Designing Dialogs › Procedure Definition and Dialog Design › Create Procedure Steps › Specify the Type of Online Procedure Step

Specify the Type of Online Procedure Step

Using the Detail and Step Properties actions, specify which of the following options is appropriate for an online procedure step:

• with display
• no display

When an application is designed for local processing, all online procedure steps can be set to with display or no display. When no display is selected, the online procedure step sometimes is referred to as a background online transaction.

When an application is designed for client/server processing, only online client procedure steps can be set to with display. Online client and online server procedure steps can be set to no display. These guidelines reflect the characteristics of a client/server application:

• User interface is handled only by client procedure steps
• Processing can be handled by client and/or server procedure steps

Specifying whether a procedure step is executed with display affects dialog flows, exit states, and clear screen input or unformatted data.

Online procedure steps with no display:

• Are required for all server procedure steps in a client/server application.
• Permit dialog flows to and from other online procedure steps when the application is designed for local processing.
• Are the destination of link dialog flows and require the Returns On exit state.
• Cannot receive clear screen input (unformatted data) from the previous procedure step.

Online procedure steps with display:

• Are permitted for all client procedure steps in a client/server application.
• Allow dialog flows to and from all procedure steps when the application is designed for local processing.
• Permit dialog flow links from client procedures to server procedures.