Chapter 3: Building Production Objects

Defining filter objects

This section describes each filter type that you can build.

Filter objects are used to alter the output of rule components, output rules, and production objects. Filter objects can validate, add to, copy, translate, transform data, or perform any other type of data manipulation you require.

A filter object can be of these types:

Table objects – add to or remove table columns from generated output.
Built-in functions – translate and modify data using predefined functions.
Custom functions – use custom code for complex or custom translations.
Datalink objects – modify global datalink variables.
Edit masks – limit the number of characters, suppress leading zeros, add a fixed or floating currency symbol, add comma and decimal separators, insert characters, display plus and minus signs, and display negative values in brackets (<>).
Database objects – modify data using user-defined SQL statements.
Production objects – send output to another nonstatic production object in another module within the current project.
DFC – make distributed function calls from within a production object.

In addition to creating filters directly from the TRAN-IDE main window (click the Filters icon, then click New), filters can also be created from a production object’s Input Field Options window, from Current Output Rule window, and from the Rule Component Information window.

Production objects input field filters Production object filters modify input transactions. These type of filters are often used to initialize datalinks, to establish destination routing, and to set transaction priority.

Production object post-production filters modify the transaction output.

Output rule filters Output rule post-production filters modify output rules, including all rule components.

Rule component filters Rule component filters modify the component’s input; post-production filters modify the rule component’s output up to and including itself.

When you create a filter during the creation of another object, the filter is automatically attached to the object you are creating, and is added to the main filter list from which you can select it to use when you create other objects.

Creating filter objects

From the main TRAN-IDE window, select View | Filter Objects or click the Filter icon to display a list of all filter objects defined in the current file.
Double-click an existing filter in the Filter Objects list to modify an existing filter, or click New below the Filter Objects list to create a new filter. The Filter Information window appears.

When filter options (for example, Pre-Filters or Post-Filters) appear in an object information window (for example, the Rule Component Information window), and you can click New to create a new filter, the same Filter Information window displays as when you access filters from the main TRAN-IDE window.

Click the button for the type of filter you want to create; for example, to create a table object filter, click Table Obj. The options on the right of the window change depending on the filter option you select. Supported filters are:

Filter type	Description
Table Obj	Compare the data in the current blob with the entries in the key column specified for the referenced table object. See “Creating table object filters”.
Built-in	Provides pre-built filters—formatting, editing, text manipulation, date and time, miscellaneous, and TDM-related (dynamic routing). See “Creating built-in filters”. For all filters, the current blob area references the data that the filter receives. Exactly what the filter receives is dependent on how and when you use it. Using built-in filters does not require programming knowledge, however, you must know the type of data you expect to process.
Custom	Provides custom filter functions—findYear_func, stuck_cust, and set_age_func, which you can append and save. See “Creating custom filters”.
Datalink	Performs the specified operation between the incoming data and the value in the specified datalink and places the result in the datalink. See “Creating datalink filters”.
Edit Mask	Runs the edit mask against the data in the current blob and replaces the data in the current blob with the result. See “Creating edit mask filters”.
Database	Executes the statement in the database interface object. See “Creating database interface filters”.
Prod Obj	Sets data links or performs alternate processing of data based on the result of qualification objects. See “Creating production object filters”.
DFC	Makes a DFC call from a production object, which avoids using ODL to make the DFC call. Use this filter to handle throughput issues. See “Creating production object filters”.

When you complete your entries, click OK to save the filter and close the window.

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