1. Developing Integrated Spreadsheets Using Oracle Visual Builder Add-in for Excel
  2. Use Expressions in an Integrated Workbook

22 Use Expressions in an Integrated Workbook

You can use expressions in a number of places in your workbook configuration such as in search queries, REST request headers, lists of values, and so on.

About Expressions

An expression is a string enclosed in curly braces ({ }) that can be evaluated to a single value at runtime. Expressions can reference configuration properties and dynamic runtime data.

The value of an operand or an intermediate result in an expression can be a Boolean value, string, or integer. However, the results of expressions may be converted to strings and concatenated if needed when resolving the entire property value. See String Representations.

For any given configuration property that supports expressions, you must escape any curly braces (\{ or \}) that you wish to use literally.

Let's consider an example of a list of values for an employee JobId field that displays all job titles from the jobId field from the Jobs business object. To list only the job titles for a given department based on the DepartmentId of the current row, you could use a query parameter with the following expression: 

DepartmentId={ this.BusinessObject.Fields['DepartmentId'].Value }

where:

  • this represents the currently selected field;
  • BusinessObject represents the business object to which this field belongs;
  • Fields['DepartmentId'] is the field (DepartmentId) associated with the business object; and
  • Value is the value of the field.

You can also use Parent in an expression to refer to an ancestor business object ("parent" or higher) in a business object hierarchy. For example, to refer to a field in the parent business object you might use something like this: 

ProjectNumber={ this.BusinessObject.Parent.Fields['ProjectNumber'].Value }

Parent can appear multiple times in the expression depending on the level you want to refer to in your business object hierarchy. To refer to the current business object's great grandparent business object, you'd use it three times: 

ProjectNumber={ this.BusinessObject.Parent.Parent.Parent.Fields['ProjectNumber'].Value }

Expressions can refer to a:

  • Business object field (BusinessObject.Fields['DepartmentId'])
  • Row finder variable (Finder.Variables['CountryId'])
  • Workbook parameter (Workbook.Parameters['Dept'])
  • Row variable (BusinessObject.RowVariables['rangeStartDate'])

Note:

Some workbook configuration properties support expressions and others do not. Those properties that support expressions may support all reserved words or only a subset of them. Consult the documentation for each property to determine what is, and is not, supported.

A Note on Spaces in Expressions

Keep in mind that spaces outside curly braces in an expression are included in the final string. So, for example, DepartmentId= { this.BusinessObject.Fields['DepartmentId'].Value } (space after the equals sign) would, given a department ID of 100, yield DepartmentId= 100.

The extra space may or may not be important to the service.

Spaces immediately inside curly braces are not significant. For example, { this.BusinessObject.Fields['DepartmentId'].Value } is equivalent to {this.BusinessObject.Fields['DepartmentId'].Value}.

Numbers in Expressions

Some number formats are not supported in expressions. Refer to this table for supported and unsupported formats.

Here are some examples of how numbers are supported in expressions:

Supported Not Supported
0.123 0,123

.123
123

123.0

 123.
-456 +456 (part of literal value instead of doing addition)
1234 1,234

1 234
1234.567 1,234.567
3.14E2 03.14E2
1.0e10 1e10

Dates in Expressions

Oracle Visual Builder Add-in for Excel supports the use of date type values in expressions. So, for example, you can pass date values to lists of values filters or REST request header fields with this support.

Operations

The following operators are supported: +, -, <, <=, >, >=, ==, and !=.

Supported +/- operations are:

  • Date + Integer
  • Integer + Date
  • Date - Date (returns the difference in days as an integer value)
  • Date - Integer

Here are some examples of expressions using supported operators. Resulting dates are in the default yyyy-MM-dd format.

