TheUltimateSAP®UserGuide

REHANZAIDI

PublishedbyJonERP.com

PaperbackandKindleversionsavailableonAmazon.com

Copyright©2015

Allrightsreserved

PublishedbyeCruitingAlternatives,Inc.(JonERP.com)

Website:JonERP.com

ISBN:978-0-9725988-8-0

AvailableretailfromAmazon.com

AvailablewholesalefromIngram

CopyEditbyHelpPublish;KristaWiebe

StyleReviewbyRachelMeyers

CoverDesign&InteriorBookDesignbyMagicGraphix

All of the product names in this book are trademarks of the companies that own them. SAP AG is the registeredtrademarkholderofSAP,SAPR/3,ABAP,NetWeaver,SAPERP,andotherproprietaryterms.

JonERP.comisnotaffiliatedwithSAPAGinanyway.Thetechnicalinformationinthisbookhasbeenverifiedtothegreatestextentpossible;however,anyinformationfoundinthisbookisusedatthereader’sownrisk.

JonERP.com reserves the right to correct any errors or omissions in any portion of this book at any time withoutobligation.While the author has done his best to present accurate and up to date technical information in this book,neitherJonERP.comnortheauthorhimselfcanguaranteethatthisinformationinthisbookiscompletelyapplicabletoyourcompany’sSAPproject.Thisbookissoldwiththeunderstandingthatthepublisherandauthorarenotengagedinrenderinglegal,accounting,orformalimplementationservicesthroughthisbook.Shouldyouwanttoconfirmhowthisbook’scontentappliestoyourcompany’sprojectspecifically,apaidconsultationwiththeauthorisrecommended.

Author’sAcknowledgmentsIwouldliketothankanddedicatethisbooktomymother–whoismymainstrength.Iam very grateful to our editor Krista Wiebe of Clear Cut Editing(www.clearcutediting.com).Sheprovidedhelpwith theoverall editing, formationof thechapters,andprovidedlayoutsuggestions.IamalsothankfultoMr.RickPorter(founderof Revelation Software, which is based in Australia) for his cooperation during thisproject.Iamalsoindebtedtothereviewersforhelpingmestrengthenthecontentofthebook.Toallthosewhopurchasethisbook-Iamforevergratefultoyou.IwouldliketoextendmyapologiestoanyoneIhavemissedhere.

Lastbutnotleast,Iwouldliketothankmypublisher,JonReed,whofeltthatthiswasasubjectworthpublishingandwhoagreedtogoonthisjourneywithme.Theideawastocreate a guide with tips and tricks that would be valuable for an SAP user. When IpresentedtheideatoJon,heagreedthattheneedforauserguidewasanexcellentreasontopursuethepublicationofmybook.

Publisher’sAcknowledgmentsJonReedwouldlike to thankAndyKleeofJDEtipsforprovidingthebasisforJonandRehantooriginallymeetandcollaborate.TheUltimateSAPserieswouldnotbepossiblewithout the expert advice ofMorris Rosenthal andRachelMeyers. Thanks also to ourexpertreaders,whosebiosappearinthebackofthisbook.Finally,JonwouldliketothankRehanZaidiforhisdiligenceandtheoutstandingendresult.

ContentsForeword

Introduction

Chapter1:SAPOverviewandBasics

1.1GettingStarted

1.2BasicConcepts-InitialScreen,StandardandUserMenus

1.3SAPWindowComponents

1.3.1ElementsinReportsandEntryScreens

1.3.2SystemStatus

1.4UserTasks

1.5TransactionandTransactionCode

1.5.1AccessingEnteredTransactionCodesQuickly

1.5.2SearchingforTransactionCodes(orMenuItems)

1.6ManagingSessions

Chapter2:OrganizingYourWorkUsingFavorites

2.1WhatareFavorites?

2.1.1AddingtotheFavoritesNode

2.1.2CreatingFavoritesfromUserMenuItems

2.1.3CreatingaFavoriteWhileBeinginaTransaction

2.2CreatingFolders

2.3DeletingFavoritesandDisplacingFavorites

2.4DownloadingandUploadingFavorites

Chapter3:EnteringDataIntoSAP

3.1DataEntryTransactionsandScreens

3.2EnteringDataonScreens

3.3ValueHelp(SearchHelp)forInputFields

3.4CopyingMultipleValuesfromScreenwith“CTRL+Y”

3.5DefiningDefaultValuesforanInputField

3.6HoldDataandSetDataFunctionality

3.6.1UsingHold/SetDataFunctionality

3.7ObjectManager

References

Chapter4:Personalizing–ChangingSAPLookandFeel

4.1PersonalizingtheInitialScreen

4.1.1SettingtheStartTransaction

4.1.2ModifyingtheStatusFieldDisplay

4.1.3ChangingFavoritesandEasyAccessMenuSettings

4.2ChangingStandardGUISettings

4.2.1ChangingGUIThemeandFonts

4.2.2AdjustingDropdownListDisplay

4.2.3PersonalizingMessageDisplays

4.2.4ChangingDisplayofF1andF4Help

4.2.4.1F4Help:DialogandControlModeRadioButtons

4.3ChangingSAPBehavior

4.3.1ControllingCursorBehavior

4.3.2SwitchingHistoryInputOnandOff

4.3.3ChangingYourUserProfile

4.2.4QuickCutandPasteFeature

Chapter5:ExecutingReportTransactionsandDownloadingOutput

5.1TypesofReportOutputs

5.1.1ABAPListOutputandALVformat

5.1.2FormOutput

5.2OnlineExecutionofReports

5.3ExecutingReportsinBackground

5.4DownloadingListOutput

5.5DesktopShortcutsforPrograms/Reports

Chapter6:MasteringSelectionScreens

6.1SelectionScreenComponents:AnOverview

6.1.1Checkbox

6.1.2RadioButtons

6.1.3SingleValueInputFields

6.2SelectionCriteria(Options)orRanges

6.2.1SpecifyingaSingleValueorRange

6.2.2MultipleSelectionSpecificationsandOtherAvailableOptions

6.2.2.1SpecifyingMultipleSingleValuesandRanges

6.2.2.2EnteringMassDataonProgramScreen

6.3SelectionScreenVariants

6.3.1RetrievingVariants

6.3.2CreatingVariants

6.3.3ChangingandDeletingVariants

Chapter7:ALVDisplays

7.1ALVDisplays:AnOverview

7.1.1SelectingaGivenColumnorColumns

7.1.2MovingColumnsandSearchingforValues

7.1.3FreezingColumns

7.2ToolbarFunctionsAvailable

7.2.1Sorting(AscendingandDescending)

7.2.2NavigatingLeftandRight

7.2.3FilteringData

7.2.4CalculatingTotals,Subtotals,andAverages

7.2.5ChangingViews

7.2.5.1ExcelInplaceView

7.2.5.2GeneratingChartsView

7.2.5.3ABCAnalysisFunctionView

7.2.5.4PrintPreview/ListOutput

7.2.6ExcelDownloading

7.2.7ManagingLayouts

Chapter8:PrintingGuide

8.1QuickHardCopy

8.2PrintingWindowContents

8.3“ExecuteandPrint”FromReportSelectionScreen

8.4FormPrinting

8.5ChangingthePrintDialogLookandFeel

8.6UsingRSTXPDFT4ProgramtoConvertSpoolRequeststoPDFs

8.7Printing-RelatedProblems

Chapter9:CreatingYourOwnReports

9.1SAPQuery:AnOverview

9.2GeneratingBasicLists

9.2.1AddingControlLevelstoyourList

9.2.2AddingaHeaderandFootertotheBasicList

Chapter10:SAPBusinessWorkplacePart1-ManagingDocuments

10.1OverviewofTransactionSBWP

10.2CreatingaNewMessage

10.2.1RecipientPortionInDetail

10.2.2Attachments

10.3ForwardingDocuments

10.4CreatingDistributionLists

10.5WorkingwithFoldersandSubfolders

10.6SearchingforFoldersandDocuments

Chapter11:SAPBusinessWorkplacePart2-ManagingWorkflowWorkItems

11.1WorkItems:WhatTheyAreandHowTheyLook

11.2WorkItemsViewWithinInbox

11.2.1Outbox

11.2.2DeadlineMessages

11.3FunctionsApplicableOnWorkItems

11.4OutofofficeSettings

11.4.1CreatingSubstitutes

11.4.2AutomaticForwarding

11.5OtherPersonalizationOptionsofBusinessWorkplace

11.5.1SwitchingOffPreview

Chapter12:MiscellaneousTopics

12.1TransactionSU53–DisplayingAuthorizationCheck

12.2ObjectServices

12.3The“MyObjects”List

References

Index

AuthorBio

AboutthePublisher

TheUltimateSAPUserGuide–ExpertReaderBios

Foreword

WhenIfirstmetRehanZaidi,theauthoroftheUltimateSAPUserGuide,hewasstillanaspiringwriter.Theyearwas2003.AstheFoundingEditorofERPtips,Iwaslookingforwriting talent.But thatwasnotaneasy thing tofind,especially in theERPworld. IneededauthorswhohadadeepSAPexperienceaswell.

Rehan was already an expert SAP developer, user, and all-around HCM smart guy.WritingaboutSAPwasnewtohim,butfromhisfirstarticles,Rehanshowedtheabilitytoexpress complex and sometimes nerdy SAP concepts in ways readers could easilyunderstand—somethingyouwillseeoneverypageofthisbook.

It was a pleasure to edit Rehan’s work.With each article, his ability to illustrate SAPconceptsimproved.Rehanwasespeciallygoodatmakingsurethatreadershadtakeawaysfromeacharticle.Youdidn’thavetoreadtenofhispiecestogetsomethingworthwhile.Eacharticlehadastand-alonepurpose.

The same is true of thisUserGuide. Each chapter has a clear objective for the reader.Whether it’sChapter 1 (SAP overview and basics),Chapter 4 (personalizing your SAPsystem),orChapter9(creatingyourownreports),eachchapterwillgiveyousomethingyou can use immediately. The Ultimate SAP User Guide is a much more affordablealternative to a costly SAP training manual. You can also use it (or adapt it) for aninstructor-ledcourse,makingitoneofthemoreflexibleSAPbooksoutthere.

Idon’tissueSAPbooksveryoftenfromJonERP.com.Irarelyfindanauthorwithtalentwhocanfillanimportantgapinthemarket.Thelasttimearound,JonERPpublishedTheUltimate SAP Pricing Guide by SAP pricing expert Matthias Liebich. It’s great to beadding to the “JonERPUltimate” serieswith anotherbook that I canbeproud to sharewiththeSAPcommunity.

One thingabout theJonERPUltimate series:Wedon’tpublish500pageencyclopedias.Whenweputoutabook,wemakesureit’seasytoconsumewithoutweighingdownyourcarry-on.

Overtheyears,IhaveheardfromthousandsofSAPprofessionalswhoareatsomekindofcrossroadsin theirSAPcareer.Evenwith thechanges in themarketplacebroughtonbynewtechnologies,manyareeagertoknowiftherearestillchancesintheSAPfield.

WhatItellthemisthattherearecertainlyopportunities,butdespitewhatyoumighthearaboutSAPskillsshortages,there’snothingeasyabouttheSAPcareerpathanymore.Youhave to develop an area of mastery and outperform your colleagues. But in a careerparadox,youalsoneedtobeateamplayer.Shiningattheexpenseofhelpingothersout

andbeinganexpertANDateacherishowyoumoveaheadintoday’sSAPfield.

Rehan has figured this out. The clues to his success can be found throughout this userguide. SAP professionals who want to excel— at any skill level— need to adopt a“continuouslearning”mindset.Topullthisoff,youneedtohavetherightreferencetoolshandy.Ibelievethisbookcandothatforyou—otherwiseIwouldnothavepublishedit.Publishingisfarfromeasy,butit’sanhonortogetthisbookoutthere.Itrustthatyouwillgetasmuchoutofreadingitaswedidsharingitwithyou.

JonReed,JonERP.com

Introduction

ThisbookisintendedforallSAPusersacrosseverymodule,aswellasbeginnerswhoare juststartingout in theSAPworld. Ifyouareanewuser,or ifyouhavespentsometimeworkingonSAP,thisbookhasalottooffer.Inaddition,projectteammembersandnoviceconsultantsmayalsofindituseful.

ThisbookwillshowusershowtogetthemostoutoftheirSAPsystem,anditwillenablethemtogettheirjobdoneinaslittletimeaspossible.Evenifyouareanadvanceduserwho works on SAP for hours each day, you will still find this book to be a valuableresource.Therearemany features (orneweroptions)ofwhichevenadvancedusersarenot aware. There are plenty of lesser known tips and tricks, as well, that will help tobroadenyourknowledgeofSAP.Thisbookalsoprovidesmoreefficientwaysofdoingtasksthatyoucarryouteveryday.WehavemadesuretoupdatethisbookwiththenewestandlessknownGUIfeatures,withwhichveryfewusersarefamiliar.

TheSAPUserGuide isdesignedtobeaone-stopresourcetohelpyoucarryoutday-to-dayactivitiesquicklyandeasilywithouttheneedtosearchforresourcesontheInternetorelsewhere.The chapters have been created in a goal-directed fashion, i.e., each chaptercontainsanumberofsections,andeachsectionisbasedonataskthatmaybeperformedormayberequiredbyauserintheirdailywork.

Muchof the informationoffered in theSAPworldrequires the typicaluser toscour theInternetformaterialsthatpertaintohisorherparticularneeds.Thatisnotthecasewiththisbook.Itisdesignedtobethehandbookfortheeverydayuser.Today’sSAPuserhasafullplateoftasksandtypicallylacksthebudgetortimeforclassroomtraining.Thegoalofthisbookistobeaninvaluableresourceforabusyuserwhowantstostayontrack—andondeadline.

Youcanuse thisbookasago-to-reference,oryoucanworkyourway through it likeatrainingmanual. Ifyouchoose toworkyourway througheachchapter, by theendyoushould be very comfortable with the ideas, and it should enable you to work moreefficientlyandquicklywithinSAP.Youwillbeabletoworkverycomfortablywithinyourfunctionalareaandcarryoutallfacetsofwork,gettingthemostoutoftheSAPsystem,andavailingtheinvestmentofyourcompany.YouwillbeamasterofallcommonlyusedSAPfunctions,whethertheyarerelatedtodataentry,reporting,oremailingoptions.

Thisbookiscomprisedoftwelvechapters.Here’sabriefreviewofeachone:

Chapter1-SAPOverviewandBasicsThischapterwillfocusonbasicSAPconcepts,includingtransactions,menuitems,and

accessingHelpscreens.

Chapter2-OrganizingYourWorkUsingFavoritesFavorites lets you save time by eliminating the need to search for frequently usedtransactions. Topics such as how to create Favorites for transactions, how to createfolders,andhowtodownloadanduploadFavoriteswillbecovered.

Chapter3-EnteringDataIntoSAPEnteringDataintotheSAPsystemisthemostimportantjobofanyuser.Thischapterwilloutlinehowtoenterdataefficientlyandeffectively.

Chapter4-Personalizing–ChangingSAPLookandFeelThischapterwilldetailhowtopersonalizeyourSAPsystemaccordingtoyouruniquepreferences.

Chapter5-ExecutingReportTransactionsandDownloadingOutputThischaptergetsyouuptospeedonthecrucialtopicofreporting.Functionscoveredinthischapterincludehowyoucanexecutereporttransactionsanddownloadoutput.

Chapter6-MasteringSelectionScreensSelectionScreens are an important element of theSAP system, and this chapterwillcoverthevariouswaysyoucanmakethemmoreefficientanduseful.

Chapter7-ALVDisplaysThetwotypesofALVdisplaysalongwithALVlistsandgridswillbecoveredinthischapter.

Chapter8-PrintingGuideThis chapter will introduce you to the printing options available within the variousscreen sets. Topics such as how to printwindow contents and how to convert spoolrequeststoPDFswillbecovered.

Chapter9-CreatingYourOwnReportsSAPQueryallowsyoutogeneratereportsbasedonyourowndataandparticularneeds.Thiswillbethemainfocusofthischapter.

Chapter10-SAPBusinessWorkplacePart1-ManagingDocuments

TheprimaryemphasisofthischapterwillbeonhowtomanagedocumentswithintheSAPBusinessWorkplace.TopicssuchasTransactionSBWP,howtouseattachments,andhowtoforwarddocumentswillbecovered.

Chapter11-SAPBusinessWorkplacePart2-ManagingWorkplaceItemsThischapterwillfocusonworkingwithWorkplaceanditemswithintheSAPBusinessWorkplace.

Chapter12-MiscellaneousTopics(andHelpfulTips)Miscellaneous topics, such as displaying authorization check, object services, andattachmentlistswillbecoveredinthischapter.

If you are completely new to SAP, we suggest that you read the chapters sequentially(startingfromchapter1).Readingitstraight throughwilloffer thebestexperienceforabeginnerandwillprovideyouwithall the informationyouneed thatpertains to typicalthingsthatyoumayencounterwithintheSAPERPlandscape.

IfyoualreadyhaveexperienceworkinginSAP,youmayfinditmorehelpful toskiptochaptersthatarerelevanttoyourneeds.Thisbookcanalsobeusedfortrainingusers,bothbeginnersandexperienced,andforallmodulesoftheSAPERPsystem.

Thiscompactvolume ispackedwithvaluable tipsand tricks thatoutline theday-to-dayactivitiesatypicaluserwillcomeacross.Becauseofthearrayofgatheredinformationinthisonebook,projectteamsshouldbeabletosavetimeandmoneybyusingitfortrainingpurposes.NosingleSAPtrainingcoursecontainstheinformationfoundwithinthisbook.

Thisbookiscomprisedofsolelyoriginalcontentthathasnotbeenpublishedelsewhere.IthasbeenwrittenwithWindowsusersinmind.ThescreenshotsaretakenfromERP6.0,EnhancementPack6.ThelatestversionofSAPGUI(7.30)hasbeenusedinthepreparationofthebook.MostoftheconceptsareapplicableforotherSAPsystemreleases.Theinformationinthisbookholdstrueirrespectiveofthedatabaseusedinthebackend.

Wehopethisuserguidewillhelpyoutobemoreproductiveonyourproject,inyourdailywork,andwilladvanceyourSAPcareer.

Chapter1

SAPOverviewandBasics

Inorder touseSAPeffectivelyandefficiently,usersandbeginnersneed tounderstandsomebasicconceptsandterminologies.Thischapterwillintroduceyoutothoseconceptsandwillprovideanintroductoryoverviewofthetopicsthatwillbecoveredindetaillaterinthebook.ItwillalsobrieflycoverthetypicalworkanSAPusermaybeexpectedtodo.

Thischapterwillcoverthefollowingimportanttopics:

·GettingstartedwiththebasicSAPconcepts

·Usertasksandtransactionconcepts

·Managingsessions

·Transactionsandmenuitems

·AccessingHelpscreensandotherscreenfields

Somequestionsthatwillbeansweredinthischapterinclude:

·HowdoIlogintotheSAPsystem?

·WhattaskswillIbeexpectedtoperformasanSAPuser?

·WhatarethetypicalcomponentsoftheinitialSAPscreen?

·Whatisatransactioncode?

·HowdoIsearchforaparticularitemortransactionintheSAPEasyAccessMenu?

Throughoutthechapter,therewillbeexamplesandscreenshotstohelpyouunderstandtheprocess of beginning your work in SAP. In this chapter, the terms Window andScreenwillbeusedinterchangeably.

Inthissection,wewilllearnhowtogetstartedwithSAP.Thefirststepistologintotheintended SAP system.Wewill see in detail the steps that are required to log in to thesystemandthevariousoptionsavailableontheloginscreen.

Tologin toanySAPsystem,youwillneedtoaccess theSAPLogonPad.Thereareanumberofwaystodothis:

·FromtheStartmenu,choosetheSAPLogonprogramtolaunchtheSAPLogonPadas

1.1GettingStarted

showninFigure1.1.

Figure1.1:SAPLogonPadShortcut

·Alternately,youmaychoosetheshortcutplacedonyourdesktopasshowninFigure1.2.

Figure1.2:SAPLogonDesktopShortcut

NOTE:TheSAPLogonPad is aWindowsprogram that lets you log on to anSAPsystembychoosing fromadisplayed list of available systems.Usermayalsomodifythislistaccordingtotheirrequirements.

Thisactionwill launch theSAPLogonPadshowing the list of systems intowhichyoumaylogin(underConnectionsshowninFigure1.3).

Figure1.3:ListofSAPSystems

Double-clickthesystemthatyouwishtoaccess.ThiswilllaunchthescreenasshowninFigure1.4.

Figure1.4:SAPLoginScreen

ThescreenhasUserandPassword fields,aswellasClientandLogonLanguage fields.Wealsohaveatthetopamenuandstandardtoolbar.(Wewilldiscusstheseelementsinthenextsection.)

Enteryourusernameandpasswordintheappropriatefieldsontheloginscreen.Notethatthesystemprovidesadefaultvaluefortheclient.Incaseyouwantadifferentclientfromthedefaultshown,enterthenewclient’sthree-digitnumberinthefieldprovided.

Thelanguageisanoptionalfield.Inourcase,forexample,thedefaultsystemlanguageisE(English).Ifyouwishtoenteralanguageotherthanthedefaultlanguage,youmayalsodothatusingthefieldprovided.

Oncethenecessarydatahasbeenenteredintheloginscreen,press“Enter”tologintothesystem.Alternately,youmayalsoclick thegreen tickmark providedon the top leftcornerofthescreen.

Ifyouarelogginginforthefirsttimeorifthesecurityteamhasrefreshedyourpassword,you will be asked to enter a new password. Enter the new password twice and press“Enter”inthedialogboxthatappears.

Tochangeapasswordwhileloggingin,enteryourexistingUserIDandPasswordbutdonotpress“Enter”.Rather,click the button.Thesystemwillask for thenewpasswordandaconfirmation.

Ifthepasswordisinitiallyenteredincorrectlybutthenyoufinallysucceedinloggingintothesystem,adialogbox(seeFigure1.5)appearsshowingthetotalNumberoffailedlogonattempts.

Figure1.5:NumberofFailedAttempts

Ifyouhaveforgottenyourpassword,youmayasktheSecurityteammemberstorefreshthepasswordforyourUserID.Aftersixconsecutivefailedloginattempts,yourUserIDwillbelockedandyoumaynolongerbeable toattempt logonsintothesystem.Inthiscase,youmustasktheSecurityteammemberstounlockyourUserID.

Ausermayattempttologinmorethanoncetothesamesystem.Incaseyoutowanttologintoasysteminwhichyouarealreadyloggedin,adialogboxisshown(Figure1.6)aftertheUserIDandPasswordhavebeenvalidated.

Figure1.6:MultipleLogonAttempt

Thesystemtellsyoutheterminalfromwhichyouarealreadyloggedin.Inthiscase,youhavetwooptions:

·Youmayeithercontinuewiththenewlogonorterminateexistinglogins.Inthiscase,youwillloseanyunsaveddata.

·Oryoumayterminatethenewlogon.

Insomecases,athirdoption(notshowninFigure1.6)mayalsoappearwhichmayallowyoutoproceedwiththenewlogonaswellaskeepingtheexistinglogonsalive.

Inthissection,wewillseehowtheSAPInitialscreenlooks,andwewillalsocoversome

1.2BasicConcepts-InitialScreen,StandardandUserMenus

basicSAPconceptsnecessaryforusers.

Once you have successfully logged in to the SAP system, the Initial SAP EasyAccessscreenisdisplayed,asillustratedinFigure1.7.(ThewindowshowninthefigureisalsosometimesreferredtoasaSession.)

Figure1.7:InitialSAPScreen

Ontheinitialscreen,either theStandardMenuor theUserMenuwillbedisplayed inthe left side of the screen. In the previous figure, the left pane displays the SAPEasyAccessMenu.Itisintheformofatree,whichiscomprisedofnodesandsubnodes.Theseallowyoutoaccesstheprogramswithintherelevantfunctionalareas.

Clickingtheblacktriangle nexttothefoldericoninthemenutreeexpandsthatnode.(Alternately,youmaydouble-clickthegivennodeicon.)ThisisillustratedinFigure1.8wheretheHumanResourcesnodehasbeenexpanded.

Figure1.8:NavigatingtheEasyAccessMenu

A node may contain additional nodes that can be expanded, such as PersonnelManagementandTimeManagement inFigure1.8.Oranodemaycontainanexecutableapplication, such asManager’sDesktop. Note that these are indicated by the icon.Double-click this item toexecute the relevantapplication (transaction). Incasea tree is

alreadyopen,youmaycollapseitusingthe icon.Youmaynavigatethroughthenodes(andtheirsubnodes)untilyoureachthedesiredtransaction.

Apart from theSAP standardmenu shown inFigure 1.8, a user-specificUserMenu isalsodefinedinthesystem.TheUserMenucontainsthereportsandscreensrelevanttoyouor theones thatyouuse inyourday-to-daywork.Foraccessing theUserMenu,choosethemenupathMenuàUserMenuasshowninFigure1.9.

Figure1.9:AccessingUserandSAPMenu

NOTE: In this section we only saw theMenu options. There are other usefuloptionsrelatedtoEdit,Favorites,andExtrasmenus.Thesewillbediscussedlaterinthebook.

Theuser-specificmenuisthendisplayedintheleftpaneasshowninFigure1.10.

Figure1.10:User-SpecificMenu

In this section, we will see the components of a typical SAP screen. The conceptsmentioned in this section pertain to all SAP screens in general, including the InitialScreen(mentionedinprevioussection).

An SAPWindow consists of aMenuBar, a Standard Toolbar, a Title Bar, and anApplicationToolbar,allfoundatthetopofthescreen.TheStandardToolbarandMenu

1.3SAPWindowComponents

Bar together are known as the Screen Banner. These four components (Menu Bar,ApplicationBar,StandardToolbar,andTitleBar)formtheScreenHeader.

BelowtheScreenHeaderisalargerportioncalledtheScreenBody.AnyscreenthatyoudisplayoranyreportyoumayexecuteisdisplayedintheScreenBody.

AtthelowerpartofthescreenistheStatusBar—importantmessagesfortheuser(suchaserrors, information,andwarnings)aredisplayedhere.On the right sideof theStatusBaristherelevantSystemandUserinformation.

Consider,forexample,thescreenshowninFigure1.11.

Figure1.11:SAPScreenComponents

LetusnowhaveacloserlookatthecomponentsofthescreenshowninFigure1.11:

·MenuBar:YouaccessthemenuoptionsinSAPjustlikeyouaccessthemenusoftypicalWindowsapplications.Ifappropriatelydefined,therelevantmenuoptionsmaybeexecutedviakeyboardshortcutsaswell.TheMenuBariscontext-sensitiveanddisplaysalloptionsrelevanttothescreenbeingexecuted.Forexample,Figure1.11istheMaintainMasterDatatransactionanditincludesthefollowingmenuoptions:HRMasterData,Edit,Goto,Extra,Utilities,Settings,System,andHelp.Clickingononeofthesemenusresultsinadropdownlistofrelevantoptions.Forexample,Figure1.12illustratestheoptionsfortheHRMasterDatamenu.

Figure1.12:HRMasterDataOptions

Clickingonthedisplayedoptionswillcarryouttherelevantactivity.

Incaseamenuoptionconsistsofsubmenus,thesubmenuwillbedisplayedwhenyouplacethecursorontherelevantmenuitem.Forexample,inthemenushowninFigure1.13,whenweplacethecursorontheDatabaseObjectoption, theadditionaloptions(Display,Check,andDatabaseUtility)appear.

Figure1.13:MenuAdditionalOptions

·ApplicationToolbar:Thisiscomprisedofbuttonsandfunctionsrelevanttowhateverapplicationorprogramthatyourun.Thesechangewiththeapplicationprograms.Theremay,forexample,beadditionaldetailedinformationbuttons.TheapplicationtoolbarfortheHRMasterDatascreenisshownbelow:

Figure1.14:ApplicationToolbarforHRMasterData

·StatusBar:AtthelowerportionofthescreenistheStatusbar,whichgivesusefulinformationtotheuser.TheStatusBarconsistsoftheMessagearea(ontheleft),whichpresentserrormessagesoraffirmativesystemmessages,andtheStatusfieldsontheright.AnexampleofamessageisshowninFigure1.15.

Figure1.15:MessageinStatusBar

·StandardToolbar:TheStandardToolbariscomprisedofstandardfunctions.ThesearegenerallyprovidedinallSAPscreensandapplicationsthatyourun.However,someofthefunctionsmaybedisabled,dependingonthenatureofthetaskbeingexecuted.ThevariousfunctionsoftheStandardToolbarareshowninFigure1.16.

Icon Meaning KeyShortcut

Enter Enterkey

Save CTRL+S

Back F3

Exit ShiftF3

Cancel F12

Print CTRL+P

Search CTRL+F

SearchAgain(orContinueSearch) CTRL+G

FirstPage CTRLPageUP

PageUp PageUp

PageDown PageDown

LastPage CTRL+PageDOWN

OpensNewSession —

Help F1

CustomizeLocalLayout ALT+F12

Figure1.16:StandardToolbarFunctions

Onthetop(leftoftheapplicationtoolbar)istheCommandField(Figure1.17).Thisisanimportantfield,asitletsyouquicklyaccessprogramsandscreens.

Figure1.17:CommandField

SimplyenteringthedesiredTransactionCodeinthisfieldwilltakeyoutotherelevantprogram.Thisrelievestheuserfromlearningthemenupathofthetaskthatheorshewantstoperform.(Refertosection1.6onhowtousetheCommandFieldformanagingSAPsessions.)

1.3.1ElementsinReportsandEntryScreensAn SAP screen body may contain a number of screen elements. Typically, a screencontainsinputfields,output-onlyfields,radiobuttons,andcheckboxesforthepurposeofenteringdata.This is applicable for all transactions— includingdata entry screensandreports.

Ifafieldisgrey(notwhite),itmeansthatinputisnotallowed.Itismandatorytofillinthe

40

fieldsthatappearwithaquestionmark.Thismeansthatevenifyoutrytomoveaheadofsuchscreens,theerrormessage,Enterdatainallrequiredfields,isdisplayed.Moreover,indataentryscreens,toentertabulardata,multiplelinesmaybeenteredusingatable.

