Only Siebel

Happy Christmas and a Prosperous New Year

2011-12-23T20:26:00.000-08:00

I'm getting ready for my seasonal break today, so I wanted to take this opportunity to wish all my readers a Very Happy Christmas!

Even if you don't celebrate the religious festival, I hope you enjoy the festive period. Thank you for reading at least some of my blog posts this year, and contributing to some very interesting requirements. I haven't been able to write something new lately, but you ca be sure of some pretty cool posts next year, Stay tuned!

And, if you haven't noticed already...Its snowing :)

Once again, we wish you an absolute cracker of a Christmas and a Great New Year, full of happiness!

Tips 'n Tricks for Oracle CRM On Demand

2011-09-08T02:08:00.000-07:00

An excellent free book providing tips and tricks fro improving your Oracle CRM On Demand application. - by Mathieu Emanuelli and Joann Alejandro Bravo

Cheers!

Generating Data to UI mappings in Siebel just got easier!

2011-08-26T06:00:00.000-07:00

This is one of those tasks which is fairly simple to do. However, can be very time consuming considering you have to generate a mapping for an entire/multiple repositories. We've all have had to do this at some point, not enjoying it one bit!

Well, here is a code that will save you some time and your sanity :).

The below code generates a screen to Applet, and an Applet to BC mapping which can be then exported to excel.

Screen to Applet -

select scr.name "Screen Name"
      ,nvl(nvl(ptabi.tab_text, scri.viewbar_text), scr.viewbar_text) "Screen"
      ,scrv.sequence "View Seq"
      ,vw.name "View Name"
      ,vwi.title "View"
      ,vw.busobj_name "Business Object"
      ,vwti.item_num "Item Num"
      ,ap.name "Applet Name"
      ,api.title "Applet"
      ,ap.buscomp_name "Business Component"
from   siebel.s_repository rep
       inner join siebel.s_screen scr on scr.repository_id = rep.row_id
       left outer join siebel.s_screen_intl scri on scri.screen_id = scr.row_id and scri.repository_id = rep.row_id and scri.name = 'ENU-STD'
       inner join siebel.s_screen_view scrv on scrv.screen_id = scr.row_id and scrv.repository_id = rep.row_id
       inner join siebel.s_application appl on rep.row_id = appl.repository_id
       left outer join siebel.s_page_tab ptab on ptab.application_id = appl.row_id and ptab.repository_id = rep.row_id and ptab.screen_name = scr.name
       left outer join siebel.s_page_tab_intl ptabi on ptabi.page_tab_id = ptab.row_id and ptabi.repository_id = rep.row_id and ptabi.name = 'ENU-STD'
       inner join siebel.s_view vw on vw.name = scrv.view_name and vw.repository_id = rep.row_id
       left outer join siebel.s_view_intl vwi on vwi.view_id = vw.row_id and vwi.repository_id = rep.row_id and vwi.name = 'ENU-STD'
       inner join siebel.s_view_web_tmpl vwt on vwt.view_id = vw.row_id and vwt.repository_id = rep.row_id
       left outer join siebel.s_view_wtmpl_it vwti on vwti.view_web_tmpl_id = vwt.row_id and vwti.repository_id = rep.row_id
       inner join siebel.s_applet ap on ap.name = vwti.applet_name and ap.repository_id = rep.row_id
       left outer join siebel.s_applet_intl api on api.applet_id = ap.row_id and api.repository_id = rep.row_id and api.name = 'ENU-STD'
where rep.name = 'Siebel Repository'
and    appl.name = 'Siebel Power Communications'
and    nvl(rep.inactive_flg,'N') = 'N'
and    nvl(scr.inactive_flg,'N') = 'N'
and    nvl(scri.inactive_flg,'N') = 'N'
and    nvl(scrv.inactive_flg,'N') = 'N'
and    nvl(vw.inactive_flg,'N') = 'N'
and    nvl(vwi.inactive_flg,'N') = 'N'
and    nvl(vwt.inactive_flg,'N') = 'N'
and    nvl(vwti.inactive_flg,'N') = 'N'
and    nvl(ap.inactive_flg,'N') = 'N'
and    nvl(api.inactive_flg,'N') = 'N'
union
select scr.name "Screen Name"
      ,nvl(nvl(ptabi.tab_text, scri.viewbar_text), scr.viewbar_text) "Screen"
      ,scrv.sequence "View Seq"
      ,vw.name "View Name"
      ,vwi.title "View"
      ,vw.busobj_name "Business Object"
      ,vwti.item_num "Item Num"
      ,apta.name "Applet Name"
      ,api.title "Applet"
      ,apta.buscomp_name "Business Component"
from   siebel.s_repository rep
       inner join siebel.s_screen scr on scr.repository_id = rep.row_id
       left outer join siebel.s_screen_intl scri on scri.screen_id = scr.row_id and scri.repository_id = rep.row_id and scri.name = 'ENU-STD'
       inner join siebel.s_screen_view scrv on scrv.screen_id = scr.row_id and scrv.repository_id = rep.row_id
       inner join siebel.s_application appl on rep.row_id = appl.repository_id
       left outer join siebel.s_page_tab ptab on ptab.application_id = appl.row_id and ptab.repository_id = rep.row_id and ptab.screen_name = scr.name
       left outer join siebel.s_page_tab_intl ptabi on ptabi.page_tab_id = ptab.row_id and ptabi.repository_id = rep.row_id and ptabi.name = 'ENU-STD'
       inner join siebel.s_view vw on vw.name = scrv.view_name and vw.repository_id = rep.row_id
       left outer join siebel.s_view_intl vwi on vwi.view_id = vw.row_id and vwi.repository_id = rep.row_id and vwi.name = 'ENU-STD'
       inner join siebel.s_view_web_tmpl vwt on vwt.view_id = vw.row_id and vwt.repository_id = rep.row_id
       left outer join siebel.s_view_wtmpl_it vwti on vwti.view_web_tmpl_id = vwt.row_id and vwti.repository_id = rep.row_id
       inner join siebel.s_applet ap on ap.name = vwti.applet_name and ap.repository_id = rep.row_id
       inner join siebel.s_applet_toggle apt on apt.applet_id = ap.row_id and apt.repository_id = rep.row_id
       inner join siebel.s_applet apta on apta.name = apt.applet_name and apta.repository_id = rep.row_id
       left outer join siebel.s_applet_intl api on api.applet_id = apta.row_id and apta.repository_id = rep.row_id and api.name = 'ENU-STD'
where rep.name = 'Siebel Repository'
and    appl.name = 'Siebel Power Communications'
and    nvl(rep.inactive_flg,'N') = 'N'
and    nvl(scr.inactive_flg,'N') = 'N'
and    nvl(scri.inactive_flg,'N') = 'N'
and    nvl(scrv.inactive_flg,'N') = 'N'
and    nvl(vw.inactive_flg,'N') = 'N'
and    nvl(vwi.inactive_flg,'N') = 'N'
and    nvl(vwt.inactive_flg,'N') = 'N'
and    nvl(vwti.inactive_flg,'N') = 'N'
and    nvl(ap.inactive_flg,'N') = 'N'
and    nvl(api.inactive_flg,'N') = 'N'
order by "Screen"
        ,"View Seq"
        ,"View Name"
        ,"Item Num"
        ,"Applet Name"

