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TheUltimateSAP®UserGuide
REHANZAIDI
PublishedbyJonERP.com
Paperbackand
KindleversionsavailableonAmazon.com
Copyright©2015Allrightsreserved
PublishedbyeCruitingAlternatives,
Inc.(JonERP.com)Website:JonERP.com
ISBN:978-0-9725988-8-0
AvailableretailfromAmazon.comAvailablewholesalefromIngram
CopyEditbyHelpPublish;Krista
WiebeStyleReviewbyRachelMeyers
CoverDesign&InteriorBookDesign
byMagicGraphix
All of the product names in this bookare trademarks of the companies thatown them. SAP AG is the registeredtrademark holder of SAP, SAP R/3,ABAP, NetWeaver, SAP ERP, andotherproprietaryterms.
JonERP.comisnotaffiliatedwithSAPAG in any way. The technicalinformation in this book has beenverified to the greatest extent possible;however,anyinformationfoundin thisbookisusedatthereader'sownrisk.
JonERP.com reserves the right tocorrect any errors or omissions in any
portionofthisbookatanytimewithoutobligation. While the author has donehis best to present accurate and up todatetechnicalinformationinthisbook,neither JonERP.com nor the authorhimself can guarantee that thisinformation in this book is completelyapplicable to your company's SAPproject. This book is sold with theunderstanding that the publisher andauthor are not engaged in renderinglegal, accounting, or formalimplementation services through thisbook.Shouldyouwanttoconfirmhowthis book's content applies to yourcompany's project specifically, a paidconsultation with the author is
recommended.
Author’sAcknowledgments
I would like to thank anddedicate this book to mymother – who is my mainstrength.Iamverygratefultoour editor Krista Wiebe ofClear Cut Editing(www.clearcutediting.com).She provided help with theoverall editing, formation of
the chapters, and providedlayout suggestions. I amalsothankful to Mr. Rick Porter(founder of RevelationSoftware, which is based inAustralia) forhiscooperationduring thisproject. I amalsoindebted to the reviewers forhelping me strengthen thecontent of the book. To allthosewhopurchasethisbook-Iamforevergratefultoyou.I would like to extend my
apologies to anyone I havemissedhere.Last but not least, I wouldlike to thank my publisher,Jon Reed, who felt that thiswas a subject worthpublishingandwhoagreedtogo on this journey with me.The idea was to create aguidewithtipsandtricksthatwouldbevaluableforanSAPuser. When I presented theideatoJon,heagreedthatthe
need for auserguidewasanexcellentreasontopursuethepublicationofmybook.
Publisher’sAcknowledgments
JonReedwouldliketothankAndy Klee of JDEtips forproviding the basis for JonandRehan tooriginallymeetandcollaborate.TheUltimateSAP series would not be
possible without the expertadvice of Morris Rosenthaland Rachel Meyers. Thanksalso to our expert readers,whosebiosappearinthebackof this book. Finally, Jonwould like to thank RehanZaidiforhisdiligenceandtheoutstandingendresult.
ContentsForeword
Introduction
Chapter1:SAPOverviewandBasics1.1GettingStarted1.2BasicConcepts-InitialScreen,
StandardandUserMenus1.3SAPWindowComponents1.3.1ElementsinReportsandEntry
Screens
1.3.2SystemStatus1.4UserTasks1.5TransactionandTransactionCode1.5.1AccessingEnteredTransaction
CodesQuickly1.5.2SearchingforTransactionCodes
(orMenuItems)1.6ManagingSessions
Chapter2:OrganizingYourWorkUsingFavorites2.1WhatareFavorites?2.1.1AddingtotheFavoritesNode2.1.2CreatingFavoritesfromUser
MenuItems2.1.3CreatingaFavoriteWhileBeing
inaTransaction2.2CreatingFolders
2.3DeletingFavoritesandDisplacingFavorites
2.4DownloadingandUploadingFavorites
Chapter3:EnteringDataIntoSAP3.1DataEntryTransactionsand
Screens3.2EnteringDataonScreens3.3ValueHelp(SearchHelp)for
InputFields3.4CopyingMultipleValuesfrom
Screenwith"CTRL+Y"3.5DefiningDefaultValuesforan
InputField3.6HoldDataandSetData
Functionality3.6.1UsingHold/SetData
Functionality3.7ObjectManagerReferences
Chapter4:Personalizing–ChangingSAPLookandFeel4.1PersonalizingtheInitialScreen4.1.1SettingtheStartTransaction4.1.2ModifyingtheStatusField
Display4.1.3ChangingFavoritesandEasy
AccessMenuSettings4.2ChangingStandardGUISettings4.2.1ChangingGUIThemeandFonts4.2.2AdjustingDropdownList
Display4.2.3PersonalizingMessageDisplays4.2.4ChangingDisplayofF1andF4
Help4.2.4.1F4Help:DialogandControl
ModeRadioButtons4.3ChangingSAPBehavior4.3.1ControllingCursorBehavior4.3.2SwitchingHistoryInputOnand
Off4.3.3ChangingYourUserProfile4.2.4QuickCutandPasteFeature
Chapter5:ExecutingReportTransactionsandDownloadingOutput5.1TypesofReportOutputs5.1.1ABAPListOutputandALV
format5.1.2FormOutput5.2OnlineExecutionofReports
5.3ExecutingReportsinBackground5.4DownloadingListOutput5.5DesktopShortcutsfor
Programs/Reports
Chapter6:MasteringSelectionScreens6.1SelectionScreenComponents:An
Overview6.1.1Checkbox6.1.2RadioButtons6.1.3SingleValueInputFields6.2SelectionCriteria(Options)or
Ranges6.2.1SpecifyingaSingleValueor
Range6.2.2MultipleSelection
SpecificationsandOther
AvailableOptions6.2.2.1SpecifyingMultipleSingle
ValuesandRanges6.2.2.2EnteringMassDataon
ProgramScreen6.3SelectionScreenVariants6.3.1RetrievingVariants6.3.2CreatingVariants6.3.3ChangingandDeletingVariants
Chapter7:ALVDisplays7.1ALVDisplays:AnOverview7.1.1SelectingaGivenColumnor
Columns7.1.2MovingColumnsandSearching
forValues7.1.3FreezingColumns7.2ToolbarFunctionsAvailable
7.2.1Sorting(AscendingandDescending)
7.2.2NavigatingLeftandRight7.2.3FilteringData7.2.4CalculatingTotals,Subtotals,
andAverages7.2.5ChangingViews7.2.5.1ExcelInplaceView7.2.5.2GeneratingChartsView7.2.5.3ABCAnalysisFunctionView7.2.5.4PrintPreview/ListOutput7.2.6ExcelDownloading7.2.7ManagingLayouts
Chapter8:PrintingGuide8.1QuickHardCopy8.2PrintingWindowContents8.3“ExecuteandPrint”FromReport
SelectionScreen8.4FormPrinting8.5ChangingthePrintDialogLook
andFeel8.6UsingRSTXPDFT4Programto
ConvertSpoolRequeststoPDFs
8.7Printing-RelatedProblems
Chapter9:CreatingYourOwnReports9.1SAPQuery:AnOverview9.2GeneratingBasicLists9.2.1AddingControlLevelstoyour
List9.2.2AddingaHeaderandFooterto
theBasicList
Chapter10:SAPBusinessWorkplacePart1-ManagingDocuments10.1OverviewofTransactionSBWP10.2CreatingaNewMessage10.2.1RecipientPortionInDetail10.2.2Attachments10.3ForwardingDocuments10.4CreatingDistributionLists10.5WorkingwithFoldersand
Subfolders10.6SearchingforFoldersand
Documents
Chapter11:SAPBusinessWorkplacePart2-ManagingWorkflowWorkItems
11.1WorkItems:WhatTheyAreandHowTheyLook
11.2WorkItemsViewWithinInbox11.2.1Outbox11.2.2DeadlineMessages11.3FunctionsApplicableOnWork
Items11.4OutofofficeSettings11.4.1CreatingSubstitutes11.4.2AutomaticForwarding11.5OtherPersonalizationOptionsof
BusinessWorkplace11.5.1SwitchingOffPreview
Chapter12:MiscellaneousTopics12.1TransactionSU53–Displaying
AuthorizationCheck12.2ObjectServices
12.3The“MyObjects”ListReferences
Index
AuthorBio
AboutthePublisher
TheUltimateSAPUserGuide–ExpertReaderBios
Foreword
When I first met RehanZaidi, the author of theUltimateSAPUserGuide,hewas still an aspiring writer.
