Designing PeopleSoft Navigator Maps

This chapter provides an overview of PeopleSoft Navigator and Navigator map design and discusses how to:

• Design Navigator maps.

• Establish Navigator homepages.

• Upgrade maps to work with PeopleSoft Navigator.

Understanding PeopleSoft Navigator

PeopleSoft Navigator enables end users to see workflow maps according to their hierarchical relationships. Users can browse the maps and navigate to individual pages by clicking the map elements representing the pages.

Users access PeopleSoft Navigator in PeopleSoft Pure Internet Architecture by selecting PeopleTools, Worklist, Navigator, which causes the Navigator structure to appear in place of the standard PeopleSoft portal structure. In the Navigator structure, users see a tree representing the hierarchical relationships of the workflow maps that fall under the high-level map that is used as the Navigator homepage.

As the user clicks the business processes and activities in the tree, the corresponding maps appear on the right-hand side of the screen. When the user clicks a step—the map element corresponding to a single page—the corresponding page appears on the right-hand side of the screen.

Maps that are used for workflow are visible through PeopleSoft Navigator; you can also create additional maps (which are not part of workflow) specifically for use in Navigator. In this context, the maps are commonly called Navigator maps, rather than workflow maps.

Understanding Navigator Map Design

The mechanics of creating Navigator maps are the same as those for creating all other workflow maps. Of course, you omit workflow-specific elements, such as events and routings, if PeopleSoft Workflow does not also use the map.

However, because Navigator maps serve a different purpose than maps designed for workflow purposes, there are additional design considerations:

• Navigator is organized hierarchically.

  Users drill down from business processes to activities (or other business processes), then down to steps. A well-designed hierarchy of business processes and activities is important for usability.

• You need a business process that can serve as the Navigator homepage, the first map that users see.

  Users can drill down only to maps that are hierarchically related to this homepage. Therefore, the homepage hierarchy is also important for security.

• Because the maps are visible to end users, good graphic design is important.

  For example, icon position within maps and aesthetic elements on maps, while irrelevant to workflow, can help users understand the maps and the processes that they represent.

Establishing Navigator Homepages

This section provides an overview of Navigator homepages and discusses how to:

• Establish a user's homepage.

• Prepare a business process to be a Navigator homepage.

• Associate a permission list with a Navigator homepage.

Understanding Navigator Homepages

A Navigator homepage is the first business process that a user sees after accessing PeopleSoft Navigator. Normally, the homepage is a business process composed of all other business processes that are to be visible in PeopleSoft Navigator. However, if only one business process is to be visible, you can use it as the homepage.

Navigator homepages are associated with individuals through permission lists, which are associated with a user's profile, as defined in PeopleSoft Security.

Establishing a User's Homepage

To establish a user's homepage:

1. Mark a business process as available for use as a homepage.

2. Identify the business process as the homepage that is associated with a permission list.

3. Associate the permission list with the user's profile.

Preparing a Business Process to be a Navigator Homepage

To prepare a business process to be a Navigator homepage:

1. In PeopleSoft Application Designer, open the business process to use as the homepage.

2. Right-click in the map (but not on an item in the map) and select Definition Properties.

   The Business Process Properties dialog box appears.

3. Select the Use tab.

4. Select Can be used as a Navigator home page .

5. Click OK to close the dialog box.

6. Save the business process.

Associating a Permission List with a Navigator Homepage

To associate a permission list with a Navigator homepage:

1. In PeopleSoft Pure Internet Architecture, select PeopleTools, Security, Permissions & Roles, Permission Lists.

2. Open the permission list to associate with this homepage.

3. On the General page, specify a Navigator homepage.

   You can select any business process for which Can be used as a Navigator home page is selected.

4. Save the permission list.

Upgrading Maps to Work with PeopleSoft Navigator

If you have maps that were created with versions prior to PeopleTools 8.12, run the following upgrade procedure in PeopleSoft Application Designer.

To upgrade Workflow maps for use in Navigator:

1. Start PeopleSoft Application Designer.

2. Select Tools, Upgrade, Convert Business Process Images.

3. Click Yes when prompted to start the conversion process.

   The conversion process begins. The Application Designer output window logs the progress of the conversion process, including error messages.