Adding attributes

Question

I tried to add a string attributes (not read only) using the IFS manager (in: Developer's Tasks / Class Objects / PUBLICOBJECT). The new attribute is added to any new and existing document. But I didn't find a way to save information in the new attribute. If I choose Properties / iFS Attributes in the Windows interface, I see my new attribute, but cannot set any value. The same problem persists in the web interface.
I tried to add the attribute in the superclass PUBLICOBJECT and in the subclass DOCUMENT under "Extended attributes", but to no avail. Can someone tell me how to add an attribute to a document that can be valued?
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Answer 1

WARNING:
ADDING CUSTOM ATTRIBUTES TO THE DEFAULT CONTENT TYPES CREATED BY THE IFS INSTALLATION PROCESS IS NOT
SUPPORTED IN RELEASE 1.0.
The fact that iFS Manager makes it appear that you can do this is a known bug.
Attempting to add custom attributes to the default Content Types such as
Document and Public Object may have unforseen, negative side-effects on the
performance of the repository and iFS general, break the protocol servers or,
in some cases totally corrupt the repository.
If you have added custom attributes to these objects, please copy all the files you have placed
in the repository out to a local hard drive and then re-install the repository by running the
ifsconfig script located in $ORACLE_HOME/ifs/bin.
The correct of way of creating objects with custom content types is by
subclassing the default content types created by the installation process.
In general if you want the object to store a the contents of a file, and be visable
via the protocol servers then your new content type should subclass "Document".
If the object will not have content, and will not be visable via the protocol servers (unfoldered)
then you would subclass "Application Object". Typically, the only situation where objects
based on files have no content is when they work with a Parser which extracts all of the
information contained in the file and converts it into attributes.
In order to map a particular kind of file to a particualr kind of content type you will need to use
the ClassSelectionParser. The instructions for using this parser are in the developer's guide
For Example, assuming that I want to have a special content type for managing images.
The first thing is to create a new custom contenet type which defines the custom attributes I want to
associate with Images
EG
<CLASSOBJECT>
<NAME>SimpleImage</NAME>
<SUPERCLASS REFTYPE="name">Document</SUPERCLASS>
<DESCRIPTION>Simple Content Type for Images</DESCRIPTION>
<BEANCLASSPATH>ifs.demo.simpleTypes.simpleImage.type.SimpleImage</BEANCLASSPATH>
<SERVERCLASSPATH>ifs.demo.simpleTypes.simpleImage.type.S_SimpleImage</SERVERCLASSPATH>
<ATTRIBUTES>
<ATTRIBUTE>
<NAME>ARTIST</NAME>
<DATATYPE>String</DATATYPE>
<DATALENGTH>256</DATALENGTH>
</ATTRIBUTE>
<ATTRIBUTE>
<NAME>IMAGE_HEIGHT</NAME>
<DATATYPE>Integer</DATATYPE>
</ATTRIBUTE>
<ATTRIBUTE>
<NAME>IMAGE_WIDTH</NAME>
<DATATYPE>Integer</DATATYPE>
</ATTRIBUTE>
<ATTRIBUTE>
<NAME>IMAGE_COLOR_DEPTH</NAME>
<DATATYPE>Integer</DATATYPE>
</ATTRIBUTE>
<ATTRIBUTE>
<NAME>WEBTARGETOBJECT</NAME>
<DATATYPE>PublicObject</DATATYPE>
</ATTRIBUTE>
</ATTRIBUTES>
</CLASSOBJECT>
The next stage is to register the file extensions that I want to have stored
as instances of simple image. This is a two step process. The first step associates the
file extensions with the ClassSelectionParser. The second phase configures the
ClassSelectionParser to store the files as instances of the SimpleImage content type
<?xml version="1.0" standalone="yes"?>
<OBJECTLIST>
<PROPERTYBUNDLE>
<UPDATE RefType="valuedefault">ParserLookupByFileExtension</UPDATE>
<PROPERTIES>
<PROPERTY ACTION="add">
<NAME>tif</NAME>
<VALUE DataType="String">oracle.ifs.beans.parsers.ClassSelectionParser</VALUE>
</PROPERTY>
<PROPERTY ACTION="add">
<NAME>bmp</NAME>
<VALUE DataType="String">oracle.ifs.beans.parsers.ClassSelectionParser</VALUE>
</PROPERTY>
<PROPERTY ACTION="add">
<NAME>jpg</NAME>
<VALUE DataType="String">oracle.ifs.beans.parsers.ClassSelectionParser</VALUE>
</PROPERTY>
</PROPERTIES>
</PROPERTYBUNDLE>
<PROPERT YBUNDLE>
<UPDATE RefType="valuedefault">IFS.PARSER.ObjectTypeLookupByFileExtension</UPDATE>
<PROPERTIES>
<PROPERTY ACTION="add">
<NAME>tif</NAME>
<VALUE DataType="String">SimpleImage</VALUE>
</PROPERTY>
<PROPERTY ACTION="add">
<NAME>jpg</NAME>
<VALUE DataType="String">SimpleImage</VALUE>
</PROPERTY>
<PROPERTY ACTION="add">
<NAME>bmp</NAME>
<VALUE DataType="String">SimpleImage</VALUE>
</PROPERTY>
</PROPERTIES>
</PROPERTYBUNDLE>
</OBJECTLIST>
To answer the second part of your question. How do you set and edit the values of custom attributes.
There are a number of ways of doing this.
1. You can use an XML file which references an instance of your content type using some key that
uniquely identifies one instance of the content type. Path is one way of achieving this.
Eg the following XML file will update the attributes of a SimpleImage
object at /SampleImages/MilanDomo.jpg
<SIMPLEIMAGE>
<UPDATE reftype="path">/SampleImages/MilanDomo.jpg</UPDATE>
<DESCRIPTION>
This is Cathederal in the Center of Milan
</DESCRIPTION>
<IMAGE_HEIGHT>1024</IMAGE_HEIGHT>
<IMAGE_WIDTH>1280</IMAGE_WIDTH>
<IMAGE_COLOR_DEPTH>24</IMAGE_COLOR_DEPTH>
<ARTIST>Mark Drake</ARTIST>
</SIMPLEIMAGE>
Other ways of setting the value of custom attributes would be to create a custom JSP that would allow
a user to use the Web to set or update the values of custom attributes, or to create custom parser
that could extract the values of the attributes from the body of the document as it is inserted into
the repository
In Release 1.0 the default configuration of the property viewers associated provided by the
Windows interface and Web interface does not allow the user to edit the values of custom attributes.
Regards
Mark D. Drake
IFS Product Management