The year was 2003. As theFounding Editor of ERPtips,I was looking for writingtalent. But that was not aneasy thing to find, especiallyin the ERP world. I neededauthorswhohadadeepSAPexperienceaswell.Rehanwas already an expertSAPdeveloper,user,andall-around HCM smart guy.Writing about SAP was newto him, but from his first
articles, Rehan showed theability to express complexand sometimes nerdy SAPconcepts in ways readerscould easily understand —something you will see oneverypageofthisbook.It was a pleasure to editRehan's work. With eacharticle,hisabilitytoillustrateSAP concepts improved.Rehanwasespeciallygoodatmaking sure that readers had
takeaways from each article.Youdidn'thavetoreadtenofhis pieces to get somethingworthwhile. Each article hadastand-alonepurpose.Thesame is trueof thisUserGuide. Each chapter has aclearobjectiveforthereader.Whether it's Chapter 1 (SAPoverview and basics),Chapter4(personalizingyourSAP system), or Chapter 9(creating your own reports),
each chapter will give yousomething you can useimmediately. The UltimateSAP User Guide is a muchmoreaffordablealternativetoacostlySAPtrainingmanual.Youcanalsouse it (oradaptit) for an instructor-ledcourse, making it one of themore flexibleSAPbooksoutthere.Idon't issueSAPbooksveryoften from JonERP.com. I
rarely find an author withtalent who can fill animportant gap in the market.Thelasttimearound,JonERPpublished The Ultimate SAPPricing Guide by SAPpricing expert MatthiasLiebich. It's great to beadding to the “JonERPUltimate” serieswith anotherbook that I can be proud toshare with the SAPcommunity.
One thing about the JonERPUltimate series: We don'tpublish 500 pageencyclopedias. When we putoutabook,wemakesureit'seasy to consume withoutweighing down your carry-on.Over the years, I have heardfrom thousands of SAPprofessionalswhoareatsomekind of crossroads in theirSAP career. Even with the
changes in the marketplacebrought on by newtechnologies,many are eagerto know if there are stillchancesintheSAPfield.What I tell them is that thereare certainly opportunities,but despite what you mighthear about SAP skillsshortages, there's nothingeasy about the SAP careerpath anymore. You have todevelop an area of mastery
and outperform yourcolleagues. But in a careerparadox, you also need to bea teamplayer. Shining at theexpenseofhelpingothersoutand being an expert AND ateacher is how you moveaheadintoday'sSAPfield.Rehan has figured this out.The clues to his success canbefoundthroughoutthisuserguide.SAPprofessionalswhowant to excel— at any skill
level — need to adopt a“continuous learning”mindset.Topullthisoff,youneed to have the rightreference tools handy. Ibelieve thisbookcando thatforyou—otherwiseIwouldnot have published it.Publishing is far from easy,but it's an honor to get thisbook out there. I trust thatyou will get as much out ofreadingitaswedidsharingit
withyou.
JonReed,JonERP.com
Introduction
ThisbookisintendedforallSAP users across everymodule, aswell as beginnerswho are just starting out in
the SAP world. If you are anewuser,orifyouhavespentsome time working on SAP,thisbookhasalottooffer.Inaddition, project teammembers and noviceconsultants may also find ituseful.This book will show usershow to get the most out oftheirSAP system, and itwillenable them to get their jobdone in as little time as
possible. Even if you are anadvanceduserwhoworksonSAP forhours eachday,youwillstillfindthisbooktobeavaluable resource. There aremany features (or neweroptions) of which evenadvancedusersarenotaware.There are plenty of lesserknown tips and tricks, aswell,thatwillhelptobroadenyourknowledgeofSAP.Thisbook also provides more
efficientways of doing tasksthatyoucarryout everyday.Wehavemadesuretoupdatethisbookwiththenewestandless known GUI features,withwhichveryfewusersarefamiliar.The SAP User Guide isdesigned to be a one-stopresourcetohelpyoucarryoutday-to-day activities quicklyandeasilywithouttheneedtosearch for resources on the
Internet or elsewhere. Thechaptershavebeencreated ina goal-directed fashion, i.e.,each chapter contains anumber of sections, and eachsectionisbasedonataskthatmaybeperformedormayberequired by a user in theirdailywork.Much of the informationoffered in the SAP worldrequires the typical user toscour the Internet for
materialsthatpertaintohisorher particular needs. That isnotthecasewiththisbook.Itis designed to be thehandbook for the everydayuser.Today’s SAP user has afull plate of tasks andtypically lacks the budget ortime for classroom training.Thegoalofthisbookistobean invaluable resource for abusy user who wants to stayontrack—andondeadline.
You can use this book as ago-to-reference, or you canworkyourwaythroughitlikea training manual. If youchoose to work your waythrough each chapter, by theend you should be verycomfortable with the ideas,and it should enable you towork more efficiently andquicklywithinSAP.Youwillbe able to work verycomfortably within your
functional area and carry outallfacetsofwork,gettingthemost out of the SAP system,and availing the investmentofyourcompany.Youwillbea master of all commonlyused SAP functions,whethertheyarerelatedtodataentry,reporting, or emailingoptions.
This book is comprised oftwelve chapters. Here’s a
briefreviewofeachone:
Chapter1-SAPOverviewandBasicsThischapterwill focusonbasic SAP concepts,including transactions,menuitems,andaccessingHelpscreens.
Chapter2-
OrganizingYourWorkUsingFavoritesFavorites lets you savetime by eliminating theneed to search forfrequently usedtransactions. Topics suchashow tocreateFavoritesfor transactions, how tocreate folders, andhow todownload and upload
Favoriteswillbecovered.
Chapter3-EnteringDataIntoSAPEntering Data into theSAP system is the mostimportant jobof anyuser.This chapter will outlinehow to enter dataefficientlyandeffectively.
Chapter4-
Personalizing–ChangingSAPLookandFeelThis chapter will detailhow to personalize yourSAP system according toyouruniquepreferences.
Chapter5-ExecutingReportTransactionsand
DownloadingOutputThischaptergetsyouuptospeed on the crucial topicof reporting. Functionscovered in this chapterinclude how you canexecutereporttransactionsanddownloadoutput.
Chapter6-Mastering
SelectionScreensSelection Screens are animportant element of theSAP system, and thischapter will cover thevarious ways you canmake them more efficientanduseful.
Chapter7-ALVDisplaysThe two types of
ALV displays along withALVlistsandgridswillbecoveredinthischapter.
Chapter8-PrintingGuideThischapterwillintroduceyoutotheprintingoptionsavailable within thevariousscreensets.Topicssuch as how to printwindow contents and how
to convert spool requeststoPDFswillbecovered.
Chapter9-CreatingYourOwnReportsSAPQuery allows you togenerate reports based onyour own data andparticular needs. Thiswillbe the main focus of thischapter.
Chapter10-SAPBusinessWorkplacePart1-ManagingDocumentsThe primary emphasis ofthischapterwillbeonhowto manage documentswithin the SAP BusinessWorkplace.TopicssuchasTransaction SBWP, how
to use attachments, andhowtoforwarddocumentswillbecovered.
Chapter11-SAPBusinessWorkplacePart2-ManagingWorkplaceItemsThischapterwill focusonworking with Workplaceand itemswithin the SAP
BusinessWorkplace.
Chapter12-MiscellaneousTopics(andHelpfulTips)Miscellaneoustopics,suchasdisplayingauthorizationcheck,objectservices,andattachment lists will becoveredinthischapter.
Ifyouarecompletelynew toSAP, we suggest that youreadthechapterssequentially(starting from chapter 1).Reading it straight throughwilloffer thebestexperiencefor a beginner and willprovide you with all theinformation you need thatpertains to typical things thatyoumayencounterwithintheSAPERPlandscape.If you already have
experience working in SAP,youmay find itmorehelpfulto skip to chapters that arerelevant to your needs. Thisbook can also be used fortrainingusers,bothbeginnersand experienced, and for allmodules of the SAP ERPsystem.This compact volume ispackedwithvaluabletipsandtricks thatoutline theday-to-day activities a typical user
will comeacross.Becauseofthe array of gatheredinformation in thisonebook,project teams should be ableto save time and money byusingitfortrainingpurposes.No single SAP trainingcourse contains theinformationfoundwithin thisbook.This book is comprised ofsolely original content thathas not been published
elsewhere.IthasbeenwrittenwithWindowsusersinmind.The screen shots are takenfromERP6.0,EnhancementPack 6. The latest version ofSAP GUI (7.30) has beenusedinthepreparationofthebook. Most of the conceptsare applicable for other SAPsystem releases. Theinformation in this bookholds true irrespective of thedatabaseusedinthebackend.
Wehope thisuserguidewillhelp you to be moreproductiveonyourproject,inyour daily work, and willadvanceyourSAPcareer.
Chapter1
SAPOverviewandBasics
In order to use SAPeffectively and efficiently,users and beginners need tounderstand some basicconcepts and terminologies.This chapter will introduceyou to those concepts andwill provide an introductoryoverview of the topics thatwillbecoveredindetaillaterin the book. It will alsobrieflycoverthetypicalwork
anSAPusermaybeexpectedtodo.
This chapter will cover thefollowingimportanttopics:·GettingstartedwiththebasicSAPconcepts
·Usertasksandtransactionconcepts
·Managingsessions·Transactionsandmenuitems
·AccessingHelpscreensandotherscreenfields
Some questions that will beanswered in this chapterinclude:·HowdoIlogintotheSAPsystem?