Output looks like -

Applet to BC mapping -

select "Applet Name"
,"BC Name"
,"BC Field"
,"Required"
,"Calculated"
,"Calculated Value"
,"Join Name"
,"Table"
,"Column"
,"Data Type"
,"Length"
,"Multi-valued"
,"MV Link"
,"Pick List"
,"LOV Name"
,min("Caption") "Caption"
,"Display Order"
from (
select ap.name "Applet Name"
      ,bc.name "BC Name"
      ,fld.name "BC Field"
      ,fld.required "Required"
      ,fld.calculated "Calculated"
      ,fld.calcval "Calculated Value"
      ,fld.join_name "Join Name"
      ,(case when fld.mvlink_name is null then nvl(nvl(jotab.name, fld.join_name), case when fld.calculated = 'Y' then null else bc.table_name end) else null end) "Table"
      ,fld.col_name "Column"
      ,fld.type "Data Type"
      ,(case when fld.prec_num is null then to_char(fld.textlen)
             else to_char(fld.prec_num) || to_char(case when fld.scale is null or fld.scale = 0 then '' else ',' || fld.scale end)
        end) "Length"
      ,fld.multi_valued "Multi-valued"
      ,fld.mvlink_name "MV Link"
      ,pl.name "Pick List"
      ,pl.type_value "LOV Name"
      ,coi.caption "Caption"
      ,co.sequence "Display Order"
from   siebel.s_control co
       inner join siebel.s_control_intl coi on coi.control_id = co.row_id and coi.name = 'ENU-STD'
       inner join siebel.s_applet ap on co.applet_id = ap.row_id
       inner join siebel.s_buscomp bc on ap.buscomp_name = bc.name
       inner join siebel.s_field fld on fld.name = co.field_name and fld.buscomp_id = bc.row_id
       inner join siebel.s_repository rep on bc.repository_id = rep.row_id
       left outer join siebel.s_join jo on jo.buscomp_id = fld.buscomp_id and fld.join_name = jo.name
       left outer join siebel.s_table jotab on jotab.name = jo.dest_tbl_name and jotab.repository_id = rep.row_id
       left outer join siebel.s_picklist pl on fld.picklist_name = pl.name and pl.repository_id = rep.row_id
where rep.name = 'Siebel Repository'
and    ap.repository_id = rep.row_id
and    co.repository_id = rep.row_id
and    bc.repository_id = rep.row_id
and    fld.repository_id = rep.row_id
and    nvl(co.inactive_flg,'N') = 'N'
and    nvl(ap.inactive_flg,'N') = 'N'
and    nvl(bc.inactive_flg,'N') = 'N'
and    nvl(fld.inactive_flg,'N') = 'N'
and    nvl(rep.inactive_flg,'N') = 'N'
and    nvl(jo.inactive_flg,'N') = 'N'
union all
select ap.name "Applet Name"
      ,bc.name "BC Name"
      ,fld.name "BC Field"
      ,fld.required "Required"
      ,fld.calculated "Calculated"
      ,fld.calcval "Calculated Value"
      ,fld.join_name "Join Name"
      ,(case when fld.mvlink_name is null then nvl(nvl(jotab.name, fld.join_name), case when fld.calculated = 'Y' then null else bc.table_name end) else null end) "Table"
      ,fld.col_name "Column"
      ,fld.type "Data Type"
      ,(case when fld.prec_num is null then to_char(fld.textlen)
             else to_char(fld.prec_num) || to_char(case when fld.scale is null or fld.scale = 0 then '' else ',' || fld.scale end)
        end) "Length"
      ,fld.multi_valued "Multi-valued"
      ,fld.mvlink_name "MV Link"
      ,pl.name "Pick List"
      ,pl.type_value "LOV Name"
      ,coi.display_name "Caption"
      ,co.sequence "Display Order"
from   siebel.s_list li
       inner join siebel.s_applet ap on li.applet_id = ap.row_id
       inner join siebel.s_list_column co on co.list_id = li.row_id
       left outer join siebel.s_list_col_intl coi on coi.list_column_id = co.row_id and coi.name = 'ENU-STD'
       inner join siebel.s_buscomp bc on ap.buscomp_name = bc.name
       inner join siebel.s_field fld on fld.name = co.field_name and fld.buscomp_id = bc.row_id
       inner join siebel.s_repository rep on bc.repository_id = rep.row_id
       left outer join siebel.s_join jo on jo.buscomp_id = fld.buscomp_id and fld.join_name = jo.name
       left outer join siebel.s_table jotab on jotab.name = jo.dest_tbl_name and jotab.repository_id = rep.row_id
       left outer join siebel.s_picklist pl on fld.picklist_name = pl.name and pl.repository_id = rep.row_id
where rep.name = 'Siebel Repository'
and    li.repository_id = rep.row_id
and    ap.repository_id = rep.row_id
and    co.repository_id = rep.row_id
and    bc.repository_id = rep.row_id
and    fld.repository_id = rep.row_id
and    nvl(li.inactive_flg,'N') = 'N'
and    nvl(co.inactive_flg,'N') = 'N'
and    nvl(ap.inactive_flg,'N') = 'N'
and    nvl(bc.inactive_flg,'N') = 'N'
and    nvl(fld.inactive_flg,'N') = 'N'
and    nvl(rep.inactive_flg,'N') = 'N'
and    nvl(jo.inactive_flg,'N') = 'N'
)
group by "Applet Name"
,"BC Name"
,"BC Field"
,"Required"
,"Calculated"
,"Calculated Value"
,"Join Name"
,"Table"
,"Column"
,"Data Type"
,"Length"
,"Multi-valued"
,"MV Link"
,"Pick List"
,"LOV Name"
,"Display Order"
order by "Applet Name"
        ,"BC Name"
        ,"MV Link" desc
        ,"Table"
,"Display Order"

Output looks like -

So there you go...you could later consolidate both to have a full UI to Data level mapping.

Oh! Almost forgot, Your welcome ;)

Cheers!

How to Integrate Google maps with Siebel for multiple addresses

2011-07-14T06:58:00.000-07:00

A few days back a client asked me if we could have Google maps integrated with their Siebel application, that would enable their reps to locate their contacts/accounts on Google maps, and find the best way to reach them based on their mode of commute. Initially, they had planned to do this for single addresses. However, I tried to convince them to go for multiple address selection.

The key business driver here in my opinion would be that, the user can optimize his/her travel route based on the proximity of his/her reps, thus saving time and money. Google maps also offers a few more features like checking for traffic, avoiding tolls, taking highways etc.

Google maps is really cool, and integrating it with Siebel makes it cooler ;)

Really!! show me how?

Step 1: The first step would be to get the Google map applet setup on your Siebel application. There are many ways to do this. For this example lets go with Mash-up your CRM with Google maps in < 30 minutes.

Step 2: Once you have this setup, just copy the below script on the contact/ account list applet or where ever you would like to have this integrated.

The below script will automatically refresh your Google map to give you a route of your selected contact addresses and will plot A, B, C pins on the map. Alternatively, you could also use a button to invoke this script.

