MultiClassification

Contents

  1. MultiClassification
  2. Requirements
  3. Solution
  4. Issues
    1. Detail
    2. New/Update
    3. Search
    4. List
  5. Implementation Notes
    1. Meta Generation
    2. HTML Generation
    3. Data Values
    4. Cascading Select Java Script
      1. Current Status (2009-12-01)
      2. Javascript Entry points
        1. Initialization
        2. Run-Time Entry Points
      3. cascadingSelect.js Classes

Requirements

Solution

Separate Classifications records are used for every classification which is set. No empty records used, a document has as many Classifications records as many classifications are set.

Issues

  1. How to handle auto-classification from the drawing code? E.g. do you create a new (additional) classification, or (all?) replace
    • existing classifications?

Detail

No problems determined until now. A smarty loop goes through all Classifications records to display them line to line.

New/Update

For every aspects defined in table Aspects at least one line appears even if it is empty. At the right side of all line there is a new button to open additional line for entering classification in the same aspect, and a delete button to remove that classification. If there is no more classification in an aspect (after deleting the last one) an empty line appears.

aspect X

code

AX_L1_0

AX_L2_0

...

from - to

new/delete

code

AX_L1_1

AX_L2_1

...

from - to

new/delete

Searching is a performance issue. Because of all Classifications are different records a large joins could be used to perform searching, which can be very slow. The following optimization steps will be implemented:

  1. determine first the number of Classifications records involved in one aspect value search

  2. perform a nested select with the smallest records set in the inner most level to limit the involved records to the minimum. The result should be saved into a temp table in the database. This temp table should be deleted at every new search or list.

  3. read DrawingsRevisionsJoinSet with the id set got from the select above

E.g.: assumed that we are looking for documents with aspect codes 22, 345 and 42, the steps above: 

 1. select code, count(*) from Classifications where code in ( '22', '345', '42' ) order by 2;

 +------+----------+
 | code | count(*) |
 +------+----------+
 |  345 |       10 |
 |   42 |      234 |
 |   22 |     1410 |
 +------+----------+

 2. select objectId from Classifications where objectTypeId = ... and code = '22' and object Id in (
      select objectId from Classifications where objectTypeId = ... and code = '42' and object Id in (
        select objectId from Classifications where objectTypeId = ... and code = '345'
      )
    )

List

Displaying of classifications in a document list is also a performance issue. To be able to display classification information quickly a static database table will be used to store some information about classified documents:

AspectCache Table

Object Id

Object Type

aspect 0

...

aspect 9

min code

max code

full code

hoverText

count

from

to

...

min code

max code

full code

hoverText

count

from

to

There is one record for one object (Drawing, Task). The field full code is a comma separated list of all aspect values in the appropriate aspect assigned to the object. On a document list with classifications the min code, max code can appear according the sorting order. On a non-sorted list the full code can appear or it can be a site setting parameter.

Issue

The AspectCache table can be updated:

  1. database procedures on regularly basis (cron?)
  2. fired by triggers on the tables Drawings, Comments and Classifications
  3. by application transactions

Listing Multiple Classification Values

Three cases are possible:

  1. One classification, with a single from-to pair (E.g. one chainage range on a single alignment)

    • Display: Code x->y -- or code only, with no values?

    • Hover: Name x->y

  2. Multiple classifications on same classification, with different from-to pairs (e.g. multiple chainage ranges on a single alignment)

    • Display: Code min-x -> max-y...

    • Hover: Name min-x -> max-y (multiple)

  3. Multiple classifications on different classification, with different from-to pairs (e.g. multiple chainage ranges on multiple alignments)

    • Display: Code-mix, Code-max... -- Or can we display something more sensible?

    • Hover: Name-min, Nam-max...(multiple)

We don't need to make a decision now, as the display only changes the update that fills the aspect cache table.

Implementation Notes

Meta Generation

  1. Javascript core stored at: app/js/cascadingSelect.js, which is installed in pub/js (by app/install/setup.sh)

  2. Implemented in lib/meta/aspect, which calls: app/model/AspectValuesSet->generateJavascript( $jsPath, $phpPath )

  3. Generates file: var/{site}/{instance}/config/AspectConfig.php - defines the max number of levels in each classification aspect.

