Connecting to a Registry

When you start up the ebxmlrr Registry Browser Java UI you will see a window that looks like Figure 2.1. This is the window you will see every time you open the browser. At this point there the browser looks very simple and, in fact, it is. There is very little you can do without being connected to a registry.

Figure 2.1 - Browser at startup

Connecting to a registry is accomplished by either choosing one from the drop down menu or manually typing in the URL of your registry in the Registry Location dialog box. If you do not have a registry set up, you may use our test registry for most sections of the tutorial. To connect to the test registry select the following URL from the drop down menu:



http://registry.csis.hku.hk:8201/ebxmlrr/registry/soap

See Figure 2.2

Figure 2.2 - Selecting a Registry

Configuration Notes:

• You can add items to the drop down menu by adding your registry URL inside the file: (User.Home)/jaxr-ebxml/registry-browser-config.xml
  
  

• You can configure the browser to automatically connect to a specified URL on startup by configuring the following property with the (User.Home)/jaxr-ebxml.properties file:
  
  jaxr-ebxml.registryBrowser.registryLocationCombo.initialSelectionIndex

You must restart the browser for the configuration changes to take effect.

Once you are connected to a registry the window will change to look like Figure 2.3

Figure 2.3 - Connected to a Registry

Toolbar

The six buttons on the tool bar that control the majority of the Registry Browser Java UI tasks are:

• Find - Use this to search the ebxml registry using the business or ad-hoc queries specified.
  
  NOTE: Business queries are mapped to ad-hoc queries under the hood.
  
  
• Classification Scheme - Use this to display the Classification Scheme instances and the Concepts within each ClassificationScheme in the ClassificationSchemes Dialog. If you are logged on, you can also create and update ClassificationSchemes and Concepts using this dialog.
  
  
• Logon - Use this to log-on as a registered user. Logging-on simply tells the the JAXR provider who you are for when you perform secure operations such as save or delete. You can also change users by logging-on again as someone else. There is currently no time-out after which the browser automatically logs you off. Auto-logoff is a feature planned for a future release.
  
  
• Logoff - Use this to log-off the currently logged-on user.
  
  
• User Registration Wizard - Use this to create a new 'user' object (as the name suggests). Fill in the fields in the dialog boxes and you will be registered as a user of the registry.
  
  
• Locale Selection - Use this to select your Locale preference. Your choice of Locale determines how the Registry Browser Java UI displays and saves localized content such as Names and Descriptions. For example if you choose the locale "English (United States)" (which is the default), you are choosing the English language as spoken in the country United States.
  
  

The buttons in the toolbar are highlighted in Figure 2.4

Figure 2.4 - Toolbar buttons

Menu Bar

In addition to the main buttons there is the main menu which contain three entries: File, View, and Help. Clicking on one the items will bring up a sub menu with options to choose from. The contents and functionality of each entity is listed below:

• File
  • Exit - Exit the browser
• View
  • Theme - Select the theme for the 'look and feel' of the browser
• Help
  • About - Displays the version of the Registry Browser Java UI

The buttons in the menu bar are highlighted in Figure 2.5

Figure 2.5 - Menu bar

Browser Modes: Read-only and Editable

At any given time the browser operates in either Read-only mode or Editable mode. You control these two modes by logging off from or on to the browser.

Read-only Mode

When you first start the browser, it is in read-only mode. In this mode you are presented with restricted capabilities and are not allowed to create, modify, or delete data in the registry. In this mode most dialogs only show a 'Cancel' button and do not show an 'OK' button. Context-sensitive popup menus (right click) do not include entries for actions such as 'Edit', 'Insert', or 'Remove'.

The browser reverts from editable mode to read-only mode whenever you log off.

Editable Mode

When you successfully log on, the browser enters editable mode. In this mode you are presented with additional capabilities and are allowed to create, modify or delete data in the registry (within the limits set by the access control policies in the registry).

Classification Schemes Dialog

The Classification Scheme Dialog displays ClassificationSchemes and Concepts within the registry. ClassificationSchemes are used to classify or categorize objects in the registry using unique Concepts defining valid values within that ClassificationScheme.

To open the Classification Scheme Dialog, click the Show Classification Scheme/ Concept Dialog Button (). A pop-up window appears with a listing of all the Classification Schemes. See Figure 2.6.

Figure 2.6 - Classification Schemes

You can now use this window to browse through all the classification schemes. If you click on a scheme that is linked to classification nodes/concepts, a little magnifying glass will appear beside the chosen scheme. Click on the magnifying glass and the classification scheme will expand showing all the linked classification nodes. You can apply this method to view subsequent classification nodes where applicable. Click on the magnifying glass again to collapse the classification schemes. See Figure 2.7.

Figure 2.7 - Expanding Classification Schemes