Various Examples

Before examining the various representative examples that are presented, keep in mind the following:

• Combination definitions define the ChartFields that are involved in the combination editing.

• Combination rules define the valid ChartField values for the combination definitions.

• Combination groups require that all combination rules that are within a group have the same combination definition.

  Also, when the same anchor ChartFields are specified in different combination rules that are within a combination group, careful consideration is required to avoid problems.

• Combinations that are found to match the rules and definitions can be marked valid or invalid at your option.

• Combinations that do not match the rules and definitions are invalid and they cannot be marked as valid.

The following examples illustrate some logic and functional considerations when you define the combination groups and apply the various parameters.

Grouping When There is the Same Anchor ChartField in Different Rules

If the same anchor ChartField exists in multiple rules that you include in the same group, and if the values that you define for the anchor and nonanchor ChartFields are sets or subsets of one another, it can easily cause confusion.

In the following example, rule 1 and rule 2 share the same anchor ChartField, account. The anchor account value of 614000 in rule 2 also exists in the range of account values that are described by the INCSTMT tree node, and the DeptID value 10000 also exists in the set of values that are described by any value that is valid:

Rule	Anchor ChartField	Anchor ChartField Value	Non-Anchor ChartField	Non-Anchor ChartField Value	Combo Defines Valid or Invalid Combinations
Rule 1	Account	INCSTMT	DeptID	Any Value	Valid
Rule 2	Account	614000	DeptID	10000	Valid

When the rules are included in the same combination group, the system marks a row valid when either of the if-then conditions that are specified by the anchor and nonanchor values in either rule 1 or rule 2 is met. The result is that any row is valid if it meets the conditions of rule 1 or rule 2. These rules are redundant when they are included in the same combination group.

If the rules are included in different combination groups, the system marks a row valid only if it satisfies the requirements of all rules. In this scenario 614000 is valid only with DeptID 10000. So, when rules 1 and 2 are in different combination groups, boolean and logic applies whether both combination groups use the same combination definition, or whether the combination groups define valid combinations, invalid combinations or a mix of both.

Dealing With Anchor Values Not Included When There are Multiple Rules Having the Same Anchor ChartField

Whenever a combination group specifies that anchor values that are not included in rules are to be marked invalid, this criteria overrides other rules that may specify valid combinations for values that are not included in the original rule:

Rule	Anchor ChartField	Anchor ChartField Value	Non-Anchor ChartField	Non-Anchor ChartField Value	Defines Valid or Invalid Combinations	Anchor Values Not Included in Rules
Rule 3	Account	BALSHEET	DeptID	Blank	Valid	Mark Invalid
Rule 2	Account	614000	DeptID	10000	Valid	Mark Valid

In this scenario, anchor account 614000 in rule 2 is an income statement account and as such is not part of the BALSHEET tree node that is specified in rule 3. Rows using account 614000 are always marked invalid, regardless of the fact that another rule specifically identifies it as a valid account when used with department 10000. You can see that marking anchor values that are not included as invalid should be thoroughly analyzed if more than one rule that is in a group has the same anchor ChartField.

Comparing Valid and Invalid Rules

When combination definitions are comprised of two ChartFields, there may be times when defining an invalid combination is more efficient than defining a valid combination. However, if the combination definition uses three ChartFields, there are distinct differences when defining a combination group as valid or invalid:

Rule	Anchor ChartField	Anchor ChartField Value	Non-Anchor ChartField	Non-Anchor ChartField Value	Combo Defines Valid or Invalid Combinations
Rule 4	Account	BALSHEET	DeptID	Any Value	Valid
			Product	Any Value	Valid
Rule 5	Account	BALSHEET	DeptID	Blank	Invalid
			Product	Blank	Invalid

In this example, both rule 4 and rule 5 might seem as though they generate about the same results. However, rule 4 specifies that BALSHEET accounts need both a valid DeptID and product.

Rule 5 specifies that BALSHEET accounts must not have a blank department ID and blank product. If the combination that is edited in rule 5 meets the condition, then it is marked invalid.

The difference in the rules is that rule 5 marks as valid a BALSHEET account with either a blank department ID or a blank product. The rule states that only a blank department ID and a blank product are invalid with BALSHEET accounts. Specifying invalid combinations when the combination definition includes more than two ChartFields should be done with careful analysis of the intended result.

ChartField Combination Group, Anchor Values Not In Rules:

When you run the following journal line ChartField values through the Journal Edit process:

Journal Line	Account	Department ID	Product	Amount
1	110100	0100	GLDB2	500.00
2	200002	0500	GLORACLE	<250.00>
3	200003	0400	GLORACLE	<250.00>

In this example, Account is the anchor ChartField, with department ID and product as the nonanchor combinations for a group of rules. You specify the following exact value combinations as valid:

Example Reference	Account	Department ID	Product
Combination 1	110100	0100	GLDB2
Combination 2	110100	0400	GLDB2
Combination 3	200002	0100	GLORACLE
Combination 4	200002	0400	GLORACLE

These combinations are contained in one combination group. When you run the Journal Edit process, different combination editing results occur depending on which Anchor Values Not in Rules option you select.

Term	Definition
Mark Valid	If you select this option, the program marks as valid journal line 1 because it contains the exact values that you specify in combination 1. It marks as invalid journal line 2 because the line contains one of the anchor values that you specify in the combination rules, but does not have the matching department ID and product values that you specify in the combinations. It marks valid journal line 3, marking it valid since no rule exists for account 200003.
Mark Invalid	If you select this option, the program marks as valid journal line 1 because the combination values that are on the journal line match the exact values for account, department ID, and product in combination 1. It marks as invalid all lines that have an anchor value that does not have an exact combination that you define in the rules, such as journal line 2. No rule exists for account 200003, so it marks journal line 3 as invalid.

You can define the combination direction by using the Combination Group Defines options to specify whether the combinations that you define should be marked as valid combinations or invalid combinations. In some cases it is possible to greatly reduce the number of combinations that you must define by taking either an inclusive or exclusive approach. Rather than editing across a large number of valid combinations, you might edit against a relatively small number of invalid combinations.

Whether the system marks the combination valid or invalid depends on the combination direction option that you select for the combination group. The choice is applicable to all rules that are within the group.

• If you take the inclusive approach, the system marks as valid all the lines that have the same values as those that are in the combination rule and marks as invalid all the lines that have the same anchor value but different nonanchor values.

• If you choose the exclusive approach, the system marks as invalid all the lines that have the same values as those that are in the combination rule and marks as valid all the lines that have the same anchor value but different nonanchor values.

Since you can define a combination with a blank nonanchor ChartField value as an invalid combination, you can use this option in place of the Value Required flag. You can only define a combination with a blank value by using trees.

Note:

To use the PeopleSoft rules for Combination Editing, you must select at least one valid combination rule. You can add any number of rules by inserting additional rows.