Pagelets

Pagelets are small pages that provide snapshots of useful, relevant and typically read-only content from PeopleSoft or non-PeopleSoft applications or websites. In other portal products, pagelets are sometimes referred to as portlets, gadgets, widgets, or modules.

Homepage pagelets are designed to appear on tabbed homepages or dashboard pages. Homepage pagelets typically present general, high-level information; however, many are designed to provide the user with easy access to more detailed information either in another pagelet on the homepage or a target transaction page. Users can select the homepage pagelets that appear on his or her homepages by way of the Personalize Content link that is in the upper left corner of the homepage.

Template pagelets are small, narrow-format pagelets that are designed to appear in a template iframe, much like the Menu pagelet. Usually, you incorporate template pagelets into a portal template when you create and configure the template. You also use template pagelets when you configure the task panel of WorkCenter pages or context-sensitive pagelets that use Context Manager. You should design template pagelets so that they display data that is related in some way to the target transaction.

Pagelets follow a basic set of rules so that they can be displayed properly on PeopleTools portal homepages, dashboard pages, related content frames, or in the pagelet area of WorkCenter pages. Homepage pagelet size should correspond to the homepage layout specified by the user. A user can specify either a two-column layout of one narrow pagelet and one wide pagelet, or a three-column layout of three narrow pagelets.

Template pagelets should use the narrow column format of a pagelet. Banner pagelets span the width of the homepage or dashboard page. Any pagelet that you design must conform to the dimensions of the narrow column and optionally, of the wide column. Column width is the only restriction on pagelet dimensions, although design principles suggest keeping pagelets as compact as possible.

The homepage pagelets that appear on the portal homepage depend on several factors, including the type of portal that you implement, the permissions that you grant to the user, and the manner in which the user personalizes his or her homepage.

PeopleSoft pagelets are URL-accessible HTML documents that are designed to be size-appropriate for display on a homepage. Pagelets can also originate from remote, non-PeopleSoft systems such as static HTML files or HTML that is generated dynamically from a variety of technologies.