Operation Expression Result
Date + Integer {d'2023-10-24' + 2} 2023-10-26
Integer + Date {-2 + d'2023-10-24'} 2023-10-22
Date - Date {d'2023-10-24' - d'2023-10-20'} 4
Date - Integer {d'2023-10-24' - 2} 2023-10-22
Date >= Date {d'2023-10-24' >= d'2023-10-22'} True
Date != Date {d'2023-10-24' != d'2023-10-22'} True

Literals

A date type literal value must start with a prefix letter d followed by a single-quoted ISO 8601 date ('yyyy-MM-dd'), such as:

d'2020-10-24' or d'2000-01-01'

Functions in Expressions

The add-in supports a couple of functions:

  • Today ()
  • Format(object obj, string formatString)

Note:

Function names are case-sensitive.

The Today () function returns today's date.

Suppose you want to create an expression for a search parameter that returns rows with hire dates that are later than 90 days before today's date. You would create a search parameter with a parameter name "q" and a parameter value of: 

HireDate > '{ Today() - 90 }'

Note:

In this example, you would select the Allow expressions in Parameter Value check box.

The Format function returns the string representation of the given date in a given format using "invariant" culture (a culture that is culture-insensitive). See InvariantCulture.

It includes two arguments:

  • obj is a date. This can be a literal, a cell value from a field whose data type is Date (no time), the result of Today(), or the result of +/- operations (see the Operations section in this topic).
  • formatString is the date format. Supported formats are:
    • yyyy-MM-dd (default)
    • MM-dd-yyyy
    • dd-MM-yyyy

Take, for example, a service that requires a date in the dd-MM-yyyy format. You would use the Format function to provide this format rather than the default format, yyyy-MM-dd, like this: 

HireDate > { Format(this.BusinessObject.Fields['HireDate'].Value, 'dd-MM-yyyy') }

If the HireDate value for the current row is "2023-10-24", the final value of the line is: 

HireDate > 24-10-2023

Note:

The resulting string does not include quotation marks. If the service requires quotes, add them explicitly. For example, to return a value with quotes, like HireDate > '24-10-2023', use: 

HireDate > '{ Format(this.BusinessObject.Fields['HireDate'].Value, 'dd-MM-yyyy') }'

Notes on Dates in Expressions

  • Once you configure a property with an expression that relies on date values or date operations, the workbook is no longer compatible with add-in versions prior to 3.8.
  • Date values do not have a time part. Date values do not have a time zone.
  • Literal input, operations, and Format () are NOT supported for date-time values (from fields whose data type is Date-time).
  • There is no function that parses a string and returns a date.

String Representations

When Oracle Visual Builder Add-in for Excel evaluates an expression that includes non-string values—such as Boolean values, dates, and numbers—it converts these values into strings. Review this table for information on how each data type value is represented as a string.

Data Type String Representation Example
Boolean true or false (note that Excel may capitalize the first letter or convert to other values) false
Date-time Full UTC string representation (ISO 8601) 2023-10-24T12:33:19Z
Date (no time) Date-only string representation (ISO 8601) 2023-10-24
Integer No thousand separator 12300000
Number No thousand separator; period as decimal separator 0.123

Reserved Words Used in Expressions

The Oracle Visual Builder Add-in for Excel expression language includes some reserved words. Refer to this table for some of the reserved words used in add-in expressions. Please note that this list is not exhaustive.
Reserved Word Note
this

Represents the property owner depending on the configuration context. For example, when defining a field's configuration property, "this" represents the field.

See specific configuration properties for details.
BusinessObject Represents the business object to which the currently selected field belongs
Parent

Represents the parent business object of the currently selected field's business object in a business object hierarchy.

Use additional instances in your expression to refer to higher level business objects, such as Parent.Parent for the grandparent business object and so on.

Value Value of a parameter or a field
SelectWindow Search-and-select window in a list of values
Finder Represents the row finder to which the currently selected variable belongs
RowVariables Represents a row variable configured for a business object
Workbook Represents the integrated workbook
Parameters Represents a workbook parameter stored in the workbook

Literal Values in Expressions

Literal values of certain data types are supported in expressions.

