Less maps required equals less time and money spent.
ECMap Project and Map definition allows you to group related information together. This forms the baseline for sharing information and logic across projects and maps. The design of ECMap is oriented towards minimizing the number of maps created - a map can serve multiple trading partner relationships.
The bottom line is that development costs are reduced and maintenance costs are lowered as well.
Setting up your mapping environment involves:
Setting up a project
To set up a project, you must provide a project name and a directory path for grouping your maps. Optionally, you may also provide a description of the project and the name and telephone number of a contact person. In this tutorial, name your project Upgrades Division and place your mapping information in the directory c:\upgrades\maps.
Select Project on the toolbar or Workspace. The Projects window displays.
From the File menu on the Projects window, select New. From the New submenu, select Project. The New Project window displays.
Type Upgrades Division in the Project Name text box.
Project Description is an optional field.
Type c:\upgrades\maps in the Directory text box. You can also Browse for the directory if it already exists.
Contact is an optional field.
Phone Number is an optional field.
Select OK to return to the Projects window.
Setting up a map
Sybase maintains a comprehensive set of Standards, which are shipped to you with your ECMap installation CD. This includes X12 standards associated with the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), UN/EDIFACT, and HL7 (Health Level 7). Our Annual Upgrade Subscription provides updates to these standards within 30 days of the issue of a change by DISA, the Data Interchange Standards Association.
To create an X12 map, you assign a name to the map and associate that name with attributes, including a list of directories. You must first define the type of map as X12, then specify:
The X12 transaction set used in the map
The direction of the map - OUT writes an X12 file and IN reads an X12 file
The version of the X12 standard used in the map
The size of the date in the EDI functional group envelope
The Y2K windowing year
The directories in which map-related information is located
The directory in which the ECMap standards are located
If you are using an ODBC database for either your trading partner or log database, you must also set up the DSNs (Data Source Names) to connect the databases that contain trading partner and/or log information to this map
Optionally, you may also provide a description of the map.
With Upgrades Division highlighted on the Project window, select New from the File menu and Map from the New submenu. The New Map Definition window displays. It has three tabs – Map Properties, Map Directories, and Map DSN. Enter the required information on each tab before you select OK at the bottom of the window.
On the map properties tab:
ECMap automatically populates the Map/Project text box with the name of the project – Upgrades Division.
In the Map/Map text box, type OUTPO1.
From the Map/MapType drop-down list, select X12.
In the Options/Transaction text box, type 850.
From the Options/Direction drop-down list, select OUT.
From the Options/Version drop-down list, select 004010.
In the Options/8 Digit Date in X12 Envelope text box, accept the default entry Y.
ECMap makes it easy to ensure that your data is Y2K compliant.
You simply define a specific year as your “Century Minimum”.
All 6-digit dates with years beginning at this year are assumed
to be in the current century, while all dates with prior years are
assumed to be in the next century. ECMap then automatically converts
all 6-digit dates to 8-digit dates for you.
Options/Description is an optional field.
On the map directories tab:
Projects and maps can be stored in the directory structure of your choice. This allows for extreme flexibility for both map development and map management in the operations environment.
To change multiple directories at one time, set the protection status of each directory you want to change to Change and make sure that all others are set to Protect. Select Change All to browse for a new directory, to which all unprotected directories are changed.
Select the Map Directories tab to make it active.
ECMap automatically populates all of the directory text boxes except the EDI Standard Tables directory, in the format c:\<project directory path>\<map name>. The directory entries for this example appear as follows:
c:\upgrades\maps\OUTPO1
For this example, accept these directories. However, ECMap gives you the option to change the default entries, and it makes changing them a very easy process. You can manually change them one at a time, or you can use the Change All button in combination with the Change/Protect buttons to change multiple unprotected directories at once. The protection status does not affect manual changes.
Rather than manually entering the EDI Standard Tables directory, browse for it. First, select the Invert button to change the protection status of all the map directories. This causes all the directories except the standards directory to be protected. (Originally, only the standards directory was protected and all of the map directories were unprotected.) Then, select Change All and the Select a Directory… window displays. Find and double-click the following standards directory:
c:\Program Files\Sybase\Standards\4010
Since you are allowed to browse for unprotected directories only,
the Invert button is a handy feature that allows you to change a protected
directory to unprotected, browse for and select a new directory,
and then change the status back to protected by selecting the Invert
button again. This is particularly useful when you want to browse
for the standards directory.
Select OK and the directory path is automatically entered in the EDI Standard Tables directory text box. Select Invert again to change the protection status back to its original configuration.
On the map DSN tab:
Enter information on the Map DSN tab only if you are using ODBC databases. Since we are not using ODBC databases in this tutorial, do not enter information on this tab.
Select OK to return to the Map - Upgrades Division window.
Making your new map the current active map
Each time you start ECMap, it “remembers” the last map you used and automatically opens it for you. You now make the project and map “current” by highlighting the map you just defined (OUTPO1) on the Map – Upgrades Division window and double-clicking on it. You return to the main ECMap window and the “current” map information displays in the status bar at the bottom of the window.
Entering your company
information
ECMap is designed to support environments with a large number of trading partners and transactions. For third-party service organizations, business-to-business applications, and networks, ECMap allows a company to maintain multiple company profiles.
The Company ID information identifies your company to the outside world. The Interchange Qualifier and Code you enter for your company are used in the ISA envelope to route your messages through the chain of networks to their final destination.