Script -

Step 3: Make sure you change the field names in the script to match your contact BC.

Step 4: Compile and test!

This is what map would look like

Almost forgot, Thanks to Benny and Alex for their post on Siebel Essentials

Cheers!

Multiple Email Validation Script in Siebel

2011-05-25T09:24:00.000-07:00

This post is a result of my sheer frustration for not getting this right in a 100 tries. I had been trying to validate the email addresses being entered in Siebel. I tried a lot of ways to get it to work (Data Validation Manager, Runtime events, Configuration etc) but the darn thing would just not work. I had to ultimately resort to the "boo hoo"- Script!

I thought this would be useful for a lot of Siebel guys out there, will save you from all that frustration.(Checks/validates for a comma separated list of emails as well)

Code:

And last but not least. I must give credit to this post which was the only one that actually worked for me.
Regular Expression for multiple email validation

Tip: It is advisable to try out string manipulation, validation scripts in a script simulator before coding it in Siebel. Saves you a lot of time and effort.(for eScript you could use the W3Schools JavaScript Simulator)

Cheers!

Siebel Power User - Part 1

2011-04-19T04:46:00.000-07:00

Hey Folks,

Here is the first of the many Siebel power user series to come. Just recently discovered a few cool features in Siebel from an end user perspective.

Many a times the user is required to update multiple records of data based on a condition, that the user would normally not know how to execute simultaneously.

For instance, I recently had to update a few(not really) activities in Siebel under a condition where the activity had just one contact associated to it. How would an end user go about making this change?

Lets discuss two such "Good to knows" in the following scenario

The Requirement -

Lets say you have to update the status of 100 or so activities which do not have more than one contact.

The Trick -

Go to the Activities applet, and use the below query on the Contacts field

Count("Contact") > 1

Note: Contact is the MVL used in the Contact MVG

This will give you all activities with more than one contact association.

Now, lets update the Type of the Activities to 'Call'

Select all records and click the Edit option in the application menu and select change records. Change records allows you to update a maximum of 4 fields of the same record simultaneously.

Select Type in Field 1 and change the value to 'Call Back'

And there you go, you now have 15 more minutes to facebook ;)

Please feel free to use the comments section for any feeback on this post, or if you would like to contribute to this series.

Cheers!

Setting a Default Template in an Applet To Be Used With Send Email (F9)

2011-01-18T07:40:00.000-08:00

Hey Guys,

Its been a while since my last post, apologies for the same. I have been trying to do too many things at the same time :P

While doing some extensive research on Siebel's f9 send email functionality, I came across this cool feature.

So if your business uses a common template to send out to its contacts from a specific applet, this feature could prove useful to you - saves you the effort of manually selecting the template.

Here is how you can add a Default Email Template to your applet.

Step 1: Query for the desired applet you want to set up the email template for.

Step 2: Goto View > Windows > Properties Window.

NOTE: If you are using Siebel versions prior to 8.x. You do not have to open the applet properties window. You should see it as part of the properties for the applet in OBLE.

Step 3: In the Mail Template property enter the Email template name exactly the way it appears in the Siebel Client.

Step 4: Compile and test - Now when you are on the just modified applet and hit F9, you should see the template pre-populated in the template selection dialog.

Note: Setting a default template for the Send Email command, as described above, overrides template visibility by channel. For example, if a template is specified as the default email template for Change Request applets, this same template will also be the default template for these applets for the fax channels (using the Send Fax command).

Cheers!

Skype - Siebel Custom Integration

2010-10-29T02:41:00.000-07:00

Want to call one of your contacts/prospects in Siebel without a lot of manual effort? now you can...
Here are a few simple steps of how you could integrate Skype with your siebel application.

Thank you Bernard for sharing this!

Configuration Steps - (for this example I am going to use the contacts applet)

Step 1: Create a custom Business service called 'OS Skype Integration' and assign it to a locked project.

place the below code in the PreCanInvokeMethod event of the Business Service

function Service_PreCanInvokeMethod (MethodName, &CanInvoke)
{
    if(MethodName == "GetField")
    {
        CanInvoke="TRUE";
        return(CancelOperation);
    }
    else if(MethodName == "TransformToSkype")
    {
        CanInvoke="TRUE";
        return(CancelOperation);
    }
    else
    {
        return(ContinueOperation);
    }
}

place the below code in the PreInvokeMethod event of the Business Service

function Service_PreInvokeMethod (MethodName, Inputs, Outputs)
{
    try
    {
        switch (MethodName) 
        {
            case "GetField":
                this.GetField(Inputs, Outputs);
                return (CancelOperation);
               
            case "TransformToSkype":
                this.TransformToSkype(Inputs, Outputs);
                return (CancelOperation);       
               
            default:
                return (ContinueOperation);
        }
    }
    catch(e)
    {
        TheApplication().RaiseErrorText(e.toString());
    }
    finally
    {
    }
} 

Now that the two methods are defined and ready for use, lets define the logic inside them

Create two new functions as below -

GetField: This method as you can see will get the properties set by the Browser script in the Contact List Applet and will make them available in the Input Property Set of the Business Service.

function GetField(Inputs, Outputs)
{
    var sfield = Inputs.GetProperty("fieldname");
    var sId = Inputs.GetProperty("Id");
    var boName = Inputs.GetProperty("boName");
    var bcName = Inputs.GetProperty("bcName");
    var bo = TheApplication().GetBusObject(boName);
    var bc = bo.GetBusComp(bcName);
    bc.ClearToQuery();
    bc.SetViewMode(AllView);
    bc.ActivateField(sfield);
    bc.SetSearchSpec("Id", sId);
    bc.ExecuteQuery(ForwardOnly);
    if (bc.FirstRecord())
    {
        var svalue = bc.GetFieldValue(sfield);
           Outputs.SetProperty("fieldvalue",svalue);
    }
    else
    {
        Outputs.SetProperty("fieldvalue","");
    }
}

TransformToSkype: This method contains the main string used to make the call. The string includes the Skype exe path and teh Phone Number of the call recipient/Siebel Contact.

So, the string being passed would look something like this "C:\Progra~1\Skype\Phone\skype" /callto:+14152065351. This string is passed to the browser script for execution.

NOTE 1: The target customer base for the Client where I implemented this was for US only, thats why the '+1'. If you wish to make it more general you could check the Country of the contact and derive the country code based on that.

NOTE 2: You could also simply use 'callto:+14152065351' in the below script skiping an extra step(Step2 - Creating the LOV) - Thanks Ranjith for pointing that out.

function TransformToSkype(Inputs, Outputs)
{
    var sWorkphone = Inputs.GetProperty("PhoneNum");
    var sFirst = sWorkphone.charAt(0);
    var sSkypeNum="";
    var sLOVText = TheApplication().InvokeMethod("LookupValue","OS_SKYPE_PATH","Path");
    if(sFirst!="+")
    {
        sSkypeNum = "\"" + sLOVText + "\"" + " /callto:+1" + sWorkphone;
    }
    else
    {
        var sLast = "\n"
        var sSubstr = Clib.strstr(sWorkphone, sLast);
        var sRtn = sWorkphone.replace(sSubstr, "");
        //sSkypeNum = "skype:" + sRtn + "?Call";
        sSkypeNum = "\"" + sLOVText + "\"" + " /callto:" + sRtn;
    }
    Outputs.SetProperty("SkypeNum",sSkypeNum);
}

Step2: Create an LOV as seen in the below screenshot - This would contain the .exe path of Skype.