·WhattaskswillIbeexpectedtoperformasanSAPuser?
·Whatarethetypicalcomponentsoftheinitial
SAPscreen?·Whatisatransactioncode?
·HowdoIsearchforaparticularitemortransactionintheSAPEasyAccessMenu?
Throughoutthechapter,therewill be examples andscreenshots to help youunderstand the process ofbeginningyourworkinSAP.
In this chapter, the termsWindow andScreen will beusedinterchangeably.
In this section,wewill learnhow toget startedwithSAP.The first step is to log in totheintendedSAPsystem.Wewillseeindetailthestepsthatare required to log in to the
1.1GettingStarted
system and the variousoptionsavailableontheloginscreen.To log in to anySAP system,you will need to access theSAPLogonPad.There are anumberofwaystodothis:·FromtheStartmenu,
choosetheSAPLogonprogramtolaunchtheSAPLogonPadasshowninFigure1.1.
Figure1.1:SAPLogonPadShortcut
·Alternately,youmaychoosetheshortcutplacedonyourdesktopasshown
inFigure1.2.
Figure1.2:SAPLogonDesktopShortcut
NOTE: The SAPLogon Pad is aWindows program thatletsyoulogontoanSAPsystembychoosingfrom
a displayed list ofavailable systems. Usermayalsomodifythislistaccording to theirrequirements.
This action will launch theSAPLogonPadshowing thelistofsystemsintowhichyoumay log in (underConnections shown inFigure1.3).
Figure1.3:ListofSAPSystems
Double-click the system thatyouwish toaccess.ThiswilllaunchthescreenasshowninFigure1.4.
Figure1.4:SAPLoginScreen
The screen has User andPassword fields, as well asClient and Logon Languagefields.Wealsohaveatthetopamenu and standard toolbar.(We will discuss theseelementsinthenextsection.)Enter your user name andpassword in the appropriatefields on the login screen.
Notethatthesystemprovidesadefault value for the client.In case you want a differentclientfromthedefaultshown,enter the new client's three-digit number in the fieldprovided.The language is an optionalfield. In our case, forexample, the default systemlanguage is E (English). Ifyouwish to enter a languageother than the default
language, you may also dothatusingthefieldprovided.Once the necessary data hasbeen entered in the loginscreen,press"Enter"tologinto the system. Alternately,youmayalso click thegreentickmark providedon thetopleftcornerofthescreen.If you are logging in for thefirst time or if the securityteam has refreshed your
password, you will be askedto enter a new password.Enterthenewpasswordtwiceand press "Enter" in thedialogboxthatappears.To change a password whileloggingin,enteryourexistingUserIDandPasswordbutdonot press "Enter". Rather,click the button.The system will ask for thenew password and aconfirmation.
If the password is initiallyentered incorrectly but thenyou finally succeed inlogging in to the system, adialog box (see Figure 1.5)appears showing the totalNumber of failed logonattempts.
Figure1.5:NumberofFailedAttempts
If you have forgotten yourpassword, you may ask theSecurity team members torefreshthepasswordforyour
User ID. After sixconsecutive failed loginattempts, yourUser ID willbe locked and you may nolonger be able to attemptlogons into the system. Inthis case, you must ask theSecurity team members tounlockyourUserID.Ausermayattempt to log inmore than once to the samesystem.Incaseyoutowanttolog in to a system in which
you are already logged in, adialog box is shown (Figure1.6) after theUser ID andPassword have beenvalidated.
Figure1.6:MultipleLogonAttempt
The system tells you theterminal fromwhich you arealready logged in. In thiscase,youhavetwooptions:·Youmayeithercontinue
withthenewlogonorterminateexistinglogins.Inthiscase,youwillloseanyunsaveddata.
·Oryoumayterminatethenewlogon.
In some cases, a third option
(not shown in Figure 1.6)may also appear which mayallowyoutoproceedwiththenewlogonaswellaskeepingtheexistinglogonsalive.
1.2BasicConcepts-InitialScreen,StandardandUserMenus
In this section, we will seehow the SAP Initial screenlooks,andwewillalsocoversome basic SAP conceptsnecessaryforusers.Once you have successfullyloggedintotheSAPsystem,the Initial SAP EasyAccessscreenisdisplayed,asillustratedinFigure1.7.(Thewindow shown in the figureis also sometimes referred toasaSession.)
Figure1.7:InitialSAP
Screen
On the initial screen, eithert h eStandard Menu or theUserMenuwillbedisplayedin the left sideof thescreen.In the previous figure, theleft pane displays theSAPEasy Access Menu. It is inthe form of a tree, which iscomprised of nodes andsubnodes.Theseallowyoutoaccess the programs within
therelevantfunctionalareas.Clicking theblack trianglenexttothefoldericoninthemenu treeexpands thatnode.(Alternately, you maydouble-click the given nodeicon.) This is illustrated inFigure 1.8where theHumanResources node has beenexpanded.
Figure1.8:Navigatingthe
EasyAccessMenu
A node may containadditional nodes that can beexpanded, such as PersonnelManagement and TimeManagement in Figure 1.8.Or a node may contain anexecutable application, suchasManager’s Desktop. Notethattheseareindicatedbythe
icon. Double-click thisitem to execute the relevant
application (transaction). Incase a tree is already open,youmaycollapseitusingthe icon. You may navigate
through the nodes (and theirsubnodes)untilyoureachthedesiredtransaction.Apart fromtheSAPstandardmenu shown inFigure 1.8, auser-specific User Menu isalso defined in the system.The UserMenu contains thereports and screens relevant
to you or the ones that youuse in your day-to-daywork.ForaccessingtheUserMenu,choosethemenupathMenuàUser Menu as shown inFigure1.9.
Figure1.9:AccessingUserandSAPMenu
NOTE: In this sectionwe only saw the Menuoptions. There are otheruseful options related toEdit, Favorites, andExtrasmenus.Thesewillbe discussed later in thebook.
The user-specific menu isthendisplayedintheleftpaneasshowninFigure1.10.
Figure1.10:User-Specific
Menu
Inthissection,wewillseethecomponents of a typical SAPscreen. The conceptsmentioned in this sectionpertain to all SAP screens ingeneral, including the InitialScreen(mentionedinprevious
1.3SAPWindowComponents
section).AnSAPWindowconsistsofaMenu Bar, a StandardToolbar,a TitleBar, and anApplication Toolbar, allfoundatthetopofthescreen.The Standard Toolbar andMenuBartogetherareknownas theScreenBanner.Thesefour components (Menu Bar,Application Bar, StandardToolbar, and Title Bar) formtheScreenHeader.
BelowtheScreenHeaderisalarger portion called theScreen Body. Any screenthatyoudisplayoranyreportyoumayexecuteisdisplayedintheScreenBody.At the lower part of thescreen is the Status Bar —important messages for theuser (such as errors,information, and warnings)are displayed here. On therightsideoftheStatusBar is
therelevantSystemandUserinformation.Consider, for example, thescreenshowninFigure1.11.
Figure1.11:SAP
ScreenComponents
Letusnowhaveacloserlookat the components of thescreenshowninFigure1.11:·MenuBar:Youaccessthe
menuoptionsinSAPjustlikeyouaccessthemenusoftypicalWindowsapplications.Ifappropriatelydefined,therelevantmenuoptionsmaybeexecutedviakeyboard
shortcutsaswell.TheMenuBariscontext-sensitiveanddisplaysalloptionsrelevanttothescreenbeingexecuted.Forexample,Figure1.11istheMaintainMasterDatatransactionanditincludesthefollowingmenuoptions:HRMasterData,Edit,Goto,Extra,Utilities,Settings,System,andHelp.Clickingononeofthese
menusresultsinadropdownlistofrelevantoptions.Forexample,Figure1.12illustratestheoptionsfortheHRMasterDatamenu.
Figure1.12:HRMasterDataOptions
Clicking on the displayedoptions will carry out therelevantactivity.
In case a menu optionconsists of submenus, thesubmenuwillbedisplayedwhenyouplace thecursorontherelevantmenuitem.For example, in themenushown in Figure 1.13,when we place the cursoron the Database Objectoption, the additionaloptions (Display, Check,and Database Utility)appear.
Figure1.13:MenuAdditionalOptions
·ApplicationToolbar:Thisiscomprisedofbuttons
andfunctionsrelevanttowhateverapplicationorprogramthatyourun.Thesechangewiththeapplicationprograms.Theremay,forexample,beadditionaldetailedinformationbuttons.TheapplicationtoolbarfortheHRMasterDatascreenisshownbelow:
Figure1.14:ApplicationToolbarforHRMaster
Data
·StatusBar:AtthelowerportionofthescreenistheStatusbar,whichgivesusefulinformationtotheuser.TheStatusBarconsistsoftheMessagearea(ontheleft),whichpresentserrormessagesoraffirmativesystem
messages,andtheStatusfieldsontheright.AnexampleofamessageisshowninFigure1.15.
