Freely programmed search help in Webdynpro

ABAP
Freely programmed search help is one of the options to associate the search help with any input field of
your webdynpro ABAP screen. This allows to open a webdynpro component as F4 operation result from
parent component. It means a complete WD component appears as F4 help screen.
How to use a webdynpro component as a search help to an attribute in other webdynpro
component ?
One pre-requisite for the webdynpro component to be used as search help is that it should implement
the webdynpro component interface: IWD_VALUE_HELP. By the time we are implementing the
interface an window will be created in our component with the name WD_VALUE_HELP. We need to
embed the View of our component to window WD_VALUE_HELP so that our view will be displayed as
search help when the user triggers the F4. Later on this component created for providing search help
can be added as a used component and its component usage can be assigned to the attribute for which
search help type is assigned as freely programmed search help.
When the User selects a particular value and clicks on ok button the user selected value has to be
written in the input field from where the F4 help is called. The interface IWD_VALUE_HELP consists of
two key attributes called F4_CONTEXT_ELEMENT and F4_ATTRIBUTE_INFO. This attribute
F4_ATTRIBUTE_INFO consist of information on attribute from where the F4 help is triggered and the
attribute F4_CONTEXT_ELEMENT consist element object reference for the attribute from where the
input help is triggered. Using these information in the attribute we can transport the user selected value
to the attribute from where the F4 help is called.

Let us see a simple scenario that implements the freely programmed search help for field MATNR.
Step-1: Design a webdynpro component : ZMSR_SEARCHHELP that includes the logic for search help for
MATNR field.
Step-2: Use the component created in step-1 in another webdynpro component: ZMSR_SH_CONSUMER
to provide search help for one of its component MATNR. Create an application for component
ZMSR_SH_CONSUMER and test this.




Below are the Steps to create an example scenario for Search help on MATNR field:
Step 1: Go to the TCode SE80 and create a webdynpro component ZMSR_SEARCHHELP

Assign the component to the package or save it in the local object.
Step 2: Add the interface IWD_VALUE_HELP to the component and re-implement the interface.


Step 3: After re-implementing the interface a window will be created in the component with the name
WD_VALUE_HELP. Main view created at the time of creation of component will be embedded in the
default window created at the time of creation of component. For our main view to be displayed as the
f4 help it need to be embedded to the window WD_VALUE_HELP.







Step 4: Create an attribute value_help_listener in the attributes of the component controller to
get the object reference of the search help.

SET_VALUE_HELP_LISTENER is the method that will import the object reference of the search help
interface. Write the following code inside the method.

Step 5: Go to the context tab of the view controller and create a context node MARA with
cardinality 0..N as shown below.


Step 6: Fill the values for the context node in the doinit method of the view controller.

Step 7: In the layout tab of the view controller create the table UI element and bind it to the
context node.

Step 8: Create a Button UI element Ok and create an action for it.

Step 9: In the event handler method created for the Button UI element. Write the following code to
transport the data selected from the search help component to the component from where the F4 help
is being triggered.


method ONACTIONOK .
DATA : LO_LISTENER TYPE REF TO IF_WD_VALUE_HELP_LISTENER,
LV_NAME TYPE STRING,
LO_ND_MARA TYPE REF TO IF_WD_CONTEXT_NODE,
LO_EL_MARA TYPE REF TO IF_WD_CONTEXT_ELEMENT,
LS_MARA TYPE WD_THIS->ELEMENT_MARA.
* Getting the lead selected record
LO_ND_MARA = WD_CONTEXT->GET_CHILD_NODE( NAME = WD_THIS->WDCTX_MARA ).
LO_EL_MARA = LO_ND_MARA->GET_ELEMENT( ).
LO_EL_MARA->GET_STATIC_ATTRIBUTES( IMPORTING STATIC_ATTRIBUTES = LS_MARA ).
* Getting the object reference of interface for search help
LO_LISTENER = WD_COMP_CONTROLLER->VALUE_HELP_LISTENER.
* Gives the name of the attribute from where F4 help is triggered
LV_NAME = LO_LISTENER->F4_ATTRIBUTE_INFO-NAME.
* Set the selected value in the attribute
LO_LISTENER->F4_CONTEXT_ELEMENT->SET_ATTRIBUTE( NAME = LV_NAME
VALUE = LS_MARA-MATNR ).
* Instruct to close the Pop up window
WD_COMP_CONTROLLER->VALUE_HELP_LISTENER->CLOSE_WINDOW( ).
endmethod.


Step 10 : Create component ZMSR_SH_CONSUMER in object navigator (se80) with one view V_MAIN1.
Declare the usage of component ZMSR_SEARCHHELP, created in above steps.



Step 11: Create 1 node MARA (cardinality 1:1) and 1 attribute named MATNR of type string in the
VIEWCONTROLLER. In the properties of attribute MATNR, take input help mode as freely programmed
and input help component usage as FREE_SEARCH (or whatever name you have given during defining
the component usage of ZMSR_SEARCHHELP in above step).



Map the node from component controller to view V_MAIN1 by drag and drop.



Step 12: Create one InputField UIElement. Bind the input UIElements value property with attribute
MATNR.



Step 13: Create the application for ZMSR_SH_CONSUMER component and test it. The browser screen
looks like:


Output

Press F4 on the above input field. Below screen will appear.

The selected value Is passed to the attribute.