Step 3: Lock the 'Contact List Applet' and create three custom buttons as shown in the screenshot.(Note: The 'InvokeMethod property for the Skype buttons should be same as the ones in the script')
Make sure the buttons are clickable by using the CanInvokeMethod Applet User property.

You could also get more creative and use a 'Skype Toolbar' in Siebel. Like I have and call the business service from the Command Invoked. The Script would change in that case.(The Browser script from the applet would then be required on the Business Service)

Step 4: Place the below script in the browser script evet Applet_PreInvokeMethod of the contact list applet.

code:
function Applet_PreInvokeMethod (name, inputPropSet)
{
    if(name=="Skype" || name=="SkypeCell" || name=="SkypeHome")
    {
        try
        {
            var serv = theApplication().GetService("OS Skype Integration");
            var inp = theApplication().NewPropertySet();
            var outs = theApplication().NewPropertySet();
            inp.SetProperty("Id", this.BusComp().GetFieldValue("Id"));
            switch(name)
            {
                case "Skype":
                    inp.SetProperty("fieldname","Work Phone #");
                    break;
                case "SkypeCell":
                    inp.SetProperty("fieldname","Cellular Phone #");
                    break;
                case "SkypeHome":
                    inp.SetProperty("fieldname","Home Phone #");
                    break;
            }
            inp.SetProperty("boName", this.BusObject().Name());
            inp.SetProperty("bcName", this.BusComp().Name());
            outs = serv.InvokeMethod("GetField",inp);
            var svalue = outs.GetProperty("fieldvalue");

            inp = null;
            inp = theApplication().NewPropertySet();
            inp.SetProperty("PhoneNum",svalue);
            outs = null;
            outs = theApplication().NewPropertySet();
            outs = serv.InvokeMethod("TransformToSkype",inp);
            svalue="";
            svalue = outs.GetProperty("SkypeNum");

            //calls the ActiveXObject and passes the Skype exe path allong with the phone number of the contact
            var wsh = new ActiveXObject("WScript.Shell");
            var oExec = wsh.Exec(svalue);
            wsh=null;
            return ("CancelOperation");
        }
        catch(e)
        {
            alert ("Error Applet_PreInvokeMethod : " + e.toString());
        }
        finally
        {
            inp=null;
            outs=null;
            serv=null;
        }
    }
    return ("ContinueOperation");
}

This script will call the 'OS Skype Integration' and pass the respective Phone numbers for transformation if required.

Step 5: Since we are invoking the Business service from the browser level. The Business service will have to be registered as a client business sevice in the Application User Props

Step 6: Compile all objects you modified.

Step 7: Compile the browser scripts by using Genb or should I say UltraGenB(A cool new utility created by Jason Le of Impossible Siebel)

Query on any contact in the Contact List Applet and hit one of the buttons....and there you have it...TRING TRING!!!

Happy Calling!!

Launching iHelp with eScript

2010-09-19T22:25:00.000-07:00

Hey Folks,

I had a requirement with one of my clients to have a button on a Form Applet that opens the iHelp.

"My Oracle Support" has a few SR's that are related, and I had tried various things including trapping the method calls that are triggered when clicking on the iHelp button on the Toolbar, then repeating them on my custom button but with no luck.

Oracle support seems to confirm you can't Launch iHelp with Script in Siebel 7.7, but doesn't mention Siebel 8.1 (which probably means you can't do it!)

This however is possible through script. You could use the below code on the button to toggle the iHelp from a custom button.

Code:

function WebApplet_PreInvokeMethod (MethodName)
{

    if(MethodName == "LaunchiHelp")
    {
        var oBS= TheApplication().GetService("Task Assistant UI Service");
        var  psInputs = TheApplication().NewPropertySet();
        var psOutputs = TheApplication().NewPropertySet();
        oBS.InvokeMethod("ToggleiHelp",  psInputs,psOutputs);
        return (CancelOperation);
    }
}

Your custom button should now function exactly like the iHelp launch button on the toolbar.

Update (thanks to my colleague for sharing this)

I have had to add an update to the code so that it looks like this:

var  psInputs = TheApplication().NewPropertySet();

var psOutputs =  TheApplication().NewPropertySet();

psInputs.SetProperty("Command", "#14");  

var oBS = TheApplication().GetService("Task Assistant UI Service");

oBS.InvokeMethod("ToggleiHelp", psInputs, psOutputs); 

Without this parameter there are issues with opening / closing iHelp multiple time from different entities. It results in a Siebel crash and you have to log in again. With the command property it appears to work fine.

Just a word of caution: this command number is likely to be different in different version of Siebel. It is 8.1.1.2 SIA [21215] ENU that I have this working for.

Cheers!

Get NASDAQ Market updates in Siebel

2010-08-06T06:25:00.000-07:00

Like most of you Siebel lovers I too like to integrate anything and everything with Siebel. Here is an example of how you can get NASDAQ updates within your Siebel Application.

Here is how you do it!

Steps:

1. Create an applet with a Single control.

2. Add the following code to your single control that you have in your applet.

3. place this applet in a view and your done!

Stay tuned for a more advanced version of this post!

Cheers!

Create an HTML email in Oracle CRM On Demand

2010-07-08T02:50:00.000-07:00

Hey Folks,

For any business, It's very important to keep your customers happy at all times.You need to constantly keep them updated on how their service requests are being processes. Below is one such example

I recently came across a requirement in which my client wanted to have some functionality in which, when a new SR is created, a Service Representative should be able to generate a neatly formatted email with all the required information and send it across to a Customer, so they know that the SR is being looked into, something like a SR Acknowledgment.

Here's what I did for them!

Solution:

Step 1: Build the Report
Create a Narrative Report that will contain all the required fields that is required to send out an email.

In Step 2 on the reports wizard add only a Narrative View

Save the report

Step 2: Create a Weblink and add to the Layout

Create a Weblink field in the Service Request Object.
Edit the weblink properties and add it to your report, note that we are passing the SR number as a parameter in the report, so we get details specific to this record only.

Add this weblink to the Layout assigned to your user role.

Step 3: View your changes
Create a new SR record or view an existing SR record that has all the required fields you need to successfully send out the email. You should see the email weblink that we created in Step 2 above

Click on the Weblink to launch the report. you will now see your neatly formatted email with all the required details.

Step 4: Add this in Outlook.
In your IE menu bar click File -> Send -> Page by E-mail...

The above step will create new email in Outlook with your formatted report.

And you're ready to go!

Cheers!

Generate pdf report with Images in CRM On Demand

2010-05-24T00:23:00.000-07:00

Hi,

I had a requirement where the client had to display their company Image on pdf when the report was downloaded, the Image I was referencing was on their Company Portal. unfortunately the pdf file wouldn't pick this image, it worked only for HTML downloads.

Here is how you do it!

You can get Images from websites into your pdf file, but this will include two extra clicks...

Go to any report, click the “Printer Friendly” option, and select HTML.

