About These PeopleBooks

PeopleBooks provide you with the information that you need to implement and use PeopleSoft applications.

This preface discusses:

PeopleSoft application prerequisites.
PeopleSoft application fundamentals.
Related documentation.
Typographical conventions and visual cues.
Comments and suggestions.
Common elements in PeopleBooks.

Note. PeopleBooks document only page elements that require additional explanation. If a page element is not documented with the process or task in which it is used, then either it requires no additional explanation or it is documented with common elements for the section, chapter, PeopleBook, or product line. Elements that are common to all PeopleSoft applications are defined in this preface.

PeopleSoft Application Prerequisites

To benefit fully from the information that is covered in these books, you should have a basic understanding of how to use PeopleSoft applications.

You might also want to complete at least one PeopleSoft introductory training course.

You should be familiar with navigating the system and adding, updating, and deleting information by using PeopleSoft windows, menus, and pages. You should also be comfortable using the World Wide Web and the Microsoft Windows or Windows NT graphical user interface.

These books do not review navigation and other basics. They present the information that you need to use the system and implement your PeopleSoft applications most effectively.

PeopleSoft Application Fundamentals

Each application PeopleBook provides implementation and processing information for your PeopleSoft database. However, additional, essential information describing the setup and design of your system appears in a companion volume of documentation called the application fundamentals PeopleBook. Each PeopleSoft product line has its own version of this documentation.

The application fundamentals PeopleBook consists of important topics that apply to many or all PeopleSoft applications across a product line. Whether you are implementing a single application, some combination of applications within the product line, or the entire product line, you should be familiar with the contents of this central PeopleBook. It is the starting point for fundamentals, such as setting up control tables and administering security.

Typographical Conventions and Visual Cues

This section discusses:

Typographical conventions.
Visual cues.
Country, region, and industry identifiers.
Currency codes.

Typographical Conventions

This table contains the typographical conventions that are used in PeopleBooks:

Typographical Convention or Visual Cue	Description
Bold	Indicates PeopleCode function names, method names, language constructs, and PeopleCode reserved words that must be included literally in the function call.
Italics	Indicates field values, emphasis, and PeopleSoft or other book-length publication titles. In PeopleCode syntax, italic items are placeholders for arguments that your program must supply. We also use italics when we refer to words as words or letters as letters, as in the following: Enter the letter O.
Key+Key	Indicates a key combination action. For example, a plus sign (+) between keys means that you must hold down the first key while you press the second key. For Alt+W, hold down the Alt key while you press the W key.
Monospace font	Indicates a PeopleCode program or other code example.
“ ” (quotation marks)	Indicate chapter titles in cross-references and words that are used differently from their intended meanings.
. . . (ellipses)	Indicate that the preceding item or series can be repeated any number of times in PeopleCode syntax.
{ } (curly braces)	Indicate a choice between two options in PeopleCode syntax. Options are separated by a pipe ( \| ).
[ ] (square brackets)	Indicate optional items in PeopleCode syntax.
& (ampersand)	When placed before a parameter in PeopleCode syntax, an ampersand indicates that the parameter is an already instantiated object. Ampersands also precede all PeopleCode variables.

Visual Cues

PeopleBooks contain the following visual cues.

Notes

Notes indicate information that you should pay particular attention to as you work with the PeopleSoft system.

Note. Example of a note.

If the note is preceded by Important!, the note is crucial and includes information that concerns what you must do for the system to function properly.

Important! Example of an important note.

Warnings

Warnings indicate crucial configuration considerations. Pay close attention to warning messages.

Warning! Example of a warning.

Cross-References

PeopleBooks provide cross-references either under the heading “See Also” or on a separate line preceded by the word See. Cross-references lead to other documentation that is pertinent to the immediately preceding documentation.

Country, Region, and Industry Identifiers

Information that applies only to a specific country, region, or industry is preceded by a standard identifier in parentheses. This identifier typically appears at the beginning of a section heading, but it may also appear at the beginning of a note or other text.

Example of a country-specific heading: “(FRA) Hiring an Employee”

Example of a region-specific heading: “(Latin America) Setting Up Depreciation”

Country Identifiers

Countries are identified with the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) country code.

See ISO Country Codes.

Region Identifiers

Regions are identified by the region name. The following region identifiers may appear in PeopleBooks:

Asia Pacific
Europe
Latin America
North America

Industry Identifiers

Industries are identified by the industry name or by an abbreviation for that industry. The following industry identifiers may appear in PeopleBooks:

USF (U.S. Federal)
E&G (Education and Government)

Currency Codes

Monetary amounts are identified by the ISO currency code.

See ISO Currency Codes.

Comments and Suggestions

Your comments are important to us. We encourage you to tell us what you like, or what you would like to see changed about PeopleBooks and other PeopleSoft reference and training materials. Please send your suggestions to:

PeopleSoft Product Documentation Manager PeopleSoft, Inc. 4460 Hacienda Drive Pleasanton, CA 94588

Or send email comments to [email protected].

While we cannot guarantee to answer every email message, we will pay careful attention to your comments and suggestions.

Common Elements in These PeopleBooks

As of Date	The last date for which a report or process includes data.
Business Unit	An ID that represents a high-level organization of business information. You can use a business unit to define regional or departmental units within a larger organization.
Description	Enter up to 30 characters of text.
Effective Date	The date on which a table row becomes effective; the date that an action begins. For example, to close out a ledger on June 30, the effective date for the ledger closing would be July 1. This date also determines when you can view and change the information. Pages or panels and batch processes that use the information use the current row.
Once, Always, and Don't Run	Select Once to run the request the next time the batch process runs. After the batch process runs, the process frequency is automatically set to Don't Run. Select Always to run the request every time the batch process runs. Select Don't Run to ignore the request when the batch process runs.
Report Manager	Click to access the Report List page, where you can view report content, check the status of a report, and see content detail messages (which show you a description of the report and the distribution list).
Process Monitor	Click to access the Process List page, where you can view the status of submitted process requests.
Run	Click to access the Process Scheduler request page, where you can specify the location where a process or job runs and the process output format.
Request ID	An ID that represents a set of selection criteria for a report or process.
User ID	An ID that represents the person who generates a transaction.
SetID	An ID that represents a set of control table information, or TableSets. TableSets enable you to share control table information and processing options among business units. The goal is to minimize redundant data and system maintenance tasks. When you assign a setID to a record group in a business unit, you indicate that all of the tables in the record group are shared between that business unit and any other business unit that also assigns that setID to that record group. For example, you can define a group of common job codes that are shared between several business units. Each business unit that shares the job codes is assigned the same setID for that record group.
Short Description	Enter up to 15 characters of text.