your changes to take effect.

Changing Your Password

This section discusses how to:

• Change your password.

• Set up forgotten password help.

Pages Used to Change Your Password

Changing Your Password

Use 1 to 32 characters to create your password. Your administrator may implement additional password requirements.

Access the Change Password page (from Home, select Change My Password).

1. Enter your current password in the Current Password edit box.

2. Enter your new password in the New Password edit box.

   Remember that passwords are case sensitive.

3. Enter your new password again in the Confirm Password edit box.

4. Click OK.

Setting Up Forgotten Password Help

If your system administrator has set up forgotten password help in PeopleTools Security, you can select a predefined question to answer for security purposes. The system then sends a new password to your email address automatically. .

Access the General Profile Information page (from Home, select My System Profile).

1. Select Change or set up forgotten password help.

2. Select a question from the drop-down list box or password hint set by your system administrator.

3. Enter the appropriate response to your question.

4. Click OK to save your entry.

Setting User Personalizations

This section provides an overview of user personalizations and discusses how to:

• Define your user personalizations.

• Set up your system profile.

• Add words to your personal dictionary.

Understanding User Personalizations

PeopleSoft applications enables you to personalize your application based on your daily needs, style of work, language preference, preference for the mouse or the keyboard, and so on. Users of PeopleSoft applications include casual users and power users. Casual users work with PeopleSoft applications only occasionally because these applications are not an integral part of their daily job. For example, casual users might use the PeopleSoft self-service applications only occasionally to maintain their employee information, to enroll in benefits, and so on. Power users, on the other hand, use the PeopleSoft system as a part of their daily job. They do a great deal of data entry, moving quickly from one transaction page to the next, entering data as they go. A power user might be an accounts payable clerk, a human resources benefits manager, a purchasing manager, or an order entry clerk.

Pages Used to Set User Personalizations

Defining Your User Personalizations

The Personalizations page provides links that access the option categories for which you can personalize your system. Access the Personalizations page.

Personalize General Options	Click to access options for user accessibility features, the length of time the system holds a page in cache, multi-language settings, and the spell check dictionary. If you require support for assistive technologies, such as screen readers, you can change the accessibility options. For multi-language entry on pages where multiple language entry is available, you can enter data in the language that you specify in the Data Language drop-down list box. You can also reset your foreign language dictionary to use a different language for your spell check dictionary. See Using Spell Check.
Personalize Regional Settings	Click to personalize your date, time, and number formats. Select settings for afternoon and morning designators (AM/PM or am/pm), date format (MMDDYY, DDMMYY, or YYMMDD), a local time zone, and so on.
Personalize System & Application Messages	Click to access and personalize the display of various system messages. When you are familiar with your application, you can disable these messages. Options include a Save Warning and a Save Confirmation message.
Personalize Navigation Personalizations	Select to access personalizations that enable you to tab over certain unused fields on a page. If you frequently use the tab key to navigate, you can skip page elements that you know you will not need to access. For example, suppose you always prefer to type the date into a date field and then press tab to move quickly to the next field rather than opening the calendar prompt, selecting the date, and then closing the prompt. If you select Tab over Calendar Button, when you navigate with the tab key your cursor focus will never rest on a calendar button.

Note. You must sign out and sign in again before the changes to your Personalization settings take effect.

Personalize Options

Access the Option Category page for the desired personalization category (from Home, select My Personalizations and then click the Personalize Navigation Personalizations link).

Each personalization page lists the personalization option, the default value for that option, and an Override Value drop-down list box from which you can select a new value to replace the default. Click the Explain link at the end of each row for an explanation of the corresponding option.

Personalization Explanations

The Personalization Explanation page provides details about a particular setting. You can select the override value on this page or restore the option to its default value.

Setting Up Your System Profile

Access the General Profile Information page (from Home, select My System Profile).

Password	Click one of the following links, which are self-service options related to passwords: Change password. Change or set up forgotten password help. See Changing Your Password.
Personalizations	This region lists your current language preference for web pages and your preferred language for reports and email. You can change the language setting for your reports and email on this page. You can also select the currency code for the currency symbol that will appear on pages when you enter currency values. Note. The decimal placement is a property of the currency code; two decimal places is standard. Select the mobile homepage that should appear after you sign on to a mobile device. PeopleSoft Mobile Agent is a deprecated product. These features exist for backward compatibility only. Note. For more personalizations options, open the My Personalizations page.
Alternate User	If you are going to be on vacation or some other type of temporary leave, you can add the user ID of a colleague who is looking after your tasks in your absence. Select the alternate user ID and enter the dates during which you want the alternate ID to be active. After that time has passed, your tasks are automatically routed back to you. Note. When applying an alternate user ID in your workflow settings, note that the system only sends workflow routings to the immediate alternate user ID. The system does not send routings down multiple levels of alternate user IDs. For example, assume user A specifies user B as the alternate user ID while user A is out of the office. Also assume that user B is out of the office at some time during user A’s absence, and user B specifies user C as an alternate user ID. In this case, the system does not send workflow routings originally intended for user A to user C.
Workflow Attributes	Select one or more check boxes. The available options are determined by the workflow setup at your site. These settings affect how you receive ad hoc workflow routings through your workflow system. An email user receives notifications through email, while a worklist user receives notifications through worklists.
Miscellaneous User Links	Follow this link to view other security links. These links are controlled by the security configuration of your system. Contact your system administrator for more information.
Email	Use the Email grid to edit your current email address or enter additional email types, such as home or Blackberry. You can enter one address of each Email Type.
Instant Messaging Information	Use the Instant Messaging Information grid to edit your current instant messaging information. You can initiate an outbound chat with a customer using instant messaging networks such as AOL Instant Messenger, IBM/Lotus Sametime, or Yahoo! Messenger. This functionality enables an external user to participate in a business transaction through instant messaging. PeopleSoft MultiChannel Framework enables instant messaging through public networks (AOL Instant Messenger, GTALK and Yahoo! Messenger), enterprise Lotus Sametime Connect networks, or XMPP instant messaging servers. See Configuring Instant Messaging Server details.

Adding Words to Your Personal Dictionary

Select My Dictionary from the main menu to access the Spell Check Personal Dictionary page.

As you use spell check, you might need to add certain words or acronyms to your personal dictionary so that spell check does not continually attempt to correct them. You can add these words directly from the Spell Check page or you can add several at once by using the Spell Check Personal Dictionary page. This page enables you to add, update, and delete words, as well as add words by language. The words that you enter in your personal dictionary are attached to your user ID, so your personal dictionary is available to you no matter where you access it.

Note. The maximum number of words in the personal dictionary is 2882.

The words that you add to your personal dictionary are case sensitive. The case determines how spell check validates correct spelling. The system applies the following case-sensitive rules:

• If the added word is all lowercase, such as worklist, then the following rules are valid:

  • Exact match, all lowercase (worklist).

  • All uppercase (WORKLIST).

  • Initial capitals (Worklist), regardless of the position of the word in the sentence.

    Mixed case (WorkList) is incorrect.

• If the added word is all uppercase, such as CRM, then only an exact match is valid. Lowercase and mixed case are not valid.

• If the added word is in initial capitals, such as California, then only an exact match (California) and all uppercase (CALIFORNIA) are valid.

• If the added word contains an embedded capital letter, such as PeopleSoft, then only an exact match is valid.

  If case is not relevant to the validity of the word, then enter the word into your dictionary in all lowercase.