An HTML webpage will be generated for that report, now in that web page in the Menu bar, go to File and select Print…

The below popup screen will be displayed, select “Adobe PDF” and click Print.

After you click Print you will have to save the Report, the save as type is automatically set to PDF, enter the Name .

And your pdf is generated will the Company logo.

Cheers!

Repository Script Extractor for Siebel versions > 7.7

2010-05-14T00:28:00.000-07:00

Hey folks,

Want to have a backup of all those cool and interesting scripts you wrote, but find it too taxing to manually copy each and every script in to a good readable format?

Here is a new tool the we have been working on. What it basically does is, it extracts the scripts based on a user given date or a prefix. Any scripts that were created or updated beyond the date will be exported into the excel sheet as well as in an HTML format just like the utility Oracle had introduced to extract scripts for versions 7.7 and earlier.

The tool connects to Siebel via the object layer and pulls out the information...

Here is a peak at what this tool looks like

Main UI

HTML Output

Click the below icon to download this cool tool..!

Cheers!

Siebel CRM Market Statistics

2010-04-11T22:50:00.000-07:00

Hey Folks,

A few graphs I'd like to share about Siebel CRM and its demand in the market.

Siebel World Wide Demand

Siebel – Favourite Cities

Siebel Salary Comparison

Siebel – Skills based demand trend

So for those of you who are not so sure on which area in siebel to pick up, this could give you a heads up...

Some More Graphs

Cheers!

The Siebel Blackbook

2010-04-08T06:12:00.000-07:00

Oracle CRM On Demand and Google Talk

2010-03-24T06:21:00.000-07:00

Hey Guys,

If you are a Google Talk user, you may be aware that there is a link that allows you to sign into your Google account and chat with your contacts without the GTalk setup installation.

We are about to use this cool feature in Oracle CRM On Demand to help Service Reps to chat with customers to resolve their queries.

This feature may also be available for other messengers (yahoo, rediffmail, windows live), but let’s talk about Google for now.

Step 1:

Navigate to Admin---Application Customization---Global Web Applets.

Create a New Web applet and Fill in the below. You may also choose to have this on the Homepage according to your requirement.

URL: http://talkgadget.google.com/talkgadget/popout?

Step 2: Add the Custom Web Applet to your Action bar for the ‘My Setup---Personal Layout---Action Bar Layout’ Global link.

You should now see the Custom Web applet on your Action Bar.

Finally, Sign in to your Google Account by clicking the sign in link and enjoy! Cheers!

Repository Data Retriever© v1.0

2010-03-03T04:15:00.000-08:00

Hey Folks,

Here is an excel spreadsheet I had been working for the past couple weeks. It has been designed to export all the newly created and modified objects beyond a particular user given date.

Special features include -

- Works on Sample/ Local and Server.

- Cool UI features to minimize user effort (Object Explorer, date Chooser, Select File Dialogbox)

- Process Status section. This is so the user is not prompted everytime unless a critical error has occured or user intervention is really required.

- Data is exported in an easily readable format

- Can be very well used for Upgrades to analyze the amount of Repository Customization

Interface Detail:

Screen prints of the tool -

Main Page -

Exported Objects View -

Click on the below icon to download the Repository Data Retriever (limited downloads).

Cheers!

Narrative View in Oracle On Demand

2010-02-26T01:17:00.000-08:00

Here is a post about Narrative View's in Oracle On Demand. Thanks to my good friend and colleague Asmita for sharing this.

Narrative view allows report users to display multiple reports or virtually any HTML content.

Narrative view is used to create letters, quotes, or invoices.

Using Narrative view we can embed other reports, web pages, or any HTML document.

Step 1: Select the appropriate Subject Area and add the columns/data you want to display in the report

Step 2: Code a HTML file as per required format. To embed report columns in to HTML add ‘@’ followed by column number.

E.g. @1 – Society Name

Note: Count Columns from left to right.

Step 3: Add a Narrative view to your report by clicking the Add View button, moving to the advanced submenu, and selecting the Narrative option.

Step 4:

-The Edit View: Narrative window contains five fields

- Add HTML file syntax created in Step 2 in Narrative field

- Save and Run

Useful tips:

· Alignment sometimes gets confused, set it at the narrative format level to left.

· Sometime you need to edit the HTML, for sizing, row breaks.

· Keep it simple to start with.

· Use tables for layout where you can.

· You can insert images but they must be accessible to all users.

· Use the narrative object to integrate external websites for information.

· Add a web link to launch the report specifically for a contact/account etc. e.g. the change of address.

· Narrative reports need the scripting privilege on your role to access.

Cheers!

Invoke an external executable from Oracle On Demand

2010-02-19T02:20:00.000-08:00

Hey Folks,

I recently came across a requirement which needed the user to call a contact from within Siebel On Demand using Skype.

Here is how you achieve this-

Requirements:

You need to have Skype installed on your local machine for this to work.

Configuration:

Create two Fields:
1. Skype Id (Field Type = Short Text)
2. Skype URL (Field Type = Web Link)

Now, click the “Edit Web Link” to edit the properties.

In the URL you need to specify the callto function and pass the Skype Id of the contact you want to call.

See below screen print.

Save the changes.

Now Create a Contact with the Skype Id and save it, go to the Detail Page, notice that the Skype URL is auto populated since you are passing the parameters.

And you’re ready to make your first Skype call from Siebel On Demand.

When you click this Web link for the first time, you will receive a popup

Click the Check box if you always want to call Skype, otherwise you will have to select the Skype application whenever you make a call.

That’s all and you’re done.

Happy Calling!

Salary trends for Siebel, Salesforce and CRM On Demand

2010-02-18T22:58:00.000-08:00

Here is a graph that shows the Salary trends for Siebel, Salesforce and CRM On Demand. Looks good right ;)

Cheers!

How to Stop a BusComp_PreWriteRecord

2010-02-12T00:27:00.000-08:00

Many a times we find ourselves in a situation wherein we think our configuration is correct, but why the hell can I not see my changes. Tiny things make a big difference in Siebel and we spend hours trying to figure out whats going wrong, and more often than not its just a silly property that we may have overlooked :)...read on

When the current record of a BC has beeen modified, the user cannot step off the record without either saving or undoing the record. (Under normal circumstances, saving is done automatically when stepping off, so the user does not need to save the record manually.)

When calling RaiseErrorTest in BusComp_PreWriteRecord, or when returning CancelOperation from this event, the current record does not get saved to the database; however, it remains modified, and thus the user cannot step off the record. For the user, after clicking away the custom RaiseErrorText message, it may appear as if the system suddenly gets unresponsive as they cannot step forth and back anymore, and unexperiences users may not know how to escape this situation (by e.g. undoing the current record or by modifying the record until it saves successfully).

If, on the other hand, the script calls UndoRecord before raising an error, all changes are lost, which might lead to a negative user experience.

This is why Bookshelf recommends to not using RaiseErrorText within BusComp_PreWriteRecord.

If you observe a situation where it seems necessary to cancel an ongoing WriteRecord operation in the BusComp_PreWriteRecord event handler, then depending on your scenario you may want to consider these alternate approaches:

1. Verify the changes earlier

Some scenarios might allow verifying the changes to the current record earlier, such as in BusComp_PreSetFieldValue() or at applet level. However, consider that unless a BC field has the "Immediate Post Changes" flag set to TRUE; changes in the UI will not reach the BC (and thus not trigger BusComp_PreSetFieldValue()) until the user saves or steps off the record.