Ascreenmayalsobecomprisedoftabstrips,consistingofanumberoftabs.Eachtabmaycontain a number of input and output fields, tables, as well as radio buttons andcheckboxes.While processing of SAP screens, youmay come across dialog boxes thatmay,forexample,askyouforconfirmationofanaction.(Formoreinformation,refertoChapters3and6.)

For accessing the Help of a particular application, choose the menu path Help àApplicationHelp.ThiswillopentheHelpforthatparticularscreeninabrowser.ToaccesstheHelp screen related to a particular field given on an SAP screen, simply place thecursoronthefieldandpressF1.TheHelpwillappearasshowninFigure1.18.

Figure1.18:FieldF1Help

Forviewingthetechnicalinformationofthegivenfield,clicktheTechnical Informationicon. The technical name of the field and other useful information will then be

displayed.

1.3.2SystemStatusSomeusefulinformationrelatedtothesystemandyouruserIDisavailablefromallSAPscreens.Toaccessthis,clicktheSystemàStatusbutton.ThiswilldisplaythestatusinascreenasshowninFigure1.19.

Figure1.19:SystemStatusDetails

TheStatusbox shows you information about theUser ID, such as theClient, theUsername,aswellasthepreviouslogontime,thetimewhichyouloggedin,thecurrentsystemtime, and so on. On the same screen, there are details of the running Program andTransaction,aswellasthemachineonwhichtheSAPserverisrunning.

In this section, Iwilldiscuss the tasks thatyoumaybeexpected toperformasanSAPuser.IntheSAPsystem,ataskmaycompriseofoneormorescreens.Typically,youmaycomeacrossthefollowingtasks:

NOTE: Tasks include completing process steps (such as creating an invoice orapproving requests) or administrative tasks (such as checking messages).Furthermore,numerousreportingoptionsareavailabletotheuser.

·DataEntry:Thisinvolvesasetofscreensthatallowyoutocreate,change,ordeletedisplaydatastoredinthedatabase.Thesescreensmayhaveinputchecksinorderandmessagesthatallowyoutoenterdatacorrectlyintothesystem.(TheDataEntryscreenswillbediscussedindetailinChapter3.)TypicalexamplesmayincludescreensforchangingEmployeeAddressorforcreatingCustomerMaster.

·ExecutingReports:Reportsareprogramsthatdisplaydata.Theyhaveaselectionscreenonwhichvaluesareenteredforwhichdataisrequired.Thedisplaymaybeintheformofasimplelist,asshowninFigure1.20.TheymayalsobeALVreports,asshowninFigure1.21,allowingyoutoperformanumberoffunctionsonthedisplayeddata,suchassortingorfiltering.Inaddition,reportprogramsmayalsoallowyouto

1.4UserTasks

generatesimpleformoutputs.Youmayrunyourreportsinthebackgroundorindialogmode.Theoutputofreportsmaybeprintedordownloaded.

Figure1.20:SimpleListOutput

Figure1.21:ALVOutput

·OtherTasks:Thesemayincludecompletingprocesssteps(suchasexecutionofapayrollrun,creatinganinvoice,orapprovaloftravelrequests).Furthermore,youmaywanttogenerateyourownreportsusingSAPQuery.Oryoumaycomeacrossusefultransactions—suchastheSAPBusinessWorkplace—thatwillallowyoutomanageyourwork,checkyourSAPemails,orperformtaskssuchasapprovalofrequestsviaWorkflowitems.

AnimportanttermthatSAPusersneedtobefamiliarwithisTransaction.Regardlessofwhetherauserisexecutingtasksorgeneratingreports,heorshedoessoviatransactions,whichisdenotedbyacodethatisthreeormorecharacterslong(comprisingoflettersanddigits). These transactions may either be standard SAP transactions or custom definedones.

Any task that you need to perform, either running a report or performing a particularactivity,maybeaccessibleeitherviatheSAPEasyAccessMenushowninFigure1.8,orviaashortcutknownasaTransactioncode (orsometimescalledTcode).Forexample,youhave thestandard transactionSBWPforaccessing theSAPBusinessWorkplace,oryoumayhaveanSAPreportusingTransactioncodeZHRREP.YouentertheTransactioncode in theCommandField(and press “Enter”) in order to quickly access a particularreportorapplicationscreen.Forexample,wewritetheTransactioncode“SBWP”inthe

1.5TransactionandTransactionCode

Command Field for accessing the Business Workplace application as shown in Figure1.22.

Figure1.22:TransactionSBWP

NOTE: In order to access a particular report or screen transaction, the SecurityTeammustprovideyouruserIDwithnecessaryauthorizations.

LetusnowseeafewotherexamplesofSAPtransactionsinvariousmodulesoftheSAPsystem.

Within the Materials Management module, the user may maintain Materials viaTransactioncodesshowninFigure1.23.

TransactionCode Purpose

MM01 CreateMaterial

MM02 ChangeMaterial

MM03 DisplayMaterial

Figure1.23:MMTransactionCodes

TheSalesOrderisaccessedviathetransactionsshowninFigure1.24.

TransactionCode Purpose

VA01 CreateSalesOrder

VA02 ChangeSalesOrder

VA03 DisplaySalesOrder

Figure1.24:SalesOrderTransactionCodes

ForNetworkOrder,thetransactionsareshowninFigure1.25.

TransactionCode Purpose

CN21 CreateNetworkOrders

CN22 ChangeNetworkOrders

CN23 DisplayNetworkOrders

Figure1.25:NetworkOrderTransactions

1.5.1AccessingEnteredTransactionCodesQuicklyOnequickwayofgoingtoapreviouslyvisitedtransaction(thecodeofwhichwasenteredin the Command Field) is by using the “Down” arrow key. The history of visitedtransactionsmaybeviewedviathelistboxdisplayoftheCommandField.Supposeyour

fieldhistorylooksliketheoneshowninFigure1.26.

Figure1.26:CommandFieldHistory

IfyouwanttogodirectlytotheBRF+transaction,simplytype“B”intheCommandfield(withoutopeningthelistdisplay)andpressthe“Down”arrowkey.TheBRF+transactionwillappearintheCommandField.Youmaythensimplypress“Enter”togototheBRF+transaction.

Likewise,typing“P”or“PA”willdisplaythePA30andPA40respectively.ThiswillsaveyoufromhavingtotypetheentirePA30orPA40intheCommandFieldshown.

1.5.2SearchingforTransactionCodes(orMenuItems)In case you want to search for a particular item or transaction in the SAP EasyAccessMenu,youmaydosousingastandardSAPtransaction.Followthestepsbelow:

·IntheCommandField,enterthetransaction“SEARCH_SAP_MENU”.ThedialogboxappearsasshowninFigure1.27.

Figure1.27:SearchingTransaction

·Enterthetextofthemenuitemorthetextforthetransactionthatyouwanttosearchforandpressthe(Continue/Enter) button.TheoutputwilldisplaythelistofallmenuitemsaswellastheircompletenavigationpathfromtheSAPaccessmenu.Moreover,therelevanttransactioncodeisalsodisplayed.Forexample,theoutputoftheSearchprogramforthesearchtext“BusinessWorkplace”isshowninFigure1.28.

Figure1.28:Searching“SAPBusinessWorkplace”

Inthissection,wewillseehowtomanageSAPSessions.Thisincludesavarietyofwaystocreatenewsessions,closeexistingsessionsandlogofffromtheSAPsystem.

Youmaycreateanewsessionorwindowfromarunningsessionbyclickingthe icon(fromthestandardtoolbar)orusingthekeyboardshortcut“CTRL+N”.Multiplesessionswillallowtheusertoworkonmorethanonetaskatonetime.Amaximumofsixsessions(windows)areallowedforonelogin.Incaseyoutrytocreateasessionabovethislimit,thesystemwillissueamessagestatingMaximumNumberofSessionsReached.Youmayswitchbetweensessionsusingthe“ALT+Tab”keys.Theremaybeanumberofsessionsfor a number of servers such as QAS and Production running on your machine. (Theprocedure for logging in to a particular system has been discussed in detail in thebeginningofthechapter.)

Thereareanumberofwaystocloseasession.Aquickandeasywayistousethe iconatthetoprightcornerofthewindow.Thiswillclosethesession.

AnotheroptionistousetheSAPLogon iconinthesystemtray.Right-clickingtheiconwillshowthecontextmenuasshowninFigure1.29.

Figure1.29:OptionsofSAPLogonContextMenu

This figure shows the various context menu options. On top, you will be shown thevariousSAPsystemsthatyouareloggedinto.Forexample,inFigure1.30,IamloggedintoserverM26,forclient800bytheusernameSTUDENT003,intheEnglishlanguage(EN).Thenumberintheparenthesesindicatesthesessionnumber.

TwousefuloptionsavailableinthecontextmenuareCloseSessionsandShutDownSAPLogon.Clicking theCloseSessionsoptiondisplaysadialogboxshowninFigure1.30.

1.6ManagingSessions

Figure1.30:CloseSessionsScreen

Thisshowsallthecurrentlyrunningsessionsalongwiththetransactionyouareexecuting.Select the checkbox for the session(s) that youwant to close and then click theClosebutton.Theselectedsession(s)willthenbeclosedandanyunsaveddatawillbelost.

Incaseyouwant tocloseall runningsessionsquickly,click theoptionShutDownSAPLogon (shown in Figure 1.29). A message warning you of the loss of data uponterminationofallsessionsisdisplayedasshowninFigure1.31.

Figure1.31:ClosingAllSessions

ClicktheYesbuttontoterminatealltherunningsessions.

Ifasessionishangingandyouwouldliketostopthetransactionthatwasrunninginthesession,simplyclickthe iconatthetopleftcornerofthesessionwindow.AmenuwillappearasshowninFigure1.32.

Figure1.32:MenutoStopTransaction

ChoosetheStopTransactionoptionfromthismenu.

For logging off from an SAP system, simply choose themenu pathSystem à LogOff.Alternately,choosethekeyboardshortcut“Shift+F3”orclickthe icononthestandardtoolbar.Inallcases,youwillbepresentedwithaconfirmationdialog.ChooseoptionYestoproceed.

YoumayalsocontrolsessionsusingtheCommandfield.TheCommandfield,asalreadydiscussed, allows you to enter the transaction codes. You can enter certain text(commands)withorwithoutthetransactioncodeinordertoopenorclosenewsessions.Figure 1.33 shows the various inputs that can bemade in theCommand Field and therelevantsystembehavior.

FieldInput Purpose

/oThisopensalistofallrunningsessionsandtheirtransactions.YoumayendasessionusingtheEndSessionbuttonprovidedinthelistdialog.

/n Thisclosesthecurrentsession.

/nex Closesallsessionsofcurrentlyconnectsystemandlogsyouoff.Anychangesnotsavedwillbelost.

/otcodeThe‘/o’followedbyatransactioncodewillopenanewsessionhavingtransactioninit.Forexample,/oSBWPwillopenthetransactionSBWPinanewsession.

/n Closesthecurrentsessionandopensanewsession.

/nendThislogsyouoffthesystem.Inthiscase,however,aconformationmessageisdisplayedbeforetheterminationofsessions.

/ntcodeThisinputwilltakeyoutothetransactionspecifiedinthesamesession.Ifyouwanttoreturntothestartmenu,type‘/nsooo’intheCommandField.

/1,/2Thisletsyouquicklyclosethesessiondenotedbythenumberfollowedbyforwardslash‘/’.Forexample,ifyoutype/1intheCommandField,thefirstsessionwillbeclosed.

Figure1.33:CommandFieldInputs

Chapter1containsalotofinformationaboutthebasicconceptsandterminologyofSAPthatusersneedtounderstandinordertouseSAPeffectivelyandefficiently.

Someofthetopicsthatwerecoveredindetailinthischapterincludegettingstartedwiththe basic SAP concepts, user tasks and transaction concepts, managing sessions,transactionsandmenu items, andaccessingHelp screensandother screen fields.Thesebasicconceptsareessentialknowledgeforusers.

IhopethischapterhasbeenahelpfulguidetogetyoustartedtoworkinSAP.Inthenextchapter,wewillusethisknowledgetofurtherstudyandunderstandSAP.

SummaryofChapter1

Chapter2

OrganizingYourWorkUsingFavorites

Chapter1coveredhowtogetstartedwithSAP,thelogginginprocess,andthebasicsofthescreensandsession.Inthischapter,wewilldiscussanotherimportantpartofauser’slife—organizingyourworkusingFavorites.Favoritesletyousavetimebyeliminatingtheneedtosearchforfrequentlyusedtransactions.

Thischapterwillcoverthefollowingimportanttopics:

·WhatareFavorites?

·CreatingFavoritesfortransactions

·CreatingFavoritesfromusermenuitems

·CreatingaFavoritewhilebeinginatransaction

·CreatingFolders

·DownloadingandUploadingFavorites

ThischapterwilldescribeanumberofwaystoaddFavoritesandorganizeyourwork.ItwillbeginwithabriefoverviewofwhatFavoritesareandhowtoutilizethemeffectively.Aftertheoverview,wewilldiveintothevariouswaysinwhichyoucancreateFavoritesandhowtoorganizethemwithfolders.

Because users mostly use transactions, I will also focus on how to add or deletetransactionsfromFavorites.Somequestionsansweredinthischapterinclude:

·HowcanIcreateaFavoriteformytransaction?

·HowcanIorganizemylistofFavorites?

·CanIdeleteaFavoriteonceithasbeencreated?

Throughout the chapter, there will be examples and screenshots to help the readerunderstandtheprocessofcreatingandorganizingFavorites.

SAP allows users to save their frequently used program or transaction names asFavorites in their personalized menu tree (see Figure 2.1). This transaction can be

2.1WhatareFavorites?

executedbysimplydouble-clickingontherelevantFavoritenode.Thiswillsaveyoutimeaswellasrelieveyoufromrememberinglengthytransactioncodes.

ThemenupertainingtoFavorites(asseenfromtheInitialscreen)isshowninFigure2.1.Themenucontainsusefulfeatures,suchas creatingFavoritenodes,creatingfolders forFavorites,aswellasdownloadinganduploadingthemtoandfromyourlocalPC.

Figure2.1:MenuPathforFavorites

Alternately,youmayusetheinitialscreentoolbarthathasbeenmadeforthispurpose,asseeninFigure2.2.

Figure2.2:RelatedToolbarButtons

The Delete button will only be enabled if you have at least one item under yourFavoritesnode.Otherwise,theDelete buttonwillnotbeenabled.

2.1.1AddingtotheFavoritesNodeRight-click on theFavoritesnode from theSAPEasy AccessMenu. The contextmenuappearsasshowninFigure2.3.

Figure2.3:ContextMenuoftheFavoritesNode

ChoosetheInsertTransactionoption.Thepop-upboxforenteringtheTransactionCodeappearsasshowninFigure2.4.

Figure2.4:EnteringtheTransactionCode

EntertheTransactionCodeinthefieldprovided,e.g.,“SBWP”forBusinessWorkplace,and press “Enter”. This creates a shortcut to the transaction, in our case, BusinessWorkplaceunderFavorites(seeFigure2.5).

Figure2.5:TransactionCodeAddedasFavorite

Amessageisdisplayedasshown.

Figure2.6:FavoritesMessage

2.1.2CreatingFavoritesfromUserMenuItemsAnotherquickandeasywayforcreatingFavoritesofyourtransactionslistedintheSAPEasyAccessMenuistoselectthegivennodeandclickthe button.

Alternately, youmay right-click, choose the contextmenu option, and then choose theoptionAddtoFavorites(seeFigure2.7).

Figure2.7:ContextmenuforaddingaFavorite

Youmayalsousekeys“CTRL+Shift+F6”insteadofthemenupath.

TheselectedtransactionmaybeaddedtoyourFavoritesviadraganddrop.SimplyselectagiventransactionnodefromyourUsermenuandthen,whilekeepingthemousebuttonpressed,drag the item to the relevantpositionunder theFavorites node or its folder orsubfolder.Thenreleasethemousebutton.

Inallcases,asuccessfulmessagewillappearsayingNodeAddedtoFavoriteList.

ForcheckingthefunctioningofyourFavorite,simplydouble-clickontherelevantnode.Therelevanttransactionwillbedisplayed.

2.1.3CreatingaFavoriteWhileBeinginaTransactionAlloftheabovetechniquesworkwhenyouareontheInitialscreenofSAP.Supposeyouare“on”atransactionthatyouwouldliketoaddasaFavorite.Thesimplestway(withoutthe need to type theTransactionCode in theCommandField and/or going back to theInitialscreen)istoselectthemenupathSystemàUserProfileàExpandFavorites.

Figure2.8:MenuPathforCreatingaFavoritefromaTransaction

TIP:IfyouarewithinatransactionandtheSAPcanbeeasilyaccessed,thenyouusethemenuoptionSystemàUserProfileàExpandFavorites.Thisisuseful,asyoudon’tneedtogobacktotheInitialSAPscreen.

WhenyouhaveanumberofFavoriteitemsadded,thelistmightbecomeverylargeandconfusing.Tobetterorganizethelist,youmaycreatefoldersandsubfolderswithinyourFavoritesandplacenewFavoriteswithinthem.

2.2CreatingFolders

Inthissection,wewillcoverhowtocreatefoldersandsubfoldersforourFavorites,thusmakingourworkmoreorganized.

Tocreateafolder,selecttheFavoritesnodeandright-clickinordertoaccessthecontextmenu.Next,choosethemenuoptionInsertFolder.

Figure2.9:CreatingaFolder

AdialogboxappearsasshowninFigure2.10.

Figure2.10:FolderName

Enterasuitablenameforthefolderandthenpress“Enter”.Anewfolderwillbecreatedbythenamespecified.

Wemay create folders within the new folder by using the same context menu option.Transactionsmaybeaddedtothefoldersusingthestepslistedintheprevioussection.

YoumayalsodeleteFavoritesorchangetheirpositionfromwithinthevariousfolders.

FordeletingFavoritenodes,selecttherelevantnodeandclickthe button.TheFavoritewillberemovedfromtheFavoriteslist.

NOTE:FordeletingallFavoriteswithinafolder,selectthegivenfolderandright-clicktoaccesscontextmenu.Thenchooseoption“DeleteAllFavorites”.

TochangethesequenceofexistingFavorites,followthesesteps:

·SelectthenodeoftheFavoritewhosepositionistobechangedbypressingtheleftmousebutton.

·Whilekeepingtheleftmousebuttonpressed,movethecursortothenew(desired)

2.3DeletingFavoritesandDisplacingFavorites

position.

·Thenreleasetheleftmousebutton.ThisplacestheFavoriteintothenewposition.

YoumayalsomoveaFavoritefromonefoldertoanother.

YoumayalsodownloadanduploadFavoritesthathavebeenaddedtoyourpersonalizedmenu.Thisisparticularlyusefulwhenyou,forexample,haveallofyourFavoritesinonesystem,suchasQAsystem,andyouwanttotransferthemtoanothersystem,forexample,Production.Youmaysimplydownloadfromoneandupload toanotherwithoutwastingyourtimecreatingtheentiresetofFavoritefoldersfromscratch.

TodownloadFavoritesonthelocalPC,proceedasfollows:

·IntheSAPEasyAccessMenu,choosethemenupathFavoritesàDownloadtoPC(seeFigure2.11).

Figure2.11:MenuPath“DownloadtoPC”

·ThedialogboxappearsasshowninFigure2.12.

Figure2.12:SaveAsDialogBox

2.4DownloadingandUploadingFavorites

Enterasuitablefilenameafternavigating toanappropriate location,andclick theSavebutton. This will save the Favorites and their folders on your local PC at the givenlocation.

TouploadthesavedFavoritesfromthedesktop,proceedasfollows:

·IntheSAPEasyAccessMenu,choosethemenupathFavoritesàUploadfromPC.AdialogboxsimilartothatshowninFigure2.12appears.ChooseasuitablefilenameandclicktheOpenbutton.

Nodeentriesfromtheselectedfileareread,andtherelevantFavoritesarecreatedinthesystem.

This chapter outlines how to create and effectively use Favorites.With the informationprovided,youshouldnowbeabletoexplainwhattheyareandhowtocreatethem.YoushouldalsobeabletocreatefoldersandorganizeyourFavoriteslist,aswellasdownloadanduploadyourFavorites.

SummaryofChapter2

Chapter3

EnteringDataIntoSAP

ThemostimportantpartinthedayofanyuseristheentryofdataintotheSAPsystem.Inthischapterwewillcoverthisprocess,includingthetypicalentryscreens,theirvariouscomponents,andtheirbehavioronscreen.Thischapterwillcoverthefollowingimportanttopics:

·DataEntryTransactions/Screens

·ValueHelp(SearchHelp)forInputFields

·CopyingMultipleValuesFromScreenWith“CTRL+Y”

·DefiningDefaultValuesforanInputField

·HoldDataandSetDataFunctionality

·ObjectManager

BylearninghowtoefficientlyinputdataintotheSAPsystem,youwillsavetimeinyoureverydayworklifeandyourworkwillbecomemoreorganizedandeasiertoaccess.Somequestionsthatwillbeansweredinthischapterinclude:

·WhatdoesaDataEntryTransactionlooklike?

·HowcanIcreateaVariantforObjectManager?

·HowcanIeffectivelyuseanF4HelpHitList?

Throughoutthechapter,therewillbeexamplesandscreenshotstohelpthereadergainthegreatestpossibleunderstandingofhowtoeffectivelyenterdataintotheSAPsystem.

DataisenteredintotheSAPsystemusingdataentrytransactions.YoumayexecutethesetransactionsfromatransactioncodeoranSAPeasyaccess/useraccessmenupath.

AnEntryTransactionmayconsistofanumberofscreens.Theusermayenterdataononescreenandmayberequiredtogotoanumberofotherscreenswhilecompletingthedata entry sequence. Each screen may contain validations and checks (required forconsistencyofdata)thatmaygenerateerrororwarningmessages.

SAP views all entities (items) whose data is to be maintained as Objects. TypicalexamplesofobjectsareSalesOrder,Notification,andEmployee.AsalreadymentionedinChapter 1, there may be different transactions that Create, Change, and Display theseobjects.

NOTE:SeparatetransactionsareprovidedforCreation,Change,andDisplayforobjects,eachofwhichisdenotedbyadifferenttransactioncode.ThiswasdiscussedinChapter1.

Before you are taken to the actual data entry screen(s), each transaction, whetherpertaining to creation or change of objects, takes you to an Initial Screen. The InitialscreenforCreatetransactionsisdifferentfromthoseofChangeandDisplaytransactions.For example, on the SalesOrderCreation Initial screen, there are fields such asOrderType,SalesOrganization,andDistributionChannel,asshowninFigure3.1.

Figure3.1:CreateSalesOrderInitialScreen

OntheSalesOrderChange:InitialScreen, forexample,wehavetheOrderNumber (inthis case the “object” under consideration) and other Search Criteria, such as BillingDocumentandSold-to-party.Afterentering theobjectnumberon the initial screen,youwill be taken to the actual data entry screen. For example, themain SDChangeOrder

3.1DataEntryTransactionsandScreens

screenisshowninFigure3.2.

Figure3.2:SDDataEntryScreen

Similarly,atypicaldataentryscreenforHRisshowninFigure3.3.

Figure3.3:PersonalDataEntryScreen

Theinitialscreenandthefollowingscreenshaveanapplicationtoolbaralongwithscreen-specific menus and a standard toolbar. For example, for the Sales Order maintenancescreen,theapplicationtoolbarisshowninFigure3.4.

Figure3.4:DataEntryScreenToolbar

NOTE:ThemainentryscreenmayleadyoutofurtherscreensviatoolbarbuttonsortheGotomenu.

The entry screenmay consist of checkboxes, radio buttons, input fields, tables, and tabstrips, which are arranged in various groups. Let us discuss some of the importantelementsonebyone:

·Inputfields.Theseallowfortheentryofdataandappeareditable(white-colored).Theinputfieldscanbeofvarioussizesandtypes.TypicalexamplesincludeDateInputfield,Amount,oraTextorCodeInputfield.Additionaltextmaybedisplayedwhenaparticularsetofdataisenteredinafieldandthen“Enter”ispressed.Forexample,ifweenter“01”inthePersonnelSubarea(PSArea)field,thetextPhiladelphiaisdisplayednexttoit.

Figure3.5:InputfieldforPSArea

YoumayusetheF4searchhelpinordertofindoutthepossiblesetofvaluesapplicableforentryinagiveninputfield(thisisdiscussedinthenextsection).Aninputfieldmaybeeithermandatoryoroptional.Amandatoryfield,ifleftempty,willnotallowyoutogotothenextscreenoreventoanothertab.ThemandatoryfieldappearswithatickmarkasshowninFigure3.6.

Figure3.6:MandatoryFieldOnScreen

Forinputfields,theAutoCompletionoptionisalsosupported.Thismeansthatwhenyouenteravalueinafield,inputhelpintheformofAutoCompletionisavailablefromtheprevioussetofenteredvaluesasshowninFigure3.7.

Figure3.7:AutoCompletion

NOTE: When entering data into an input field, use “Backspace” to see thepreviously entered set of values.These areAutoCompletionvalues, and are systemindependent.

·DropdownList.TheDropdownlistisusedfordisplayinganumberofoptionsinalistboxandtheusercanchooseonefromthelist,suchastheoneshowninFigure4.8.Bydefault,onlythedescriptionisdisplayedandisavailableforselection.Settingsmaybeappliedinordertodisplaythecodesaswellasthedescriptionofthefieldinquestion.

Figure3.8:DropdownList

·Checkboxes.TheseareindicatorsasshowninFigure3.9.

Figure3.9:CheckboxesonaScreen

Checkboxesallowyoutoswitchanoption(orcondition)onoroff.Theseareindependentofeachotheriftherearemultiplecheckboxesonascreen.

·Radiobuttons.Theseareelementsthatallowyoutochooseoneoptionfromanumberofoptions.Theymaybearrangedhorizontallyorvertically.Withinagroupyoumaychooseoneradiobuttononly.

Figure3.10:Radiobuttons

·Buttons.Buttonsmaytakeyoutoanotherscreenordisplayfurtherinformation.TheymaybedisplayedeitherwithorwithouticonsasshowninFigure3.11andFigure3.12respectively.

Figure3.11:ButtonwithoutIcon

Figure3.12:ButtonwithIcon

Incertainscreens,theremayalsobeexpandablebuttonsthatallowyoutohideorshowasetofelementsonthescreen.

·Tables.Thetableisanimportantelementofthedataentryscreen.AtypicaltableforenteringdataisshowninFigure3.13.

Figure3.13:DataEntryTable

Eachlineletsyouenterdata.Forexample,alistofsalarycomponentsmaylookliketheoneshown.Dependingonthesetting,SingleorMultiplelinesmaybeselected.Eachlinemayhavecheckbox,inputfields,ordisplayfields.

NOTE:Youmayaltercertainsettingsofthetable(suchaschangingthesequenceofdisplayedfields)tomeetyourneeds.ThisisknownasTableConfiguration.Theymaybestoredandaccessedlater.

Toalterthetablesettings,firstmakeanychangesinthetablelook.Forexample,youmaychangethesequenceofthetablefields.Todothis,simplydragthefieldsbyselectingthecolumnheaderandthenplacetheminthepositionofyourchoice.Forstoringtheconfiguration,clickonthe icononthetoprightcornerofthetable.ThiswilldisplaytheTableSettingsdialogshowninFigure3.14.

Figure3.14:TableSettings

ThechangestothetablesettingsmaybestoredintheformofVariants.EnterasuitablenameforyourvariantinthefieldprovidedandthenclicktheCreatebutton.Thiswillcreatethevariant.PresstheSavebutton.Thenexttimethatyouaccessthetablesettings,youmaychoosethevariantthatyouhavejustcreatedinordertodisplaythetableinthechangedformat.

·Tabstrips.Theseareusedinordertoaccommodatemultiplesub-screenswithinagivenareaonthemainscreen.AtypicaltabstripthatmaybedisplayedisshowninFigure3.15.

Figure3.15:ATabstrip

Eachsub-screenmaybeaccessedbyclickingtherelevanttabthatmaycontainitsown

elementssuchasinputfields,checkbox,tables,andsoon.Whenacertaintabisclicked,itbecomesactiveandthevariouscomponentsonitareshown.

Youmayalsousethe and iconstomoveleftandrightrespectively.Thisishelpfulincasetherearemanytabsthatarenotallvisibleonthescreen.Alternatively,youmayclickthe iconontheupperrightofthetabstripinordertodisplaythevarioustabnamesintheformofamenuasshowninFigure3.16.

Figure3.16:Choosingfromatablist

Youmaythenchoosethetabyouneed.

·ContextMenus.Apartfromthescreenelementslistedabove,therearealsocontextmenusthatcanbeusedforascreenfieldortablefield.Right-clickingaparticularfieldwilldisplayacontextmenufromwhichfurthertasksmaybechosenasshowninFigure3.17.

Figure3.17:ContextMenu

·LongTextEditors.Inadditiontotheabove,afewscreensmayalsoallowyoutoenterlongtextusingalongtexteditorasshowninFigure3.18.Thismayeitherbeaccessiblefromamenupathorabuttonshownonthemainentryscreen.

Figure3.18:LongTextEditors

Whenyouenterinputonanyofthescreenfieldsandthenpress“Enter”,theenteredtexts(suchasnames)aremadeleft-justified,whereastheamount,number,andquantityfieldsareautomaticallymaderight-justifiedbythesystem.

Afterenteringdatainaparticularfield,youmaypressthe“Tab”keytogoontothenextfield.Therearetabsequencesdefinedforeachscreenthatspecifiesthesequenceofinputfieldsinwhichthecursorisplacedbythesystemeachtimethetabbuttonispressed.IfyoudonotwanttousetheTabkey,youmayselectafieldusingthemouse.

Bydefault,theInsertmodeisonfordataentry.Thismeansthatwhenthecursorisonafield, entering anydatawill insert value in the field andwill not overwrite the existingvalues.Whenafieldisselectedusingthemouse,youmayoverwritetheoldvalueinthefieldby switchingon theOverwritemode.Thismaybedonebypressing the INSkeyonce.Alternately,youmaypresstheINSshownintherightpartofthestatusbarasshowninFigure3.19.

Figure3.19:InsertModeOn

TheINSwillchangetoOVRasshowninFigure3.20.