Figure1.15:MessageinStatusBar
·StandardToolbar:TheStandardToolbariscomprisedofstandardfunctions.Thesearegenerallyprovidedinall
SAPscreensandapplicationsthatyourun.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
On the top (left of theapplication toolbar) is the
40
Command Field (Figure1.17).Thisisanimportantfield,asitletsyouquicklyaccess programs andscreens.
Figure1.17:CommandField
Simply entering thedesired Transaction Codein this field will take youto the relevant program.
Thisrelievestheuserfromlearning themenu path ofthe task that he or shewants to perform. (Referto section 1.6 on how touse the CommandField for managing SAPsessions.)
1.3.1ElementsinReportsandEntryScreens
An SAP screen body maycontain a number of screenelements. Typically,a screencontains input fields, output-onlyfields,radiobuttons,andcheckboxesforthepurposeofentering data. This isapplicable forall transactions— including data entryscreensandreports.If a field is grey (notwhite),it means that input is notallowed. It is mandatory to
fill in the fields that appearwith a question mark. Thismeans thateven ifyou try tomove ahead of such screens,theerrormessage,Enterdatain all required fields, isdisplayed. Moreover, in dataentryscreens,toentertabulardata, multiple lines may beenteredusingatable.A screen may also becomprised of tabstrips,consisting of a number of
tabs.Each tabmay contain anumber of input and outputfields,tables,aswellasradiobuttons and checkboxes.While processing of SAPscreens,youmaycomeacrossdialog boxes that may, forexample, ask you forconfirmation of an action.(For more information, refertoChapters3and6.)For accessing the Help of aparticular application, choose
the menu path Help àApplication Help. This willopen the Help for thatparticularscreeninabrowser.To access the Help screenrelated to a particular fieldgiven on an SAP screen,simplyplacethecursoronthefield and press F1. TheHelpwill appear as shown inFigure1.18.
Figure1.18:FieldF1Help
For viewing the technicalinformationofthegivenfield,click the Technical
Information icon. Thetechnical name of the fieldand other useful informationwillthenbedisplayed.
1.3.2SystemStatusSome useful informationrelatedtothesystemandyouruser ID is available from allSAP screens. To access this,click the System à Statusbutton. This will display the
statusinascreenasshowninFigure1.19.
Figure1.19:SystemStatusDetails
T h eStatus box shows youinformation about theUserID, such as theClient, theUser name, as well as theprevious logon time, the timewhich you logged in, thecurrent system time, and soon.Onthesamescreen,thereare details of the runningProgram andTransaction, as
wellasthemachineonwhichtheSAPserverisrunning.
In this section, I will discussthe tasks that you may beexpectedtoperformasanSAPuser.IntheSAPsystem,ataskmaycompriseofoneormorescreens. Typically, you maycome across the following
1.4UserTasks
tasks:
NOTE: Tasks includecompleting process steps(such as creating aninvoice or approvingrequests) oradministrativetasks(suchas checking messages).Furthermore, numerousreporting options areavailabletotheuser.
·DataEntry:Thisinvolvesasetofscreensthatallowyoutocreate,change,ordeletedisplaydatastoredinthedatabase.Thesescreensmayhaveinputchecksinorderandmessagesthatallowyoutoenterdatacorrectlyintothesystem.(TheDataEntryscreenswillbediscussedindetailinChapter3.)Typical
examplesmayincludescreensforchangingEmployeeAddressorforcreatingCustomerMaster.
·ExecutingReports:Reportsareprogramsthatdisplaydata.Theyhaveaselectionscreenonwhichvaluesareenteredforwhichdataisrequired.Thedisplaymaybeintheformofasimplelist,asshowninFigure1.20.
TheymayalsobeALVreports,asshowninFigure1.21,allowingyoutoperformanumberoffunctionsonthedisplayeddata,suchassortingorfiltering.Inaddition,reportprogramsmayalsoallowyoutogeneratesimpleformoutputs.Youmayrunyourreportsinthebackgroundorindialogmode.Theoutput
ofreportsmaybeprintedordownloaded.
Figure1.20:SimpleListOutput
Figure1.21:ALVOutput
·OtherTasks:Thesemayincludecompletingprocesssteps(suchas
executionofapayrollrun,creatinganinvoice,orapprovaloftravelrequests).Furthermore,youmaywanttogenerateyourownreportsusingSAPQuery.Oryoumaycomeacrossusefultransactions—suchastheSAPBusinessWorkplace—thatwillallowyoutomanageyourwork,checkyourSAP
emails,orperformtaskssuchasapprovalofrequestsviaWorkflowitems.
An important term that SAPusersneedtobefamiliarwithisTransaction.Regardlessofwhether a user is executing
1.5TransactionandTransactionCode
tasksorgeneratingreports,heor she does so viatransactions,whichisdenotedby a code that is three ormore characters long(comprising of letters anddigits). These transactionsmay either be standard SAPtransactions or customdefinedones.Any task that you need toperform, either running areport or performing a
particular activity, may beaccessibleeithervia theSAPEasyAccessMenu shown inFigure 1.8, or via a shortcutknown as aTransaction code (orsometimescalledTcode).Forexample, you have thestandard transaction SBWPfor accessing the SAPBusiness Workplace, or youmay have an SAP reportusing Transaction code
ZHRREP. You enter theTransaction code in theCommand Field (and press"Enter") in order to quicklyaccess a particular report orapplication screen. Forexample, we write theTransactioncode “SBWP” inthe Command Field foraccessing the BusinessWorkplace application asshowninFigure1.22.
Figure1.22:TransactionSBWP
NOTE: In order toaccess a particular reportor screen transaction, theSecurity Team mustprovideyouruserIDwithnecessaryauthorizations.
Let us now see a few otherexamplesofSAPtransactionsin various modules of theSAPsystem.Within the MaterialsManagement module, theuser may maintain Materialsvia Transaction codes showninFigure1.23.
TransactionCode Purpose
MM01 CreateMaterial
MM02 ChangeMaterial
MM03 DisplayMaterial
Figure1.23:MMTransactionCodes
The Sales Order is accessedvia the transactions shown inFigure1.24.
TransactionCode Purpose
VA01 CreateSalesOrder
VA02 ChangeSalesOrder
VA03 DisplaySalesOrder
Figure1.24:SalesOrder
TransactionCodes
For Network Order, thetransactions are shown inFigure1.25.
TransactionCode Purpose
CN21 CreateNetworkOrders
CN22 ChangeNetworkOrders
CN23 DisplayNetworkOrders
Figure1.25:NetworkOrderTransactions
1.5.1AccessingEnteredTransactionCodesQuicklyOnequickwayofgoing to apreviously visited transaction(the code of which wasentered in the CommandField)isbyusingthe"Down"arrow key. The history ofvisited transactions may be
viewed via the list boxdisplay of the CommandField. Suppose your fieldhistory looks like the oneshowninFigure1.26.
Figure1.26:CommandFieldHistory
If youwant to go directly totheBRF+transaction,simplytype “B” in the Commandfield(withoutopeningthelistdisplay) and press the"Down" arrow key. TheBRF+transactionwillappearin the Command Field. Youmay then simply press"Enter" to go to the BRF+transaction.Likewise,typing“P”or“PA”will display the PA30 and
PA40 respectively. This willsaveyoufromhavingtotypethe entire PA30 or PA40 intheCommandFieldshown.
1.5.2SearchingforTransactionCodes(orMenuItems)Incaseyouwanttosearchfora particular item or
transaction in the SAP EasyAccessMenu,youmaydosousing a standard SAPtransaction. Follow the stepsbelow:·IntheCommandField,
enterthetransaction“SEARCH_SAP_MENU”.ThedialogboxappearsasshowninFigure1.27.
Figure1.27:SearchingTransaction
·Enterthetextofthemenuitemorthetextforthetransactionthatyouwanttosearchforandpressthe(Continue/Enter)button.Theoutputwilldisplaythelistofallmenu
itemsaswellastheircompletenavigationpathfromtheSAPaccessmenu.Moreover,therelevanttransactioncodeisalsodisplayed.Forexample,theoutputoftheSearchprogramforthesearchtext“BusinessWorkplace”isshowninFigure1.28.
Figure1.28:Searching“SAPBusinessWorkplace”
In this section, we will seehow to manage SAPSessions. This includes avarietyofwaystocreatenewsessions, close existingsessionsand logoff fromtheSAPsystem.Youmaycreateanewsessionor window from a running
1.6ManagingSessions
session by clicking the icon (from the standardtoolbar) or using thekeyboard shortcut"CTRL+N". Multiplesessionswillallowtheusertowork on more than one taskat one time. A maximum ofsix sessions (windows) areallowedforonelogin.Incaseyou try to create a sessionabove this limit, the systemwill issue a message stating
Maximum Number ofSessions Reached. You mayswitch between sessionsusing the "ALT+Tab" keys.There may be a number ofsessions for a number ofservers such as QAS andProduction running on yourmachine. (The procedure forlogging in to a particularsystemhasbeendiscussed indetail in thebeginningof thechapter.)