Support is included for these data types:

  • Boolean
  • String
  • Integer or floating-point number
  • Date

Boolean and number literal values must be in the form described here. For example, if you are in a country that uses a decimal comma (,), you must still use a decimal point or period in your expression.

Data Type Description
Boolean
Supported values (case-sensitive, no quotes):
  • TRUE
  • True
  • true
  • FALSE
  • False
  • false

Note:

It's recommended that you use capital case only (TRUE and FALSE).
String String literals inside expressions must be enclosed in single quotes ('). Single quotes inside string literals must be escaped ( \').
Integer or Floating-Point Number

Only the Western Arabic numerals (0-9) can be used. Other digits are not supported.

These symbols are supported:

  • Leading negative sign (-)
  • Decimal separator (.)
  • Exponent (E or e followed by an optional sign and exponential digits)

    Note:

    This is allowed only when a decimal separator is present; for example, when the value is a floating-point number.

These symbols are not supported:

  • Leading positive sign (+)

    Note:

    The plus sign when used as an operator is supported.
  • Thousand separator such as a space, period, comma, or underscore
  • No digit after the decimal separator
Date

A date type literal value must start with a prefix letter d followed by a single-quoted ISO 8601 date ('yyyy-MM-dd'), such as:

d'2020-10-24' or d'2000-01-01'

Note:

These rules only apply to literal values used in expressions. They do not apply to data formats used in an Excel cell. For example, you must write 135000 without thousand separator in this validation rule { this.Value > 135000 } but that validation rule can be used on an integer field that shows 150,000 or 150.000 in cell.

Operators in Expressions

The Oracle Visual Builder Add-in for Excel expression language supports a number of operators. Refer to this table for details.

Operator precedence is high to low.

Operator Note
[ ] . Collection access, object member access
( ) Grouping to change precedence
- ! Unary minus, negation
* / Math (multiplicative)
+ - Math (additive), also + for string concatenation
< > <= >= Relational
== != Equality
&& Logical AND
|| Logical OR
? : Ternary conditional

Examples of Expressions

Here are some sample 'q'-type filter query parameters for use in list of values configurations.

Parameter Value Use Sample Value Final Parameter Value
DepartmentId={ this.BusinessObject.Fields['DepartmentId'].Value } This string sets the value of DepartmentId in the query to the current row item's department Id value. Department Id is 101 DepartmentId=101
DepartmentId={ this.BusinessObject.Parent.Parent.Fields['DepartmentId'].Value } This string sets the value of DepartmentId in the query to the department Id value in the current row item's "grandparent" layout. Department Id is 101 DepartmentId=101
FirstName LIKE '{ SelectWindow.SearchTerm }*' This string matches employees whose first name begins with the user-provided search term entered in the Search-and-Select window. Search term is Steve FirstName LIKE 'Steve*'
CountryId={ this.Finder.Variables['CountryId'].Value } This string sets the value of CountryId in the query to the value of the current row finder's CountryId variable. Country Id is USA CountryId=USA
DepartmentId={ this.BusinessObject.Fields['DepartmentId'].Value } { SelectWindow.SearchTerm == '' ? '' : 'AND FirstName LIKE \'' + SelectWindow.SearchTerm + '*\'' }

This string includes two expressions. The second expression uses the ternary operator. It returns results based on whether there is a search term in the search box.

If there is no search term, the parameter returns values matching the current row item's department Id value.

If there is a search term, the parameter returns results that match the department Id and the search term.

The quotes are all single quotation marks. Note also the enclosed empty strings and escaped single quotes.

 Department id is 101 and there is no search term DepartmentId=101
Department id is 101 and the search term is Steve DepartmentId=101 AND FirstName LIKE 'Steve*'
DepartmentId={ Workbook.Parameters['Dept'].Value } AND Salary >= { Workbook.Parameters['MinSal'].Value } This string sets the value of DepartmentId in the query to the value of the Dept workbook parameter and the value of Salary to the MinSal workbook parameter. The workbook parameter Dept is 80 and MinSal is 7000. DepartmentId=80 AND Salary >=7000