Figure3.20:OverwriteModeOn

NOTE:ThenewestGUIallowsyoutoeditthesequenceofthetabsforthevariousinputfields.

Simple Cut and Copy functions work for single input fields when entering data. Formultiple field data selection and copy, we use the “CTRL+Y” keys. This is discussedahead in section 3.4 of this chapter - Copying Multiple Values from Screen with

3.2EnteringDataonScreens

“CTRL+Y”.

When an entry ismade on the screen and the “Enter” button is pressed, any validationchecksarerun.Youmayseeerrors,warnings,orsimplyinformationmessagesdependingonthescenario.

AnerrormessagewitharedsymbolwithinastatusbarisshowninFigure3.21.

Figure3.21:ErrorMessageinStatusBar

Anerrorwillnotallowyoutoproceedfurtherwithyourdataentryuntilthecorrectdataisinputted.In theexampleshown,enteringavaliddate in therelevantfieldwillnotshowthe error any further and the user is allowed to proceed ahead. No saving of data isallowediftheerrorpersists.

Ontheotherhand,awarningappearsasshowninFigure3.22.TheWarningsymbolisyellow.

Figure3.22:Warning

Thisonlywarns theuser thatproceeding furtherwilldeletea record from thedatabase.Pressing“Enter”,forexample,insuchcases,willmakethemessagedisappear.Theusermaythenbeallowedtosavedataonthescreen.

Insteadof thestatusbar,messagesmaybedisplayedindialogboxesdependingonyourpersonalizedsettings(wewillseethisinChapter4-ChangingSAPLookandFeel).

Also of importance are someof the standard toolbar buttons and icons used.These areSave,Cancel, andBack. The icons of theCancel, Exit, andBack buttons are shown inFigure3.23.

Button Icon

Exit

Back

Cancel

Figure3.23:Cancel,Exit,andBackButtons

Thethreebuttonslooksimilar infunctioning,however, theirworkingdiffers.Whenyouwanttocomeoutofatransactionwithoutsaving,youmaysimplycancelthetransactionby pressing theCancel button. Thiswill give you a prompt that says,Do youwant toCancel? Ifyouwant tostayon the transaction,pressNo.Otherwise,chooseYes. In thiscase,nooptiontosavethedataispresentedtotheuser.

Suppose the user is editing an object that is comprised of header data aswell as someothergroupsofdata,eachofwhichareenteredonseparatescreens.If theuseraccessesonlysomeof the screens,andafter finishingdataentry foraparticulargroupheor shereturns to the main entry screen, it is done via theBack button. If theBack button ispressedwithoutsavingthedataonaparticularscreen,adialogboxisshowntotheuserwarninghimorherofpossiblelossofdata.IftheYesoptionischosen,thedataissavedandtheuseristakentotheupperlevelintheapplicationhierarchy.

TheExitbuttonisusedwhentheuser,whohasbeenenteringdatainanapplication,wantstoleave(exitfrom)theapplicationandmoveontoanothertask.WhentheExitbuttonispressed, the system reminds him or her to save the entered data (if this is not donealready).

For bothBack andExit, any data entry checks relevant to the screen are executed. ForCancel,nochecksareexecutedforthedataenteredonthescreen.

InChapter1,wediscussed theF1 -FieldHelp.Youmay referback to that chapter forinformationonfieldhelporforanyinformationyourequireforparticularinputfields.InadditiontotheF1help,anInputHelpalsoknownasF4Helpisavailable.Inthissection,wewillseehowtoaccesstheValueHelpforinputfields.

Foraccessing theHitList, simplyplace thecursoron the fieldand thenpress the“F4”key.Alternately, after focusingon the field, press the small symbol displayed on thefield’srightside.ThiswilldisplaytheHitListasshowninFigure3.24.

Figure3.24:F4ValueHelp

Thisallowsyou toseeallpossiblesetsofvalues (shown in the formofaHitList) thatmaybeenteredinthefieldinquestion.

ThevaluehelpprovidesvariousfunctionsviathebuttonsintheavailabletoolbarasshowninFigure3.25.

3.3ValueHelp(SearchHelp)forInputFields

Figure3.25:Toolbar

Youcansortthelistaccordingtoaparticularfieldineitherascendingordescendingorder.Thismay be done by selecting a particular column or by choosing a column and thenright-clicking inorder toaccess thecontextmenu.After this isdone,choose theoptionSortAscendingorDescendingasshowninFigure3.26.

3.26:ContextMenuforHitList

Foraninputfieldinwhich,forexample,acodeistobeentered,theinputhelpwilldisplaythepermissiblecodesandalsotheirdescriptions.

TheHitListmaycontainaverylargenumberofvalues.Youmayfilterthevaluesbasedontheapplicablecriteria.Forfilteringthevalues,clickthe baratthetopofthelistvalues.ThefieldsforrestrictingtheHitListappearasshowninFigure3.27.

Figure3.27:FilteringValues

Enter the appropriate values in the field provided to define your restriction criteria andthenpress“Enter”.

For example, in the case of our country code and description, the default maximumnumberofhits is500.Wecanchangethis to6andselectonlycountrycodesbeginningwith‘U’.ThentheHitListwillappearchangedasshowninFigure3.28.

Figure3.28:RestrictedHitList

TheHelpshowninFigure3.24and3.28isasimplesearchhelp.Otherthanthat,youmayalsocomeacross inputhelp that iscomprisedofmultiple tabsas shown inFigure3.29.TheyaretermedasCollectiveSearchHelps.

Figure3.29:CollectiveSearchHelp

In this case, the relevant tab may be selected and input values entered in the fieldsprovidedasshowninFigure3.29.

Inadditiontothestandarddisplayedlistofvalues,youmayalsocreateaPersonalValueList(asetofvaluesforyourself).Thispersonallistallowsyoutoorganizeyourfavoritesoryourfrequentlyaccessedvalues.

InsteadofthestandardF4Help,pressing“F4”displaysthePersonalValueList.YoumaythenswitchfromPersonalValuelisttostandardHitListandviceversa.

TocreateaPersonalValueList(ortoaddarecordintoaPersonalValueList)selectarowfromthestandardHitListandthenclickthe buttonon the toolbar.Thiswilladd the

valuetothePersonalValueListandwillcreatethelistifitdoesnotexistalready.ToviewthePersonalValuelist,clickthe button.

NOTE:YoumayalsocreatePersonalValueListsalongwiththestandardF4Help.A personal list, as the name denotes, is a list of values that you have personallychosen.Itwillbeshownratherthanthedefaultsearchhelplist.

OncevaluesareenteredinthePersonalValueList,accessingtheF4HelpnexttimeforthefieldinquestionwilldisplaythePersonalValueListratherthanthestandardhelplist.Youmayswitchback to thestandard listbyclicking theDisplayAllValues button in thetoolbar.

AusefulfunctionprovidedbyallSAPscreensisthefacilitytocopymultiplevaluesfromasetofinputfieldsortablelinesatonetimeusingthe“CTRL+Y”keys.Todothis,followthestepsbelow:

·First,pressthe“CTRL+Y”keys.Alternately,youmayusethemenupathshowninFigure3.30.

Figure3.30:MenuPathforCopyingValues

Oncethisisdone,thecursorwillchangeintoacrosshaircursor.

·Placethecursoratthestartingpointoftheareatobecopied.Presstheleftmousebuttontomarkthetop-leftcorneroftheareatobeselected.Thiswillstarttheselectionofthearea.Keeptheleftmousebuttonpressedasyoudragthecursorovertheareatobecopied.

NOTE:Makesureacrosshairappearsforthecursorafterthe“CTRL+Y”keysarepressed.Thismeansthe“CTRL+Y”hasbeensuccessful.

·Usethemousetodragthecursorinordertohighlighttheareatobecopied.Releasetheleftmousebuttontocompletetheselectionprocess.Agreyshadedboxwillappear

3.4CopyingMultipleValuesfromScreenwith“CTRL+Y”

showingtheselectedarea.

·Youmaythenusethe“CTRL+C”keystocopyallthevaluesthatarefilledinthevariousinputfieldsortablelines.ThesemaythenbeenteredviathePastefunctiontoanyotherSAPscreen.

NOTE: You may use the “CTRL+Y” keys to select the content of multipleinput/output fields. “CTRL+C” will then copy all the values. These may then becopiedtoanotherSAPscreenorDesktopapplication.

In this section, wewill discuss the default values for an Input Field. For certain inputfields, there are Parameter IDs (a three-character ID, such as FWS or ABK) that aredefinedbySAP.Insuchcases,theuserisallowedtosetdefaultvalues.

Thebenefitofdoing this is that theuserdoesnotneed to type thesamevalueoverandoveragain.Thesedefaultvalueswillsavetheusertime.WhenevertheuserisonascreenthathasthefieldforwhichtheParameterIDhasbeenset,thedefaultvaluethathasbeenspecified in the “User Data” for that input field (Parameter ID) is read and filledautomatically.Another advantageof this is thatoneuser’sdefaultvalue for aparticularfieldwillnotaffectthevaluesofanotheruser.AtypicalexampleofthisisacurrencyfieldthatmaybesetasadefaultvaluesuchasUSDorGBP.

NOTE: For input fields, if applicable, values may be set as default usingParameterIDs.ParameterIDsmayalsobeusedtosetuser-specificsettingsofscreens.

Theprocedurefordefiningdefaultvaluesforaninputfieldisasfollows:

·InordertofindoutwhetheraParameterIDisapplicable,selecttheinputfieldandpress“F1”inordertodisplaythefieldhelp.ThedialogwillbedisplayedasshowninFigure3.31.

3.5DefiningDefaultValuesforanInputField

Figure3.31:FieldHelp

·Thenclickthe button.ThiswilldisplaytheTechnicalInformation.IftheParameterIDisapplicable,athree-letterIDwillbedisplayedasshowninFigure3.32.

Figure3.32:InputHelpwithParameterID

IncasetheParameterIDisnotdefinedforthefieldinquestion,theParameterIDinformationwillnotbepresent.

·OnceyouhavetheParameterIDforthefield,gototheUserdatabyfollowingthemenupathSystemUserProfileàOwnData.ThiswillleadyoutotheMaintainUserProfiletransaction.OntheParameterstab,entertheParameterIDintherespectivecolumnandthedefaultvalueintheParameterValuecolumnasshowninFigure3.33.

Figure3.33:DefaultsTab

·Saveyourdata.Whenyourerunthetransaction,thedefineddefaultvalue,whenapplicable,isplacedautomaticallyintherelevantfieldasshowninFigure3.34.

Figure3.34:ValueAppearsinField

3.6HoldDataandSetDataFunctionality

While enteringdata for a number of objects (for example,Employees, SalesOrders, orNotifications),youmaycomeacrossscreensthatinvolverepetitiveentryofagivensetofinformationfordifferentobjects.Enteringthesamedataonanumberofscreensmaybealaborious activity, particularlywhenmany entries are to bemade.SAP relieves its userfrom the burden of retyping the same data by providing the Hold Data/SetDatafunctionality.

TheHoldDatafunctionalityallowsuserstosavetheredundantdataintheSAPmemory.The user types these field values for an SAP screen only once, i.e., for the first objectwhose information is being entered. This data then gets stored in SAPmemory and isautomatically made available in the respective data fields when the same screen isaccessed for subsequent objects. This functionality provides a number of advantages tousers:

·ItletsyouenteralargevolumeofdatainSAPquicklyandeasily.

·Foreachuser,SAPallocatesaseparateareainmemory.Thisensuresthatnoclashofsavedvalueswilloccurbetweendifferentusers.

·YoumayusetheHoldData/SetDatafunctionalityforscreensofallmodulesandsubmodules.

3.6.1UsingHold/SetDataFunctionalityInordertousetheHoldDataandSetDataoptions,followthestepsshownbelow:

·CalltheSAPtransactiononwhichyouwouldliketomaketheredundantentries.

·Asalreadymentioned,youonlyneedtoentertherepetitivedataonce.Enterthesevaluesforthefirstobjectinconsideration.Donotenteravalueinanyfieldwhosevaluesarenottobecopied.

·ThenchoosethemenuoptionSystemàUserProfileàHoldData(seeFigure3.35).

Figure3.35:“HoldData”MenuPath

This stores the entered data in the SAP memory. The message “Data was held” isdisplayed.

Figure3.36DataWasHeld

Theheldvaluesaredisplayedinred,asshowninboxesinFigure3.37.

Figure3.37:HeldValues

Youmayalsoholdvaluesforinputfieldsonebyone.Inthiscase,eachtimeyouholdavalue,alltheheldvaluesaredisplayedontheinputscreeninred.

·Whenyouopenthesamescreentoenterdataforsubsequentobjects,thesaveddatavaluesarepresentintherelevantfields.Youmayalsoamendthesevaluesifyoulike.

·Ifyouwanttoexcludetheheldvaluefieldsfromdataentryornavigationviathetabkey,choosethemenuoptionSystemàUserProfileàSetData.Thiswillgrey-outthefieldinquestionandwillnotalloweditingofthefieldvalueforcurrentandsubsequentobjects.Suchafieldwillalsobeignoredduringtabkeynavigation.

·Whenyouhavecompletedenteringthedata,youshoulddeletetheheldvaluesfromtheSAPmemory.YoucandothisbychoosingthemenuoptionSystemàUserProfileàDeleteData.

On the left side of the initial screen of data maintenance transactions, there may be anavigationtoolknownastheObjectManagerasshowninFigure3.38. (In thissectionwediscusstheObjectManagerasitisusedintheHRtransactionsPA30andPA20.)

3.7ObjectManager

Figure3.38ObjectManager

The searchoptions are foundon the topof the screen, and theHitList area (where thevaluesfoundasaresultofthesearcharedisplayed)canbeseenonthelowerpartofthescreen.

ThereisaSearchTermoptionthatallowsyoutosearchinthedatabase.Inourcase,wehave taken the Person example, so it is the employee (or the name of the employee).ClickingtheFindbyPersonoptionwillshowthedialoginFigure3.39.

Figure3.39:FindPersonDialog

EnteranameinthefieldprovidedandpresstheFindbutton.

This will populate the Hit List area with the names of the employees that satisfy ourenteredcondition.Inourcase,wehavesearchedforallemployeesthathave“Alexander”intheirname.

Figure3.40:HitList

WhileyouareontheHitList,youareabletocreatealistofmultiplenamesorcriteria.YoucandothisbyenteringasearchtermandthenclickingtheEnterSearchResultinList

button.Thiswill add the results to the existingHitList, and then youmay enterothersearchcriteriaintheWithNamefield.

Also,youmaycreatevariantsthatallowyoutosaveyoursearchcriteria.Todothis,clickon theCreateSearchVariant buttonon the toolbar.Thedialog appears as shown inFigure3.41.

Figure3.41:SearchVariant

Enterasuitablenameforyourvariants.Let’ssaywewrote“peoplenamedalexander”andthenpressedtheEnterbutton.

ThiswilladdanodeforthenewlycreatedsearchvariantasshowninFigure3.42.

Figure3.42:NodeforSearchVariant

Thenexttimeyoucometothetransactions,simplydouble-clickontherelevantvariantsandtheHitListwillbepopulatedbasedonthecriteriaonthatdate.Thismeansthat,forexample, when you run the saved variant “people named alexander,” all of the peoplenamedAlexanderwillbesearchedforagainanddisplayed.YoumaygetdifferentresultseachtimeasmorepeoplenamedAlexanderareaddedtothesystem.

This chapter discussed how to effectively enter data into the SAP system. With theinformation provided, you should nowbe able to, among other things, enter data usingData Entry Transactions, incorporate value help for Input Fields, copy multiple valuesfromthescreen,anddefinedefaultvaluesforanInputField.

Referenceshttp://help.sap.com/saphelp_oil46csp2/helpdata/EN/85/daf1d04bac11d1890e0000e8322f96/content.htm

SummaryofChapter3

Chapter4

Personalizing–ChangingSAPLookandFeel

This chapterwill cover the possible options that are available to personalize theSAPsystemaccording toyourpreferences.Allof thesettingsshown in thischapterapply tooneparticularuser;thesettingsofotherusersarenotaffected.

Chapter 2 described how to organize yourwork using Favorites. In this chapter, IwillcoverthespecificdetailsinvolvedinpersonalizingthelookandfeeloftheSAPsystem.Thefollowingtopicswillbecovered:

·Personalizingtheinitialscreen,includingsettingthestarttransaction,modifyingthestatusfields,andchangingfavoritesandeasyaccessmenusettings.

·ChangingSAPbehavior,includingcontrollingcursorbehavior,switchinghistoryinputonoroff,changingyouruserprofile,andquickcutandpastefeatures.

·ChangingGUIandHelpsettings,includingthemesandfonts,adjustingdropdownlistdisplays,personalizingmessagedisplays,andchangingthedisplayofF1andF4Help.

ThischapterismeanttohelptheusercreateamoreefficientandenjoyableSAPsystem.Somequestionsthatwillbeansweredinthischapterinclude:

·HowcanIsetthestarttransaction?

·HowcanIquicklycutandpasteportionsoftext?

·Whataremyoptionsforchangingthethemeandfonts?

·HowcanIpersonalizemessageswhentheyaredisplayed?

Alongtheway,therewillbeexamplesandscreenshotstomakethetaskofpersonalizingyourSAPsystemaseasyandstraightforwardaspossible.

This sectionwill discuss three changes thatmay bemade to the default settings of theInitialSAPscreen.Personalizationcanoccurbysettingthestarttransactions,modifyingthestatusbarfields,andchangingthemenuandfavoritesdisplay.Letusnowseeeachofthethreeindetail.

4.1PersonalizingtheInitialScreen

4.1.1SettingtheStartTransactionAStartTransactionisdefinedasthefirsttransactiondisplayed(orthattheuseristakento)afterasuccessfullogon.Oneofthesimplestfeaturesaboutpersonalizationistosetaparticular transaction as the Start Transaction. Youmay set this to themost frequentlyusedtransactionorthefirsttransactionthatyoustartwithinyourdailywork.

Sincethisisthefirstscreenthatyouaretakento,itwillsavetimebecauseyoudon’thavetosearchwithinthetreeortypethetransactionnameintotheCommandField.

In order to set start transaction, from the main SAP menu choose Extras à Set StartTransactionasshowninFigure4.1.

Figure4.1:SetStartTransaction

ThedialogboxappearsasshowninFigure4.2.

Figure4.2:EnteringStartTransaction

Enter the transaction code in the field provided and press “Enter”. This will set thetransactioncode.Thenexttimeyoulogin,insteadoftheinitialSAPeasyaccessscreen,youwillbetakentothespecifiedtransactioncode.

Thevalue of the set transaction is not deleteduntil you changeor reset it.Even if youassignvaluetothetransactionattheendofaworkingday,thesettransactionwillremainthereuntilyournextlogin(irrespectiveofwhenyoulogin).

4.1.2ModifyingtheStatusFieldDisplayInChapter1,IdiscussedtheStatusfieldsdisplayedintheStatusbar.Inthissection,wewillseehowtomodifythestatusfieldsdisplay(theinformationgivenhereisrelevantforallSAPscreensincludingtheinitialscreen).

TheinformationdisplayedinstatusbarisshowninFigure4.3.

Figure4.3:StatusFields

Youmayclickonthe icontosee the listofvariousfields thatmaybedisplayed(andtheirvalues)asshowninFigure4.3.

Some of the options youmay choose from (relevant to users) may be the Program orTransactioncodethatyouareexecutingaswellasyourusername.Inaddition,youmaychoosetodisplaytheResponseTime.

NOTE:YoumayhidetheStatusfieldsbyclickingonthe icon.

Tochangethefielddisplayedinthestatusbar,clickthe icon.ThisopensanumberofoptionsasshowninFigure4.3.

Someoftheimportantinformationthatmaybedisplayedinthestatusincludes:

·SystemandClient:Thisdisplaysthenameofthesystemandtherelevantclienttowhichyouareloggedin.

·User:TheIDwithwhichyouareloggedin,forexample,JONR01etc.

·Program:Thenameoftheprogramyouareexecuting.

·Transaction:Thetransactionyouarerunning.

·ResponseTime:Thismaysimplybedefinedasthetimeittakesfortheexecutionofacertaintask(forexample,areporttransaction).Thistimeismeasuredinmilliseconds.Youmayexecuteareporttodisplaytheselectionscreen.EnterthedataontheselectionscreenandclicktheExecutebutton.Whenyouexecutethereport,itwillshowthetimetakenforthereporttofetchdatafromthedatabaseandgeneratethereportoutput.

4.1.3ChangingFavoritesandEasyAccessMenuSettingsFor the initial SAP screen, you may change the way the Easy Access Menu and theFavoritesaredisplayed.Letusseeindetailhowthisisdone.

TochangethemenuandFavoritessettings,accessthemenuoptionExtrasàSettings.ThiswilldisplaythedialogboxasshowninFigure4.4.

Figure4.4:SettingsforFavorites

Thishasfourcheckboxes(options),whicharediscussedbelow:

·DisplayFavoritesatendoflist:ChoosingthisoptionwilldisplaytheFavoritesatthebottomofthelistintheleftpane.ThisisshowninFigure4.5.

Figure4.5:FavoritesatEndofList

·DonotDisplayMenu,onlydisplayfavorites:Ifyoucheckthisoption,theentireEasyAccessmenuishidden,andonlytheFavoritesaredisplayed.

·Donotdisplaypicture:Inthiscase,thepicturedisplayedontherightpaneofthescreenisnotshown.

·DisplayTechnicalnames:Switchingonthisoptionwilldisplaythetechnicalnamesoftheitemslistedinthemenutree.Forexample,thetransactioncodeofthereportsandscreensthatyouworkwitharedisplayedasshowninFigure4.6.BothoftheitemsintheFavoritesaswellasthemenudisplaythetechnicalnames.

Figure4.6:MenuItemsandFavoritesWithTechnicalNames

Inthefigure,thetransactioncodeoftheManager’sDesktopisshown(i.e.,PPMDT)byswitchingonthetechnicalnames.

In this section, Iwill cover the features thatallowyou tochangecertainGUIandHelpsettings. These include how to change Theme and Fonts, how to adjust dropdown listdisplays,howtopersonalizemessagedisplays,andhowtochangethedisplayofF1andF4Help.

NOTE: The screenshots for this chapter have been taken from the latest GUIversion730.However,manyofthefeaturesarealsoapplicabletotheolder710GUI.ThemajordifferenceisthewaytheCustomizinglayoutoptionsappear.InolderGUI,instead of the navigation tree and nodes, there are tabs that have customizationoptions.IfyouareusingtheolderGUI,usetheappropriatetab.

Formostofthechangesshowninthissection,theCustomizingLayoutoptionsareused.ClicktheCustomizingLocalLayoutbutton onthestandardtoolbar.Fromthemenuthatappears,chooseOptions.ThiswilldisplaytheSAPGUIoptionsdialogboxasshowninFigure4.7.

4.2ChangingStandardGUISettings

Figure4.7:SAPGUICustomizingOptions

Ontheleftofthedialogboxthereisatreethatshowsthedifferentcategories(orareas)that contain thevariousGUIcustomizingoptions.For example,wehaveVisualDesignandInteractionDesignasshowninFigure4.8.

Figure4.8:CustomizableGUIOptionAreas

ThereisalsoaSearchfieldthatyoucanusetoquicklylookfortheactualplacewhereaparticularcustomizationoption is.Forexample, inorder todirectlygo to thescreen forcustomizingerrormessages,youmaysimply type“errormessages” in theSearch field.Whenthisisdone,therespectivenodewillbeshowninitalicsasshowninFigure4.9.

Figure4.9:Searchingfor“ErrorMessages”

Theexactnodeand thepath foraccessing itwillbeshown in italics,whereas theotherirrelevantnodeswillappeardim,makingthedesirablenodeprominent.Youmaydouble-click on this node to go directly to the customization screen (Notifications node in ourerrormessagesexample).

NOTE: If at any timeyoudecide to restore (revert) to thedefaultGUI settings,youmaydosobyusingtheRestoreDefaultsbutton(seeFigure4.9).ThisbuttonwillrestoreyourdefaultGUIsettings,suchasthefonts,theme,andcursorsettings,backtotheiroriginalform.

NOTE:Toaccessthehelpfeatureatanynodeorforanyfunction,simplyclicktheHelp button. The necessary documentation for the screen that you are on will bedisplayed.

4.2.1ChangingGUIThemeandFontsYou also have control over changing the GUI theme and the displayed fonts. In thissection,wewilltakeacloserlookathowthisisdone.

Atthetop-leftofthedialogboxshowninFigure4.9isaThemeSelectionlistbox.InthenewerGUIversion,youhavetheSAP“SignatureTheme”selected.Ifyouwanttochangethetheme,chooseadifferentthemefromthedropdownlistandclickApply.

ThenewthemewillonlybeapplicablewhentheSAPLogonpadisclosedandrestarted.

Within theSignatureThemeyou can change thedefault color of theSAPwindows.Tochange the color of the Signature Theme, choose the path Visual Design —> ColorSettings. This will be found in the left pane of the GUI Options dialog (use theCustomizing Local Layout shown earlier). On the right side of the screen, select adifferent color (such as SAPGold or Purple).After you have chosen a color, click theApplybutton.

ThenewcolorwillbeapplicablewhenanewSAPsessionisopened.

NOTE:FromSAPGUI730,SAPprovidesanewCorbuTheme.Thisthemehasareduced contrast as compared to SignatureDesign and also has a different style oficons.

Inadditiontothetheme,youhavetheoptionofchangingthefontsaswellasthefontsizedisplayedontheSAPscreen.Todothis,choose thepathVisualDesignàFontsettings.The right side of the screen changes as shown in Figure 4.10 (these are the defaultsettings).

NOTE: FixedWidth Font Settings are applicable for data entered in the inputfields and displayed in lists, whereas Proportional fonts are used for Captions anddescriptions(foritems)shownonthescreen.

Figure4.10:FixedWidthandProportionalFontSettings

ForFixedWidthFontspertainingtoinputfieldsandlists,youcansettheFonttypeaswellasthesizebyclickingtherelevant buttonundertheFixedWidthFontSettingsarea.This will display a Font selection dialog box, which can be used to specify yourpreferences(seefigure4.11).

Figure4.11:FontSelection

Whenyouaredonewithyourfontselection,clickOK.

If you would like to keep separate font settings for Proportional Fonts, make sure theSelectProportionalFontcheckboxatthetop(underFontdialog)ison.Oncethisisdone,clickthe buttonunderProportionalFontSettings.AsimilarfontselectionscreenisdisplayedasshowninFigure4.11.Hereyoumaychoosefromavarietyoffontsizesandtypesaccordingtoyourliking.

4.2.2AdjustingDropdownListDisplayInadditiontootherfeaturesofthescreen,youmaymodifytheappearanceofDropdownlists.Bydefault,onlythedescriptionoftheitemsisshownintheDropdownasshowninFigure4.12.

Figure4.12:PermanentAddressDropdownList

Youmayalsodisplaythekeyvaluesalongwiththedescription,ifdesired,insortedorder.Letusseehowthisisdone.

Toaccess theDropdown listcustomization,click theCustomizeLocalLayout buttonandchooseOptions.Thedialogbox appears.From the left pane, double-click thenodeVisualization1shownunderInteractionDesign(asshowninFigure4.13).

Figure4.13:Visualization1node

ThescreenontherightappearsastheoneshowninFigure4.14.

Figure4.14:DropdownListCustomization

For olderGUI versions, select the Expert tab from the dialog box that appears (Figure4.15).

Figure4.15:ExperttabonOlderGUIs

ThecheckboxesdisplayedundertheControlsareaallowyoutocustomizethedropdownlist.Bydefault, thetwocheckboxesShowKeysinallDropdownListsandSort ItemsbyKey are switched off. If the first checkbox, i.e. the one for showing keys in the list, isswitchedon,thekeys(codes)aswellasthedescriptionsoftheitemswillbedisplayed.Inthiscase,thedropdownlistswillappearasshowninFigure4.16.

Figure4.16:AddressFieldOptions

Moreover, ifyouwould like to sort the itemsbyusing thekey,makesure that theSortItemsByKeycheckboxison(thischeckboxwillonlybeenablediftheShowKeysoptionisselected).

Switching on the key, along with the sorted key options, may significantly increaseperformancewhileenteringdata.Sincemostusersaremorefamiliarwiththekeys(codes)–ratherthanthedescription,itwillbequickertosearchforthecodewithinthedropdownlist.

4.2.3PersonalizingMessageDisplaysAsmentionedearlierinChapter1,avarietyofmessages,suchasInformation,Errors,andWarnings,aredisplayedwhileexecutingatransaction.Apartfromotherfeaturesthatcanbepersonalized,somelevelofpersonalizationmaybedoneformessagesaswell.

Thedefaultbehavioristhatmessagesappearinthestatusbar.Youmaychangetheformofthe displayedmessages tomore noticeable dialog boxes,whichwillmake them appear

moreprominent.Youmayalsoturnasoundalertonoroffwhenamessageisdisplayed.Onemorebenefitisthatyoucansetacontrolforeachmessagetype,suchasInformation,Error, or Warning. It is possible, for example, to switch on dialog boxes display, forWarningandErrors,andletInformationappearasstatusbarmessages.

Forpersonalizingmessages,clicktheCustomizingLocalLayoutbuttonfromthestandardtoolbar. From themenu, chooseOptions. From the dialog box that appears, choose thenodeNotificationsunderInteractionDesign(seeFigure4.17).

Figure4.17:NotificationsunderInteractionDesign

Ontherightsideofthedialogbox,aMessagesareawillbedisplayedasshowninFigure4.18.

Figure4.18:OptionsforPersonalizingMessages

Therearefourcheckboxesrelatedtopersonalizingyourmessages.TheBeepatMessagecheckboxallowsyoutohaveabeepsoundalertoccurwhenamessageisdisplayed(themoreimportantcheckboxesarebelowthisbeep-relatedcheckbox).

Foreachofthemessagetypes,youhaveaswitch(checkbox)fordisplayingadialogbox.Checkthecorrespondingindicator(s)forthetype(s)ofmessagethatyouwanttoseeasadialogbox.IfyouwanttoseeallWarnings,Errors,andSuccessmessagesasdialogboxes,checkall threeindicators.Figure4.19showsanerrorshownasadialogboxif theerrorcheckboxisswitchedon.