There are a number of waysto close a session. A quickandeasyway is touse theiconatthetoprightcornerofthe window. This will closethesession.Another option is to use theSAP Logon icon in thesystem tray. Right-clickingtheiconwillshowthecontextmenu as shown in Figure1.29.
Figure1.29:OptionsofSAPLogonContextMenu
Thisfigureshowsthevariouscontext menu options. Ontop, you will be shown the
variousSAPsystemsthatyouareloggedinto.Forexample,inFigure1.30,Iamloggedinto serverM26, for client800by the user nameSTUDENT003, in theEnglish language (EN). Thenumber in the parenthesesindicatesthesessionnumber.Two useful options availablein the context menu areCloseSessionsandShut
Down SAP Logon.Clicking the Close Sessionsoption displays a dialog boxshowninFigure1.30.
Figure1.30:CloseSessions
Screen
This shows all the currentlyrunning sessions along withthe transaction you areexecuting. Select thecheckbox for the session(s)that you want to close andthen click the Close button.The selected session(s) willthen be closed and anyunsaveddatawillbelost.In caseyouwant to close all
running sessions quickly,click the option Shut DownSAPLogon (shown inFigure1.29). A message warningyou of the loss of data upontermination of all sessions isdisplayedasshowninFigure1.31.
Figure1.31:ClosingAllSessions
Click the Yes button toterminate all the runningsessions.
If a session is hanging andyou would like to stop thetransaction that was runningin the session, simply clickthe icon at the top leftcornerofthesessionwindow.AmenuwillappearasshowninFigure1.32.
Figure1.32:MenutoStop
Transaction
Choose the StopTransaction option from thismenu.For loggingoff fromanSAPsystem, simply choose themenupathSystemàLogOff.Alternately, choose thekeyboard shortcut "Shift+F3"or click the icon on thestandard toolbar. Inallcases,youwill be presentedwith a
confirmation dialog. ChooseoptionYestoproceed.You may also controlsessions using the Commandfield.TheCommandfield,asalreadydiscussed,allowsyoutoenterthetransactioncodes.You can enter certain text(commands) with or withoutthe transaction code in ordertoopenorclosenewsessions.Figure1.33showsthevariousinputsthatcanbemadeinthe
Command Field and therelevantsystembehavior.
FieldInput Purpose
/oThisopensalistofallrunningsessionsandmayendasessionusingthelistdialog.
/n Thisclosesthecurrentsession.
/nex ClosesallsessionsofcurrentlyconnectsystemAnychangesnotsavedwillbelost.
/otcodeThe'/o'followedbyatransactioncodewillhavingtransactioninit.Forexample,/oSBWPwillopentransactionSBWPinanewsession.
/n Closesthecurrentsessionandopensanew
/nendThislogsyouoffthesystem.Inthiscase,conformationmessageisdisplayedbeforetheterminationofsessions.
/ntcode Thisinputwilltakeyoutothetransactionsession.Ifyouwanttoreturntothestartmenu,type
CommandField.
/1,/2Thisletsyouquicklyclosethesessiondenotedfollowedbyforwardslash‘/’.Forexample,ifyoutype/1inCommandField,thefirstsessionwillbe
Figure1.33:CommandFieldInputs
Chapter 1 contains a lot ofinformation about the basic
SummaryofChapter1
concepts and terminology ofSAP that users need tounderstand in order to useSAP effectively andefficiently.Someof the topics thatwerecovered in detail in thischapterincludegettingstartedwith thebasicSAPconcepts,user tasks and transactionconcepts, managing sessions,transactions andmenu items,and accessing Help screens
andotherscreenfields.Thesebasic concepts are essentialknowledgeforusers.Ihopethischapterhasbeenahelpful guide to get youstartedtoworkinSAP.Inthenextchapter,wewillusethisknowledge to further studyandunderstandSAP.
Chapter2
OrganizingYourWorkUsingFavorites
Chapter 1 covered how toget started with SAP, thelogging in process, and thebasics of the screens andsession. In this chapter, wewilldiscussanotherimportantpart of a user’s life —organizing your work usingFavorites. Favorites let yousave time by eliminating theneed to search for frequentlyusedtransactions.
This chapter will cover thefollowingimportanttopics:·WhatareFavorites?·CreatingFavoritesfortransactions
·CreatingFavoritesfromusermenuitems
·CreatingaFavoritewhilebeinginatransaction
·CreatingFolders·Downloadingand
UploadingFavoritesThis chapter will describe anumber of ways to addFavorites and organize yourwork. It will begin with abrief overview of whatFavorites are and how toutilizethemeffectively.Afterthe overview, we will diveinto the various ways inwhich you can createFavorites and how toorganizethemwithfolders.
Because users mostly usetransactions, Iwillalsofocuson how to add or deletetransactions from Favorites.Some questions answered inthischapterinclude:·HowcanIcreateaFavoriteformytransaction?
·HowcanIorganizemylistofFavorites?
·CanIdeleteaFavoriteonceithasbeencreated?
Throughoutthechapter,therewill be examples andscreenshotstohelpthereaderunderstand the process ofcreating and organizingFavorites.
SAP allows users to savetheirfrequentlyusedprogram
2.1WhatareFavorites?
or transaction names asFavorites in theirpersonalized menu tree (seeFigure 2.1). This transactioncan be executed by simplydouble-clicking on therelevant Favorite node. Thiswillsaveyou timeaswellasrelieve you fromremembering lengthytransactioncodes.The menu pertaining toFavorites (as seen from the
Initial screen) is shown inFigure 2.1. The menucontainsuseful features,suchas creating Favorite nodes,creatingfoldersforFavorites,as well as downloading anduploading them to and fromyourlocalPC.
Figure2.1:MenuPathforFavorites
Alternately, youmay use theinitial screen toolbar that hasbeen made for this purpose,asseeninFigure2.2.
Figure2.2:RelatedToolbarButtons
The Delete button will onlybe enabled if you have atleast one item under yourFavorites node. Otherwise,
theDelete buttonwill notbeenabled.
2.1.1AddingtotheFavoritesNodeRight-click on theFavoritesnodefromtheSAPEasy Access Menu. Thecontext menu appears asshowninFigure2.3.
Figure2.3:ContextMenuoftheFavoritesNode
Choose the
Insert Transaction option.The pop-up box for enteringtheTransactionCodeappearsasshowninFigure2.4.
Figure2.4:EnteringtheTransactionCode
EntertheTransactionCodein
the field provided, e.g.,“SBWP” for BusinessWorkplace, and press"Enter". This creates ashortcut to the transaction, inourcase,BusinessWorkplaceunder Favorites (see Figure2.5).
Figure2.5:TransactionCodeAddedas
Favorite
A message is displayed asshown.
Figure2.6:FavoritesMessage
2.1.2CreatingFavoritesfromUserMenuItemsAnother quick and easy wayforcreatingFavoritesofyourtransactionslistedintheSAPEasyAccessMenuistoselectthegivennodeandclick the
button.Alternately, you may right-click, choose the contextmenuoption,andthenchoosethe option Add toFavorites(seeFigure2.7).
Figure2.7:Contextmenu
foraddingaFavorite
You may also use keys"CTRL+Shift+F6" instead ofthemenupath.The selected transactionmaybe added to yourFavorites via drag and drop.Simply select a giventransaction node from yourUser menu and then, whilekeeping the mouse buttonpressed, drag the item to the
relevant position under theFavoritesnodeoritsfolderorsubfolder. Then release themousebutton.In all cases, a successfulmessage will appear sayingNodeAddedtoFavoriteList.For checking the functioningof your Favorite, simplydouble-click on the relevantnode. The relevanttransactionwillbedisplayed.
2.1.3CreatingaFavoriteWhileBeinginaTransactionAll of the above techniqueswork when you are on theInitial screen of SAP.Suppose you are “on” atransaction that you wouldliketoaddasaFavorite.Thesimplest way (without theneed to type theTransaction Code in the
CommandFieldand/orgoingback to the Initial screen) isto select the menu pathSystem à User Profile àExpandFavorites.
Figure2.8:MenuPathforCreatingaFavoritefroma
Transaction
TIP:Ifyouarewithinatransaction and the SAPcan be easily accessed,then you use the menuoption System à UserProfile à ExpandFavorites. This is useful,
as you don’t need to goback to the Initial SAPscreen.
When you have a number ofFavorite items added, the listmightbecomevery largeandconfusing.Tobetterorganizethe list, you may create
2.2CreatingFolders
folders and subfolderswithinyourFavoritesandplacenewFavoriteswithinthem.In this section,wewill coverhow to create folders andsubfolders for our Favorites,thus making our work moreorganized.To create a folder, select theFavoritesnodeandright-clickinorder toaccessthecontextmenu.Next,choosethemenu
optionInsertFolder.