  4. Generates files: pub/asp_cfg_{aspectId}.js - Calls to cascadingSelect.js with classification codes/names.

HTML Generation

Generation of the form HTML is performed by the custom Smarty tag: html_aspect_select, implemented in:

HTML input fields names (output by html_aspect_select):

Generates the following for a single level aspect (example for aspectId=3):

Generates the follow for a two-level select (for aspectId=2):

Note that the numbering in the HTML is +1, compared to the aspectId value.

Data Values

Data values are optional text entry fields that are associated an the aspect value. En example usage is for alignments with chainages, where you could have an aspect consisting of a series of alignments with from/to values representing chainage ranges.

  1. Display of data value fields is controlled by two fields:

    1. AspectValues.dataTypeId - Controls is from/tofields are generated.

    2. AspectValues.fromToFlag - Controls if a to HTML text entry field is generated.

  2. AspectValues.dataTypeId is a foreign key to ClassificationDataTypeRef.dataTypeId

The following data types are available:

Cascading Select Java Script

Current Status (2009-12-01)

Sample test code that implements from/to values: cselect7-20091201.tgz

List of files changed (check-in of 2009-12-01) for implementation of from/to fields:

Use this list if there is a major error and you need to do a roll-back.

  1. app/js/cascadingSelect.js
  2. app/model/AspectRefSet.php
  3. app/model/AspectValuesSet.php
  4. lib/smarty/plugins/function.html_aspect_select.php

Status:

  1. Simple testing with recent MET production data (which doesn't have any from/to classifications configured, appears to work.
    • Able to save/update documents using the existing classifications
    • Tested a simple from/to case (by patching the configuration, on code '17-C-02': 
      update AspectValues set dataTypeId=2, fromToFlag=1 where levelCode='002_008_001';

  2. Input field capture and validation is not performed at all. Meaning you lose the from/to value when you press Next.

Suggested Future testing:

  1. Check three or four level classifications
  2. Check three level classifications where the first two levels have from/to fields as well. And make sure the values at the different levels do not get mixed up.

Next Steps:

  1. Decide how to perform validation (based on the dataTypeId) and how to report validation errors. Ideally the validation should be performed directly in the Javascript (but that is probably a big job).

Javascript Entry points

Initialization

Initialization - Is performed in the generated Javascript code files pub/asp_cfg_{aspeciId}.js

  1. For each aspect there is a separate generated file which initializes a set of menus that defines the

    • entire classification tree for that aspect.

  2. new selectSet( formName, aspectId, unselectedText, debugFlag )

    • formName: HTML form name
    • aspectId: aspectId from database

    • unselectText: Text for the unselected option, typically - Select -

    • debugFlag: set to true to enable debug popups, and display of hidden fields.

  3. new Menu( classId, selectSet, level )

    • classId - a unique id over the entire selectSet
    • selectSet - the select set to which this menu belongs
    • level - the cascade level (0=top level, 1=next level, ..)

  4. addItem( valueId, dataTypeId, fromToFlag, levelCode, code, label, subMenu )

    • valueId

    • dataTypeId - from AspectValues.dataTypeId

    • fromToFlag - from AspectValues.fromToFlag

    • levelCode - from AspectValues.levelCode

    • code - The code value displayed in the select menu (don't think that this is actually used!)

    • label - the label text, which normally includes the code value (e.g. 'CODE - Label Text')
    • subMenu - set to the Menu of the sub-menu, if this item has a sub-menu (optional)

Run-Time Entry Points

  1. SelectSet.init() - called when the screen is first displayed, and when the code field is changed. Sets the select states and display of from/to fields based on the text value in the code field.

  2. onchange='SelectSet.update( this ) - Called when a select menu is changed, the this parameter points to the HTML select element. Displays/hides (all) select inputs and from/to fields based on the select that was changed.

cascadingSelect.js Classes

  1. MenuItem - Implements a single menu item

  2. Menu - Implements a set of MenuItems

  3. Select - Implements an HTML select, includes a set of Menus (in the items variable)

  4. SelectSet - Implements a set of Selects, e.g. a complete cascading select for a single aspect.

Functions are named using the convention {className}_{functionName}, e.g. SelectSet_init or Menu_addItem.

MultiClassification (last edited 2009-12-01 18:16:03 by softxs)

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