Figure4.19:ErrorMessageinDialogBox

ThesameerrorpreviouslyshowninthestatusbarappearedastheoneinFigure4.20.

Figure4.20:ErrorMessageinStatusBar

4.2.4ChangingDisplayofF1andF4HelpApart fromother features thatmaybechangedaccording toyourdesires, some levelofpersonalizationisalsopossiblefortheF1InputandF4valueHelps.ForF1Help,youcanchangethedisplay,whereasforF4Help,youhavecontroloverthenumberofvaluesofthehitlistaswellasthehitlistitself.Letusseeindetailhowthisisdone.

ChoosethemenupathHelpàSettingsasshowninFigure4.21(thisisavailableinallSAPscreens).

Figure4.21:“Settings”MenuPath

ThedialogboxappearsasshowninFigure4.22.

Figure4.22:PersonalSettingsforyourUser

TwoimportanttabsonthisboxaretheF1HelpandF4Help.Letusdiscussthemindetail.

·F1Help.ThepreviousFigureshowstheF1Helptab,whichhastwopossibleoptions.YoumaychoosetodisplaythehelpeitherinthedefaultPerformanceAssistantdisplayorintheformofamodaldialogbox.IfyouchoosetheModalDialogBoxoption,theF1helpwilllookliketheoneshowninFigure4.23.

Figure4.23:ModalF1Help

ThenormalPerformanceAssistanthelp(asdiscussedearlier)isshowninFigure4.24.

Figure4.24:PerformanceAssistantHelp

·F4Helptab.Therearesomeuser-specificsettingsalsorelatedtotheF4Help.ClickonthetabF4Help.TheappropriatescreenwillappearasshowninFigure4.25.

Figure4.25:F4HelpUser-specificSettings

Theimportantcheckboxesandfieldsofthistabareshownbelow:

·DonotDisplayPers.ValueListAutomatic.Ifthischeckboxison,thePersonalValuelistisnotdisplayedautomatically.Themainhitlistisdisplayed.ThereisaPersonalListValue buttonthatallowsyoutogotoyourpersonallist.(Thebuttonisonlydisplayedifthereisatleastonevalueinthepersonallist.)Youmayaddentriesintothepersonallist(fromthisscreen)usingthe button.

Ifthecheckboxisoff,thePersonalValuelistisdisplayed.Youmaythengobacktothemainlistofallpossiblevaluesusingthe button.

·OnlyReturnValuedirectlyifonlyonehit.Ifthisindicatorisset,theinputfieldisautomaticallyfilledwiththevaluesatisfyingthesearchcriteriaentered,ifonlyonevalueexistsinthedatabasethatsatisfiesthegivencondition.Inthiscasenohitlistorvaluescreenisdisplayed.Forexample,ifwehaveafieldnameandweenter“J*”initandpress“F4”,thefieldwillbeautomaticallyfilledwith“John”ifJohnistheonlyvaluestartingfromJstoredinthesystem.

·Maximumnumberofhitstobedisplayed.Thisvaluedeterminesthemaximumnumberofentriesdisplayedinthehitlist.Youmayenterasuitablevalueaccordingtoyourrequirementsinthisfield,andthissettingwillbeapplicableforallinputfields.Supposeweenter“10”astheMaximumNumberofHits,thenonlythefirst10valuessatisfyingthecriteriawillbedisplayed.Iftherearemorethan10values,amessageisdisplayedthatreadsTherearemorethan10possibleinputs.ThisisshowninFigure4.26.

Figure4.26:MoreThan1oInputsMessage

·MaximumWidthofHitList(inchars).Asthetextdenotes,thisisusedtocontrolthenumberofcolumnsdisplayedinthehitlist.Forexample,thehitlistcontainsthreecolumnsof10,15,and30charactersoflengthrespectively.Ifwewanttoonlydisplaythefirsttwocolumns,then25mustbeenteredintheMaximumWidthfield.Likewise,entering10willdisplayonlythefirstcolumninthelist.

4.2.4.1F4Help:DialogandControlModeRadioButtonsTheDialog andControlModes of the F4Help display are important.Youmay chooseeitheroneofthemdependingonyourrequirements.Letustakeacloserlookatboth.

·DialogMode.WhentheDialogModeisselectedandyoupress“F4”onaninputfieldonanygivenSAPscreenforaccessingthepossiblelistofvalues,theformatinwhichtheF4listofvaluesisdisplayedisshowninFigure4.27.Thevaluesaredisplayedinadialogbox.

Figure4.27:ListofValuesGeneratedforF4helpofSalesDocumentField

This dialog box does not allow you to proceed with the screen on which you wereworking.Ifthelististoowide,thereisascrollbaratthebottomofthedialogbox.

Before viewing the possible set of input values, if you would like theNo restrictionscheckbox to be displayed on the initial screen of your F4 help selection (i.e. on theRestrict Value Range screen), you need to selectDialogMode. On the initial selectionscreenofyourF4help,thescreenwillappearasshowninFigure4.28.

Figure4.28:RestrictValueRange

SelectingthisNorestrictioncheckboxwillturnoffnumberrestrictionsofthelistofvaluestobedisplayed.Thismeansthatifthereare10,000valuesthatfulfillthegivencriteria,allvalueswillbedisplayed.

NOTE:TheNoRestrictionfeatureisonlyavailableforF4helplistvaluesintheDialogMode.

·ControlMode.Inthiscase,theformatthatthelistisdisplayedisshowninFigure4.29.

Figure4.29:SearchHelpControl

ThisistheSearchHelpControlmode.Itprovidesavarietyofadvantages.Youmayclickthebarmarkedwith atthetoptoaccessthescreentofurtherfilterthevaluesshowninthedisplayedlist.Thereisalsoaminimizebutton,whichwillminimizethelistandallowyoutocontinueworkingwiththeSAPscreenyouwereworkingon.Inthecaseof a complexF4 searchhelp,youmaygo to theother tabswhileyouareon the listofvalues.

In this section, Iwill cover the features that allowyou to changeSAPbehavior.Theseincludehow tocontrolcursorbehavior,how toadjust listdisplaysonSAPscreens, andhowtoadjusttheuserprofile.

4.3.1ControllingCursorBehaviorIn addition to theSAPGUI, fonts, andother visual elements, youmay also change theway the cursor behaveswhile youworkwith the system.To access the cursor settings,choosetheInteractionDesignàKeyboardSettingsnodefromtheSAPGUIoptionsdialogbox (using theCustomizingLocalLayout button shown earlier). The screen changes asshowninFigure4.30.

4.3ChangingSAPBehavior

Figure4.30:CursorCheckboxesonKeyboardSettings

NOTE:IfyouareusingtheearlierGUIversion,accessthecursorsettingsontheCursortabofCustomizingLocalLayoutoptions.

UnderKeyboardSettings,thefollowingcheckboxesarerelevanttocursorsettings.Letusdiscusseachindetail.

·Automaticallymovefocustonextinputfieldonreachingendoffield.Ifthissettingison,thecursormovesautomaticallytothenextinputfield(inthetabsequence)ofthescreen,whenthefirstfieldiscompletelyfilledwithdata.Theuseofamouseorthe“Tab”keyisnotrequired.Thisallowsyoutoenterdataquicklywithoutshiftingthefocusyourself.ThisisalsoknownasAutomaticTabbing.Bydefault,thischeckboxisoff.

·Remembercursorpositionwithininputfields.Ifthissettingison,thesystemremembersthepositionthecursorwaslastatwithinaninputfield.Thismeansthatifyoutypedpartialdata(somecharactersinaninputfield)andwentontoentertextinanotherinputfield,thenexttimeyoufocusbackonthefirstfield,thecursorwillbeplacedafterthelastcharacter(evenblankspaces)thatyouhadentered.

·Positioncursorattheendofthevaluewhenenteringafield.Thischeckbox,ifon,bringsthecursortotheendofthetextenteredwithinafield.Ifyouenteracertainvalueinafieldfollowedbyspacesandthengoonenteringinanotherfield,whenyouusethemousetofocusbackonthefirstfield,thecursorwillbeplacedattheendofthetextentered.Anyblankspacesyouenteredwillbeignored.Ifthissettingisswitchedoff,thecursorwillbepositionedtothepointwheretheblankspacesended.

·AutomaticallyselectcompletevaluewhenenteringafieldinINSmode.Whenthisischecked,youcanoverwritethepreviouslyenteredvalueinaninputfieldwithasinglekeystrokeintheinsertINSmode.Ifthefocuscomestoafieldeitherwithataboranautomatictab,theentirecontentofafieldisselected(asshowninFigure4.31).ThismakesiteasyintheInsertmodetoquicklychangeanalreadyexistingvalue.Ifyouswitchoffthisfeature,theentirevaluewillnotbeselectedandyoumustdeletethecharactersyourself.

Figure4.31:SelectedContentinField

4.3.2SwitchingHistoryInputOnandOffAsmentionedearlier,SAPremembersthehistoryofvaluesenteredinaninputfield.Thisisparticularlyusefulwhenyouneed to input thesame(orsimilar)valueagain,becauseyou do not need to reenter the entire value. TheHistorywill help usersmake entriesquicklyandeasily.CertainsettingsatyourlocallayoutallowyoutoswitchtheHistoryon

andofforchangethewaytheHistoryisdisplayed.

To change theHistory settings, access the SAPGUI options box (using theCustomizeLocalLayout button as shownearlier).Then choose thenodeLocalDataàHistory.TherightsideofthedialogboxwillappearasshowninFigure4.32.

Figure4.32:HistoryNodeDisplayed

YouhavethreeoptionsrelatedtotheHistoryStatusofinputfields(seeFigure4.33).

Figure4.33:HistoryStatusOptions

Thethreeoptionsarediscussedasfollows:

·Off:Ifthisoptionisselected,theHistoryforallinputfieldswillnolongerbeavailable.Additionally,thesetofpreviouslyenteredvalueswillbedeletedandlost,evenifyouswitchontheHistorylater.InsomecasesyouwillwanttheHistoryforinputfieldstobedisabled,asitmayleadtoconfusionwhenmakingentries.

·On:ThiswillswitchontheHistoryfeature.TheHistorywillbedisplayedwhenyouusethe“Backspace”keywhilethecursorisonthefieldinquestion,orwhenyoutrytoentersomevalueinthefield.

·Immediately:InnormalHistoryOnmode,theHistoryisonlydisplayedwhentheuserstartsenteringvaluesintheinputfield(orusesthe“Backspace”key).CheckingtheImmediatelyindicatorwilldisplaytheHistoryassoonasthecursorisplacedonthefieldinquestion(eitherwithamouseclickorbyusingthe“Tab”key).

InadditiontoswitchingtheHistoryonandoff,animportantoptionistolimitthenumberofentriesdisplayedintheHistorylist.ThismaybedoneviatheHistorySettingsasshowninFigure4.34.

Figure4.34:HistorySettings

Therelevant field in thiscase is theMaximumNumberofEntries.Youmay increaseordecreasethevaluefromthedefaultvalueof20.Forexample,ifyoutype“4”inthefield,themaximumentriesdisplayedinafield’sHistorywillbe4.

If youneed to clear all of theHistory, simply click theClearHistory button.ThiswillcleartheHistoryfortheentiresystemandnohistorywillbeshownforanyinputfieldonanyscreen.

4.3.3ChangingYourUserProfileTheOwnDatawithin your User Profile also offers options for personalization. In thissection,wewilltakeacloselookattheUserProfileoptionsavailable.Toreachyouruserprofile,choosethemenupathSystemàUserProfileàOwnData(seeFigure4.35).

Figure4.35:UserProfileMenuPath

ThiswilltakeyoutothescreenshowninFigure4.36.

NOTE:InordertogodirectlytotheOwnDataoftheUserProfile,usetransactionSU3.

Figure4.36:MaintainUserProfile

Thisscreeniscomprisedofthreetabs:Address,Defaults,andParameters.OntheAddresstabyoucanset thepersonal informationrelated toyouruser ID.Thevariousfields thatmay be set are Title, Last and First name, the Department, RoomNumber, Floor, andBuildinginformation.

ThemoreimportanttabistheDefaultstab.Letusdiscusssomeoftheimportantfieldsonthistabthatcanhelpinpersonalization.

Figure4.37:DefaultsTab

NOTE:OnceyouaredonewithUserProfilechanges,saveyoursettings.ValuesenteredontheDefaulttabapplywhenyouloginagain.Thesystemreadsthesevaluesatthetimeoflogonandchangesitselfaccordingly.

·StartMenu.Thisistheareamenudisplayeddirectlyafteryoulogintothesystem.Itissimilartothestarttransaction.Use“F4”toselectavaluefromthelistthatappears.Ifyouleavethisfieldblank,theSAPEasyAccessmenuwillbedisplayed.

·LogonLanguage.Thisisthelanguageapplicableafteryoulogin.Allelementsdisplayedontheuserinterface,suchasthemenuitemtexts,applicationtoolbarbuttontext,screenfieldlabels,aswellasthedocumentation,areintheselectedlogonlanguage.

·DecimalNotation.Thedecimalnotationletsyoucontrolthewaythedecimalfigures,includingamountsthataredisplayedontheSAPscreensandlists,areformatted.ThethreeformatsinwhichyoumaydisplaydecimalsareshowninFigure4.38.

Figure4.38:DecimalFormats

Choosetheappropriateformatbasedonyourliking.Thefirstformatincludesaperiod‘.’foreverythousandnumbersandacommawillappeartodenotedecimalspoints.Forexample,OneMillionwillbedisplayedas“1.000.000,oo”.Inthesecondformat,acommawillappearforeverythousandandaperiodforthedecimal.Forexample,inthiscase,OneMillionwillappearas“1,000,000.00”.

·Dateformat.Similarly,thedateandtimeformatmaybesetinacoupleofdifferentways.TypicalformatsforthedatesareMM/DD/YYYYandtheDD.MM.YYYY.Forexample,ifyouchoosethelatter,December31,2014willbedisplayedinscreensandlistsas“12/31/2014”andnot“31.12.2014”.

·SpoolControl.WithintheSpoolControlarea,youmaysetimportantvaluesrelatedtoprinting.IntheOutputDevice,youcansetyourprinterasthedefaultprintertowhichallprintingjobswillbesent.

IftheOutputImmediatelycheckboxison,theprintdialogboxthatappearswhileprintingwillalsohavetheOutputImmediatelycheckboxonbydefault.OnceyouselectthePrintoption,theprintingwillbecarriedoutimmediately.YouarenotrequiredtomanuallydeleteyourrequestsfromthelistofSpoolrequests(formoreonSAPprintingrefertoChapter8-PrintingGuide).

ChoosingtheDeleteAfterOutputbuttonwilldeletetheSpoolrequestonceyourprintinghasbeencompleted.Ifthisoptionisnoton,therequestsremaininthespoollistandwillonlybedeletedbythesystemafterasetperiodoftime.

The Parameters tab within the User profile (when filled with appropriateParameter IDs) offers some valuable personalization options. These optionsservetwopurposes:·Ifyouarecarryingoutataskinvolvingtherepetitiveentryofdatainaparticularfield

onascreenformultipleobjects,youmaysetadefaultvaluefortheinputfield(eachtimethesamescreenisencountered).Bydoingso,thedefaultvaluewillautomaticallybeplacedintheinputfieldandwillnotrequireyoutoenterthesamedataintothefieldoverandoveragain.Thisoptioncansavealotoftimeandeffortwhenyouneedtoentermultiplesetsofrepetitivedatainagivenfield.

·Moreover,someSAPscreensareprogrammedsothattheyappearorbehavedifferentlydependingonthevalueassignedtoagivenParameterIDintheprofileoftheuserinquestion.Forexample,ParameterIDUGR(CountryGrouping)maybesettodenoteaspecificcountry,suchastheUnitedStatesortheUnitedKingdom.Thiswillshowtheusers,ifapplicable,thescreensrelevanttothecountryspecified.(Thismeans

onlythatthefieldsspecifictothecountry,forexampletheUnitedStatesortheUnitedKingdom,willbeshown.)

NOTE:Avaluemaybedefaultedbyenteringthefield’sParameterIDintheUserProfile,iftheparticularfieldhasadefinedID.Tocheckifthisfeatureissupportedfora particular field, press “F1” to access the help for the field and then choose theTechnicalInformationbutton .Fromtheboxthatappears,notedowntheParameterIDasshowninFigure4.39.

Figure4.39:ReadingParameterID

To enter a Parameter ID and assign an appropriate value, click theParameters tab. AnumberofParameterIDsmayalreadybethereasshowninFigure4.40.

Figure4.40:ParameterIDandValue

To enter a newParameter ID and its value, place the cursor on a blank line. Enter theParameter ID in the first column saying “Parameter ID”. The default value must beentered in the “ParameterValue” column.Once you press “Enter”, the descriptionwillautomaticallybefilled(seeFigure4.41).

Figure4.41:ParameterIDandValue

Whenyouaredone,saveyourentries.Thechangeswillthentakeplacewhenyouopenanewsession.YoumaychangethevalueofthegivenParameterlater.

ThevaluewillonlybedefaultedinthegivenfieldfortheuserwhoenterstheParameterinthisprofile.Otherusersarenotaffected.

4.2.4QuickCutandPasteFeatureTheQuickCutandPasteisanimportantfeaturethatyouneedtoknowinordertocopyandpastecontentquickly.Thisfeaturesignificantlyreducestheworkfortheuserandwillsaveplentyoftime,particularlywhenalotofcopyingandpastingoftextisrequired.

UsingthisfeaturemaychangethenormalSAPCopy/CutandPastebehavior.Bydefaultthis function is switched off. In order to use this function, you first need to switch onQuickCutandPaste.Followthestepsshownbelow:

·ClicktheCustomizeLocalLayoutbutton onthestandardtoolbar.ThemenuwillappearasshowninFigure4.42.

Figure4.42:CustomizeLocalLayoutMenu

·ClicktheoptionQuickCutandPaste.ThisoptionisincludedinallSAPscreens.Onceselected,themenuoptionwillthenappearselectedtoindicatethattheQuickCutandPastefunctionhasbeenswitchedon(seeFigure4.43).

Figure4.43:QuickCutandPaste

·Thisfunctionenablesyoutocopytextsimplybyselectingit.WithintheSAPscreens,youmaythencopytextsfromeithertheinputoroutputfieldsbyselectingitviathemouseleft-click.Oncethetextiscopied,itmaybepastedinotherplaceswithinSAPorinotherdesktopapplications.

·Forpasting,simplyright-clickwhileplacingthecursoronthefieldinwhichthecopiedtextistobeplaced.Thiswillautomaticallycopythetextintothefield.

NOTE:Switchingon“QuickCutandPaste”willallowyoutocopytextsimplybyselecting it from any SAP screen. (No copying is required either with “CTRL+C”keysormouseright-click.)Likewise,youcanPastetextsimplywithamouseright-click.

ThischapterdiscussedchangesthatcanbemadetopersonalizethelookandfeelofyourSAP system.With these directions, you should now be able to personalize your initialscreen, change various SAP behaviors, and also change the GUI and Help settings.UtilizingthesetechniquesinyourSAPsystemwillmakeforamoreefficientandpleasantworkingexperience.

SummaryofChapter4

Chapter5

ExecutingReportTransactionsandDownloadingOutput

In this chapter, we will discuss the various ways in which you may execute reporttransactionsanddownloadtheiroutput.

Thischapterwillcoverthefollowingimportanttopics:

·TypesofReportOutputs

·OnlineExecutionofReports

·ExecutingReportsinBackground

·DownloadingListOutput

·DesktopShortcutsforPrograms/Reports

Thischapterwillbeginwiththeproceduresthatareavailableforexecutingandgeneratingoutput. It will thenmove into discussing how to save the outputs on your local PC invariousformats.Thechapterwillendwithadiscussiononvariousdesktopshortcutsthatyoumayuseforbothprogramsandreports.

Somequestionstobeansweredinthischapterinclude:

·HowcanIexecuteareport?

·Whatarethedifferentformatsthatcanbeusedfordisplayingreports?

·HowdoIexecutereportsinBackgroundMode?

·HowcanIdownloadalistontomyPC?

Throughout the chapter, there will be examples and screenshots to help the readerunderstandtheprocessofexecutingreportsandsavingoutputstotheirPC.InthischapterthetermsReport,ReportProgram,andReportTransactionwillbeusedinterchangeably.

In this section, wewill see some of the various formats inwhich data is outputted byReportprograms.TheseareABAPListViewer(ALV),classicABAPList,Smartforms,andAdobePDFForms.Letusreviewthemonebyone.

5.1TypesofReportOutputs

5.1.1ABAPListOutputandALVformatOneformatthatmaybeusedfordisplayingreportsistheABAPListformat.YoumaygetthereportoutputinatypicallistformatasshowninFigure5.1.

Figure5.1:ReportOutputinListFormat

Linesseparatethedisplayedcolumns,andthetextmayberepresentedbydifferentcolors.

InadditiontotheABAPlist,apopularformatthatuserscomeacrosswhilerunningSAPreportprogramsistheALVformat(ormoreprecisely,SAPListViewer).TheALVoutputhasanumberoffunctionsonthetoolbarthatyoumayperformonthedisplayeddata.AtypicalALVoutputisshowninFigure5.2.

NOTE: For detailed information on ALV outputs and the functions supported,pleaserefertotheChapter7-ALVDisplays.

Figure5.2:ALVOutput

5.1.2FormOutput

ApartfromthelistandALVoutput,youmayalsorunprogramsandtheymaygenerateaform-like output. There are typically two possible formats: Smart Form and AdobeFormsinPDFformat.Aprintpreviewisshownforthetwotypesofformsinthescreen.

TheSmartformoutputisshowninFigure5.3.

Figure5.3:SmartFormOutput

ThePDFformoutputisshowninFigure5.4.

Figure5.4:PDFFormOutput

YoumayprinttheformsorviewaPrintPreview.TheformopensinaPDFViewerwithintheSAPwindow,andallPDFfunctionssuchas“SaveaCopy,”“Zoomin”,and“Zoomout” are available on the user screen. In addition to the read-onlymode, formsmaybeeditable(Interactive)dependingontherequirement.

As mentioned earlier, a report transaction may be executed from the SAP Easy

5.2OnlineExecutionofReports

Access Menu by double-clicking the relevant node in the SAP Easy Access Menu.Alternately,youmaychoosethetransactionnodefromFavoritesandthendouble-click(asshowninChapter2)orchoosemenuoptionEditàExecute.

Foronlineexecutionofareporttransaction,youmayalsotypethetransactioncodeintheCommandfieldandpress“Enter”.Alloftheaboveoptionswilltakeyoutotheselectionscreenofthereportprogram.AtypicalselectionscreenisshowninFigure5.5.

Figure5.5:SelectionScreen

Youmay thenenter theappropriateentrieson thescreenandpress“F8” togenerate theoutput.

Formore informationonhowtofill theselectionscreen, refer toChapter6-MasteringSelectionScreens.

Apartfromtheonlineexecution,youmayalsorunprogramreportsinbackground.Thisisusefulforlong-runningreports.Theoutputofthereportissenttothespoolandmaybeprintedlaterbytheuser.

For long-running report programs, you may execute them in Background mode. Forrunning the report in background, first run the transaction so that the report selectionscreen appears. Then, choose the optionExecute in Background. Alternately, youmaypressthe“F9”key.TheprintdialogappearsasshowninFigure5.6.

Figure5.6:ExecuteinBackground

ThenyouwillseetheschedulerdialogboxasshowninFigure5.7.

5.3ExecutingReportsinBackground

Figure5.7:DialogBox

Oncedone,thedialogboxappearsforspecifyingtheStartTime.

Figure5.8:StartTimeDialogBox

Thisisanimportantdialogbox,asweneedtospecifytheexacttimeatwhichyouwanttheReport to start and then stop.For example,wecan specify either Immediateor anyspecificDateandTimewhentheprogramexecutionshouldstart.

ClicktheDate/Timebutton.Thiswillshowthefieldsrequiredtospecifythedateandtimeforthereportinquestion.

Figure5.9:Date/Time

EntersuitablevaluesintheScheduledStartdateandtimefieldsasshowninFigure5.9.

ThePeriodicjobindicatormaybecheckedifyouwouldliketorunthejobperiodicallyasshowninFigure5.10.

Figure5.10:PeriodicJob

Whentheindicatorischecked,itwilldisplaythedialogboxasshowninFigure5.11

Figure5.11:PeriodicJobDialogBox

Checktherelevantbuttonforyourrequirement,suchashourly,daily,orweekly.Finally,clicktheCheckbuttoninordertoensurethecorrectnessofyourentereddata.

Onceyouhavemadeallrelevantsettings,makesuretoclicktheSavebuttonontheStartTimedialogboxshowninFigure5.8.Thereportwill thenbescheduledforbackgroundexecution instead of online (foreground) execution. The output is then sent to a spoolrequest.

A typical ABAP list was shown earlier in Figure 5.1. Let’s suppose that we need todownloaditonourPC.Inthissection,wewillseeindetailtheprocessofsavingreportoutputsonyourlocalPCinvariousformats.

Youareabletodownloadoutputsinanumberofformats,suchassimpletextformat,richtext format (RTF),Excel,orHTMLformats.Whileyouareon the listoutput,youmaysavethelistoutputonyourlocalPCbyfollowingthemenupathListàSave/SendàFile.

Figure5.12:SavingListOutput

ThedialogboxappearsasshowninFigure5.13.

5.4DownloadingListOutput

Figure5.13:SaveListinFile

Choosetheappropriateoptioninwhichyouwanttheoutputtobedownloaded.Thereareanumberofpossibleformats.

Theunconvertedformatletsyoustoretheoutputinasimpletextfile.ChoosingthisoptionwilldisplaythedialogshowninFigure5.14.

NOTE:FordownloadingALVinExceletc.refertothechapterALVOutputs.

Figure5.14:StoringOutputinTextFile

Youmaythenenterasuitablefilenameandchooseasuitabledirectory,forexample,theDesktop. By default, the SAP work directory appears in the Directory field. Enter asuitablefilenameintheFileNamefield,suchas“text.txt”.

Figure5.15:EnteringTXTFileName

Next,click theGenerate button.Themessagewill appear showing thenumberofbytestransferredtothelocalPC,i.e.,thesizeofthefile.

Figure5.16:NumberofBytesTransferred

Thetextfileisasimpleunformattedfile.

Moreover,yourABAPlistwithitsvariouscolumnsmayalsobedownloadedintheExcelformat.Inthiscase,choosetheSpreadsheetoptionshowninFigure5.13.

Thiswilldisplayadialogboxshownearlier.EnterasuitablenameinthefieldasshowninFigure5.17.

Figure5.17:SavingasExcelFile

AnExcelfileiscreatedontheDesktopandmaybeviewedlater.

Youcanalsodownload theABAP listoutput inHTMLformat.Oryoumaychoose theRichTextformat(RTF)bychoosingtherelevantoptionsshown.

Ifafilebythatnamealreadyexists,thenchoosetheReplacebuttoninordertoreplacethefilewithyournewdata.

Forquickexecutionoffrequentlyusedprograms,SAPalsoallowsyoutocreateshortcutsonthedesktopofyourPC.Thisfunctionalityprovidesmanyadvantagestousers:

·Insteadofsearchingforprogramsorrememberingtransactioncodes,theusersmaysimplydouble-clicktheshortcutonthedesktop.Thissavesusers’timebylettingthemquicklyexecutetheirmostusedtransactionsorprograms.

·Youmaycreateasmanyshortcutsasyoulike.

·Theshortcutonlyallowsauthorizeduserstoexecutetheprogramortransactioninquestion.IfnoconnectiontoSAPexists,thesystemfirstverifiestheusernameandpasswordbeforeallowingaccesstothetransaction.

Tocreateshortcuts,followthestepsshownbelow:

·SelectanitemfromtheSAPEasyAccessMenu(orfromtheFavorites)andright-clicktoaccessthecontextmenuasshowninFigure5.18.

5.5DesktopShortcutsforPrograms/Reports

Figure5.18:ContextmenuofaMenuNode

·ChoosetheoptionCreateshortcutonthedesktop.AmessageShortcutcreatedonthedesktopisdisplayed.

Figure5.19:MessageofShortcutCreation

AshortcutthenappearsonthedesktopwithanSAPiconasshowninFigure5.20.

Figure5.20:DesktopShortcut

To execute the given program or transaction, simply double-click on the shortcut. Therelevanttransactionscreenwillappearifyouarealreadyloggedintothesystem.Incaseyou are not, you are asked to enter your user ID and password before going to thetransaction.

This chapter outlined how to execute reports and save outputs on your PC. With theinformationprovided,youshouldnowbeabletoidentifythedifferentformatsthatcanbeusedtodisplayreports,executereportsinBackgroundMode,savelistsandotheroutputstoyourPC,andusedesktopshortcutsforprogramsandreports.

SummaryofChapter5

Chapter6

MasteringSelectionScreens

This chapterwill focus on selection screens and the variousways that you canmakethemmoreefficientanduseful.Iwilldiscuss,indetail,theimportantconceptsrelatedtotypical report selection screens within the SAP arena. The following topics will becovered:

·ComponentsofSelectionScreens,includingcheckboxes,radiobuttons,andsinglevalueinputfields.

·SelectionCriteria(Options)orRanges,includinghowtospecifymultiplesinglevaluesandrangesandhowtoentermassdataonaprogramscreen.

·SelectionScreenVariants,includinghowtoretrieve,create,change,anddeleteVariants.

Thischapterwillenable the reader tomaster thevariouselementsofa typical selectionscreen and will ensure a more user friendly and efficient working experience. It willanswersuchquestionsas:

·HowcanIdefinemyselectioncriteria?

·HowcanIcopyvaluesfromtheclipboardandpastethemintotheSAPselectionscreen?

·WhataretheadvantagesofVariants?

There will be examples and screen shots to guide you in the process ofmastering thevariousconceptswithintheselectionscreens.

In this section, Iwill cover thedetails of a typical reportSelectionScreen (and screenelements)thatyoumayencounterwithintheSAParena.

AtypicalselectionscreenforprogramsisshowninFigure6.1.