Figure2.9:CreatingaFolder
A dialog box appears as
showninFigure2.10.
Figure2.10:FolderName
Entera suitablename for thefolderandthenpress"Enter".Anew folderwill be createdbythenamespecified.
Wemaycreatefolderswithinthe new folder by using thesame context menu option.Transactionsmaybeaddedtothe folders using the stepslistedintheprevioussection.
2.3DeletingFavoritesandDisplacingFavorites
You may also deleteFavorites or change theirposition from within thevariousfolders.For deleting Favorite nodes,select the relevant node andclick the button. TheFavorite will be removedfromtheFavoriteslist.
NOTE: For deletingall Favorites within a
folder, select the givenfolder and right-click toaccess context menu.Then choose option“DeleteAllFavorites”.
To change the sequence ofexisting Favorites, followthesesteps:·Selectthenodeofthe
Favoritewhosepositionistobechangedbypressing
theleftmousebutton.·Whilekeepingtheleft
mousebuttonpressed,movethecursortothenew(desired)position.
·Thenreleasetheleftmousebutton.ThisplacestheFavoriteintothenewposition.
You may also move aFavorite from one folder toanother.
Youmay also download andupload Favorites that havebeen added to yourpersonalized menu. This isparticularlyusefulwhenyou,forexample,haveallofyourFavoritesinonesystem,such
2.4DownloadingandUploadingFavorites
asQA system, and youwantto transfer them to anothersystem, for example,Production. Youmay simplydownload from one andupload to another withoutwasting your time creatingthe entire set of Favoritefoldersfromscratch.TodownloadFavoritesonthelocalPC,proceedasfollows:·IntheSAPEasy
AccessMenu,choosethemenupathFavoritesàDownloadtoPC(seeFigure2.11).
Figure2.11:MenuPath“DownloadtoPC”
·ThedialogboxappearsasshowninFigure2.12.
Figure2.12:SaveAsDialogBox
Enter a suitable file nameafter navigating to anappropriate location, andclick the Save button. Thiswill save the Favorites andtheirfoldersonyourlocalPCatthegivenlocation.
To upload the savedFavorites from the desktop,
proceedasfollows:·IntheSAPEasy
AccessMenu,choosethemenupathFavoritesàUploadfromPC.AdialogboxsimilartothatshowninFigure2.12appears.ChooseasuitablefilenameandclicktheOpenbutton.Nodeentriesfromtheselectedfileareread,and
therelevantFavoritesarecreatedinthesystem.
This chapter outlines how tocreate and effectively useFavorites. With theinformation provided, youshouldnowbeabletoexplainwhat they are and how tocreate them.Youshouldalso
SummaryofChapter2
be able to create folders andorganize your Favorites list,as well as download anduploadyourFavorites.
Chapter3
EnteringDataIntoSAP
Themost important part inthe day of any user is theentry of data into the SAPsystem. In this chapter wewill cover this process,including the typical entryscreens, their variouscomponents, and theirbehavior on screen. Thischapter will cover thefollowingimportanttopics:·DataEntry
Transactions/Screens·ValueHelp(SearchHelp)forInputFields
·CopyingMultipleValuesFromScreenWith"CTRL+Y"
·DefiningDefaultValuesforanInputField
·HoldDataandSetDataFunctionality
·ObjectManager
Bylearninghowtoefficientlyinput data into the SAPsystem,youwillsavetimeinyour everyday work life andyourworkwillbecomemoreorganized and easier toaccess. Some questions thatwill be answered in thischapterinclude:·WhatdoesaDataEntryTransactionlooklike?
·HowcanIcreatea
VariantforObjectManager?
·HowcanIeffectivelyuseanF4HelpHitList?
Throughoutthechapter,therewill be examples andscreenshotstohelpthereadergain the greatest possibleunderstanding of how toeffectivelyenterdataintotheSAPsystem.
Data is entered into the SAPsystem using data entrytransactions. You mayexecute these transactionsfromatransactioncodeoranSAP easy access/user accessmenupath.
3.1DataEntryTransactionsandScreens
AnEntry Transaction mayconsist of a number ofscreens. The user may enterdata on one screen and mayberequiredtogotoanumberof other screens whilecompleting the data entrysequence. Each screen maycontain validations andchecks (required forconsistencyofdata)thatmaygenerate error or warningmessages.
SAPviewsallentities(items)whose data is to bemaintained asObjects.Typical examples of objectsare Sales Order, Notification,and Employee. As alreadymentionedinChapter1,theremay be different transactionsthat Create, Change, andDisplaytheseobjects.
NOTE: Separatetransactions are provided
forCreation,Change,andDisplay for objects, eachofwhich isdenotedbyadifferent transactioncode.ThiswasdiscussedinChapter1.
Before you are taken to theactual data entry screen(s),each transaction, whetherpertaining to creation orchange of objects, takes youto an Initial Screen. The
Initial screen for Createtransactions is different fromthose ofChange andDisplaytransactions.Forexample,onthe Sales Order CreationInitial screen, thereare fieldssuch as Order Type, SalesOrganization, andDistribution Channel, asshowninFigure3.1.
Figure3.1:CreateSalesOrderInitialScreen
On theSales Order Change:Initial Screen, for example,we have the Order Number(in this case the “object”under consideration) andotherSearchCriteria,suchasBilling Document and Sold-to-party. After entering theobject number on the initialscreen, you will be taken tothe actual data entry screen.For example, the main SDChange Order screen is
showninFigure3.2.
Figure3.2:SDDataEntry
ScreenSimilarly,atypicaldataentryscreen for HR is shown inFigure3.3.
Figure3.3:PersonalDataEntryScreen
The initial screen and thefollowing screens have anapplicationtoolbaralongwithscreen-specific menus and astandard toolbar. Forexample, for the SalesOrdermaintenance screen, theapplication toolbar is showninFigure3.4.
Figure3.4:DataEntryScreenToolbar
NOTE: The mainentry screen may leadyoutofurtherscreensviatoolbar buttons or theGotomenu.
Theentryscreenmayconsistof checkboxes, radiobuttons,
input fields, tables, and tabstrips, which are arranged invariousgroups.Letusdiscusssome of the importantelementsonebyone:·Inputfields.Theseallow
fortheentryofdataandappeareditable(white-colored).Theinputfieldscanbeofvarioussizesandtypes.TypicalexamplesincludeDateInputfield,Amount,ora
TextorCodeInputfield.Additionaltextmaybedisplayedwhenaparticularsetofdataisenteredinafieldandthen"Enter"ispressed.Forexample,ifweenter“01”inthePersonnelSubarea(PSArea)field,thetextPhiladelphiaisdisplayednexttoit.
Figure3.5:InputfieldforPSArea
YoumayusetheF4searchhelpinordertofindoutthepossiblesetofvaluesapplicableforentryinagiveninputfield(thisisdiscussedinthenextsection).Aninputfieldmaybeeithermandatoryoroptional.Amandatoryfield,ifleftempty,willnot
allowyoutogotothenextscreenoreventoanothertab.ThemandatoryfieldappearswithatickmarkasshowninFigure3.6.
Figure3.6:MandatoryFieldOnScreen
Forinputfields,theAutoCompletionoptionisalsosupported.Thismeans
thatwhenyouenteravalueinafield,inputhelpintheformofAutoCompletionisavailablefromtheprevioussetofenteredvaluesasshowninFigure3.7.
Figure3.7:AutoCompletion
NOTE:Whenenteringdata into an input field,use "Backspace" to seethepreviouslyenteredsetof values. These areAutoCompletion values,and are systemindependent.
·DropdownList.TheDropdownlistisusedfordisplayinganumberof
optionsinalistboxandtheusercanchooseonefromthelist,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.Theymaybedisplayedeitherwithorwithouticonsasshownin
Figure3.11andFigure3.12respectively.
Figure3.11:ButtonwithoutIcon
Figure3.12:ButtonwithIcon
Incertainscreens,theremayalsobeexpandablebuttonsthatallowyouto
hideorshowasetofelementsonthescreen.
·Tables.Thetableisanimportantelementofthedataentryscreen.AtypicaltableforenteringdataisshowninFigure3.13.
Figure3.13:DataEntryTable
Eachlineletsyouenterdata.Forexample,alistofsalarycomponentsmaylookliketheoneshown.Dependingonthesetting,SingleorMultiplelinesmaybeselected.Eachlinemayhavecheckbox,inputfields,ordisplayfields.
NOTE:Youmayaltercertain settings of thetable (such as changingthesequenceofdisplayedfields) to meet yourneeds. This is known asTable Configuration.They may be stored andaccessedlater.
Toalterthetablesettings,firstmakeanychangesin
thetablelook.Forexample,youmaychangethesequenceofthetablefields.Todothis,simplydragthefieldsbyselectingthecolumnheaderandthenplacetheminthepositionofyourchoice.Forstoringtheconfiguration,clickontheicononthetopright
cornerofthetable.ThiswilldisplaytheTable
SettingsdialogshowninFigure3.14.
