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An Introduction to Direct To Web

Direct to Web is a Java-based technology that provides a quick and easy method to create a web application that accesses a database. It lets you experiment and prototype, while also allowing you the flexibility to access the full power of WebObjects.

There are several stages you can go through, depending on your needs:

• First, you create a WebObjects project and specify a model to use. Direct to Web uses the model, which defines the mapping between your database and enterprise object classes, to generate an application that provides an interface to your database. This application consists of a set of pages that allow you to do queries on the entities in your database, display results, and add and delete records.

  A complete model file that correctly defines all the relationships is the key to creating a WebObjects application with Direct to Web.

• To change the way the pages are presented, you can use the WebAssistant, which is a Java applet that runs in your web browser. For each page in your application, the WebAssistant allows you to specify which page is shown, which properties are shown on the page, how these properties are displayed, and the order in which they are listed. You can experiment with different configurations until you are satisfied, without writing any code.

• If you want to customize beyond what the WebAssistant provides, you can “freeze” any or all of the pages in your application as WebObjects components. This gives you the full power of WebObjects: you can modify a component’s layout using WebObjects Builder, and you can customize its behavior by writing Java code using Project Builder.

• You can also modify the templates that Direct to Web uses to generate its pages. These templates are WebObjects components that you can edit with WebObjects Builder. This way you can modify the “look” or style of the pages that Direct to Web generates.

You can also use Direct to Web in other types of WebObjects applications. Your application can take two approaches:

• embedding Direct to Web components in your pages; these include query forms, lists, or edit/inspect forms

• linking to dynamically generated Direct to Web pages

This chapter describes the elements that make up a Direct to Web application and shows you the steps you follow when creating and modifying an application. If you find that your application needs some specific behavior that Direct to Web does not provide, see “Customizing a Direct to Web Application.” For more information on using Project Builder, see Project Builder Help. For more information about using Project Builder and WebObjects Builder to develop WebObjects applications, see Developing Web Applications. For more information about using WebObjects with database applications, see Enterprise Objects as well as Using EOModeler.

Contents:

Creating a Direct to Web Project
The Structure of a Direct to Web Project
Using Your Direct to Web Application
Customizing Your Application With the WebAssistant
Running the WebAssistant With appletviewer
WebAssistant Overview
Restricting Access to Entities
Customizing Pages
Setting Which Properties are Displayed
Changing How Properties Are Displayed
WebAssistant Expert Mode
Generating Components
User Templates

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