Figure6.1:SelectionScreen

Theremaybeanumberofblockswithinaselectionscreen.Eachblockiscomprisedofinput fields thatcanalloweither singlevalue input fieldsor rangesknownasSelectionOptions.Inaddition,youmayhaveradiobuttonsandcheckboxesonthescreen.

NOTE: On a selection screen, you may have input fields that are mandatory,meaningtheprogramwillnotexecuteuntilthefield(s)is(are)filledwithappropriatedata.TherequiredfieldappearswithatickmarkinitasshowninFigure6.2.

Figure6.2:MandatoryInputfield

YouenterthedataonthescreenandthenchoosetheExecutebutton.Alternately,youmaypress“F8”toexecutethereportbasedonyourselectioncriteria.Incaseyouneedtoenterdatainarequired(mandatory)singleinputorrangefield,anerrorisissuedasshowninFigure6.3.

Figure6.3:Error

6.1.1CheckboxAtypicalcheckboxisshowninFigure6.4.

Figure6.4:Checkbox

6.1SelectionScreenComponents:AnOverview

Forexample,youmayhaveanOutputLogcheckbox.Thismay,bydefault,beOnorOff.Theprogramexecutesanddisplaysresultsbasedonthecheckboxconditionspecified.Forexample,ifyouhaveanOutputLogcheckboxasshowninFigure6.4,itwilldisplaytheLogonlyifthecheckboxisselected.Ascreencancontainanumberofcheckboxes,andtheseareallindependentofeachother.Youmaycheckallofthecheckboxesorchoosetoleavethemallunchecked.

Withinthescreen,youmayalsohaveaTestruncheckbox.Thesearetypicalofprogramsthat update the database. If you have Test run on, all the results will be generated (insimulationmode)andcalculated,butitwillnotbepostedtothedatabase.

6.1.2RadioButtonsThereareanumberofchoicesavailableinthecaseofaradiobutton.Bydefault,upontheexecutionofthereport,oneofthechoiceswillbechecked.Youmaythendecidewhichofthe other choices to select. The radio buttons are in groups, and only one radio buttonchoicewithinagroupmaybe selected.Ascreenmaycontainanumberof radiobuttongroups.

6.1.3SingleValueInputFieldsSingleValueorParametersaresingleinputfieldsthatdonotallowyoutospecifyrange(asshowninFigure6.5).

Figure6.5:ASingleValueInputField

Asingle fieldmay takenumbers, texts, anddatesas input. If a single input field is leftblank,onlythedatapertainingtotheblankvalueofthatfieldwillbedisplayed.

Based on a radio button selection or a checkbox, it is possible that input fields maybecomevisibleorinvisible,ortheymaybeenabledordisabled.Forexample,ifyouhavean input field linked to the radio button optionLayout forRemun Statement, itmay bepossible that the given field is only enabled when the relevant radio button option isselected.

Figure6.6:RadioButtonOption

YoumayhaveanF4searchhelpassociatedwithasingleinputfieldforpossiblevalues.Forexample,inthecaseofadate,youmayuse“F4”tochooseanappropriatedate.

Note:Atanytime,youmayaccesstheF1help/informationforaninputfield.

6.2SelectionCriteria(Options)orRanges

One of the most important elements that may exist within a selection screen is theSelectionoptionorcriteria—alsotermedasRanges.Thisallowsyoutoenterarangeofvaluesthataretobereadfromthedatabase.Ifusedwisely,itcangreatlyreducetheworkof the user as well as the load on the system. It can also improve the system’sperformance.

NOTE:Forselectioncriteria,F1andF4helpsarealsoavailable.

AtypicalselectionoptionisshowninFigure6.7.

Figure6.7:SelectionCriteria

Thereare two input fieldson the selection screen (aLowandHigh field) aswell as anExtension(arrowbutton)ontheright.

There aremanyoptions available to you in order to define your criteria.These optionsincludeenteringsinglevalues,onerange,ormultiplerangeswithintheinputfields.Youmayalsokeepthefieldblankbynotenteringanydata.Ifthefieldisleftblank,allentrieswill be fetched from the database. For example, if you enter a report on the personnelnumber 000001, the report will only show the data of that employee. Keeping thepersonnelnumberblankwilldisplayallemployees.

In its simplest form, the selection criteria allow you to enter a range aswell as singlevalues.Forexample, ifyouenter thedate range01.01.2011and31.12.2011, thesystemwillshowallrecordsfallingbetween1January2011and31December2011.Ontheotherhand,ifweenter01.01.2011inthefirstinputfieldandleavethesecondinputfieldblank,only records that are valid at 01.01.2011will be shown. If the two input fields are leftblank,alldatawillbeshownregardlessofwhatdatestheybelongto.

6.2.1SpecifyingaSingleValueorRangeTherangesmayaccept input in theformofnumbersordatesaswellascharacterfieldssuchasnames.

The selection criteria (or ranges) have a number of selection options attached for eachinputfield.Todisplaythevariousselectionoptionsandsignsapplicable,keepthecursorontheinputfieldanddouble-click.Thevariousselectionoptionsappear.

Dependingonthetypeofinputfieldaswellasthevalueenteredbeforethedouble-click,ten selectionoptionsmay appear.These selectionoptions are listed inFigure 6.8 alongwiththeirmeanings.

SelectionOption Meaning

NotEqualTo

LessThan

GreaterThan

LessThanorEqualTo

Greaterthanorequalto

EqualTo

Pattern

ExcludePattern

Range

OutsideRange

Figure6.8:SelectionOptions

Theaboveoptionsareusedwithtwoavailablesigns,namelyIncludeandExclude.Ontheselection options dialog, youmay use the button to switch on the Include sign,whereasthe button isusedforspecifying theExcludesign.When theExcludesignison,thevariousselectionoptionswillappearredincolor.

Herearesomeexamplesthatwillhelpclarifytheusageandexplorethepowerofselectioncriteria.

·SpecifyingNumberRanges:Supposeyouhavearangeforemployeenumbersthatyouneedtoenterandyouwanttospecifythemonanintervalofnumbersbetween1and100.Todothis,simplyenter“1”inthelowerfieldand“100”intheupperfieldasshowninFigure6.9.

Figure6.9:SelectingNumbers1to100

Ontheotherhand,thereareanumberofoptionsavailabletodeselectemployeesfrom1to100.Thismeansincludeallemployeenumbersexceptforthosefallingwithintherangeof1to100.OneoptionforthisistousetheOutsideRangeselectionoption.Todothis,enterthevalues“1”and“100”inthelowerandupperfieldsrespectively,andthendouble-clickthelowerrangefield.ThescreenappearsasshowninFigure6.10.

Figure6.10:SelectionOptions

ChoosetheoptionOutsideRangeandpress“Enter”.ThefieldwillthenappearasshowninFigure6.11.

Figure6.11:SelectingAllOutsideRange

Thiswillexcludeemployeesfrom1to100fromtheselection.

Alternately,fromthepop-upshowninFigure6.10,youmaypresstheExcludefromSelectionoption,choosetheRangeoption,andpress“Enter”.ThefieldwillthenappearasshowninFigure6.12.

Figure6.12:Excludeallnumbersfrom1to100

·SpecifyingPatterns.IncaseyouhaveanamerangefieldandyouwanttoselectallnamesstartingfromP,youcandosobyspecifying“P*”inthelowerinputfield,asshowninFigure6.13.

Figure6.13:“P*”enteredinInputfield

IfyouneedtoignoreallnamesstartingfromP,enter“P*”inthelowerinputfieldandthendouble-clickonthefieldtodisplaytheselectionoptionsasshowninFigure6.14.

Figure6.14:SelectionOptions

SelecttheExcludePatternoptionandpress“Enter”.TheinputfieldwillthenlookliketheoneshowninFigure6.15.

Figure6.15:InputField

Another way to eliminate all names starting with P is to click the Exclude fromSelectionbuttonand thenchoose theoptionPattern.The input fieldshould look liketheoneshowninFigure6.16.

Figure6.16:Eliminating“P”

Intheabove-mentionedways,youmayexcludeallnamesstartingfromP.

·IgnoringBlankSpaces.Toignoreallblankspaces,double-clickonthelowerinputfield.TheoptionsappearasshowninFigure6.17.

Figure6.17:“NotEqualto”Option

Selectthe≠(NotEqualto)option,andclicktheSavebutton.TheinputfieldwillthenlookliketheoneshowninFigure6.18.

Figure6.18:InputField

Thisensuresthatblankvaluesarenotusedintheselectioncriteria.

·SpecifyingDateSelection.Supposeyouhaveadatefieldrangeandyouneedtospecifyalldatesbutignorethedate01December2012.YoumustselecttheNotEqualtooptionandspecifythedate12/01/2012inthelowerinputfield,asshowninFigure6.19.

Figure6.19:“NotEqualTo”Option

Likewise,ifweneedtospecifythatalldatesgreaterthanorequalto01/01/2013mustbefetched,selectthe≥(GreaterthanorEqualto)optionasshowninFigure6.20.

Figure6.20:“Greaterthan”OptionforDates

6.2.2MultipleSelectionSpecificationsandOtherAvailableOptionsSelectionoptionshaveanumberofotheradvancedoptions.Youmayenterasimplerange(oranumberofranges),oryoumayenterasinglevalueoranumberofsinglevaluesthataretobeselected.Inaddition,youmayspecifyanyrangeofvaluesorsinglevaluesthataretobeexcludedfromtheselectedordisplayeddata.Letusdiscussthemindetail.

Selectionoptionsallowyouto:

·Enteroneormoresinglevaluesthatneedtobeintheselectioncriteria.

·Enteroneormorerangevaluesthataretobeincludedintheselection.

·Specifyoneormoresinglevaluesthataretobeexcludedfromtheselection.

·Specifyarangeofvaluesthataretobeexcludedfromtheselection.

To entermultiple single values and/or ranges, click the button next to the selectioncriteria.ThescreenappearsasshowninFigure6.21.

Figure6.21:Values/RangestobeIncludedandExcluded

6.2.2.1SpecifyingMultipleSingleValuesandRangesWithin thedialogbox(showninFigure6.21),youmayenteranumberofsinglevaluesandrangesthatyouwouldliketoincludeorexcludeinyourselection.Therearefourtabs,namely,SelectSingleValues,SelectRanges,ExcludeSingleValues,andExcludeRanges.

Supposeyouhaveanumber fieldandyouneed to see thedata forallnumbers rangingfrom 1 to 1000 and from 3000 to 4000, and also the two numbers 2005 and 2008.However,youwantthenumbersrangingfrom50to65tobeomittedfromtheselection.Inthiscase,threetabsintheMultipleSelectionscreenmustbefilledinasfollows:Therange“1”-“1000”and“3000”–“4000”willbeenteredontheRangestab.

On the Single tab, you will enter the two numbers “2005” and “2008”. To omit thenumbersfrom50to65,youshouldentertherange“50”–“65”ontheExcludetab.

6.2.2.2EnteringMassDataonProgramScreenApartfromtheentryfunctions,anumberofotherimportantfunctionsaresupportedontheMultipleSelectionscreen.Letusdiscussthemonebyone.

MostSAPprogramsinvolvetheentryofinputdatabytheuser.TheremaybesituationswhenthedatatobeenteredintoacertainscreenfieldresidesinfilesstoredonyourPC.Thesefilesmaybecomprisedofalargenumberofrecords,whosemanualentrymayleadtoconsiderablelossoftime.

Thissectionwillexplainsomeofthetipsandtricksusedtoentersuchdata.Therearetwoapproaches involved: copying data using thememory clipboard and accessing the datadirectlyfromatextfile.Thesearediscussedbelow:

·CopyingValuesfromtheclipboard.AquickandeasywaytoentervaluesistofirstcopythemintotheclipboardmemoryandthenpastethemintotheSAPselectionscreen.

FromMicrosoftWordorExcel,selectthecolumnofvaluesthataretobeenteredusingthe“CTRL+C”keys.YoumayalsocopydatafromotherSAPscreensorlistsusingthe“CTRL+Y”and“CTRL+C”keys.

Clickthe buttonnexttothefieldinwhichthefilevaluesaretobeentered.ThiswilldisplaytheMultipleSelectionscreenasshowninFigure6.22.

Figure6.22:MultipleSelectionScreenforFieldPersonnelNumber

Onthisscreen,clickthe button.ThevaluesstoredintheclipboardarepastedintotheSingleValuescolumnofthescreenfield.

·CopyingValuesdirectlyfromaTextFile.YoumayalsocopyvaluesdirectlyfromatextfilestoredontheharddriveofyourPC.

OntheMultipleSelectionscreen,clickthe button.AdialogboxappearsasshowninFigure6.23.

Figure6.23:EnteringfromaTextFile

SelectthefileandclicktheOpenbutton.Thispopulatestheselectionscreenwiththevalues stored in the file. In case thedata residing in the file is not in an appropriateformat,aninformationdialogisgeneratedasshowninFigure6.24.

Figure6.24:ConversionErrorDialog

Variantsaresimplydefinedasthe(stored)setofinputvaluesforagivenfield.Inacasewhereyouneedtorunareport involvinga largenumberof inputfields thatyoudonotwanttomemorize,youmaychoosetoreadfromthestoredsetofinputvaluesprovidedbytheVariant.Thisisbeneficialinthatitwillrelievetheuserfromtheburdenofenteringthevaluesoveragain.

NOTE:Variantsstoreallinputsspecifiedontheselectionscreen,includingradiobuttonoptions,checkboxes,andthesingleandrangeinputfields.

Variantsprovidethefollowingadvantages:

·Savestimebystoringthevaluesthataretobeenteredforagivensetoffieldsontheuserscreen.

·Insteadofhard-codedvaluesassignedtofields,youmayalsohavetheoptionofsettingdynamicvalues,suchasthevalueofsystemdate,etc.

·Youmayalsomakefieldsmandatoryorinvisibledependingonusersettings.

·Variantsalsostorethesignsandselectionoptionsofanyrangeofinputfields.

The user may change the values retrieved from the selected Variant, and a number ofVariantsmaybedefinedforaparticularreport.Youmaynamethemaccordingtotheareaforwhichtheyareapplicableorforthefrequencywithwhichtheyarerun.Forexample,you may name a Variant “Monthly” and “Yearly” to denote the yearly or monthlyexecutionofareport.

InthenextsectionswewilltakeacloselookathowVariantsaredefinedandretrieved.

6.3.1RetrievingVariantsToaccessagivenVariant,proceedasfollows:

·Fromtheprogramselectionscreen,choosethemenuoptionVariantsàGetVariants.Alternately,youmaychoosethekeys“Shift+F5”shortcutorclickonthe buttonontheapplicationtoolbar(thebuttonappearsifatleastonevariantexists).Thedialog

6.3SelectionScreenVariants

appearsasshowninFigure6.25.

Figure6.25:VariantDirectory

YoumaythenchoosefromthelisttheVariantthatyouwouldliketoretrieve.IncaseyouhaveanumberofVariantsdefinedbyanumberofusers,adialogboxappears inwhichyoucanenteryouruserIDintheCreatedByfieldandthenchoosethe buttontodisplaytheVariantsdefinedbyyou(seeFigure6.26).

Figure6.26:FindVariant

YoumaythenchoosetheVariantyouareinterestedin.

6.3.2CreatingVariantsTor create Variants, go to the selection screen of the program, enter the values in theappropriatefields thatyouwish tosave inVariant form,andclick theSavebutton.ThisleadsyoutotheVariantAttributesscreenasshowninFigure6.27.

Foreachinputfieldontheselectionscreen,arowappearsontheVariantattributesscreen(see theObjects for Selection Screen table in Figure 6.27). A number of checkboxesappear for controlling the field behavior. You may set the appropriate values for thecheckboxesofthefieldsshownonthereportselectionscreeninordertogetthedesiredresult.

Figure6.27:VariantAttributes

EnteraVariantnameandmeaninginthefieldsprovided.IfyoudonotwanttheVarianttoappearwhentheprogramisexecutedinOnline/dialogmode,checktheindicatorOnlyforBackgroundProcessing.IfyoudonotwanttheVarianttobechangedbyanyusers,makesuretheProtectVariantcheckboxisselected.ThenyouneedtofilltheObjectstable,themostimportantfieldsofwhichareshownbelow:

·FieldName.Thisisthelongtextoftheinputfieldthatappearsontheselectionscreen.

·ProtectField.IftheProtectFieldindicatorischeckedforaparticularfield,inputisnotallowedforthegivenfield.AllinputfieldsthathavethischeckboxselectedappearasgreyfieldswhentherelevantVariantisused.

·HideField.Thismaybeusedtohideormakefieldsinvisiblethatarenotmeantfordisplay.Yourscreenmayconsistofanumberofunwantedfields,andyoumayhidethemasyouwish.

·SaveFieldWithoutValues.IncaseyouwanttoignoreaparticularfieldorfieldsduringVariantselectionandretrieval,youcansaveVariantswithoutanyvaluesforthefieldsbyclickingthisindicator.Forexample,ifyouhaveaDatefieldonthescreenandyouchecktheSaveFieldwithoutValuesindicator,uponretrievaloftheVariant,thevalueenteredintheDatefieldonthescreenisnotaffected.

·Mandatory.ThiswillensurethatwhenthecurrentVariantisselected,therespectivefieldwillappearasarequiredfield.

NOTE: Dynamic Specifications of Values— An important functionality existswithintheVariantcreation.Insteadofhard-codedvalues, thesystemletsyoudefinevaluesdynamicallybasedoncertainvariables.Forexample,youmaysetthevalueofagiveninputfieldasthesystemdateorthefirstdayofthenextmonth.Inthiscase,thesystemwillcalculatethedateaccordingtothecurrentmonthandyearanddisplayitintherelevantfield.

Letusseehowwecanspecifyin theVariant thatadatefieldshouldalwaysdisplaythefirst day of the nextmonth in which the program is executed. This will require a fewadditionalsteps.

Keep the cursor on the column Selection Variable and press “F4”. From the values

displayed, choose“D”denoting“Date”.Thiswill fill theSelectionVariable column fortherelevantfieldswith“D”.

Next,selecttheF4helpoftheNameofVariablefieldandchoosetheoption“FirstDayofNextMonth”.YourVariantattributesscreenwilllookliketheoneshowninFigure6.28forthegiveninputfield.

Figure6.28:NameofVariable

NOTE:Thethreefieldswillappeargreybutwillacceptinput.

6.3.3ChangingandDeletingVariantsTo delete Variants, youmay choose themenu pathDelete à Variants and click on theappropriaterowthatneedstobedeleted.

Youmay simply change a given Variant by choosing the Variant using the menu pathVariants àGet or using keys “Shift+F5”. Thiswill populate the selection screen fieldswith thevalues stored in the selectedVariant.Makeyour changes, and then choose theSavebutton.Youwill thenbetakentotheVariantAttributesscreen.Youmaythensavechangesmade to theVariant.Adialogboxwillappear (seeFigure6.29)confirming theoverwritingoftheVariantinquestion.

Figure6.29:OverwriteVariant

Thischapterdiscussedthevariousoptionsavailabletoenhanceyourworkexperiencewithselection screens. By implementing the use of Variants, understanding how to specifysingle values and ranges, and mastering such components as radio buttons and singlevalueinputfields,theusershouldfindworkingwithselectionscreenstobeeasierandamoreefficientuseoftime.

Chapter6Summary

Chapter7

ALVDisplays

SinceRelease4.6,SAPhasempoweredthereportingcapabilitybyprovidinguserswiththeALVdatadisplays.TheALVdatadisplaysprovideavarietyofimportantfunctionstotheuser.

ALV will display data in either full-screen design or without it. I will begin with anexplanation of both types, and then I will move on to cover the details of the variousfunctionsprovidedinALV.Thefollowingtopicswillbecovered:·ALVDisplays,includingselectingagivencolumn,movingcolumnsusingthemouse,

andfreezingcolumns.

·ToolbarFunctionsAvailable,includingsorting(ascendinganddescending),navigatingleftandright,filteringdata,calculatingtotalsandsubtotals,andchangingviews.

·ExcelDownloading,inordertosavedisplayeddataondesktop.

·ManagingLayouts,includingchangeofcolumnsequenceandhidingthem,ifnecessary.

This chapter is meant to help the user become comfortable while working within theALVformat.Itwillanswersuchquestionsas:

·WhataremyoptionsfordifferentviewsavailableinALV?

·HowcanIdownloadmydataintoExcel?

·WhatarethetypicalfunctionsavailabletomeinvariousmodesofALV?

Alongtheway,therewillbeexamplesandscreenshotstomakeoperatingwithinALVaseasyandstraightforwardaspossible.

ALVorSAP/ABAPListViewer isa format fordisplayingdata in reports.This formathasanumberoftoolbarfunctionsaswellasmenuoptionsandcontextmenufunctionstoassistyouwhencarryingoutuseful tasks.Masteringallof thesefunctionswillhelpyouachieveyourgoalsinlesstime.

7.1ALVDisplays:AnOverview

There are two types of ALV displays, namely a Full-screen display and a Containerdisplay that is not full screen (this mode is used for ALV displayed output for SAPqueries).

AnALVFull-screen display is shown in Figure 7.1.TheALVdata is displayed on theentirescreen,andthesetofALVfunctionstoolbarisdisplayedinplaceoftheapplicationtoolbar.TheALVdisplaymayalsohaveaheaderarea.InFigure7.1,theheaderdisplaysthedate,time,title,orcompanylogo.

Figure7.1:ALVFullScreenDisplay

Insomecases,eachdisplayedrowmayhaveacorrespondingcheckboxforselectinganynumberofrowsthatyoudesire.Youarealsoabletocarryoutcertainactionsbychoosinganappropriatetoolbarbutton.Insomecases,anALVmayalsohaveeditablecolumnsfortakinginputfromuser,butthisisveryrare.

AnALVmaycontaindata columnscomprisedofnumbers, amounts, text, anddates, aswellasiconsorsymbols,suchastrafficsignalsdenotingthestatusofarecordasshowninFigure7.2.YoumayhaveALVinsingle-lineandmultiple-lineformats.

Figure7.2:SignalIconsDisplayedasColumns

Theremayalsobeahotspotdisplayedwithinalistcolumn.Clickingthehotspotmaytakeyoutothedetailsscreenforthecolumninquestion.

AlistmayalsohavekeyfiguresdisplayedinblueasshowninFigure7.3.

Figure7.3:KeyFieldsDisplayedinBlueNote:Intheblackandwhiteprintbook,theblueappearsasdarkgray.

Scrollingtotherightwillmakethecolumnsontheleftappearinvisible,butthekeyfieldsinbluewillalwaysremainvisible,astheyarefixedcolumns.

Youhavethedatadisplayedintheformofagrid,alongwithatoolbarwithavarietyofusefulfunctions.ALVdisplaysmayalsohaveadditionalfunctions(buttons)specifictotheapplicationinquestion.Thefull-screenmodehasanumberofALVtoolbarfunctionsasshowninFigure7.4.ThefunctionslistedinFigure7.4areonlyavailableinthefull-screenmodeinamajorityofthereports.

Details Mail

SelectAll SaveLayout

DeselectAll ChangeLayout

SortAscending ManageLayout

SortDescending ABCAnalysis

Filter Total

Export ExcelSpreadsheet

Figure7.4:ALVToolbarFunctionsinFull-ScreenMode

TheALVprovidesanumberofadvantagestotheuser,someofwhicharelistedbelow:

·Unliketypicallists,avarietyofpowerfulfunctionsaresupported.

·Youmaydownloadthereportsinanumberofdifferentformats,suchasExcel,Word,etc.

·Youcanreduce(filter)thedisplayednumberofrecordsbyspecifyingfiltercriteria.

·Manyfunctions,suchastotalandsubtotals,maybeperformedonthenumberandamountfields.

·Youmaychangethelayoutofdisplayedfields.Forexample,youcanhidecolumnsorchangecolumnpositionsandmovethembackandforth.

·Youmayalsosavethechangeswithinthelayoutinordertousethemafterwards.

·Toviewdetailsofaparticularcolumnorrow,youmayclickonaroworahotspotwithinacolumntoviewdetails,ifapplicable.

·Chartsmayalsobegeneratedonthebasisofdatadisplayed.

NOTE:Dependingon themodeof theALVdisplay, the position of the toolbarmayvary.Thefullscreendisplayhasthetoolbarat theapplicationtoolbarplace.Innon-full-screenmode,thetoolbariswithinthescreendetailsareaasshowninFigure7.5.

Figure7.5:Non-Full-ScreenMode

7.1.1SelectingaGivenColumnorColumnsBeforemovingforward,letusdiscussanimportantfeatureofALVthatyouneedtoknow:selectingcolumnsofyourchoice.Toselectanentirecolumn inALV,simplyclick thecolumnheader.Thiswill select thecolumnanditwillappearinagridasshowninFigure7.6.

Figure7.6:SelectedColumns“EndDate”and“ChangedBy”(inorange)

Toselectmultiple columns,press the “CTRL”keyafter selecting the first column.Youmay then select further columns by clicking on the respective headers. (Make sure the“CTRL”keyispressedwhilemultiplecolumnsareselected).

7.1.2MovingColumnsandSearchingforValuesWithinALVGrids, you have the option ofmoving columns.The columns displayed inFigure7.7areshownbeforetheirpositionshavebeenchanged.

Figure7.7:ColumnsBeforeChange

You may move the Changed by column to the second position (before Changed on

column)bysimplyselectingit.Then,whileholdingtheleftmousebuttondown,dragthecolumntotheleftandplaceit inthesecondposition.ThenewpositionsofthecolumnsareshowninFigure7.8.

Figure7.8:NewPositionsofColumns

Within the column youmay search for an entire word, a partial set of characters or anumbervalue.

Forthenormalfull-screenmode,selectagivencolumnandthenusekeys“CTRL+F”orusethemenuoptionEditàSearch.YoumayalsousethecontextmenuoptionFind.

NOTE:Fornon-full-screenmode,youmayhaveanadditionaloption toolbarbutton.Forthenextoccurrence,usethe button.

ThedialogappearsasshowninFigure7.9.

Figure7.9:SearchingTermswithinaColumn

Enterthesearchterminthedialogbox(inourcase“testing”).

YoumaychecktheFindonlyentirewordorvaluecheckboxifthatoptionisneeded.Next,press“Enter”andthevarioushitswillbedisplayedinthegivencolumn.

IftheDisplayNumberofHitscheckboxisunchecked, thehitsaredisplayedonebyonewithoutthetotalnumberofoccurrencesofthegiventextinthegivencolumnasinFigure7.10.

Figure7.10:SearchResultsDisplayedWithoutTotalNumberofOccurrences

Thenexthitwillbedisplayedafterpressing“Enter”.

If youcheck the checkboxDisplayNumberofHits, the hits foundwill be shown as inFigure7.11.

Figure7.11:HitsDisplayedwiththe“DisplayNumberofHits”CheckboxSelected

Witheachhitthatisdisplayed,youwillbetakentotherespectivecellthathasthematchinit.

7.1.3FreezingColumnsInanygivenALVoutput,theremaybeimportantareasofkeyfieldsthatyoumaywanttobevisibleasyouscrolltotherightorleftwithinthedisplay.Youmaythereforefreezeoneormorefieldsof theALVdisplay.For freezingfields,select thegivenfield(s)and thenright-clicktochoosetheoptionFreezetoColumn(seeFigure7.12).

Figure7.12:FreezetoColumn

Allthecolumnsfromthebeginning(inourcaseClttoAirfare)willbefrozen.Ifyouneedtounfreezethecolumns,right-clickanywhereontheALVoutputandchoosethecontextmenuoptionUnfreezeColumns.

NOTE:CopyandPastingValuesfromtheALVisveryeasy.Aswithotherplaceswithin theSAP system,youmayalsouse the “CTRL+Y”keys forCopyandPastevaluesdatadisplayedinoneormorecells.

In this section, Iwill take a close look at the various function buttons available in theALV toolbar. The typical toolbar displayed in the full-screenmode is shown in Figure7.13.

Figure7.13:Full-ScreenModeToolbar

Ontheotherhand,thetoolbarforthenon-full-screenmodeisshowninFigure7.14.

Figure7.14:Non-Full-ScreenModeToolbar

LetusnowdiscusshowtocarryoutsomesimpletaskswithinALV.Inthissection,Iwillalsoprovidethecorrespondingmenuoptionsforthetoolbaroptionslisted.

7.2.1Sorting(AscendingandDescending)YoumaysorttherecordsintheALVdisplayeitherinascendingordescendingorder.Thetwobuttonsusedforthispurposeare and respectively.

Selectacolumnwhosecriteriayouneedsortedineitherascendingordescendingorder.Tosort in ascending order, click the button. The list will appear sorted. To sort indescendingorder,clickthe button.

Ifmultiplecolumnsaretobesorted,clickanyoftheiconsagain.ThedialogboxappearsasshowninFigure7.15.

7.2ToolbarFunctionsAvailable

Figure7.15:DialogBoxForSortingMultipleColumns

Hereyoumayusethe buttontoaddanyofthefieldsinthecolumnset(ontheright)totheSortcriteria(oryoumaysimplydraganddropfieldstotheleft).YoumaythenspecifywhetherAscendingorDescendingSortisapplicabletotheSortCriteriacolumns.

TogodirectlytotheDefineSortOrderdialogshowninFigure7.15,usethemenupathsEditàSortinAscendingOrderorSortinDescendingOrder.

7.2.2NavigatingLeftandRightIfyouare in theALVlistoutputmode (discussed in thesection7.2.5.4“PrintPreview/ListOutput”ahead),andthecolumnswithintheALVlistaremorethanthevisiblewidthof the screen, you may scroll left and right using the and navigation buttonsrespectively.

Thekeyfields/frozenfieldswillnotdisappeardespitethescrolling.Togototheendofthelisttotheextremeright,usethe button.Togototheextremeleft,usethe button.

7.2.3FilteringDataALV reporting also gives you the power to filter data according to your own definedcriteria.Youmaydefinethecriteriausingoneormorefields(andtheirvalues)displayedin theALV.Forexample, if theSalarycolumn is there inyouroutput,youmayset thefilterinordertodisplaysalariesrangingfrom$10,000to$20,000.

TherearetwostepsinvolvedwhendefiningFilters:

·Youspecifythefieldsthataretobeusedfordefiningthefiltering.

·Thenyouspecifythevaluesforthefilter-specificfields.

SimplyclicktheFilterbutton ontheALVtoolbar.ThedialogboxappearsasshowninFigure7.16.