Figure3.14:TableSettings
ThechangestothetablesettingsmaybestoredintheformofVariants.EnterasuitablenameforyourvariantinthefieldprovidedandthenclicktheCreatebutton.Thiswillcreatethevariant.PresstheSavebutton.Thenexttimethatyouaccessthetablesettings,youmay
choosethevariantthatyouhavejustcreatedinordertodisplaythetableinthechangedformat.
·Tabstrips.Theseareusedinordertoaccommodatemultiplesub-screenswithinagivenareaonthemainscreen.AtypicaltabstripthatmaybedisplayedisshowninFigure3.15.
Figure3.15:ATabstrip
Eachsub-screenmaybeaccessedbyclickingtherelevanttabthatmaycontainitsownelements
suchasinputfields,checkbox,tables,andsoon.Whenacertaintabisclicked,itbecomesactiveandthevariouscomponentsonitareshown.Youmayalsousetheand iconstomoveleftandrightrespectively.Thisishelpfulincasetherearemanytabsthatarenotallvisibleonthescreen.
Alternatively,youmayclickthe iconontheupperrightofthetabstripinordertodisplaythevarioustabnamesintheformofamenuasshowninFigure3.16.
Figure3.16:Choosingfromatablist
Youmaythenchoosethetabyouneed.
·ContextMenus.Apart
fromthescreenelementslistedabove,therearealsocontextmenusthatcanbeusedforascreenfieldortablefield.Right-clickingaparticularfieldwilldisplayacontextmenufromwhichfurthertasksmaybechosenasshowninFigure3.17.
Figure3.17:ContextMenu
·LongTextEditors.Inadditiontotheabove,afewscreensmayalsoallowyoutoenterlongtextusingalongtexteditorasshowninFigure3.18.Thismayeitherbeaccessiblefromamenupathorabuttonshownonthemainentryscreen.
Figure3.18:LongTextEditors
3.2EnteringDataonScreens
Whenyouenter inputonanyof the screen fields and thenpress "Enter", the enteredtexts (such as names) aremade left-justified, whereasthe amount, number, andquantity fields areautomatically made right-justifiedbythesystem.After entering data in aparticular field, you may
Screens
press the "Tab"key togoontothenextfield.Therearetabsequences defined for eachscreen that specifies thesequence of input fields inwhichthecursorisplacedbythe system each time the tabbutton is pressed. If you donotwant to use theTab key,you may select a field usingthemouse.By default, the Insert modeis on for data entry. This
meansthatwhenthecursorison a field, entering any datawill insert value in the fieldand will not overwrite theexistingvalues.Whena fieldis selected using the mouse,you may overwrite the oldvalue in the field byswitching on theOverwrite mode. This maybe done by pressing the INSkey once. Alternately, youmay press the INS shown in
therightpartofthestatusbarasshowninFigure3.19.
Figure3.19:InsertModeOn
The INSwill change toOVRasshowninFigure3.20.
Figure3.20:OverwriteModeOn
NOTE: The newestGUI allows you to editthe sequence of the tabsfor the various inputfields.
Simple Cut and Copyfunctions work for single
input fields when enteringdata. For multiple field dataselection and copy, we usethe "CTRL+Y" keys. This isdiscussedaheadinsection3.4of this chapter - CopyingMultiple Values fromScreenwith"CTRL+Y".Whenanentryismadeonthescreen and the"Enter" buttonis pressed, any validationchecks are run.You may seeerrors, warnings, or simply
information messagesdependingonthescenario.An errormessagewith a redsymbolwithin a status bar isshowninFigure3.21.
Figure3.21:ErrorMessageinStatusBar
Anerrorwillnotallowyoutoproceed further with yourdata entry until the correct
data is inputted. In theexample shown, entering avaliddateintherelevantfieldwill not show the error anyfurther and the user isallowedtoproceedahead.Nosaving of data is allowed iftheerrorpersists.Ontheotherhand,awarningappears as shown in Figure3.22.The Warning symbol isyellow.
Figure3.22:Warning
Thisonlywarns theuser thatproceedingfurtherwilldeletea record from the database.Pressing "Enter", forexample, in such cases, willmake themessage disappear.Theusermaythenbeallowedtosavedataonthescreen.Instead of the status bar,
messagesmaybedisplayedindialog boxes depending onyour personalized settings(wewillseethisinChapter4- Changing SAP Look andFeel).Also of importance are someof the standard toolbarbuttonsandiconsused.Theseare Save, Cancel, and Back.TheiconsoftheCancel,Exit,and Back buttons are showninFigure3.23.
Button Icon
Exit
Back
Cancel
Figure3.23:Cancel,Exit,andBackButtons
Thethreebuttonslooksimilarinfunctioning,however,their
working differs. When youwant to come out of atransaction without saving,you may simply cancel thetransaction by pressing theCancelbutton.Thiswillgiveyou a prompt that says, Doyou want to Cancel? If youwant to stay on thetransaction, press No.Otherwise,chooseYes.Inthiscase, no option to save thedataispresentedtotheuser.
Supposetheuseriseditinganobject that is comprised ofheader data as well as someother groups of data, each ofwhichareenteredonseparatescreens. If the user accessesonlysomeofthescreens,andafterfinishingdataentryforaparticular group he or shereturns to the main entryscreen,itisdoneviatheBackbutton. If the Back button ispressed without saving the
data on a particular screen, adialog box is shown to theuser warning him or her ofpossible loss of data. If theYesoptionischosen,thedataissavedandtheuseristakento the upper level in theapplicationhierarchy.TheExitbutton isusedwhenthe user, who has beenentering data in anapplication, wants to leave(exit from) the application
andmoveon toanother task.When the Exit button ispressed, the system remindshimorhertosavetheentereddata (if this is not donealready).For bothBack andExit, anydata entry checks relevant tothe screen are executed. ForCancel, no checks areexecuted for the data enteredonthescreen.
In Chapter 1, we discussedtheF1-FieldHelp.Youmayrefer back to that chapter forinformation on field help orfor any information yourequire for particular inputfields. In addition to the F1
3.3ValueHelp(SearchHelp)forInputFields
help, an Input Help alsoknown as F4 Help isavailable. In this section, wewill see how to access theValueHelpforinputfields.For accessing the Hit List,simplyplacethecursoronthefield and then press the "F4"key. Alternately, afterfocusing on the field, pressthesmallsymbol displayedon the field’s right side.Thiswill display the Hit List as
showninFigure3.24.
Figure3.24:F4ValueHelp
This allows you to see allpossible sets of values(shown in the form of a HitList) that may be entered inthefieldinquestion.The value help providesvarious functions via thebuttons in the availabletoolbar as shown in Figure3.25.
Figure3.25:Toolbar
You can sort the listaccordingtoaparticularfieldin either ascending ordescending order. This maybe done by selecting aparticular column or bychoosing a column and thenright-clicking in order toaccess the context menu.Afterthisisdone,choosethe
option Sort Ascending orDescending as shown inFigure3.26.
3.26:ContextMenuforHitList
For an input field in which,for example, a code is to beentered, the input help willdisplay thepermissible codesandalsotheirdescriptions.The Hit List may contain avery large number of values.You may filter the valuesbased on the applicablecriteria. For filtering the
values, click the bar at
thetopofthelistvalues.Thefields for restricting the HitList appear as shown inFigure3.27.
Figure3.27:FilteringValues
Enter the appropriate valuesinthefieldprovidedtodefine
your restriction criteria andthenpress"Enter".For example, in the case ofour country code anddescription, the defaultmaximum number of hits is500.Wecanchangethisto6andselectonlycountrycodesbeginningwith‘U’.Then theHit List will appear changedasshowninFigure3.28.
Figure3.28:RestrictedHitList
The Help shown in Figure3.24 and 3.28 is a simple
search help. Other than that,you may also come acrossinput help that is comprisedof multiple tabs as shown inFigure3.29.Theyare termedasCollectiveSearchHelps.
Figure3.29:Collective
SearchHelp
In this case, the relevant tabmay be selected and inputvalues entered in the fieldsprovided as shown in Figure3.29.In addition to the standarddisplayed list of values, youmay also create a PersonalValue List (a set of values
for yourself). This personallist allows you to organizeyour favorites or yourfrequentlyaccessedvalues.Instead of the standard F4Help, pressing "F4" displaysthePersonalValueList.Youmay then switch fromPersonal Value list tostandard Hit List and viceversa.To create a Personal Value
List(ortoaddarecordintoaPersonal Value List) select arow from the standard HitList and then click the button on the toolbar. Thiswill add the value to thePersonal Value List and willcreate the list if it does notexist already. To view thePersonalValuelist,clickthebutton.
NOTE: Youmay also
create Personal ValueLists along with thestandard F4 Help. Apersonallist,asthenamedenotes,isalistofvaluesthat you have personallychosen. It will be shownrather than the defaultsearchhelplist.