2. Verify the changes later

In BusComp_WriteRecord(), it is possible to use RaiseErrorText() since raising an error here does not cancel any pending operation - the WriteRecord already has finished. In this scenario the wrong data is already committed to the database, so either the user needs to navigate back to the record and modify it appropriately, or an internal process needs to identify and clean up the record later. (This depends on your particular scenario.)

3. Use Siebel Task UI

Siebel Task UI allows to guide the user through a set of operations before saving the result. As per the Task UI documentation, "Task UI's wizard-like user interface guides the end user through task execution, allows navigation both forward and backward within task execution, and allows task execution to be paused and resumed as needed."

This process can make use of "transient" business components, which means that the data does not get stored to Siebel tables until the task is finished successfully.

Thus the Task UI seems suitable to implement the desired two-step process of saving contact data to an external system first and then to the Siebel database.

Cheers!

How do I...Create an iHelp

2010-02-04T05:00:00.000-08:00

Siebel 8.x offers a really cool functionality - iHelp. iHelp is a wizard like functionality that guides the user through complex UI tasks to make sure the required information has been populated correctly.

Configuring iHelp is pretty simple and is probably the most easiest thing to configure in Siebel. Unlike other UI configuration, iHelp is configured solely using the Siebel Application.

Configuration Steps in detail - Lets Create an iHelp to Create a New Quote

Navigate to the Administration - iHelp screen in your Siebel Application

In the All iHelp Items view create a New iHelp record with the following details

Name: Create New Quote - Test
Applications: Siebel Universal Agent
Remote Support: All

Mode Details
Step 2a: Designing the iHelp task flow

Drilldown on the iHelp record you just created.

In the Designer Applet drag 'n drop the Start Task on the Designer grid as shown below and enter the following values.

Name: Navigate to My Quotes
View: Quote List View
Caption: Navigate to Quotes Screen > My Quotes View.
Section Label: Enter a New Record
More Details

Note: You can also display text in Bold (enclose text in tags) or Italics(enclose Text in ) etc

Lets highlight the Controls we want the user to populate so he/she doesn't miss it.

Click the 'Field and button Highlights' on the Explorer Applet on the left and enter the following values as displayed in the screen shot. iHelp automatically displayes the Applets present on the view. (You can select any Field you would like to highlight in this step)

Step 2 b - Create a Next step in the Process flow for New Record creation

Drag 'n drop the Step task on the Designer. and enter the following values -
Name: Click New
View: Quote List View
Caption: Click New in the Quotes list or form.

Click the 'Field and button Highlights' on the Explorer Applet on the left and enter the following values as displayed in the screen shot.

Step 2 c - Create a Next step in the Process flow for Base Information

Drag 'n drop the Step task on the Designer. and enter the following values -
Name: Enter Base Info
View: Quote List View
Caption: Base Information
Section label: Base Information

Highlight the Values you want the user to populate by the 'Field and Button Highlights' as shown below...

For this particular step we will create a sub step which will show the user more details on what he/she need to do.

Click on the SubSteps in the Explorer applet and enter the following values

Step 2 d - Create a Next step in the Process flow to add an Opportunity to the Quote

Drag 'n drop the Step task on the Designer and connect all the Task Steps, enter the following values for the Assign Opportunity Step-
Name: Assign Opportunity
View: Quote List View
Caption: Assign an Opportunity
Section label: Assign Opportunity

Highlight the Opportunity control as shown below

Create a Sub Step to explain more in detail what the user needs to do

This completes the designing of the iHelp. Next we need to display it on a screen for the user to be able to invoke.

Step 3: Where do I want the iHelp to appear on the screen?
Lets display this iHelp on the Quotes Home Page
Navigate to the Screens Tab in iHelp and create a new Record. Select the Screen you wish to display your iHelp on (In our case this will be the Quotes Home Page).

Step 4: Assign Responsibility so the iHelp is available only for selected users
Make sure you are registered under the Responsibility you add to the iHelp

Step 5: Who can Modify this iHelp you just created?

You can restrict users from making changes to your iHelp item by setting an access group. Make sure you belong to the Access group to be able to modify it.

Step 6: Activate the iHelp Item

Navigate back to the your iHelp item and click the Activate button. Notice the Status has changes from 'In Progress' to 'Active'.

Step 7: Your Done :)....Navigate to the Quotes Home Screen to invoke the iHelp you just created.

Invoke the iHelp and check whether everything works as desired. If you need to make any changes just 'Revise' the iHelp Item from the Administration - iHelp screen and make changes.

This is how your iHelp will look when you invoke it

After your done making changes Clear the iHelp List Cache

Note: iHelp loads all iHelp items to the iHelp Map and iHelp pane when the application is initialized. When you modify iHelp items, you may need to clear the iHelp List Cache before you can see changes to the iHelp item (in the iHelp pane).

To clear the iHelp List Cache

Navigate to the Administration - iHelp screen > All iHelp Items view.
From the menu button, choose Clear iHelp List Cache.

More on Revise, Activate, Deactivate

Click on the below icon to download this document (Limited downloads)

Cheers!

Siebel, Salesforce, "CRM On Demand" Job Trends

2010-02-01T04:16:00.000-08:00

Hey Guys,

Here is a graph that shows the Job trends for Siebel, Salesforce and CRM On Demand.

Siebel, Salesforce, "CRM On Demand" Job Trends

Siebel jobs - Salesforce jobs - "CRM On Demand" jobs

Cheers!

Get and Set value of Profile Attributes Profile Attributes from the Application

2010-01-13T20:25:00.000-08:00

The other day I was doing a development task related to scripting. I was using a lot of Profile Attributes in my logic. However, I had to put alerts in my code to check whether the profile Attributes were being set correctly. I had to revisit the code a lot of times. That's when I came accross this trick on Siebel Unleashed.

javascript:alert(theApplication().GetProfileAttr("Login Name"))

Place the above code in the address bar of your Siebel Application as below and hit Go.

A popup is displayed with the value of the Profile Attribute.

You can go either a GetProfileAttr or even a SetProfileAttr

javascript:alert(theApplication().SetProfileAttr("TEST", "Only Siebel"))

This trick can very well be used for debugging purposes.

Cheers!

Free Online Siebel Exam

2010-01-12T00:02:00.000-08:00

As I was browsing through a few Siebel sites and blogs, I found a really cool site called SiebelDigest.

Its a 30 Question exam for different levels of expertise(beginner, Intermediate and Experts)

Click here to Take the Exam

Cheers!

Happy 2010

2010-01-05T01:45:00.000-08:00

Only Siebel wishes you a very happy and prosperous 2010.

Have a great year ahead!

How to customize your Siebel application toolbar

2009-11-30T06:47:00.000-08:00

Want to customize your tool bar? here is how you can do it.

Depending upon where you want your button or control to go. You will have to select the appropriate toolbar and customixe it.

In this post I will show you how to create a custom button to logout from your application.

