Add user parameters

You can add user parameters to the Generate Output dialog.

1. Open the preprocessors.xml file that contains %OutputGenDir%/conf/client/preprocessors.xml.
2. Under the <system> element for the preprocessor, create a <user> element.
   To add user parameters for the dita2pdf.custom output type, locate the dita2pdf.custom preprocessor in the preprocessors.xml file and add a <user> element.

   <preprocessor 
         name="dita2pdf.custom" 
         class="com.ixiasoft.outputgenerator.preprocessor.AntProcessor">
      <parameters>
         <system>
            <parameter name="buildfile" value="/conductor-client.xml" />  
            <parameter name="target" value="dita2pdfwrapper" />
            <parameter name="clean" value="job_postprocess" /> 
         </system>  
         <user>
            <!-- Enter user parameters here -->
         </user>    
      </parameters>
   </preprocessor> 

3. Under the <user> element, create a <parameter> element for the parameter you want to define.

   The <parameter> element has the following structure:

   <user>
      <parameter label="param_label" name="param_name" mandatory="true|false" 
                 type="param_type" format="param_format" tooltip="param_tooltip"/>
   </user>

   The following table describes the <parameter> attributes:

   Table 1. Parameter attributes

   Attribute/ Element	Description	Values
   label	Label displayed in the Generate Output dialog	Any sequence of characters Note: Optional attribute. If you do not specify the label, the value of the name attribute displays in the dialog.
   name	Parameter name passed to the Ant conductor file during output generation	Any sequence of characters, without spaces Note: Parameter is accessed in the Ant conductor file: outgen.job.userparam.name
   mandatory	Determines whether users must enter a value for this parameter during output generation	Parameter either set to false or true false does not require users to enter a value true disables the Create button until the user specifies a value for all mandatory parameters
   type	Parameter value type can be one of the following:
   	list	Lists options and includes checkboxes. Specify the options with the <value> element.
   	choice	Lists options and includes combo box. Specify the options with the <value> element.
   	string	Accepts any string in a text parameter.
   	date	Lists date, with the default current date. For dates, you also need to specify the format attribute.
   	integer	Provides user ability to enter an integer.
   	index-list	Lists options and includes checkboxes, based on the content of the index. The name attribute must match an index in the Index Definition document. This can be useful to generate options dynamically, without having to hard code them in the preprocessors file.
   	index-choice	Lists options and includes combo box, based on the content of the index. The name attribute must match an index in the Index Definition document. This can be useful to generate options dynamically, without having to hard code them in the preprocessors file.
   format	For date parameters, this attribute is mandatory and specifies the format of dates entered by users. For other parameters, this attribute is optional and validates that the value entered by users corresponds to a specific pattern.	Lists date parameters in a format as follows: format="yyyy-MM-dd": 2001-07-04 format="MMM d, yyyy": Jul 4, 2001 format="d MMM yyyy": 4 Jul 2001 The entered value must correspond to the Java data format. For other parameters, enter a regular expression; for example, the following format would accept input such as 2.3.009: format="[0-9][.][0-9][.][0-9]{3}"
   tooltip	Tool tip displayed when the user moves the mouse pointer over the field in the Generate Output dialog.	Optional parameter, allows any sequence of characters.
   <value> element	For parameters of type list and choice, you also need to create a <value> element to specify the options in the Generate Output dialog, as follows: <parameter label="Available to:" name="classification" mandatory="true" type="choice"> <value name="Public" _default="true">Public</value> <value name="Partner">Partner Only</value> <value name="Internal>Acme Internal</value> </parameter> where: name is the value of the parameter that is passed to the Ant conductor file when the output is generated. _default="true" designates the default selection. If you do not specify a default selection in a choice type, the first <value> element in the list is used as default. The string entered as the content of the <value> elements displays in the Generate Output dialog.

   The following code shows the user parameter definition used to display a sample Generate Output dialog.

   <user>
      <parameter label="Document Identifier" name="doc.id" mandatory="true" 
                 type="string"/>
      <parameter label="Available to:" name="classification" mandatory="true" 
                 type="choice">
         <value name="Public" _default="true">Public</value>
         <value name="Partner">Partner Only</value>
         <value name="Internal">Acme Internal</value>
      </parameter>
      <parameter label="Publication Date" name="doc.pubdate" mandatory="true" 
                 type="date" format="YYYY-MM-DD"/>
   </user>    

4. When you are done, save and close preprocessors.xml.
5. Restart the CCMS Output Generator service to apply your changes.
   The Generate Output dialog now includes the user parameters you provided.
6. Optional: Add any additional parameters by repeating the process.
   Sample additional parameters

   <user>
      <-- Example of a string parameter -->
      <parameter label="Sample text field" name="text.field" mandatory="false" 
                 type="string"/>
   
      <-- Example of an integer parameter -->
      <parameter label="Sample integer field" name="integer.field" 
                 mandatory="false" type="integer"/>
   
      <-- Example of text field with validation -->
      <parameter label="Sample text field with validation" name="text.field2" 
                 mandatory="false" type="string" 
                 format="[0-9]*[.][0-9]*[.][0-9]{3}" tooltip="2.3.009"/>
   
      <-- Example of date field -->   
      <parameter label="Sample date" name="date" mandatory="false" type="date" 
                 format="yyyy-MM-dd" tooltip="Format is yyyy-mm-dd"/>
   
      <-- Example of sample list --> 
      <parameter label="Sample list" name="list" mandatory="false" type="list">
         <value name="item1">Item 1</value>
         <value name="item2">Item 2</value>
      </parameter>
   
      <-- Example of sample choice parameter --> 
      <parameter label="Sample choice" name="choice" mandatory="false" 
                 type="choice">
         <value name="value1" _default="true">Value 1</value>
         <value name="value2">Value 2</value>
      </parameter>
   
      <-- Example of sample index-list parameter -->
      <parameter label="Sample index-list (using audience)" name="audience" 
                 mandatory="false" type="index-list"/>
   
      <-- Example of sample index-choice parameter -->
      <parameter label="Sample index-choice (using platform)" name="platform" 
                 mandatory="false" type="index-choice"/>
   </user>