Figure7.16:DefiningFilterCriteria

Ontherightside,allofthecolumnsappearingintheALVwillbelisted.Youmayselectafieldormultiplefieldsandusethe buttontobringthemtotheleftside,thusdefiningthefiltercriteria.Youmayalsodraganddropfieldsfromtherightsidetotheleftinsteadofusingthemouse.

Next,youneedtospecifyvaluesforthefiltercriteria.Forthis,clickonthe iconshownatthebottomofthescreen.ThedialogappearsasshowninFigure7.17.

Figure7.17:DetermineValuesforFilterCriteria

Arangeofselectioncriteriaappearsforeachinputfieldselected.Enterthevaluesforthecriteria.Formoreinformationonthevariousinputoptionsavailableinfilterfields,refertoChapter6-MasteringSelectionScreens.

Thedatawillbefilteredaccordingtothedefinedcriteria.

NOTE:Forquickdefinitionoffilters,simplyselecttherelevantcolumnthatyouneedtouseintheFiltercriteriausingthecolumnheader,andthenclicktheFilterbuttonontheALVtoolbar.ThiswilltakeyoudirectlytothescreenshowninFigure7.17.

NOTE:Toapplyfiltersinnon-full-screenmode,clickthe buttontoaccessthelistmenuoptionsandchoose theSetFilter option from themenu that appears (seeFigure7.18).

Figure7.18:SetFilterOption

7.2.4CalculatingTotals,Subtotals,andAveragesIfat leastasinglenumber,amountfield,orquantityappears inthedisplay, theTotalbuttonisvisibleandenabledonthetoolbar.Ifyouwanttototalaparticularcolumn,selectthecolumnbyclickingonthecolumnheaderandthenclickontheTotal button.Thiswilltotalthecolumn,andthetotalswillappearinyellowasshowninFigure7.19.

Figure7.19:TotalDisplayedforDistance

Fornon-full-screenmode,thetoolbarbuttonisshowninFigure7.20.

Figure7.20:TotalButtoninNon-Full-ScreenMode

Thisbuttoncomeswithfourfunctionsthatareaccessedviaalistmenu.ThefunctionsareTotal,MeanValue,Minimum,andMaximum.

Toaccessaparticularfunction,choosetherelevantoption,suchasMinimum,Maximum,etc.Therelevantfunctionwillthenbeappliedtothechosencolumn,andtheresultwillbeshowninyellowasseeninFigure7.21.

Figure7.21:AverageValueComputedforDistance

Intheabovefigure,theaverageofthedistanceiscalculated.

SupposethetotalinghasbeendoneforanALVoutput;youmayalsocomputesubtotals.Forthesubtotal,youneedacolumnthatwillbeusedasthecriteriaforthesubtotal.Thismustbeanon-numericcolumn.Selectthecolumnandthenclickonthe button.

NOTE: Subtotals can only be calculated after totals have been computed andbasedongroupingsofanon-numericcolumn.

Thiswillcalculatethesubtotalsaswell.Inthefollowingfigure,theAirlinecolumnvaluesareusedasthebasisoftheSubtotaling.

Figure7.22:CalculatingSubtotals

As shown in Figure 7.22, the subtotals of the Capacity column are calculated for theAirlines.TheAirlineAAhasasubtotal(totalcapacity)of742,andAZhasacapacityof44.Finally,thegrandtotalisshownattheendoftheline.Thesubtotalsappearhighlightedinalightyellowcolor.

YoumaycondensethesubtotaldetailsofaparticularAirlinebyclickingthe icon.

YoumayhavedifferentviewsforSubtotalscalculation.ChoosethemenuoptionSettingsàDefineDrillDownOptions.ThedialogboxinourcaseforAirlinesubtotalsappearsasshowninFigure7.23.

Figure7.23:AirlineSubtotalsDialogBox

Choose the 1 - Airline criterion and press “Enter”. Your entire display will appear incondensed form showing only the Capacity totals for each Airline as shown in Figure7.24.

Figure7.24:CapacityTotalsForEachAirline

Toswitchbacktotheexpandedformshowingallofthedata(asshowninFigure7.22),choosethe0-Non-totallinescriterion.

7.2.5ChangingViewsOne important feature of the ALV is to display your data into different views. In thissection we will discuss three views: Excel Inplace View, Charts View, and ABCAnalysisFunctionView.Wewill also discuss how you can display your data in PrintPrevieworListOutput.

7.2.5.1ExcelInplaceViewOnepopularviewistheExcelInplaceview.Withthis,thetoolbarisvisiblebutthegriddisplayisreplacedwithanExcelviewembeddedonyourSAPscreenasshowninFigure7.25.

NOTE:Asettingneeds tobeswitchedonfor theExcelInplace toruncorrectly.FromExcelapplications,choosethemenuoptionFileàOptions.Fromthedialogboxthat appears, choose Trust Center from the left pane.Then, click the Trust CenterSettingsbutton.MakesureMacroSettingsareselectedfromtheleftpane(seeFigure7.25). On the screen,make sure the checkbox forTrust access to the VBA projectObjectModelundertheDeveloperMacroSettingsisswitchedon.

Figure7.25:TrustCenterMacroSettings

For a full-screenmode, once the Excel Inplace view is chosen, the screen displaywillchangeasshowninFigure7.26.

Figure7.26:ExcelViewShownWithALVOutput

7.2.5.2GeneratingChartsViewYoumay also generate charts and other useful graphics using your choice of the datadisplayedintheALV.Bysimplyselectingdifferentcolumns,youcangenerateavarietyofchartoutputsforaparticularALVdata.

NOTE:ChartsmaybegeneratedbasedontheselectedcolumnsoraftergroupingsperformedinSubtotalcalculation.

Togeneratecharts,simplyselectthecolumnsthatyouneedtoshowingraphicformandthenpressthe button.(Alternately,youmaychoosethemenupathViewsàGraphic.)AnewALVGraphicwindowwillappearshowing thechart.Youmayright-click thechartandsendaprint.

SupposewehavecalculatedtheAirlinewisesubtotaloftheCapacitycolumnasshowninFigures 7.22 and 7.23, and then clicked the button; the corresponding chart will begeneratedasshowninFigure7.27.

Figure7.27:CapacityofAirlineSubtotalsGeneratedasaChart

7.2.5.3ABCAnalysisFunctionViewTheABCAnalysis function lets you divide the data into three (or even two) portions.There are four analysis types available; the most important of which is Key FigurePercent.Thisallowsyoutodividedatabasedon thespecifiedpercentagesA,B,andC.ThepercentageoftheA,B,andCmaybeset.Forexample,Amaybesetas70%,Bas20%,andCas10%.PartAconstitutesthemostimportantpartofthedata.PartBislessimportant.PartCistheleastimportant.

To carryout theABCanalysis, select thenumeric columnyou are interested in (inourcase,BookingsTotal)andclickthe button.ThiswilltakeyoutothescreenshowninFigure7.28showingtheABCAnalysisresults.Bydefault,theKeyFigurePercenttypeisapplicableandthevaluesofA,B,andCare70%,20%,and10%respectively.Youmaychangethevaluesaccordingtoyourneedsandthenpress“Enter”.

Figure7.28ABCAnalysisResults

ThelowerportionshowstheresultsoftheAnalysis.ThevaluesforA,B,andCsegmentswechosedividethelistintothreeparts:

·thesetofrowswhichformapproximately70percentoftheentirebookingstotals(ASegment,seeFigure7.28)

·thesetofrowswhichform20percentofthebookingstotal(BSegment)

·theremaining10percent(CSegment)

Bydefault,thelistissortedindescendingorder,whichmeansthattherowsthathavethehighestvalueofBookingsformtheSegmentAandsoon.Incaseyouwanttosortthelistinascendingorder,clickthe buttonorchoosethemenuoptionEditàSort.

7.2.5.4PrintPreview/ListOutput

InadditiontotheALVGridformat,youhavetheoptionofdisplayingtheprintpreviewofthedatainALVlistformat.Forthis,clickonthe button.Alternately,youmayusethemenuoptionListàPrintPreview.ThiswillchangetheoutputasshowninFigure7.29.

Figure7.29:ALVListFormatOutput

YoumaysendtheprintfromherebychoosingthemenuoptionListàPrint.Forthenon-full-screenmode,youmayclickthe buttontoaccesstheavailableoptionsasshowninFigure7.30.ThenchoosetheListOutputoption.

Figure7.30:ListOutputOption

The buttonmaybeusedtosendadirectprint(seeFigure7.30).

7.2.6ExcelDownloadingALV format lets you download displayed data into a number of formats. A populardownloadforusersistosavetheworkinExcel.ThestepsforExceldownloadareshownbelow.

TodownloadintoExcelinthenon-full-screenmode,clickthe buttonandchoosetheSpreadsheetoptionfromthecontextmenuthatappears.

Figure7.31:ContextMenuinNon-Full-ScreenMode

Next,youwillbepresentedwith twooptions:TableandPivot table.Choose the optionTable.ItwilltakeyoutothedialogboxasshowninFigure7.32.

Figure7.32:Choosing“Excel”Download

Youmay thenbeasked toconfirmMicrosoftExcelasyour format.After this,press the“Enter”button.

NOTE:Anycalculatedappliedfilters, totals,andsubtotalsaresimplyignoredintheExceldownload.If thelist is toolong,anerrorisdisplayedandnodownloadisperformed.

AnExcelwindowwillopenandshowthedataasshowninFigure7.33.

Figure7.33:ExcelWorksheet

Youmay also convert data into a Pivot table format. For this, instead of Table option,

choosePivottable.

7.2.7ManagingLayoutsApartfromotherusefulfunctions,youmayalsochangethelayoutofthefieldswithinthedisplay.InALVyoumaychangethesequenceaswellashidefields(columns)andsaveyour layout for thenextexecutionof thereport.Asalreadymentioned,youmayset thefilters according to the given criteria, sort fields, aswell as change the sequenceof thedisplayeddata.The layout includes anyadded filter aswell asgivesyou the facilityofsavingthelayoutforfutureuse.

To change the layout, click the button on the toolbar. Thiswill display theChangeLayoutdialogboxasshowninFigure7.34.

Figure7.34:ChangeLayoutDialogBox

YouwillbepresentedwithanumberoftabsthatwillallowyoutohidecertaincolumnsofyourchoiceorspecifytheSortOrderandtheFiltercriteria.

ThefirsttabisfortheDisplayedColumns(seeFigure7.35).

Figure7.35:DisplayedColumns

On the left side are the columns that are currently displayed. If you wish to hide any

columns,theymustbeselectedandtransferredtotherightblocklabeledColumnSet.

NOTE: For the non-full-screenmode, press the button to access themenu.ThenchoosetheChangeLayoutoption.

Figure7.36:ChangeLayoutOption

Youmayselectoneormorefieldsusingthe“CTRL”keyandthenclickthe button tohidethefieldsselected.IntheFigure7.35,theCompanynameandLanguageKeywillberemoved from the display.Youmay also specify the Sort criteria and the Filter criteriausingtheSortOrderandFilter tabs respectively.Whenyoupress“Enter”, thedatawillappearchangedaccordingtothechangedLayoutspecifications.

Tosave the layout for the future, click the buttonon theChangeLayout popupbox.Alternately,youmayusethe buttonontheALVtoolbarforthenon-full-screenmode.SimplychoosethisbuttonandclickontheSaveLayoutoption.

To load an existing layout, clickon the button. From the list of options, choose theappropriatelayout.Ifnolayoutsexists, themessage isdisplayed.For thenon-full-screenmode, youmay use themenu option Select Layout as shown in Figure7.36.

This chapter discussed the various functions found within the ALV format. With theinformationinthischapter,youshouldnowbeabletoselectcolumns,movecolumnswiththemouse,andfreezevariouscolumns.Youshouldalsobecomfortablewiththetoolbarfunctionswithinboththefull-screenandnon-full-screenmodes.

SummaryofChapter7

Chapter8

PrintingGuide

Nomatterhowpaperlessanenvironmentbecomes,printingremainsanimportantpartoftheworking life of anSAPuser.Thepurposeof this chapter is to introduceyou to theprintingoptionsavailablewithinSAP.

Thischapterwillcoverthefollowingimportanttopics:

·Printingwindowcontents

·Printingfromreportselectionscreens

·FormPrinting

·Changingthelookandfeelofprintdialog

·PDFcreationsfromspoolrequests

·Print-relatedproblems

SinceprintingissuchanimportantactivityfortheSAPuser,thischapterwilldetailhowyoucandirectlyprintareportoutandsendthecontentsdirectlytotheprinter.Relatedtothis,wewillhavealookatthePrintImmediatelyandSendtoSpoolrequestoptionsforeverydayprinting.

Somequestionsthatwillbeansweredinthischapterinclude:

·HowcanIprintanentirescreenshotofmycurrentSAPsession?

·HowdoIcreateSpoolRequests?

·WhatarethedifferentSpoolRequestAttributes?

·HowcanIconvertSpoolRequeststoPDFs?

Throughout the chapter, there will be examples and screenshots to help the readerunderstandtheprintingprocess.

A simple way to print the entire screenshot of the current SAP session withoutencounteringanydialogboxistousetheHardCopyoption.Thissendsthescreen’sprintto the default printer of your PC. It will send it directly without asking for anyinformation. This action takes a snapshot of the entire SAP screen. To choose thisfunction,proceedasfollows:

8.1QuickHardCopy

·ClicktheCustomizingLayout buttononthestandardtoolbar.ThemenuwillappearasshowninFigure8.1.

Figure8.1:CustomizingLayoutMenu

ChoosetheHardCopyoption.Thiswillsendaprinttothedefaultprinterimmediately.

TosendaprintoftheSAPscreencontent,suchasalist,aform,oranALVoutput,youmaychoosethePrintoptionbyclickingthe button.Alternately,youmayalsousethekeys“CTRL+P”.

ThedialogboxthenappearsasshowninFigure8.2.

Figure8.2:PrintScreenList

Theimportantfieldsonthisscreenareshownbelow:

·OutputDevice:ThisisthenameoftheprinterasdefinedwithintheSAPsystem.YoumaychoosetheF4helptodisplayalistofdefinedoutputdevices.IfyouchooseLOCLorLOCAL,yourprintwillbesentdirectlytothedefaultprinterconnectedtoyourPC.

8.2PrintingWindowContents

·Windows/frontendPrinter:ThisisadropdownlistthatallowsyoutochoosefromtheprintersconnectedtoyourPC.Chooseasuitableprinterfromthedropdownlist.

·NumberofCopies:Bydefault,thisfieldcontainsthevalue“1”.Ifyouwouldliketoprintmultiplecopies,enterthedesirednumberinthisfield.

·NumberofPages:Youmayalsoselectthenumberofpagesthatyourequire.Bydefault,thePrintalloptionforNumberofPagesisselected.SelectingPrintallwillprintallthepagesofthelistorform(nomatteriftheyare100or1000).Incaseyouwanttoprintonlyacertainpagerangeofthelistorform,selecttheradiobuttonPrintfromPage…to…TheFromandTopagenumberfieldswillbeenabledasshowninFigure6.3.Youmaythenentertherangeyoudesiretoprint.Forexample,weprintedpages1to5.

Figure8.3:NumberofPagestoPrint

Once all field values are specified, click the Enter button. If thePrint Immediatelysetting is on (we will see how this is done in the next section), the job will be sentimmediatelytotheprinter.ThemessagewillbedisplayedasshowninFigure8.4.

Figure8.4:PrinterMessage

However,ifwehavesettheoptionSenttoSpool,aSpoolrequestwillbecreatedandnoimmediateoutputissent(seemessageinFigure8.5).Wewillseehowtheattributesmaybesetinthenextsection.

Figure8.5:NoImmediateOutput

IfyouchoosetheWithoutImmediateOutputoption,aSpoolrequestiscreatedandmaybeviewedusingthetransaction“SP02”.Alternately,youmayusemenupathSystemàOwnSpoolRequests.ThescreenappearsasshowninFigure8.6.

Figure8.6:ListofSpoolRequests

ThiswilllisttheentireSpoolrequeststhatyouhavecreated.Eachprintjobsentwithoutimmediateoutput is storedhereunder auniqueSpoolNumber.The type (ABAP list orforms)isalsodisplayedalongwiththedate,time,andthenumberofpagesincludedintheprintjob.ListedinFigure8.7arethevarioustypesofSpoolrequestsandtheirsymbols.

Symbol Type

ABAPList(ReportOutput)

SmartformsFormOutput

AdobeForms

Figure8.7:TypesofSpoolRequests

At the end of the list, youwill have lines showing the total number of Spool requestsdisplayed, as well as the total number of requests for which outputs have NOT beengenerated.

YoumayselectagivenSpool(ormultipleSpoolrequestsusingcheckboxes)andclickthePrintDirectly buttononthetoolbar.Thiswillsendthejobtotheprinterandthenumberofpageswill beprinted.However, if youwould like toprintwith somechanges in thespool parameters, you may do so by clicking the Print with Changed Parametersbutton.ThisallowsyoutochangecertainparametersasshowninFigure8.8.

Figure8.8:PrintParameters

Youmay,forexample,changetheOutputdeviceandthenumberofcopies.Moreover,youmayspecifytheStartDateandTimeforprinting.Whenyouhaveenteredtheappropriatevalues,youmayclickthePrintbuttononthescreen(forsinglevalues)orPrintAllbuttonifmultipleSpoolrequestswereselected.

TodeleteSpoolrequestsmanually,youmayselect therequestand thenclick theDeletebutton.

TodisplaythecontentsofaparticularSpoolrequest,selecttherequestandthenclicktheDisplayContents button.Alternately,youmaypress“F6”orselecttheTypesymbolofthegivenSpoolrequest.Thecontentwillthenbedisplayed.YoumayalsodownloadthecontentofaSpoolrequestintheformofatextfileoranumberofotherformats(richtextformat[RTF],Excel,orHTMLformats),ifrequired.Oncethecontentsaredisplayed,youmaychoosethemenupathSystemàListàSaveàFile.YoumaythenspecifytheformatandsavethespoolcontentonyourlocalPC.

NOTE:WhenusingthetransactionSP02,youmayalsodisplayoutputofAdobeFormsinPDFformats.

Onreportselectionscreens,itisalsopossibletoexecuteandprinttheoutputtogetherinonedirect step.For this,choose themenuoptionExecuteandPrint as shown inFigure8.9.

Figure8.9:MenuOption“ExecuteandPrint”

APrintDialogwillappearanditwilllookthesameastheoneshowninFigure8.2.YoumaythenspecifythesettingsasusualinordertogeneratetheSpoolrequest.

In addition to reports, the SAP system also allows you to print forms output (bothSmartformsandAdobe formsoutput). Ifyou try toprint forms,youwill see thedialogboxshowninFigure8.10.

8.3“ExecuteandPrint”FromReportSelectionScreen

8.4FormPrinting

Figure8.10:FormPrintingDialogBox

In addition to the parameters discussed previously, there exist other parameters on thedialogthatarealsoimportant.Letusnowgothroughthem:

·PageSelection.Theformoutputmayhaveanumberofpages.Youmaynotneedtheentiresetofpagestobeprinted.Ifthisisthecase,youmayspecifycertainpagesorrangeofpagesfromthegivenoutputtobesenttothespoolsystem.Forexample,youmayspecifythepages“1,2,4-6”.

·PrintImmediately.Tosendtheoutputtotheprinterimmediately,selectthePrintImmediatelycheckbox.TosendSpoolrequeststotheSpooler,uncheckthisindicator.

·NewSpoolRequest.CheckingthiscreatesanewSpoolrequestforyourformprintjob.

·DeleteAfterOutput.Ifthischeckboxison,thecreatedSpoolrequestwillberetainedonlyuntiltheSpoolrequestcontentshavebeenprinted.

·CloseSpoolRequest.Ifthisison,theSpoolrequestcreatedwillbeclosedandnofurtherprintjobsmayuseit.Ifthischeckboxisnotchecked,subsequentprintjobsmaybeaddedinthespoolrequestandmaybeprintedlateralltogether.

There is aPrintPreview button for previewing the output and a directPrint button forspecifyingSpoolrequestcreationortoprintimmediately.

NOTE:Spoolrequestsaretemporarydocumentsthatcontaintheuser’sitemsthataretobeprinted.EachSpoolrequesthasauniquenumber.

In thissection,wewillsee indetailhowthedefault fieldsdisplayedon thePrintdialogmaybechanged.Youmayaddupto10additionalvaluestotheInitialScreenofthePrintDialog(showninFigure8.2).Letustakeacloserlookathowthismaybedone.

OnthePrintDialog,clickthePropertiesbutton.Thiswillleadyoutothescreenshownin

8.5ChangingthePrintDialogLookandFeel

Figure8.11.

Figure8.11:SpoolRequestAttributes

This screenprovides youwith a list ofSpool request properties (attributes).As alreadymentioned, you can transfer up to 10 attributes to thePrintDialog.Let us nowdiscusssomeoftheimportantones:

·TimeofPrinting.Asmentionedintheprevioussection,iftheTimeofprintingissetto“Immediately”thenthedocumentisprintedimmediately.However,therearealsotwootheroptionsthatmaybechosen.Theseareshownbelow:

1. Send to SAP Spooler for now. This setting allows you to prevent sending thedocumenttotheprinterimmediately.Whenthissettingischosen,aSpoolrequestiscreatedthatmaybeviewedlaterandprintedusingtransactionSP01.

2.PrintLater.Thisoptionallowsyoutoprintthedocumentatalaterdateandistimespecific.WhenyouselectPrintLateradateandtimefieldappears.Youmaythenfill inappropriatevalues.Thisoptionwillnotworkfordocumentssent toprintersconnectedwithyourPC(frontendprinting).

·Format.ThisattributeresemblestheformatinwhichtheABAPlististobeprinted.Youmayspecifythecolumns(width)androws(height)tobeprintedonagivenpage.YoumaychooseanappropriateformatusingtheF4helpoftheformatfield.Forexample,65rowsand80columnsareusedfortheformat“X_65_80”.

Figure8.12:FormatAttribute

Alongwiththeabove-listedattributes,afewmoreimportantonesarelistedunderOutputOptions.Letushaveacloserlook.

·DeleteImmediatelyafterPrinting.Asthenamesuggests,thisattributeallowsyoutodeletethecreatedSpoolrequestfromthesystemoncetherequesthasbeenprinted.

·RetentionPeriod.ThisattributeallowsyoutospecifyaperioduntilwhichtheSpoolrequestistoberetained.Afterthistime,theSpoolrequestwillbedeletedfromthesystemandwillnolongerbeaccessibleviaSP01transaction.

For each of the attributesmentioned, the valuemay be changed by double-clicking theattributeinquestion(seeFigure8.13).

Figure8.13:SelectinganAttribute

Thelowerpartofthescreenwillthendisplaytheeditableattributealongwithapossiblesetofvalues.Forexample,ifyouselectTimeofPrinting,theeditablelistboxappearsasshowninFigure8.14

Figure8.14:EditableAttribute

FortheTimeofPrintattribute,youmaychoosefromtheoptions,“SendtoSAPSpoolerOnlyforNow”,“PrintImmediately”,or“PrintLater”.

·NewSpoolRequest.Ifthisindicatorischecked,anewSpoolrequestwillbecreatedforthedocumentinquestion.However,ifyouwouldlikeanexistingSpoolrequestpreviouslycreatedbyyoutobeused,youshoulduncheckthisoption.

·DonotAppendPrintJobs.Ifthisvalueissetto“Yes”,thennofurtherprintjobsareaddedtotheSpoolrequestinquestion.However,ifthisvalueissetto“No”,thenthesubsequentprintjobs/documentswillbeaddedtothecurrentSpoolrequest.ThisattributemaybeusedinconjunctionwiththeNewSpoolRequestattribute.Iftheformerandthelatteraresetto“No”thenallprintjobsmaybeaccumulatedinoneSpoolrequest.SofromSP01,youmaychooseoneSpoolrequesttoprinttheentirerun,thussavingyoutime.

AlsoimportantisacheckboxthatisvisibleattheendofthescreenwiththelabelShowSelectedPrintParametersonInitialScreen (seeFigure8.14).Forexample, ifweselect

thisindicatorfortheNewSpoolRequestattribute,theinitialdialogwilldisplaythegivenattributeasshowninthePrintDialoginFigure8.15.

Figure8.15:Attribute“NewSpoolRequest”Added

ThissectionwilldiscusshowaPDFfilemaybegeneratedusingaSpoolrequestnumberandastandardSAPprogramRSTXPDFT4.Forthis,weassumethattheSpoolrequestforthe print job has already been created and exists in transaction SP01.You should notedownthenumberforthegivenSpoolrequest.

Goto transaction“SA38”.Enter thenameof theprogramRSTXPDFT4intheProgramfieldandclicktheExecutebutton.TheselectionscreenoftheprogramappearsasshowninFigure8.16.

Figure8.16:SelectionScreenforProgramRSTXPDFT4

Enter the Spool request number in the field shown.Make sure theDownload PDF filecheckbox is selected.Youmaygiveasuitablepath forwhere the file is tobestoredonyourPC.

8.6UsingRSTXPDFT4ProgramtoConvertSpoolRequeststoPDFs

Next, click theExecute button.ASaveAs dialog boxwill appear showing the path forstoringthegeneratedfile.Youmaychangethesevaluesatthisstageaswell.Finally,clicktheSavebutton.

AlogwillbedisplayedregardingthegeneratingofthePDFfilefromtheSpoolrequest.

Inthissection,wewilldiscussthetypicalproblemsyoumayfacewhenprinting.(Theremaybesomeissuesthatmayberelatedtotheprintersettings.)Letusdiscussthemonebyone.

NOTE:Sometimes,whenyoutrytoopentransactionSp01usingtheOwnSpoolRequests menu option, a dialog box appears statingMaximum number of sessionsreached.Ifthisisthecase,closeonesessionandtrythetransactionSp01again.

·PrintNotSent.Acommonproblemmaybethatwhenyoutrytoprint,theprintisnotsenttotheprinter.MakesurethatthePrintImmediatelyoptionisset.YoumayalsogotothetransactionSP01andthenchecktoseewhetheracorrespondingspoolrequestexistsforthecorrespondingprintjob.IfPrintImmediatelyissetandtheprintisstillnotsenttotheprinter,youmayasktherelevantbasisteammembersforhelp.

·GraphicsPrintedUpsideDownforSmartforms.Thisisaproblemwiththedriverofyourprinter.Letyouradministratorknowandaskhimorhertoinstallthecorrectdriverforyourprinter.

·ShortDumpappearssayingSpoolBufferFull.Ifthisproblemoccurs,themostprobablereasonisthatthespoolbufferisfullandnomorespoolrequestscouldbeallocatedtoyourrequest.Thisproblemcanbefixedbythebasisteammembers.

This chapter outlined thePrintingGuide forSAPusers.With the informationprovided,youshouldnow,amongotherthings,beabletoprintwindowcontents,printfromreportselectionscreens,changethelookandfeelofprintdialog,convertspoolrequeststoPDFs,andtroubleshootanyprintingproblemsthatmayarise.

8.7Printing-RelatedProblems

SummaryofChapter8

Chapter9

CreatingYourOwnReports

ThischapterwillfocusonSAPQueryandthewaysinwhichitwilllettheusergeneratereportsbasedontheirowndataandparticularneeds.Itplacesthepowerinthehandsoftheusertogeneratereportsthataretailoredtospecificneedsandpurposes.Iwilldiscuss,indetail,theneedforcreatingSAPQueriesandhowthistoolcanhelpyougenerateyourownreportsbasedonyouruniquedata.Thefollowingtopicswillbecovered:

·GeneratingBasicLists,thethreetypesofreportsthatcanbegenerated,andastepbystepaccountofhowtogenerateaBasiclist

·AddingControlLevelstoyourlist

·AddingaHeadertoyourlist

·HowtoaddafootertoaBasicList

Queriesareaverydiverseandlargetopic,butinthischapter,Iwillonlycoverthetopicsthatareofinterestandofusetoauser.Thischapterismeanttobeaguideforthebasicsetup and use of SAP Queries. Some questions that will be answered in this chapterinclude:

·HowdoIcreateaQuery?

·WhatarethethreetypesofreportsthatcanbegeneratedbyusingSAPQuery?

·HowcanIaddcontrollevelstoaBasicList?

Throughoutthechapter,therewillbeexamplesandscreenshotstohelpthereadergainthegreatestpossibleunderstandingofhowtogeneratetheirownQueries.

TheSAPQuery isa tool thatallowsyou togenerateyourownreportsbasedupondatastoredintotheSAPsystem.YoudonotneedtorelyontheservicesofanABAPdeveloperforit.Youmaygenerateyourreportoutputinanumberofformats,suchasALV,simplelist, graphics, etc. SAP query also allows you to define your own list of headers andfootersaswellasdefinecolumnheadings.

Before creating a Query, there are certain prerequisites that must be created. Theseprerequisites include an Infoset andUser Group. An Infoset is the data source fromwhich thedata is tobe readanddisplayed inyourQuery.Ausergroup is thegroupof

9.1SAPQuery:AnOverview

usersthatcancreateandchangequeriesofaparticularfunctionalarea.BothofthesemustexistbeforeyoucancommenceyourQuery.

YoumaygeneratethreetypesofreportsthroughtheuseofSAPQuery.ThethreereportsareBasicList,Statistics,andRankedLists.Letusdiscussthemonebyone.

·BasicList:ABasicListletsyougeneratesimplelistsconsistingofsingleormultiplelines.Youmayalsodefinelistheaders.ABasicListwithcontrollevelsmayalsobecreatedfordisplayingthesubtotalsbasedonacertaincriteria.Withcontrollevels,youmayspecifythefield(s)basedonwhichlististobesortedorwhichtotalsaretobecalculated.

·Statistics:InthecaseofStatistics,youcandefinestatisticalvalues—computedfromaparticularsetofdata.Thesestatisticalvaluesincludecalculatedvalues,suchastotals,percentages,averages,etc.Inotherwords,Statisticsisasummarizedformofalargersetofdata.Forexample,youmaygenerateaStatisticsreportbasedonAirlineCodesorDepartmentNames.

·RankedList:RankedListisalistthatissortedaccordingtothevalueofacomputedStatisticalvalue.Forexample,StatisticalvaluesuchasaRankedListwithtop20averagevalues.