Step 1: go to Command Object in your Object Explorer and query for "Logout"
(If you cannot see this object. In tools go to View | Options | Object Explorer tab | check the Command Object)

Step 2: Copy the the Logout command object and rename it to 'Logout New'(you could use the same one too)

Step 3: Go to the toolbar Object in your Object Explorer and query for "HIQuery" toolbar(you could use another toolbar depending on where you would like to see your button on the application)

Step 4: click on the toolbar Item child object. Create a new record called 'Logout' with the following properties

- Name: Logout

- Command: Logout New

- Display Name: Logout

Step 5: Compile all objects you modified/ created.

your application should have the 'Logout' button right next to the Execute query button.

Now, when you click on the logout button siebel will call the Logoff method and the application will logout.

Next, I will show you show to call a business service from a custom button on the toolbar. Stay tuned...

Cheers!

How to add a Screen Tab image to your siebel application

2009-11-18T23:12:00.000-08:00

Hi all,

This is usually a part of Branding, adding your own images/icons to the siebel application like I have added below.

Required Configuration :

Add the Screen on the Page tab. Only the image will be visible.

In Bitmap Category create a new record with a unique name and the required parameters.

In Bitmap child object create a new record with name ‘Screen Tab’ and in filename specify the name of the file with the .gif extention.

To specify the properties of ‘Logo’ go to menu -->View-->Windows-->Properties Windows.

Now you will be able to edit the ‘Height’ and ‘Width’ properties.

In the Object Explorer goto Screen --> Create new/Use existing screen and give the required properties.

Then goto Siebel Tools menu--> View-->Windows-->Properties Windows.

Specify the name of the Bitmap Category in the Bitmap Category Property as displayed in the below figure.

Compile all the Objects.

Clear internet history and files. Reopen the Application.

You should now see the icon you have added on the screen tab.

Cheers!

Integrating Siebel 8 With Oracle SOA Suite

2009-11-17T06:55:00.000-08:00

Here is a complete documentation of how to pull Siebel data from an external application(JDeveloper)

Cheers!

How to Launch an external executable from Siebel

2009-11-10T20:46:00.000-08:00

There are many ways of doing this. Here are two -

1. The first approach is a bit easier than the second. The script is written in the Applet_Load event of the Applet Browser Script. You can also invoke the executable file from a button click etc...

Script

function Applet_Load ()
{
//Instantiate an ActiveX shell Objext.
var wshell = new ActiveXObject("WScript.Shell");
var oFSO = new ActiveXObject("Scripting.FileSystemObject");

//the path of where this file has been installed
sDirectory = "C:\\PROGRA~1\\WINDOW~1\\ACCESS~1\\";

sFile = "wordpad.exe";
sFilePath = sDirectory + sFile;

//Check if the .exe file is installed
if(oFSO.FileExists(sFilePath))
{
execRet = wshell.Run(sFilePath, 3, false);
}
else
{
alert("You do not Wordpad Installed.");
}

oFSO = null;
wshell = null;
return ("CancelOperation");
}

Now, When the applet loads wordpad will open.

2. The second approach uses a setTimeout JavaScript function that offers executing a function after a sleep duration. Then a new function must be created (waitForExecCompleted in the below example); this function will perform the test on the status of the external application: If the application is still running, re-execute itself after a while If the application is completed, run the rest of code

Script

//Global Declaration

var execRet;

function waitForExecCompleted()
{
if(execRet.Status == 0)
setTimeout("waitForExecCompleted()", 100);
else
{
execRet = null;
alert("Completed");
}
}

function launchExternalApplication()
{
var wShell = new ActiveXObject("WScript.Shell");

//File path
execRet = wShell.Exec("C:\\WINNT\\system32\\calc.exe");
waitForExecCompleted();
}

Cheers!

Siebel VB to eScript Converter

2009-10-27T23:02:00.000-07:00

Hey Amigos,

Here is a utility from Siebel Systems that converts VBScript to eScript. After conversion it is not totally done but you should be 85% on your way.

Click on the below icon to download the converter.

Cheers!

How to kill Siebel process

2009-10-27T05:18:00.000-07:00

Hi Folks,

Here is an Interesting tip shared by my Colleague Venus Hindocha about how to kill your Siebel.exe Process by avoiding the hassle of going to task manager and killing it there.

you can use the foll command from Start -> Run or put it in a batch file

taskkill /F /IM siebel.exe

Some theory:

Taskkill: Ends one or more tasks or processes. Processes can be killed by process ID or image name.

Syntax:
taskkill [/s Computer] [/u Domain\User [/p Password]]] [/fi FilterName] [/pid ProcessID]|[/im ImageName] [/f][/t]

/f : Specifies that process(es) be forcefully terminated. This parameter is ignored for remote processes; all remote processes are forcefully terminated.

/IM (ImageName): Specifies the image name of the process to be terminated. Use the wildcard (*) to specify all image names.

More Details

What Is the Calculation Logic Behind the Conversion Function RowIdToRowIdNum?

2009-10-07T06:56:00.001-07:00

In Siebel versions 6.x and 7.x, there are several number fields such as SR Number, Agreement Number, Asset Number, and Invoice Number which have the Pre Default Value = Expr: 'RowIdToRowIdNum ([Id])'. RowIdToRowIdNum is a function used in calculated expressions. This function converts an alphanumeric ROW_ID to a unique, pure numeric ROW_ID.

The conversion is performed for digits and letters after or before the hyphen '-'. The formula used by RowIdToRowIdNum is the following:

[Last digit or letter * 36^0] + [Second to last digit or letter * 36^1] + [Third to last digit or letter * 36^2] + ...+ [Second digit or letter * 36^n-1)] + [First digit or letter * 36^n]

By design, values of letter A is 10, B is 11, C is 12 ... Y is 34, and Z is 35.

Example 1:

Take the example of ROW_ID = 1-5GYG0.

Start converting from the last digit or letter from right to left, which is 0 in this case:

0 * 36^0 = 0

Conversion of second to last digit or letter, which is 'G':

G * 36^1 = 16 * 36 = 576

Conversion of third to last digit or letter, which is 'Y':

Y * 36^2 = 34 * 36 * 36 = 44064

Conversion of second letter or digit, which is 'G':

G * 36^3 = 16 * 36 * 36 * 36 = 746496

Conversion of first digit or letter before the hyphen '-', which is '5':

5*36^4 = 5 * 36 * 36 * 36 * 36 = 8398080

Adding all the converted values right of the '-' gives 9189216:

0 + 576 + 44064 + 746496 + 8398080 = 9189216

The next character is a hyphen '-'. The letter or digit to the left of the hyphen,'1', is converted by itself:

1 * 36^0 = 1 * 1 = 1

The final converted ROW_ID is 1-9189216.

Example 2:

ROW_ID G-5GYG0

This ROW_ID is the same as the ROW_ID in example 1 with the exception of the letter to the left of the hyphen, 'G'. Using the same conversion, G-5GYG0 would be 16-9189216 where G, the letter to the left of the hyphen, gets converted to 16.

0 * 36^0 = 0 * 1 = 0
G * 36^1 = 16 * 36 = 576
Y * 36^2 = 34 * 36 * 36 = 44064
G * 36^3 = 16 * 36 * 36 * 36 = 746496
5 * 36^4 = 5 * 36 * 36 * 36 * 36 = 8398080
Adding all the converted values right of the hyphen = 9189216

The final converted ROW-ID is 16-9189216.