Select Company on the toolbar or Workspace. The Company ID window displays.
From the File menu on the Company ID window, select New. The Company ID – New window displays.
In the Company section at the top of the window:
Type 1 in the Profile Number text box.
The record number field allows a company to have multiple values to identify itself to the outside world.
Type Computer Services, Inc. in the Name text box.
In the section labeled Outbound Sender Default Envelope Values:
The default value for the Interchange:Qualifier is 01.
The associated Interchange/Description is D-U-N-S Number, Dun & Bradstreet. (Each qualifier has an associated description, which is used to automatically populate the Interchange/Description text box when you enter a qualifier.)
This value is placed in the ISA 05 data element of the X12 Interchange envelope.
In the Interchange/Code text box, enter 033459876.
This value is placed in the ISA 06 data element of the X12 Interchange envelope.
The Interchange Internal ID and the Interchange Internal Sub-ID are used only for EDIFACT maps. Since you are creating an X12 map, you do not enter these values.
In the Group: Code text box, type 033459876.
This value is placed in the GS 02 data element of the X12 Functional Group envelope.
The Group: Qualifier is not required for X12 maps. Accept the default entries for Authorization: Qualifier, Description, and Code and for Security: Qualifier, Description, and Code.
Select OK to return to the Company ID window. From the File menu on the Company ID window, select Close to return to the main ECMap window.
Defining your trading
partner and creating a trade agreement
Trading Partner management allows for support of multiple trading partners and trade agreements. A trade agreement defines the business transactions that your company is exchanging with your trading partners. The trade agreement also sets up the default X12 version, test/production status, and map flow direction to establish a baseline for “unattended” data translation. This gives ECMap the capability of switching maps while running, as it detects the parameters defined by the trade agreement and automatically invokes the correct map.
When you define your trading partner, you link the trading partner’s EDI address with the value used by application system to represent the trading partner. When you create a trade agreement, you link your trading partner to a map so the proper map is executed.
Select Trading Partners on the toolbar or Workspace. The Trading Partners window displays.
From the File menu on the Trading Partners window, select New.
The Trading Partner – New window displays. It has four tabs – General, Contacts, Envelope/Lookup, and Delimiter/Terminator. Enter the required information on each tab before you select OK at the bottom of the window.
On the general tab:
In the Trading Partner section at the top of the window:
Type 24680 in
the Internal ID text box.
This is the value used by your company’s application to identify the trading partner.
Type Memory Plus in
the Name text box.
Type Memory Plus in
the Mailbox Name text box.
Mailboxing is integrated with EC Gateway Server and further supports a lights-out “unattended” environment. Mailboxing is supported by trading partner and by specific transaction type for a trading partner. It is also supported by communications channel if you use EC Gateway Server.
For the entry in the Mailbox Folder text box, you can either Browse for it on the Select a Directory … window or type c:\Program Files\Sybase\ECMap\maps\data\OUT.
(The mailbox is the directory where the data is placed for transmission to and receipt from the trading partner.)
The information in the View/Modify Interchange Control Number section is rarely changed. Do not make any modifications to the numbers displayed.
Copy this Trading Partner’s data when “Copy Tables” utility is used is an optional feature, which you do not use in this exercise.
ECMap has a utility that lets you copy ODBC trading partner databases – with the option to copy all databases or only those with this Export check box checked.
On the contacts tab:
All of the information on the Contacts tab is optional.
The qualifier value is placed in the ISA 07 data element of the X12 interchange envelope. The code is placed in the ISA 08 data element.
On the envelope/lookup tab:
In the top section of the window labeled Outbound Receiver Default Envelope Values/Inbound Lookup Values:
The default value for the Interchange: Qualifier is 01 with D-U-N-S Number, Dun & Bradstreet as the associated Description.
In the Interchange:Code text box, type 024509876.
The Interchange Internal ID and the Interchange Internal Sub-ID are used only for EDIFACT maps.
Since you are creating an X12 map, you do not enter these values.
In the Group text box row, Code field, type 024509876.
This value is placed in the GS 03 data element of the X12 functional group envelope.
The Group: Qualifier is not required for X12 maps. Accept the default entries for Authorization: Qualifier, Description, and Code and for Security: Qualifier, Description, and Code.
In the bottom section of the window labeled Outbound Sender Override Envelope Values/Inbound Lookup Values:
Do not enter any information in this section for this exercise.
On the delimiters/terminators tab:
All of the information on the Delimiters tab is optional.
You can override the standard values for segment, element, and subelement separators and for release characters.
Select OK to return to the Trading Partners window.
Creating a trade agreement
ECMap trade agreement profiles establish an environment for “unattended” map translation, regardless of trading partner and trading partner versions. Using trade agreements, ECMap can automatically switch maps while it is running, as it detects changes in trading partners and transactions.
From the File menu on the Trading Partners window, select Trade Agreements . . .
The Trade Agreements with Trade Partner: Memory Plus window displays.
Trading partners may use different EDI versions of the
transaction sets that are sent and/or received and therefore
may require different maps.
From the File menu on the Trade Agreements with Trade Partner: Memory Plus window, select Add Map.
A trade agreement is created linking the current map with the trading partner, and the map information for the current map is used to populate the window – Transaction, Purpose, Status, Version, and Map.
From the File menu on the Trade Agreements with Trade Partner: Memory Plus window, select Close to return to the Trading Partners window.
From the File menu on the Trading Partners window, select Close to return to the main ECMap window.