Inthissection,IwilldiscussthedetailedstepsrequiredtocreateaBasicListthroughtheSAPQuerytool.

NOTE:Wewillprinta listofairlinedata thatwillbecomprisedof thecolumnsAirlinecode,FlightNumber,PlaneType,andtheTotalBookingAmountofaFlightwithrelevantcurrency.Wewillassume that theInfosetand theUsergrouparealsocreated.

InordertogenerateaBasicListusingSAPQuery,proceedasfollows:

·Calltransaction“SQ01”.ThescreenappearsasshowninFigure9.1.

9.2GeneratingBasicLists

Figure9.1:GeneratingaBasicList

Make sure that the correct user group is chosen. To go into the correct user group,choose themenu pathEdit à OtherUserGroup. A dialog box appears showing thevariousUserGroups.Selecttheappropriategroupandclickthe button.ThiswillbringyoubacktothescreenshowninFigure9.1butwiththetitleincludingyourchosenUserGroup.

·EnterasuitablenameforyourQueryinthefieldprovidedandchooseCreate.AdialogboxappearsasshowninFigure9.2.

Figure9.2:InfosetSelection

·SelectasuitableInfosetasshown(inourcase,/SAPQUERY/DEMO_FLIGHTS),andpress“Enter”.ThescreenappearsasshowninFigure9.3.

Figure9.3:EnteringTitleandDescription

·Onthescreenthatappears,enterasuitableTitleinthefieldprovided.Youcanalsodefineasuitableoutputformatatthistime.Youmaychoosethedefaultoutputformat,suchasSAPListViewer,thesimpleABAPlist,Graphics,etc.YoumayalsospecifytheLinesandColumnsoftheoutputincasetheABAPlistisselected.

Then, click theNext Screen button (or press “F6”). This takes you to the screenshowninFigure9.4.

Figure9.4:SelectingFieldGroups

·Onthisscreen,youwillbeselectingtheFieldGroupsthatyouneedtouse.StartbychoosingtheFieldGroupsthatyouareinterestedin.Intheexampleshown,wehavechosentheFlightDataandPlanegroups.AfteryouhavechosentheFieldGroups,clicktheNextScreenbuttontogothroughtothescreeninFigure9.5.

Figure9.5:ChoosingFields

Choosethefieldsofyourchoiceoutofyourchosengroups(youmayusethePageUpandPageDown buttons to view the various fields available). In this step, you willchooseallfieldsthatyouareinterestedin,eitherasaselectionparameteroranoutputfield.Onceyouaredone,clicktheNextbutton.ThisleadsyoutothescreenshowninFigure9.6.

Figure9.6:SelectionScreenFields

·Thenextstepallowsyoutospecifythefieldsthatareincludedintheselectionscreen.Onthisscreen,youwillseeallofthefieldsselectedinthepreviousstep.Usethecheckboxtoselectthedesiredfields.Intheexample,wehavechosenAirlineCode.Ifyouwouldliketochangethelabeloftheselectionfieldonthescreen,youmayselecttherespectivefieldusingthecheckboxindicatorandpress“Enter”.TheSelectiontextfortherespectivefieldwillthenbeeditableandyoumaychangethetextasneeded.AsshowninFigure9.6,IhavechangedthetextoftheAirlineCodetoAirlineID.Onceyouaredonewiththisstep,clickthe button.ThiswilltakeyoutothescreenshowninFigure9.7.

Figure9.7:BasicListDefinitionScreenWithoutGraphicalPainter

·NowyouneedtodefinetheappearanceoftheBasicList.ForsinglelineBasicList,enter“01”intheLinenumberforallfields.Forfieldsthatyouwouldliketodefineinthesecondline,enter“02”forthecorrespondingcolumn.Moreover,youneedtodefinethecolumnsequenceaccordingtoyourrequirements.IhavedefinedthesequenceshowninFigure9.7.Ifyouwouldlikeparticularfieldvaluestobesorted,youmayfillintheSortfield.Also,fortheTotalofcurrentbookingsfield,aTotalcheckboxisvisible.Ifyouwouldlikethetotalofthiscolumntobedisplayedattheendoftheoutput,switchonthecheckboxandthenchoosetheNextScreen.

You may switch off the Graphical Painter by choosing the menu path Settings àSettings.ThedialogboxappearsasshowninFigure9.8.

Figure9.8:SwitchingtheGraphicalPainterOnorOff

YoumayswitchoffthegraphicalpainterbyuncheckingtheGraphicalQueryPaintercheckbox.

If you choose a graphical screen option, the Basic List definition screen appears asfollows:

Figure9.9BasicListDefinitionScreen

Figure9.10:LeftSideofPaneinGraphicalView

SelecttheField’scheckboxtoincludethemintheoutput.ThepreviewappearsontherightsideofthepaneasshowninFigure9.11.

Figure9.11:ReportPreview

Finally,saveandrunyourQueryusingtheTestbutton.ThescreenappearsasshowninFigure9.11.

Figure9.12:ReportSelectionScreen

TheQueryoutputonthechosenALVformatlooksliketheoneshowninFigure9.12.

Figure9.13:ALVReportOutputWithGrandTotal

TheABAPlistformofreportforthisisshowninFigure9.14.

Figure9.14:ABAPListOutput

Also, ifyouhavechosenagraphicoutput(piechartoutput), itwill looklike theoneshowninFigure9.15.

Figure9.15:PieChartOutput

9.2.1AddingControlLevelstoyourListOnceyouhavegeneratedyourBasicList,youcanaddControl levels (basedonSortedcolumns)toyourlist.Youmaythenspecifyiftheamounttotalsortotalnumberofrowsistobecalculated,orwhetherdescendingsortingapplicableisbasedforthesortedcolumn

values.

NOTE:Wewillmodifyour list thatwasdefined in theprevioussection toprintsubtotalsofthebookingstotalofeachAirlineCodealongwiththeOveralltotal.Thiswillcreateseparatetotalsforeachairline(AA,DL,etc.).

I copied the Z_FLIGHT query that was created and named it Z_FLIGHT_CONT. AnimportantstepindefiningcontrollevelsistodefinetherelevantfieldasaSortedfieldintheBasicListdefinition.OntheBasicListscreen,wewillspecify“1”intheSortfieldfortheAirlineCodeasshowninFigure9.16.

Figure9.16:DefineBasicList

Press theNext button, or follow themenupathGotoàBasicListàControlLevels (seeFigure9.17).

Figure9.17:MenuPath

ThiswilltakeyoutotheControlLevelsscreen,partofwhichisshowninFigure9.18.

Figure9.18:ControlLevelsScreen

Since our requirement is to calculate the total (or actually the subtotal) based on theAirlinecode,wewillchecktheTotalindicatorasshown.

Whenyourunthereport,theoutputwillthenbeshowninFigure9.19.Eachairlinetotalisdisplayed.

Figure9.19:AirlineTotals

9.2.2AddingaHeaderandFootertotheBasicListAusefulfunctionprovidedbySAPqueryistheabilitytoaddheadersandfooterstoyourlist.Inordertoaddaheaderandfooter,proceedasfollows:

·OntheBasicListdefinitionscreen,choosethemenupathGotoàBasicListàHeaders.ThescreenwillthenlookliketheoneshowninFigure9.20.

Figure9.20:AddingaHeaderandFooter

·Ontop,youwillfindanareawherewecanspecifythePageheader(Ispecifieditas“OurReportHeader”).AtthelowerpartofthewindowisanareawherewecanspecifythePageFooter.Ihavespecifieditas“OurPageFooter”.

The final output with the header and footer defined in ABAP list format is shown inFigure9.21.

Figure9.21:FinalOutputwithHeaderandFooter

To change the column header of a particular field, double-click the respective columnheaderunder thedefinedheaderof the reporton the screen shown inFigure9.20.ThiswillopenthedialogboxasshowninFigure9.22.

Figure9.22:ChangingtheColumnHeaderofaParticularField

Forexample,IselectedtheBookingtotalcolumnasshowninFigure9.20andchangedthecolumnheaderto“IncomeTotal”asshowninFigure9.22.

ThereportwillthenlookliketheoneshowninFigure9.23.

Figure9.23:OutputReportWithNewColumnHeader

This chapter outlined the essentials ofSAPQueryfor SAP users.With the informationprovided, you should now be able to create reports based on SAP data without theinvolvementofABAPdevelopers.Youwillalsobeabletoaddheadersandfootersaswellas change the report column labels quickly and easily. Moreover, for data output thatconsistsofamounts,quantities,ornumbers,subtotalsandtotalsmayalsobegenerated.

SummaryofChapter9

Chapter10

SAPBusinessWorkplacePart1-ManagingDocuments

This chapterwill focus on the SAPBusinessWorkplacewith a primary emphasis onmanagingdocuments.Itwillshowyoutherangeofpossibilitiesavailablethroughtheuseof SAPBusinessWorkplace andwill outline the basic steps involved in accessing andusingtheBusinessWorkplaceefficiently.Thischapterwillcoverthefollowingimportanttopics:

·TransactionSBWP

·Creatinganewmessage

·Usingattachments

·Forwardingdocuments

·Creatingdistributionlists

·Workingwithfoldersandsubfolders

·Searchingwithinfoldersandsubfolders

Itshouldbenotedthatwithinthischapterthetermsdocument,mailandmessageareusedinterchangeablytomeananycontentthatissenttoanotheruserthroughtheSAPBusinessWorkplace.Somequestionsthatwillbeansweredinthischapterinclude:

·HowdoIaccesstheBusinessWorkplace?

·HowdoIsendmailthroughtheBusinessWorkplace?

·Whatisadistributionlistandhowisitcreated?

Throughoutthischapter,therewillbeexamplesandscreenshotstohelpthereadergainthegreatestpossibleunderstandingofhowtoutilizetheSAPBusinessWorkplace.

TheBusinessWorkplace (transaction SBWP) lets youwritemails (create documents),checkworkflows, and process work items. It is an efficient system that helps the usermanagetheiringoingandoutgoingdocumentsthroughtheuseoffolders,subfolders,anddistributionlists.

10.1OverviewofTransactionSBWP

FromtheinitialSAPscreen,youmayusethemenupathMenuàBusinessWorkplace(seeFigure10.1).Alternately,youmaychoosethekeyboardshortcut“CTRL+F12”.ThedirecttransactionfortheWorkplaceisSBWP.

Figure10.1:AccessingtheBusinessWorkplace

ThemainscreenoftheBusinessWorkplacetransactionisshowninFigure10.2.

Figure10.2:BusinessWorkplace

The left pane shows the various folders and areas that exist, namely, Inbox,Outbox,Resubmission,andsoon.Withintherightpanetherearetwoportions.Theupperportiondisplays a list of items pertaining to the folder (folder node) from the left side that isselected.ThelistisinALVformat,anditprovidesanALVtoolbarthathasanumberoffunctions that may be applied to the items displayed. For more information on ALVfunctions,refertochapter6-ALVDisplayFormat.

The details (preview) of the selected item (for example a document) are shown in thelowerpartoftherightpane.

NOTE:TherearePrivateandSharedFolderswithintheSAPBusinessWorkplace.TheSharedFolder allowsyou tohavea central storageplacewhereyouandmanyotherusersmayshareoraccessdocumentsandemails.Ontheotherhand,theprivatefoldersareprivatetoyou,andnootherusermayaccessit.

Threeimportantfoldersareasfollows:

·Inbox.Asthenameimplies,theInboxliststhevariousdocuments(bothreadand

unreadmail)aswellasworkflowworkitems.

·Outbox.TheOutboxlistsanymailthatyouhavesentandWorkflowitemsexecutedbytheuserorforwardedtoanotheruser.

·Resubmissions.Youmayalsoresubmitworkflowworkitemsaswellasdocumentsforafuturedate.TheywillappearintheInboxwhenthesetdatecomes.TheresubmitteditemsareshownundertheResubmissionsfolder.

NOTE: Within the Inbox and Outbox, you may have the Unread Documents,Workflow,andDocuments.

NOTE:TheInboxandOutboxarePrivateFoldersinyourInbox.YoumaycreateadditionalPrivateFoldersunderthePrivateFoldernode.

Ifyouneedtoseeallofthecontentsofafolder,simplyclickthatparticularnode.Whenyou select Inbox in the left pane, youwill see the contents of all the subfolders of theInbox.IfyouneedtoviewonlyUnreadDocumentsorDocuments, select thatparticularnode.Forexample,theunreaddocumentswhenselectedaredisplayedintherightpaneasshowninFigure10.3.

Figure10.3:UnreadDocuments

FromtheMessagesymbol,youmayseewhetheramessageisReadorUnread.Youwillalso see theAuthor (sender), theDate received, the title of themessage, aswell as thenumberofrecipientstowhomthemessagewassent.TheAttachments symbolintheattachmentcolumnindicateswhetheranattachmentisthereornot.Ifyouplacethecursoronthissymbolforaparticularmessage,thenumberofattachmentswillbedisplayed.

SelectingaparticularInboxUnreadorReadmessagewilldisplaythecontentsinthelowerpartoftherightpaneasshowninFigure10.4.

Figure10.4:PreviewofAMessage

YoumayswitchthepreviewonoroffusingtheSettingsàSwitchPreviewOn/Offoptionunderthemenupath.Youmaydouble-clickaparticularmessagetoviewthemessageorwork item inanewwindow.A typical full-screendocumentdisplay is shown inFigure10.5.

Figure10.5:Full-ScreenDocumentDisplay

Asalreadymentioned,atthebottomofyourreceivedmail,youmayhaveattachmentsinavarietyofformats.Forexample,youmayhaveattachedfilessavedasExcel,Word,ortextformats.

Ifyouwouldliketosaveanattachment,firstright-clicktheattachment, thenchoosetheSaveAsoptionfromthecontextmenuthatappears.Thenfollowtherelevantsteps.

Letusnowseehowasimplemessagemaybecreated.Similartoanemailmessage,yourSAPdocumentalsohasasubject,arecipient list,andabodyof theemailwithoptionalattachments.

Tocreateanewmessage,clickthe buttonontheapplicationtoolbar.ThescreenappearsasshowninFigure10.6.

10.2CreatingaNewMessage

Figure10.6:“CreateDocumentandSend”Screen

Enter a suitableTitle in the field provided.A full-fledged text editorwith a number offunctions,suchasCut,Copy,andPaste,etc.isprovidedinordertofillinthetextoftheemail.

Fillinthemessagetext.Youmayalsoattachfilestoyourmessage(wewillseehowthisisdoneinthenextsubsection).

Onceyouaredone,clicktheSend button.ThemessagethatyousentwillappearintheOutbox(underDocuments)oftheSAPBusinessWorkplaceasshowninFigure10.7.

Figure10.7:MessageinSAPBusinessWorkplace

Inthenextsubsections,wewillseeindetailhowtherecipient’stablemaybefilledinaswellasthewayattachmentsmaybelinkedtomessages.

10.2.1RecipientPortionInDetailAsalreadymentioned,therecipientportionhasanumberofimportantfields.Letusseeindetailthefunctionofeachfield.

·RecipientType.ThistypedetermineswhetherthedocumentistobesenttoanSAPlogonUser,anInternetaddress,anorganization,oradistributionlist.

·Recipient.Thenameoftherecipient.IfyouselectthetypeasSAPlogonName,then

youmayenteranSAPuser,suchasLEARN1orJONR.Ifyouhaveanexternaladdress,youmayenteranemailaddress,suchasabc@gmail.com.Youmayalsospecifyadistributionlistname.ThepossiblevaluesoftherecipientareshowninFigure10.8.

Figure10.8:RecipientPossibleValues

·ExpressCheckbox.Selectingthisoptiondisplaysanexpressmessagedialogboxtotheusertellinghimorherthatthereisanemailinhisinbox.

·CopyEmailCheckbox.Checkingthisindicatorsendsacopyoftheemailtothedesiredrecipient.

·BlindCopymailCheckbox.Checkingthisindicatorforarecipientwillsendtheemailasablindcarboncopytotherecipientinquestion.

10.2.2AttachmentsAswithanyemailmessage,youmayattachanydocument to theoutgoingmessage.Toattachafiletotheemailmessage,simplyclickthe buttononthetoolbaroftheCreateDocumentscreen.

ThiswillshowthedialogshowninFigure10.9.

Figure10.9:AttachingaFiletoanOutgoingEmail

Youmaythenbrowseyourdesktopandattachthefile,suchasWord,Excel,oranyother

format,tothemessage.Repeatthisstepforeachfilethatyouneedtoattach.

You may also forward documents (you have received) to other users, provided theforwardingfunctionisenabledonthedocumentinquestion.Todothis,simplyselectthedocumentandright-clicktoaccessthecontextmenuasshowninFigure10.10.

Figure10.10ForwardingaDocument

Then choose theForward option. This will display the dialog box as shown in Figure10.11.

Figure10.11:DialogBoxforForwardingaDocument

Here,youmayenterthelistoftherecipientsandthevarioussettingsasdiscussedearlierinsection10.2.2.Whenyouaredone,clicktheSendbutton.

10.3ForwardingDocuments

ADistributionList isacollectionofemailaddresses thatallowsyou toemailmultiplepeopleatonce.Insteadoftypingeachrecipient’scontactinformationagainandagain,youmaycreateadistributionlistandthensimplyenterthenameoftheDistributionListastherecipient shown in Figure 10.6. A Distribution List may consist of a number of SAPaddressesandusersaswellasexternalemailaddresses.

TocreateDistributionlists,clickthe buttononthetoolbar.ThiswillleadyoutothescreenshowninFigure10.12.

Figure10.12:DistributionListsScreen

Thisscreenletsyousearch,display,andcreateliststhatarebothsharedandprivate.

NOTE:Inadditiontomassmailsending,youmayalsouseaDistributionListinordertoshareafolderamongvariousSAPusers.

Tocreate anew list, chooseanappropriate list type (fieldwith labelTy.). For example,choosePrivate. Then click theCreate button. The screen appears as shown in Figure10.13.

Figure10.13:CreatingANewList

On theAttributes tab, enter the name of the new list as a title description in the fields

10.4CreatingDistributionLists

provided.

To define the content of the lists and listing the various recipients, simply click on theDistributionListContenttab.ThiswillchangethescreenasshowninFigure10.14.

Figure10.14:CreatingaDistributionList

EntertheRecipientsinthespacesprovidedalongwiththeRecipienttypeandthevariousoptions.ThenclickontheSavebutton.

Youmay create a subfolder in the Private Folders or the Shared Folder areas. Simplyselectafolder.Thenright-clickandchoosetheCreateSubfolderoption.

Figure10.15:CreatingaSubfolder

This action will display a screen as shown in Figure 10.16. Now you may move anydocumentorworkitemintothecreatedfolder.Tomoveadocumentintoafolder,simplyright-clickthedocumentandchoosetheMoveoptionfromthecontextmenu.

10.5WorkingwithFoldersandSubfolders

Figure10.16:MovingaDocument

ThisactionwilldisplaythedialogboxshowninFigure10.17.

Figure10.17:SelectingaFoldertoMove

Enter the name of the folder to which you would like to move your document. Thedocumentwillthenshifttothespecifiedfolder.

Within theSAPBusinessWorkplace, youmay search for folders or documents quicklyandeasily.Letustakeacloserlook.

Whensearchingforaparticularfolder,clickthe buttononthetoolbar.ThiswilldisplaythedialogboxshowninFigure10.18.

Figure10.18:FolderSelection

Youmayentereitherafoldernameorafoldertitle.YoualsohavetheoptionofsearchingwithinthePrivateorSharedFolderareas.Forexample,ifyouwanttosearchallfoldersthat have the word “scripts” in the title, you should enter *script* in the title field asshown inFigure10.18.Thesystemwill thenshowyou the first folder thatmatches the

10.6SearchingforFoldersandDocuments

enteredsearchcriteriaasshowninFigure10.19.

Figure10.19:FolderMatchingSearchCriteria

Inadditiontofolders,youmayalsosearchfordocumentsusingcertainsearchcriteria.Tosearchfordocuments,clickthe button.ThiswilltakeyoutothedialogboxshowninFigure10.20.

Figure10.20:SearchRangeforDocuments

Here,youcanspecifywhetheryouwant tosearchwithin thePrivateorSharedFolders.For the Private folders, you may specify whether you would like to search within theInboxorOutbox,etc.

Next, enter the suitable search criteria in theAttributes section provided.Youmay, forexample, specify the search string within the Document title or search by entering thecreatorof thedocument’sname.Youmayalso search for adocumentchangedwithinagiven date range. For example, Figure 10.20 shows the criteria entered for searchingdocumentschangedbetweenthedatesJuly11,2011andOctober9,2011containingtheword“completion”inthedocumenttitle.Onceyoupress“Enter”,therelevantdocumentsaredisplayedinthetopareaoftherightpane.

This chapter discussed the SAP Business Workflow with an emphasis on creating,

SummaryofChapter10

sending,andfilingdocuments.Withtheinformationprovided,youshouldnowbeabletoaccess the Business Workflow, create a new message, attach documents to outgoingmessages,usefoldersandsubfolderstoorganizeyourinbox,andcreatedistributionlists.Inthenextchapter,wewilldiscusshowtomanageWorkflowandWorkItemswithintheSAPBusinessWorkplace.

Chapter11

SAPBusinessWorkplacePart2-ManagingWorkflowWorkItems

Asalreadymentionedearlierinthebook,WorkflowisanimportantSAPfunctionality.WorkItemsareactiveobjectsthataregeneratedduringworkflowexecution.TheyareanimportantcomponentoftheBusinessWorkplace,astheyareexecutableobjectsthatallowyoutocarryoutdifferentactions.

In this chapter,wewill discusswhat usersmay be required to performwithWorkflowWorkItems.WewilldiscussthevariousstatesofaWorkItemandthevariousforms(andpurposes)inwhichtheymayappearinyourinbox.

Thischapterwillcoverthefollowingimportanttopics:

·HowtoviewWorkItemswithinyourinboxandoutbox

·HowtohandleaWorkItemthathasadeadline

·Thevariousoutofofficesettings

·PersonalizationoptionswithintheBusinessWorkplace

Somequestionsthatwillbeansweredinthischapterinclude:

·HowcanIcreateandviewWorkItemsinmyinbox?

·WhatarethedifferentstatusesofWorkItems?

·WhataretheapplicablefunctionsonWorkItems?

Throughoutthechapter,therewillbeexamplesandscreenshotstohelpthereadergainthegreatestpossibleunderstandingofhowtoutilizetheSAPBusinessWorkplace.

AWork Item is an executable object that allows you to carry out actions on businessobjects,suchasPurchaseOrder,Employeeabsence,orNotification.Inmoresimpleterms,WorkItemsaregeneratedasaresultofworkflowexecution.TheyareactiveobjectsthatallowyoutocompleteanactivityintheSAPsystem,suchasanApprovalworkitem.

Work Itemsappear in the Inboxof theBusinessWorkplacemainlyunder theWorkflownode (and a few other nodes). Your Inbox reflects all work items for which you are arecipient (or one of the recipients). A typicalDecisionWork Item is shown in Figure

11.1WorkItems:WhatTheyAreandHowTheyLook

11.1.

Figure11.1:DecisionWorkItem

Here, you are presented with a number of choices (each of which is represented by abutton)fromwhichyoucanchoosetheoptionyouwant.YoumaychoosetheoptionYesIapprove,orNoIdon’t. IfyouchoosetheCanceloption, theWorkItemremains inyourinboxforlaterprocessing.IftheYesorNooptionsarechosen,theworkitemdisappearsfromtheinbox.

Otherthandecisions,WorkItemsmayserveotherpurposes,suchas:

·WorkItemsmaybeusedtoprovideyouwithnotificationaboutanactivitythathastakenplace.

·WorkItemsmayrequireyoutoperformanactiononanobjectinSAPtransaction.Inthiscase,youmaybetakenfromtheWorkItemtothenecessarytransaction.SuchWorkItemsmayberequiredtoexplicitlyconfirmendofprocessing(orcompletion)inorderfortheworkflowtocontinuefurtherasshowninFigure11.2.

Figure11.2:ConfirmEndofProcessing

·DeadlineWorkItems/MessagesforindicatingthatanotherWorkItemhasbeenoverdue.

Dependingonthescenario,multipleusersmaybeinvolvedasrecipients.Inthiscase,theWorkItemmaybepresentintheInboxofanumberofusers.IfoneuserthenprocessesthegivenWorkItem,theWorkItemwilldisappearfromtheinboxoftheotherusers.AWorkItemmayalsocontainattachmentsthatmaybeusedinthesubsequentstepswithintheworkflowinquestion.

Within the Inboxof yourBusinessWorkplace, there are four folders that are related toWorkflow work items, namely Workflow, Overdue Entries, Deadline Messages, andIncorrectEntries.

Figure11.3:FourWorkflow-relatedFolders

Double-clickonthefolderwhosedetailsyouwanttoview.Thiswilldisplaythedetailsintherightpane.TheviewregardingtheWorkItemsisdifferentfromthatofthedocumentsasmentionedearlier.Whenyoudouble-clicktheWorkflownode,therightpaneappearsasshowninFigure11.4.

Figure11.4:WorkflowWorkItemsinRightPane

Theupperpartshowsthelistofworkitems(alsoreferredtoastheWorkList).Atthetopisatoolbarthatprovidesavarietyofusefulfunctionsthatmaybeperformedonitems.

TheitemsshowninyellowindicateOverdueItems,i.e.,theitemsthatarepasttheirdateforcompletion.The lowerpartcontains thepreviewof theWork Item inquestion.Thiscontains the description of the item and any attachments along with relevant tips and

11.2WorkItemsViewWithinInbox

tricks. You may place the cursor on the Tips and Tricks part to fully display the TipprovidedfortheselectedWorkItem.

Within theObject and Attachments shown within a work item, you may click on theObjectlinktoviewthedetailsoftheobjectinconsideration,suchasthePurchaseOrder,Notification,etc.

Thevariouscolumns(information)abouttheWorkListitemsareshowninFigure11.5.

Figure11.5:InformationabouttheWorkListItems

Letustakeadetailedlook:

·Executable.Thesymbol undertheExecutablecolumnforagivenWorkItemindicatesthattheWorkItemmaybeexecuted.Typically,thissymbolappearsbesidetheonesforwhichyourinteractionisrequired.

·Title.Thisisthetitle(headingorsubject)oftheWorkItem,forexample,PleaseConfirmEndofProcessing.

·Status.Thestatusshowsthecurrentstate(denotedbyasymbol)theWorkItemisin.Someofthemostimportantstatuses(visibleintheSBWPinbox)areshowninFigure11.6.

Symbol Status Meaning

Ready

When a Work Item initially appears in theBusiness Workplace, its initial state is Ready.This means that it can be executed (orprocessed).Also,whenaWorkItemisInProcessstatusandthentheReplacefunctionisapplied,itreturnsbacktotheReadystate.

ExecutedThisisaspecialstatusforWorkItemsthatmustbe explicitly confirmed. These items have beenexecutedbutnotconfirmedexplicitly.

Reserved

ThisindicatesthatyoureservethatWorkItem.Areserved Work Item will disappear from theinboxofotherusers.Oncereserved,aWorkItemmay then be replaced by the same user orassigned by the Workflow administrator tosomeoneelse.

InProcess

When you execute or open a Work Item orexecution, it gets the In Process status. Also,when you open decisionWork Items but cancelthem,itwillshowthattheyareinprocess.

Completed Thisindicatescompletionoftheworkitem.

Figure11.6:StatusesofWorkItems

·Attachment.IfanattachmentforaWorkItemexists,the iconundertheAttachmentcolumnwillappear.

NOTE: You may also sort all the items according to the column values. Forexample,youmaysortaccordingtotheTitlebyclickingonTitle.TheitemswillbesortedaccordingtotheTitleasshowninFigure11.5.

·Priority.EachWorkItemhasaprioritythatindicatesitsurgency.Thismayhavearangevalueof1–9,with1indicatingthehighestpriorityand9indicatingthelowestpriority.

·ConfirmedExplicitly.AflagindicatorinthiscolumnforaWorkItemindicatesthattheconfirmation(completion)oftheWorkItemmustbedoneexplicitly,meaningthecompleteWorkItembuttonwillbepressedandthentheworkflowwillproceedfurther.

NOTE:Apartfromthetoolbar,youmayalsoright-clickonaparticularWorkIteminordertoaccessthecontextmenushowingthevarioussupportedfunctionsfortheselectWorkItem.

·WorkItemOverdue.AWorkItemmayalsohavealatestenddeadline.Thisisthetimebywhichtheworkitemwillbeconsideredlateoroverdueifnotcompleted.Thesymbol inthiscolumnindicatesthattheworkitemisoverdue.

Over the passage of time, yourWork Listmay become too long, and searching for aparticularWorkItem,atypeofWorkItem,orallWorkItemsofaparticularobjectIDmaybeachallengingtask.Forthispurpose,theInboxviewprovidesviewsofthreeWorkItemGroupings,whichareshowninFigure11.7(thenodesarealsoshowninFigure11.2).Iftheuserdoesnotwant toseeallWorkItems,heorshecanviewthemaccording to thegroupsshownthatareusedtorestrictthesearch.Selectingaparticularclassificationwiththevariousnodesgroupingswilldisplaytheitemsfallingwithinthegroupingintherightpane.

WorkItemGroupings

Meaning

Groupedaccordingtotask

Under this node, further nodes may exist. Thisclassification is according to the Task text, i.e., theWorkflow task from which the Work Item has beengenerated.Forexample,youmayhaveagroupwithintheGrouped According to Task by the name of ChangeNotificationTaskorLeaveApprovalTask.

Groupedaccordingtocontent

Groupaccording to theobject(withID)inquestion.Forexample,therewillbeseparatenodesunderit,such as Change Notification 0041 and ChangeNotification 0042. Selecting the appropriate notificationwilldisplaytheWorkItemintherightpane.

Groupedaccordingtocontenttype

Thisgroupingisbasedonthecontenttyperatherthantheactualcontent.Forexample,theremaybeanodeChangeNotificationwhichwhendouble-clickedwilldisplayboththe Change Notification 0041 and Change Notification0042intherightpane.Therewillbenoseparatenodesforthe notifications 0041 and 0042 as in the Grouped byContentclassification.