Example 3:

ROW_ID = 1-IB79I

Using the same conversion, 1-IB79I would be 1-30755718 where '1', the digit to the left of the hyphen, gets converted to 1.

I * 36^0 = 18 * 1 = 18
9 * 36^1 = 9 * 36 = 324
7 * 36^2 = 7 * 36 * 36 = 9072
B * 36^3 = 11 * 36 * 36 * 36 = 513216
I * 36^4 = 18 * 36 * 36 * 36 * 36 = 30233088
Adding all the converted values right of the hyphen = 30755718

The final converted ROW_ID is 1-30755718.

Have a nice day!

What Is Row Id?

2009-10-07T06:43:00.000-07:00

The unique identifier associated with every record in a Siebel Enterprise database is known as a Row Id. The column in which this value is found is ROW_ID and it is present on every table. The Row Id is unique for an entity. For example, the Row Ids for the same person in S_PARTY, S_CONTACT, and S_CONTACT_X are the same because they each refer to the same person.

Row Ids are used extensively throughout Siebel Enterprises to access specific records. Although users access records by a User Primary Key such as Opportunity Name, it is more efficient for the Siebel Enterprise to store and access related data via the Row Id.

The Row Id is a base-36 sequence number generated using a confidential, proprietary algorithm that ensures no duplication, thus protecting the referential integrity of the database. The ROW_ID column is VARCHAR(15), which may contain one or two non-numeric symbols (plus signs or hyphens, or both).

The format of the Row Id is one of the following:

CP-NS - Records created through the user interface
CP+NP+NS - Records created by Interface Manager (EIM)
CP-NP-NS - Records created by EIM (Starting in Siebel versions 6.2 and higher, and Siebel version 7)

Where:

CP = Corporate Prefix, up to 2 alphanumeric characters
NP = Next Prefix, up to 6 alphanumeric characters
NS = Next Suffix, up to 7 alphanumeric characters

The maximum length of the Row Id is 15 alphanumeric characters.

The corporate prefix will always be unique for any database (main or local). The server maintains its original value, and mobile databases created against that particular server database are always assigned a new, unique value.

All connected users share the same Next Prefix (NP), which is obtained from the table S_SSA_ID on the server database. Remote users are each assigned a unique prefix during extraction, which is also stored in the S_SSA_ID table, but on the local database.

Next Suffix (NS) is the heart of the Row Id and is generated with a proprietary algorithm. When a new record is created through the user interface, the Siebel application reads the value of the current NS column from S_SSA_ID table and increments this value by a value more than 1, for performance reasons. In Siebel applications version 7.5.3 and earlier, this value is generally incremented by 50. Starting in Siebel 7.7, the value is generally incremented by 1000. The client caches these potential Row Ids for future inserts. A new record entered from the user interface may result in many inserts to the underlying tables, depending on the business components used. When the client disconnects, cached Row Ids are lost.

In Siebel applications version 7.5.2 and earlier, the caching of Row Ids occurred on individual Application Object Manager (AOM) tasks. In Siebel applications version 7.5.3 and later, Row Id caching occurs on the AOM process itself. This change reduced the potential for contention issues on the S_SSA_ID table.

NOTE: If the client is in a database transaction when it needs to create a new Row Id, the object manager updates the S_SSA_ID table in a separate transaction and commits the transaction immediately.

NOTE: The logical schema reports the ROW_ID column as a VARCHAR, as does the physical schema.

Pre-Default and Post Default properties

2009-10-07T01:35:00.000-07:00

Pre-Default and Post Default are two important field user properties available to us.

Both properties have same purpose of assigning a Default value to a field in case user doesn’t provide any value. What is important to remember is that these values only take effect if user doesn’t provide any value.

Pre-Default value takes effect in case New Record and Copy Record event (In case copy record only if value of field is blank at the time of copy record)

Post-Default value takes effect when we save the record for the first time after its creation and the field value is blank. In Subsequent updates Post Default value doesn’t take effect.

Post-Default Values can are very commonly used to save the user's time by auto-populating fields.

Example of how these two properties work:

We will assume the following values have been given for Pre-Default and Post-Default properties of Status Field

Pre-Default Value: “Open”
Post-Default Value: “Closed”

Following are the scenarios which can take place:

User creates a New Record and saves the record without changing value of status field:
Pre-Default value (Open) will be assigned to Status field.

User creates a New Record and changes the value of Status field to “Transferred”
Pre-Default value is going to take effect as soon as user creates a new record but Post-Default value will not take effect.

User creates a New Record and changes the value of Status field to blank
Post Default Value (”Closed”) will take effect

User copies an existing record where value of status field is “Transferred”
Neither Post-Default nor Pre-Default will take effect

User copies an existing record where value of status field is blank
Pre-Default (”Open”) Value will take effect

User copies an existing record and makes the value of the field as blank
Post-Default Value (”Closed”) will take effect

User changes the value of existing record to blank and saves the record.
Neither Post-Default nor Pre-Default will take effect as these values only takes when the record is initially created and saved.

Example: Automating population of fields.

Requirment: In Service Requests when the user creates a new record the status should be set to 'Open' automatically.

here is one way of doing it...

Step1: Create a calculated field for setting Default Status

Name: Default Status
Calculated Value: LookupValue("SR_STATUS","Open")
SR_STATUS is the Type Value of the picklist.

Step 2: Assuming there is a field called Status. just add the following to Pre-Default property of the Status field

Pre-Default value: Field: "Default Status" (the calculated field we just created)

Now when you create a new SR record, the status will default to Open

Have a nice day!

Expose hidden objects in Siebel tools

2009-09-21T03:47:00.001-07:00

Here is an interesting tip,

The tools.cfg file has a parameter called ClientConfigurationMode = Web by Default if this parameter is set to All i.e ClientConfigurationMode = All. Siebel exposes its hidden objects in tools.

For example:

1. When creating an applet thorugh the Applet wizard. The below page will appear if the value in the tools cfg file is set to All

2. Right click on any Object that can be scripted. The options in the menu are more that what you would see otherwise.

When the user clicks on Edit Scripts, the Script editor shows a whole new range of eventmethods which were hidded.

[Update]

Notice the two extra tabs that show up in the View -> Options

one is the Applet designer where you can edit the size of your applet and the other one in a Runtime tab which shows the runtime parameters that are being passed.

There are still more objects and features that are exposed by setting this parameter to All and yet to be explored by me :)

- Have a nice day

Unable to initialize the Upgrade Wizard

2009-09-21T02:55:00.000-07:00

Unable to initialize the Upgrade Wizard

Many times when we extract new mobile user on server and user tries to sync with server then user receives a error saying that “Unable to initialize the Upgrade Wizard. Please check the upgrade wizard log file for errors”.
This happens due to premature cancellation of sync with server. To get rid of this we need to remove two files from tools installation folder in C drive. Just search for *.ucf files from tools folder and rename them and sync again..Hope you would be able to sync now.
Still If you are not able to sync then check the log files starting with “syncthrd*” within Log folder (within tools folder) to identify exact cause.