Figure11.7:WorkItemGroupings

11.2.1OutboxIntheOutbox,alltheworkflowrelateditemsareundertheStartedWorkflow,WorkItemsExecutedbyme,andForwardWorkItems.These listanyworkflowsstartedbyyou, thecompletelistofworkitemsexecutedbyyou,andanyitemsforwardedbyyoutoanotheruser,respectively.

Figure11.8:Outbox

TheWorkItemsExecutedbymenodegivestherelevantworkitemslist.ThetoolbaroftheOutboxalsohasavarietyofuseful functions, suchasdisplayingof itemdetail, sorting,andfiltering.

Figure11.9:WorkItemsExecutedbyYou

Bydefault,thelastmonth’sitemsareshown.However,youmayseethestatusofadayorweekaswell.Forexample,youmaychoosethe buttonandaccesstheTodayOnlyortheLast7Daysoption,whicheverisrequired.

Figure11.10:ItemsfromVariousTimePeriods

11.2.2DeadlineMessagesFormanyWorkItems,theremaybeadeadlinesetforthelatestcompletionoftheworkitem.Oncethistimehaselapsed,specialDeadlineMessagesforWorkItemsareissued.Ifyouaredefinedasarecipientofsuchamessage,youwillreceiveadeadlinemessage.

ThesedeadlinemessagesmustbesetascompletedexplicitlyviatheoptionSettoDone.When you execute theWork Item, the Set toDone option appears as a toolbar button(discussed in section 11.3).Also, youwill find aMonitoredWork Item button thatwillallowyoutogetinformationfromtheoverdueWorkItem.

NOTE:OnceyoucompleteaWorkItemthatwassent toyouandotherusers, itwilldisappearfromyourinboxandfromtheinboxesoftheotherusers.Untiltheyarecompleted,theymaybeinthe“InProcess”,the“Executed”,orthe“Reserve”status.Inallofthesestatuses,nootherusermayexecutetheWorkItemuntilthe“Replace”operationhasbeencarriedout.

Inthissection,IwilldiscussthevariousfunctionsthatmaybeperformedonWorkItems.

·SettingaWorkItemto“Done”.Asalreadymentioned,forcertainWorkItems,includingDeadlineWorkItems,youmustexplicitlyconfirmcompletion.ThismaybedonebyfirstselectingtherelevantworkitemandthenclickingtheOtherFunctions

buttonfromthetoolbarandchoosingtheoptionSettodone.

Figure11.11:SetWorkItemto“Done”

11.3FunctionsApplicableOnWorkItems

NOTE: Since there is no auto-refresh in the workplace, after carrying out anyfunctiononwork items, use theRefresh button in the toolbar to get the neweststateoftheWorkList.

·CreatingaLink.Youmaycreatealinktoanitemwithinafolderorasubfolderwithinafolder.Thesefoldersmaybeprivateorshared.Todoso,selecttheWorkItemandthenchoosetheEnvironment button.Fromtheoptionsthatappear,chooseCreateLink.

Figure11.12:CreateLink

TheFolderSelectiondialogboxappearsasshowninFigure11.13.

Figure11.13:FolderSelection

Youmay then specify thenameof the sharedorprivate folderwhere the linkof theWorkItemistobecreated.

Supposewestore it in thePrivate folder.Afterspecifying thefoldernameasshown,thelinkwillbecreatedintheprivatefolder.

·ChangingpriorityofaWorkItem.YoumayalsochangethepriorityofaWorkItem(asisthecasewithadocument).Todoso,clicktheOtherFunctionsbutton afterselectingtheitem.Fromtheoptions,chooseChangePriorityoption.ThedialogboxappearsasshowninFigure11.14.

Figure11.14:ChangePriorityDialogBox

ChoosethenewpriorityoftheWorkItemandthenpress“Enter”.

·ResubmissionofWorkItems(anddocuments).AnimportantfunctionalitysupportedintheBusinessWorkplaceistoresubmitWorkItemsanddocumentsforafuturedate.ThismeansthattheWorkItemwillbemovedfromtheinboxandwillthenbeshownundertheResubmissionsfolder.TheWorkItemwillbeautomaticallymovedintotheInboxbythesystemonthespecifiedresubmissiondate.

SelecttherelevantitemandclicktheResubmit button.(Alternately,youmayright-click and choose theResubmit option from the contextmenu.) Thiswill display thedialogboxasshowninFigure11.15.

Figure11.15:ResubmitWorkItem

ThenenterasuitabledatewhenyouwouldliketheitemtoreappearintheInbox.Next,press “Enter”. The itemwill then appear in the Resubmissions folder until the datespecified.

NOTE:IfyouwouldliketodisplaytheWorkflowlog,youmayselecttheWorkItemandclickthe buttonfromthetoolbar.

·ReservingaWorkItem.Asalreadymentioned,itispossibleforyoutoreserveaWorkItemthathasappearedinyourinbox.OnceyoureserveaWorkItem,itwillnolongerbevisibletootherusers.EitheryouortheWorkflowadministratorcanreplacetheWorkItemmanually.ToreserveaWorkItem,firstselectitandthenclicktheReservebutton.Alternately,youmayright-clickandthenchoosetheReserveoptionfrom

thecontextmenu.

ThiswillreservetheWorkItemforyou,andthestatusoftheitemwillbechangedtoReserveddenotedbythe symbol.

·ReplacingaWorkItem.TheReplacefunctionsetstheWorkItemtoReadyandmakesitvisibletootherrecipientsaswellforexecution.ThisfunctionmaybeappliedonitemsthathaveaReserved,InProcess,orExecutedstatus.

ToreplaceaWorkItem,selectitandthenclicktheReplace button.Alternately,youmayright-clickandthenchoosetheReplaceoptionfromthecontextmenu.ThiswillreplacetheWorkItemandthestatusofitwillbechangedtoReady .

·AddingAttachmentstoaWorkItem.YoumayalsoaddattachmentstoaWorkItem.YouhavetheoptionsofcreatinganewdocumentandattachingittotheWorkItemorimportinganexistingdocumentstoredonyourPC.

Toaddattachments,selecttheitemandright-clickinordertoaccessthecontextmenushowninFigure11.16.

Figure11.16:CreateanAttachment

Choose theoptionCreateAttachment.Alternately,youmayclick the button andchooseoptionCreateAttachment.ThedialogappearsasshowninFigure11.17.

Figure11.17:CreateDocumentHeader

NOTE:To importandattachfiles fromyourPC,click the Import buttonandfollowthestepsshown.

Bydefault,SCRappearsintheTypefield.TheSCRdenotesthetextformatthatyoumayenterusingtheSAPeditor.SupposewechooseTXTastheTypeandenteratitleintheprovidedfield.Whenwepress“Enter”,anotepaddocumentappearsalongwithadialogboxshowninFigure11.18.

Figure11.18:NotepadDocument

Youmayenterthetextinthetextdocumentandthensavethetextandclosethenotepaddocument.Next,youwillneedtopresstheContinuebuttononthedialogboxshown.Oncethisisdone,theTXTfileisattachedwithamessagesayingAttachmentaddedtoWorkItem.

NOTE: You may delete attachments that you have added, but you may notdelete/removethoseaddedbyothers.

TherelevantWorkItem’sAttachmentcolumnwillnowappearwitha symbol,denotingthepresenceoftheattachment.

Figure11.19:AttachmentColumn

·ForwardingWorkItems.Aswithdocuments,aWorkItemmayalsobeforwardedtoanyotheruser.ThismaybedonebyselectingtheWorkItemandthenclickingtheForward button.Alternately,youmayright-clickandthenchoosetheForwardoptionfromthecontextmenuthatappears.ThedialogboxappearsasshowninFigure11.20.

Figure11.20:ForwardingWorkItem

EntertheUserinthefieldprovidedandthenpress“Enter”.ThiswillforwardtheWorkItemtotheuserspecified.Intheotheruser’sinbox,yourusernamewillbeshowninthecolumnForwardedByfortheworkiteminquestion.TheforwardedWorkItemwillberemovedfromall theotherusers’ inboxeswhoinitiallyhadtheworkitemvisible.TheitemforwardedwillappearintheOutboxunderthenodeWorkItemsforwardedbyme.

In thissection,wewillcover thestepsrequiredtosetupoutofofficesettingsforwhenyouareunable tosendor receivemessages.This includescreatingapersonalsubstituteandsettingtheforwardingoptioninyouremail.

11.4.1CreatingSubstitutesIncaseyouaregoingoutofoffice,youmayallowanotheruser(knownasyourPersonalSubstitute)toviewyourinboxandworklistandapprovetheworkitems,ifrequired.Tocreate substitutes, choose the menu path Settings à Workflow Settings à MaintainSubstitute.ThedialogappearsasshowninFigure11.21.

11.4OutofofficeSettings

Figure11.21:PersonalSubstitutesCreation

Position thecursoronyouruser ID(inourcase, it isSTUDENT009), thenclick theicon.Adialogboxappearsthatwillletyouenterasearchtermfortheuser.Inthesearchterm field, youmay either enter the name of the user or a search term. If youwant tochoosefromallavailableusers,youmustenterthewildcardcharacter(*).Press“Enter”toview theusers selectedaccording to the search termentered.Thenchoose from the listthatappears.

Supposewe choose the name of the substitute to be JaneAllen.The screen appears asshown.

Figure11.22:DetailScreenSubstitution

Enterthevaliditydate(duration)ofthesubstitutionasshown(itisalsopossibletocreatesubstitutes for a week or a month by specifying appropriate validity dates). You canactivate the substitute by checking theSubstitutionActive checkbox, and then click theSavebutton.

The user JaneAllenwill be one of your substitutes starting fromMarch 31, 2012, andyourworkitemswillappearinherInboxrightaway.Shewillremainasubstituteaslongasyoudon’tdeleteherentry.

IftheSubstitutionActivecheckboxisnoton,yoursubstitutewillhavetomanuallyadoptthesubstitutioninorder tomakeyourworkitemsvisible inhisorherInbox.ThemenuoptionfordoingsoisSettingsàWorkflowSettingsàAdoptSubstitution.

11.4.2AutomaticForwardingYoumayalsoforwardyourdocumentstoanotherSAPuserorevensendanemailinyourabsence.Todothis,followthemenuoptionSettingàOfficeSettings.Thiswillopen thePrivate Office Settings dialog box. Select theAutomatic Forwarding tab and press theCreatebutton.TheAutomaticForwardingdialogappearsasshowninFigure11.23.

Figure11.23:AutomaticForwarding

To forwardyour documents to another email address (Internet address), enter the emailaddress in the fieldprovided.On the right, choose theoption Internetaddress from thedropbox.Enteravalidityperiodandpress“Enter”.

Nowalldocumentsonwhichforwardingispermissiblewillbeforwardedtothespecifiedaddress.

In this section,wewill seesomeof thepersonalizingsettings related towork items.Toaccessthissetting,choosethemenupathSettingsàWorkflowàPersonalSettings.

11.5OtherPersonalizationOptionsofBusinessWorkplace

Figure11.24:PersonalWorkflowSettings

Afewusefulsettingsareshownbelow:

·EnableForwardingofWorkItemstoSeveralUsers.Asthenameindicates,thissettingallowsyoutoforwardtheworkitemtoseveralusers.Bydefault,thissettingisswitchedtooff.

·NoTipsandTricksofWorkItemsinWorkplaces.YoumayswitchofftheTipsandTricksdisplayedwithinaWorkitembyselectingthischeckbox.Bydefaultthissettingison.Afterdoingso,notipsandtricksareshown.

·ObjectDetailsShowninSameWindow.Bydefault,clickingontheObjectnamepertainingtoaparticularworkitemopensanewwindowshowingthedetailsoftheobject.Youmaywanttoswitchthisoffanddisplaytheobjectdetailinthesamewindow.YoucandothisbyselectingthecheckboxDouble-clickingobjectshowsobjectinSameWindow.

NOTE: If youwould like to switch back the default settings of theWorkplacepressthe button.

11.5.1SwitchingOffPreviewYoumayalsoswitchofftheworkitempreviewshowninthelowerpartoftherightpane.Youcandothisbyselectingthemenuoption,SettingsàSwitchOffPreview.

Figure11.25:SwitchingPreviewOff

This chapter discussed the SAP BusinessWorkflow with an emphasis onWork Items.Withtheinformationprovided,youshouldnowbeabletolocateWorkItemswithinyourinbox and outbox, identify deadlines onWork Items, and complete them appropriately.You should now also be comfortablewith the various settings foundwithin transactionSBWP,particularlyrelatingtooutofofficesettingsandpersonalizationofyourBusinessWorkplace.

SummaryofChapter11

Chapter12

MiscellaneousTopics

Thischapterwillfocusonavarietyofadditionaltopicsthatmaybeusefultotheuser.IwilldiscussindetailhowtodisplayanauthorizationcheckusingTransactionSU53andwillthendelveintothevariousfunctions/servicespertainingtotheObjectsthatyouworkwithonaday-to-daybasis.Thesemiscellaneoustopicsaremeant tohelpyouroundoutyourknowledgebase.

Thefollowingtopicswillbecovered:

·DisplayingAuthorizationCheck

·TransactionSU53Output

·ObjectServices

·AttachmentLists

·MyObjectsLists

Somequestionsthatwillbeansweredinthischapterinclude:

·Icannotgainaccesstoatransaction.WhatdoIdo?

·HowdoIdisplayanAuthorizationCheck?

·HowdoIalertthesecurityteamthatIneedaccess?

·WhatarethemostimportantObjectservices?

·HowdoIcreateanoteforagivenObject?

Throughout the chapter, there will be examples and screenshots to help you gain thegreatest possible understanding of how to display Authorization Checks and how tomanageObjectswithintheireverydaytasks.

As alreadymentioned earlier in the book, the necessary authorizationmust be given toyourUser (ID) in order for you to execute a report, tomake entries on a screen, or todisplay data through a transaction. However, there will be many situations when youshouldbeallowedtogotoatransactionorcarryoutacertainactivitywithinthesystem

12.1TransactionSU53–DisplayingAuthorizationCheck

butarenotallowedtodoso.ThismayalsohappenwhenyoutrytoaccessatransactionviatheusermenuortheSAPEasyAccessMenubutcannotduetolackofauthorization.Anauthorizationerrordisplayed,insuchcases,isshowninFigure12.1.

Figure12.1:AuthorizationError

In such cases, you should ask the security teammember toprovideyouwithnecessaryauthorization.Inordertodoso,youneedtopointoutwhichAuthorizationObjectcheckhas failed.The informationon the authorizationobject and the check that failedcanbedeterminedusingtransactionSU53.

Simply call transaction “SU53” or use menu path System à Utilities à DisplayAuthorizationCheck.

Figure12.2:DisplayAuthorizationCheck

ThiswilltakeyoutotheAuthorizationDisplayscreen.TheAuthorizationDatashownforacheckthathasfailedwillbesimilartotheoneshowninFigure12.3.

Figure12.3:AuthorizationData

Itwillbeclearlywrittenthat theAuthorityCheckFailedand therequiredAuthorizationvaluefortheuserinordertoproceedwiththeactivitywillbeshowninred.

You may then send this screenshot to the Security team and ask for the necessaryauthorization.Make sure that thisSU53 screenshot is taken right after theauthorizationerroroccurs.Oncetheauthorizationisgranted,youmaythenusethedesiredtransaction.

NOTE: It is important that you call the SU53 transaction immediately after thefailingtransaction.

Ifthelastcarriedoutcheckwassuccessful,thescreenappearsasshowninFigure12.4.

Figure12.4:SuccessfulAuthorityCheck

ThetransactionSU53outputshowsthelastauthorizationcheckthatwascarriedoutbythesystemwhiletheuserwascarryingouthisorheractivity(evenifitwassuccessfulornot).Forexample,ifyouranthecheckseveralhoursago,theauthorizationcheckhistorywillstillbe there.However,whenyou logoffand thenagain logon to thesystem,youwillhaveyourAuthorizationcheckhistoryintransactionSU53refreshed.Untiltheuserdoesnotlogoff,theoutcomeofthelastauthorizationcheckwillremaininthesystem.

NOTE:Asuccessfulmessagedoesnotrequiretheusertodoanything.ThedetailsaboutthegenerationofafailuremessagearewhatausershouldsendtotheSecurityteam.

For the objects that youworkwith (such as aDocument, aMaterial, or anEmployee),theremay be some general functions known asObject Services available. These mayallowyouto,forexample,enteranoteorattachafiletotheobjectinquestion.Thiswillonlyberelevanttotheparticulardocumentnumberortotheparticularemployeetowhichitisattached.

To access theObjectServices, clickon the icon on the top left corner of theSAPwindowinordertoopenthesubmenushowninFigure12.5.

12.2ObjectServices

Figure12.5:ObjectServicesSubmenu

Themenuprovidesanumberofoptions.Allofthesemaynotbeapplicabletoyourobject.

Letusnowlookatthemostimportantfunctionsonebyone.

·CreatingandManagingAttachments.Tocreateanattachmentfortheobjectinquestion,youmayusethisfunction.SimplychoosethemenuoptionCreateàAttachment.Thepop-upappearsforspecifyingthefiletobeattached.Youmaythenattachanyfile(inanumberofformats,suchasWord,Excel,oranyotherformat).

Afteratleastoneattachment(oranaddednotehasbeenattached)existsfortheobjectinquestion,youmaydisplaytheattachmentstotheobjectbychoosingtheAttachmentlistoptionasshowninFigure12.6.

Figure12.6:“Attachmentlist”Option

TheAttachment listwill appear as shown in Figure 12.7.All files aswell asNotesattachedtotheobjectwillbeshown.

Figure12.7:AttachmentList

NOTE:PrivateNotesdonotappearintheAttachmentlistoftheObject.

·CreateNotes(andprivatenotes).Youmayalsoattachnotestothegivenobject.Thesemaybeaccessiblebyotherusers(normalnotes)ormaybejustaccessiblebyyou(privatenotes).

Tocreateanote forallusers, choose theoptionCreateàNote.TheNote editorwillappearasshowninFigure12.8.

Figure12.8:NoteEditor

Enterthetitleofthenotealongwiththetextofthenoteandpress“Enter”.

On the other hand, to create a privateNote, you should choose the optionCreate àPrivateNote.

Figure12.9:CreatePrivateNote

ThiswillopenthePersonalNoteeditorshowninFigure12.10.

Figure12.10:PrivateNoteEditor

Youmaythenentertheprivatenoteandtitleandpressthe“Enter”button.

·SendObjectwithNote(inanEmail).ItisalsopossibleforyoutogodirectlyfromthesubmenutotheBusinessWorkplaceandcreateanemailwiththelinktotheobjectattachedtotheemail.Forexample,ifweareprocessingemployee1280andwechoosetheoptionSendàObjectWithNote,thescreenwillappearasshowninFigure12.11.

Figure12.11:SendObjectwithNoteinEmail

WecanthenspecifytheTitle,theBodyoftheemail,andtheRecipients,andthenclickthe Send button. On the Attachments tab, we will see that the Employee link isattached.

Figure12.12:AttachmentsTab

·StartingandDisplayingWorkflowsforanObject.YoumayalsohaveworkflowfunctionsattachedthatareaccessiblefromtheGeneralObjectServices.Inordertostartaworkflowrelatedtotheobjectinquestion,simplyselectthemenuoptionWorkflowàStartWorkflow.

Toviewalistoftheworkflowpertainingtotheobject,choosetheoptionWorkflowàWorkflowOverview.Thiswilldisplayalistoftheworkflowsfortheobjectalongwiththenecessaryinformation.

·AddingObjecttoyourFavorites.YoumayalsoaddcertainobjectsalongwiththeirIDstoyourfavoriteObjectslist.ThismaybedonebychoosingthemenuoptionMyObjectsàAddtoMyObjects.

Figure12.13:AddObjectstoFavorites

Thiswilladdtheobjecttothefavoritelist.(Inthenextsection,wewillseehowtheMyObjectslistmaybeviewed.)

As alreadymentioned, there is aMyObjects list towhich youmay add your favoriteobjects.Thisisparticularlyusefulwhenyouhavecertainobjectsthatyouwanttonoteforfutureusage.Theobjectsthatareaddedtothelistarenotremoveduntilyouexplicitlydoso.

Youmaydisplay,changethelist,orcreatefoldersintheObjectslist.TodothisyoumayusethemenupathSystemàMyObjectsàEditObjectsshowninFigure12.14.(ThismenupathisavailableinallSAPscreens.)

12.3The“MyObjects”List

Figure12.14:EditObjects

TheMyObjectslistwillbedisplayedasshownintheFigure12.15.

Figure12.15:MyObjects

Supposeweaddedtheemployeenumber1280.Anodewillappearforit inthelist.Youmaythendouble-clickonthe1280nodeanditwilltakeyoudirectlytothetransactionforprocessingthegivenobject.

Youmayalsocreate folders inyour favoriteobject list.Tocreatea folder, click thebutton.ThedialogappearsasshowninFigure12.16.

Figure12.16:CreateaFolderintheObjectList

Enterasuitablefoldernameandthenpress“Enter”.Thenewfolderwillbeaddedtoyourlist.

Figure12.17:MyObjectswithFolder

Youmaycreateasmanyfoldersasyoulike,andthendraganddropanyobjectsintothefolder.Todeleteanobjectfromthelistor todelete thefolder,select thegivenitemandclickthe icon.PresstheSavebuttontosaveyoursetting.

Thelistofobjectsremainsandmaybeaccessedevenafteryouhaveloggedoff.

ThischapterdiscussedhowtogenerateanddisplayAuthorizationCheckswhenyouareunabletoaccesscertaintransactions.ItalsodiscusseddifferentservicesthatareavailabletoyouforObjectsthatareusedeveryday.Withtheinformationprovidedinthischapter,youshouldnowbeabletoapplythementionedfeatureseffectivelytoyourdailywork.Ihopethatthisinformationisusefultoyouandhashelpedroundoutyourknowledgebase.

Referenceshttp://help.sap.com/saphelp_erp60_sp/helpdata/en/c8/96c998142f11d389940000e8216438/frameset.htm

SummaryofChapter12

Index

ABAPList,106,169,189

ABCAnalysis,142,154,157,158

ABCAnalysisFunctionView,154,157

AdobeForms,107,169,170

ALV,3,20,21,106,107,114,139,140,141,142,143,144,146,147,148,149,150,152,154,156,159,160,162,164,166,180,188,189,197

ApplicationToolbar,14,16

AutoCompletion,45

AutomaticTabbing,92

Backgroundmode,110

Banner,14

BasicList,179,180,181,185,186,187,190,191,192

BusinessWorkplace,3,4,21,24,33,195,196,197,201,208,211,213,214,216,218,224,232,233,242

ChartsView,154,156

CollectiveSearchHelps,57

CommandField,17,21,23,24,28,35,70

Controllevels,190

Corbu,78

DecisionWorkItem,214

DialogMode,88,89,90

ExcelInplaceView,154,155

Favorites,2,13,31,32,33,34,35,36,37,38,39,40,69,72,73,74,116,244

HardCopy,166

HoldData/SetData,62,63

Inbox,197,198,199,210,214,215,216,219,224,225,230

Infoset,179,180,181,182

InitialScreen,172,176

InputHelp,54,61

Insert,33,37,51,52,93

Meaning,17,124,218,220

MenuBar,14,15

MyObjects,244,245

ObjectManager,41,65

ObjectServices,235,238,239,243

Objects,42,134,135,235,244,245,246,247

Outbox,197,198,201,210,220,221,228

Overwrite,51,52,137

PersonalSubstitute,228

PersonalValueList,58

Personalization,70,213,232

Privatenotes,240

QuickCutandPaste,102,103

RankedLists,180

Resubmission,197,224

ResubmitWorkItems,224

SAPEasyAccess,5,10,11,21,24,33,34,38,40,97,109,116,236

SAPListViewer,107,183

SAPLogonPad,6,7

SAPQuery,3,21,179,180,181,194

SAP/ABAPListViewer,140

Screen,5,8,10,11,14,26,41,42,43,44,45,46,52,58,70,109,119,120,130,131,132,140,142,143,147,151,160,167,171,177,183,184,185,186,187,188,191,199,200,205,230

ScreenBody,14

ScreenHeader,14

SearchHelpControl,91

SelectionOption,124

SelectionOptions,120,124,125,126

SelectionScreen,120,134

Session,10,17,28

SmartForm,107,108

StandardMenu,11

StandardToolbar,14,16,17

Statistics,180

StatusBar,14,16,52,84

TableConfiguration,48

TitleBar,14

Transaction,3,17,19,21,22,23,24,27,33,34,35,36,41,42,70,71,72,105,195,196,235,236

Transactioncode,21,72

TransactionSU53,236,238

UserGroup,180,181

UserMenu,11,12,34

Variants,48,119,132,133,134,135,136,137

Window,5,13,14,166,233

WorkItemGroupings,219,220

WorkList,217,219,222

AuthorBio

RehanZaidihasmorethan15yearsofSAPexperienceandhasbeenwritingaboutSAPtopicssince2001.HeistheauthoroftheSAPAdvancedABAPCookbookpublishedfromtheUnitedKingdom,andhaswrittenanumberofSAPbooksandarticlesaboutABAP,Workflow, HR functional and technical consultants, and SAP user experiences. He hasbeen published in prestigiousAmerican publications such as SAPProfessional Journaland HR Expert. Rehan has provided coaching for Mobility and ABAP. He has alsocompleted support and implementation projects for various areas of ABAP andWorkflow.HeholdsBachelor’sandMaster’sdegreesincomputerscience.Rehancanbereachedaterpdomain@gmail.com.

AboutthePublisher

JonReedisanindependentanalyst,SAPMentorandEnterpriseIrregularwhoblogsandvideocastsonenterprise trends.TheUltimateSAPUserGuide is the fifthbook Jonhaspublished,andthethirdSAPtitle.

Jon’s prior SAP titles are the SAP Consultant Handbook (1998), one of the mostsuccessful books in the SAP arena, andTheUltimate SAPPricingGuide, byMatthiasLiebich. The home base for Jon’s SAP publishing ventures is JonERP.com, CareerAnswersforSAPProfessionals.

Mostrecently,Jonisaco-founderofdiginomica.com.Launchedinthespringof2013byJon and four other long-time enterprise bloggers, diginomica is focused on providingoriginalcommentaryandreportingfocusedsolelyontheenterprisemarket.

Jon is also the driving force behind JonERP.com, an interactive web site for SAPprofessionalsthatfeaturesJon’slong-runningpodcastandvideoseries.Inhisclientwork,Jonadvisescompaniesonenterprisego-to-marketandtheuseofmulti-mediatoreachnewaudiences.Contenttacticsforreachingtoday’sinformedenterprisebuyerisamajorfocusonJon’sadvisory.

TheUltimateSAPUserGuide–ExpertReaderBios

The Ultimate SAP User Guide is indebted to its expert reader panel for invaluablefeedbacktothefinalversionyouarereadingnow.Herearetheirbios.

Simha R.Magal, Ph.D. is Professor of Management (MIS) and Director of the ERPprogramintheSeidmanCollegeofBusiness,GrandValleyStateUniversity. Dr.Magalhas taught graduate and undergraduate courses in business processes and enterprisesystemsusingSAPforoveradecade,andhascoauthored threebest-sellingSAPbooks: Essentials of Business Processes and Information Systems (Wiley, 2009), IntegratedBusinessProcesseswithERP(Wiley2012),BusinessProcessIntegrationwithSAPERP(EpistemyPress2013). In2013,heco-foundedEpistemyPress,adigitalpublisher thatdeliverscutting-edgeSAPknowledgetobothacademiaandindustry.

In2012,Dr.MagalwasalsoselectedbytheSAPprofessionalcommunitytobeanSAPMentor,ararehonorforanacademic.HecanbereachedonTwitterat:@ERPProf.

Bill Wood has deep IT experience since the mid 1980s, including over 25 SAPengagements since 1994. Wood’s diverse SAP experience includes: SAP SolutionArchitecture, IT & business strategy integration, software & vendor selection, ITAM /SAM audits, SAP CoE development, project management, SAP project audits,methodologydevelopment,SAPupgrades,rollouts,anddataconversions.WoodisASAPcertified,aformerKnowledgeManagerfortheGrantThorntonSAPpractice,andaMensamember.

Wood runs the SAP customer centered site at R3now.com. Wood can be reached onTwitterat:@r3now.

PaulHawking isanAssociateProfessor in InformationSystemsatVictoriaUniversity.He is considered as one of the leading commentators on ERP systems and BusinessIntelligence and specifically SAP solutions. His knowledge is well respected in bothindustry and academia and accordingly is often required to assist companieswith theirSAPstrategiesandunderstandingSAPsolutions.

Hawking was a past Chairperson and committee member of the SAP Australian UserGroup(SAUG)for10yearsandwasresponsibleforknowledgetransfer.HenowadvisestheSAUGonthecontentfortheirevents.In2009,2011,and2012,HawkingwasvotedbytheSAPcommunityasoneoftheTopTenMostInfluentialPeopleinSAPforAustraliaandNewZealand.Hawkingwasawarded“OutstandingAcademic2010”bySAP.Hewasthe first academic in theworld to become a SAPMentor.Hawking can be reached on

Twitterat:@paulhawking.

Leonardo De Araujo is Vice President andmember of the Executive Committee atBeyondTechnologies.DeAraujospecializesintheimplementation,optimization,supportand upgrade of SAP solutions. He has over 17 years of experience as an informationtechnologyspecialist.Duringhiscareer,DeAraujocarriedout severalmandatescallingonhisSAP solutions expertise.With his considerable technical experience andhis vastbusinessknowledge,headvisesclientsonthetechnologysolutionsadaptedtotheirneedsinordertomaximizetheirprofitability.

In2009,DeAraujowasnamedanSAPMentor-oneofthemostprestigioushonorsintheSAP community.He regularly delivers speeches for theASUG (America’s SAPUsers’Group)and theSAPTechEdconference(SAP’sannual technologyeventnowknownasSAPd-code).DeAraujoisbasedinMontréal,Québec.HecanbereachedonTwitterat:@Leonardo_Araujo.

Additional expert readers: Zaidi and Reed would also like to thank expert readersNadineBaghdadi(expertSAPtrainer),RachelMeyers(experttrainingguidecreator),andMorrisRosenthal(publishingindustryexpert).