Once values are entered inthe Personal Value List,accessing the F4 Help next
timeforthefieldinquestionwill display the PersonalValue List rather than thestandard help list. You mayswitch back to the standardlist by clicking theDisplayAll Values button in thetoolbar.
3.4CopyingMultipleValuesfrom
Screenwith
AusefulfunctionprovidedbyallSAPscreensisthefacilityto copymultiple values froma set of input fields or tablelines at one time using the"CTRL+Y" keys. To do this,followthestepsbelow:·First,pressthe
"CTRL+Y"keys.
Screenwith"CTRL+Y"
Alternately,youmayusethemenupathshowninFigure3.30.
Figure3.30:MenuPathfor
CopyingValues
Oncethisisdone,thecursorwillchangeintoacrosshaircursor.
·Placethecursoratthestartingpointoftheareatobecopied.Presstheleftmousebuttontomarkthetop-leftcorneroftheareatobeselected.Thiswillstarttheselectionofthearea.Keeptheleftmouse
buttonpressedasyoudragthecursorovertheareatobecopied.
NOTE: Make sure acrosshair appears for thecursor after the"CTRL+Y" keys arepressed. This means the"CTRL+Y" has beensuccessful.
·Usethemousetodragthecursorinordertohighlighttheareatobecopied.Releasetheleftmousebuttontocompletetheselectionprocess.Agreyshadedboxwillappearshowingtheselectedarea.
·Youmaythenusethe"CTRL+C"keystocopyallthevaluesthatarefilledinthevariousinputfieldsortablelines.Thesemay
thenbeenteredviathePastefunctiontoanyotherSAPscreen.
NOTE: You may usethe "CTRL+Y" keys toselect the content ofmultiple input/outputfields. "CTRL+C" willthen copy all the values.These may then becopied to another SAPscreen or Desktop
application.
In this section, we willdiscuss thedefaultvalues foran Input Field. For certaininput fields, there areParameter IDs (a three-
3.5DefiningDefaultValuesforanInputField
characterID,suchasFWSorABK) that are defined bySAP. In such cases, the useris allowed to set defaultvalues.The benefit of doing this isthattheuserdoesnotneedtotypethesamevalueoverandover again. These defaultvalueswillsavetheusertime.Whenever the user is on ascreen that has the field forwhich the Parameter ID has
been set, the default valuethathasbeenspecified in the“User Data” for that inputfield (Parameter ID) is readand filled automatically.Another advantage of this isthat one user’s default valuefor a particular fieldwill notaffect the values of anotheruser. A typical example ofthis is a currency field thatmaybesetasadefaultvaluesuchasUSDorGBP.
NOTE: For inputfields, if applicable,values may be set asdefault using ParameterIDs. Parameter IDs mayalso be used to set user-specific settings ofscreens.
The procedure for definingdefault values for an inputfieldisasfollows:
·InordertofindoutwhetheraParameterIDisapplicable,selecttheinputfieldandpress"F1"inordertodisplaythefieldhelp.ThedialogwillbedisplayedasshowninFigure3.31.
Figure3.31:FieldHelp
·Thenclickthe button.
ThiswilldisplaytheTechnicalInformation.IftheParameterIDisapplicable,athree-letterIDwillbedisplayedasshowninFigure3.32.
Figure3.32:InputHelpwithParameterID
IncasetheParameterIDisnotdefinedforthefieldinquestion,theParameterIDinformationwillnotbepresent.
·OnceyouhavetheParameterIDforthefield,gototheUserdatabyfollowingthemenupathSystemUserProfileàOwn
Data.ThiswillleadyoutotheMaintainUserProfiletransaction.OntheParameterstab,entertheParameterIDintherespectivecolumnandthedefaultvalueintheParameterValuecolumnasshowninFigure3.33.
Figure3.33:DefaultsTab
·Saveyourdata.Whenyourerunthetransaction,thedefineddefaultvalue,whenapplicable,isplacedautomaticallyinthe
relevantfieldasshowninFigure3.34.
Figure3.34:ValueAppearsinField
3.6HoldDataandSetDataFunctionality
While entering data for anumber of objects (forexample, Employees, SalesOrders,orNotifications),youmaycomeacrossscreensthatinvolve repetitive entry of agiven set of information fordifferentobjects.Enteringthesame data on a number ofscreens may be a laboriousactivity, particularly whenmanyentries are tobemade.SAPrelievesitsuserfromthe
burden of retyping the samedata by providing the HoldData/SetDatafunctionality.The Hold Data functionalityallows users to save theredundant data in the SAPmemory.Theusertypesthesefield values for an SAPscreenonlyonce, i.e., for thefirstobjectwhoseinformationis being entered. This datathen gets stored in SAPmemory and is automatically
made available in therespective data fields whenthe same screen is accessedfor subsequent objects. Thisfunctionality provides anumber of advantages tousers:·Itletsyouenteralarge
volumeofdatainSAPquicklyandeasily.
·Foreachuser,SAPallocatesaseparateareainmemory.Thisensuresthat
noclashofsavedvalueswilloccurbetweendifferentusers.
·YoumayusetheHoldData/SetDatafunctionalityforscreensofallmodulesandsubmodules.
3.6.1UsingHold/SetDataFunctionalityInordertousetheHoldData
and Set Data options, followthestepsshownbelow:·CalltheSAPtransaction
onwhichyouwouldliketomaketheredundantentries.
·Asalreadymentioned,youonlyneedtoentertherepetitivedataonce.Enterthesevaluesforthefirstobjectinconsideration.Donotenteravalueinany
fieldwhosevaluesarenottobecopied.
·ThenchoosethemenuoptionSystemàUserProfileàHoldData(seeFigure3.35).
Figure3.35:“HoldData”MenuPath
Thisstorestheentereddatainthe SAP memory. Themessage “Data was held” isdisplayed.
Figure3.36DataWasHeld
Theheldvaluesaredisplayedinred,asshowninboxesinFigure3.37.
Figure3.37:HeldValues
Youmayalsoholdvaluesforinputfieldsonebyone.Inthiscase,eachtimeyouholdavalue,alltheheldvaluesaredisplayedontheinputscreeninred.
·Whenyouopenthesamescreentoenterdataforsubsequentobjects,thesaveddatavaluesarepresentintherelevant
fields.Youmayalsoamendthesevaluesifyoulike.
·Ifyouwanttoexcludetheheldvaluefieldsfromdataentryornavigationviathetabkey,choosethemenuoptionSystemàUserProfileàSetData.Thiswillgrey-outthefieldinquestionandwillnotalloweditingofthefieldvalue
forcurrentandsubsequentobjects.Suchafieldwillalsobeignoredduringtabkeynavigation.
·Whenyouhavecompletedenteringthedata,youshoulddeletetheheldvaluesfromtheSAPmemory.YoucandothisbychoosingthemenuoptionSystemàUserProfileàDeleteData.
On the left side of the initialscreen of data maintenancetransactions, there may be anavigation tool known as theObjectManagerasshowninFigure 3.38. (In this sectionwe discuss the ObjectManager as it is used in theHR transactions PA30 andPA20.)
3.7ObjectManager
Figure3.38ObjectManager
Thesearchoptionsare foundon the top of the screen, andtheHit List area (where thevaluesfoundasaresultofthesearch are displayed) can beseenon the lowerpartof thescreen.There is a Search Termoption that allows you tosearchinthedatabase.Inour
case, we have taken thePerson example, so it is theemployee(orthenameoftheemployee).Clicking theFindby Person option will showthedialoginFigure3.39.
Figure3.39:FindPersonDialog
Enter a name in the fieldprovided and press the Findbutton.
ThiswillpopulatetheHitListarea with the names of theemployees that satisfy ourentered condition. In ourcase,wehavesearchedforallemployees that have“Alexander”intheirname.
Figure3.40:HitList
WhileyouareontheHitList,youareabletocreatealistofmultiple names or criteria.
Youcandothisbyenteringasearchtermandthenclickingthe Enter Search Result inList button. This willaddtheresultstotheexistingHit List, and then you mayenter other search criteria intheWithNamefield.Also,youmaycreatevariantsthat allow you to save yoursearch criteria. To do this,click on the Create SearchVariant button on the
toolbar.ThedialogappearsasshowninFigure3.41.
Figure3.41:SearchVariant
Enter a suitable name foryour variants. Let’s say wewrote “people namedalexander” and then pressed
theEnterbutton.This will add a node for thenewly created search variantasshowninFigure3.42.
Figure3.42:NodeforSearchVariant
The next time you come tothe transactions, simplydouble-click on the relevantvariants and theHitListwillbe populated based on thecriteria on that date. Thismeans that, for example,when you run the savedvariant “people namedalexander,” all of the peoplenamed Alexander will besearched for again anddisplayed. You may get
different results each time asmore people namedAlexander are added to thesystem.
Thischapterdiscussedhowtoeffectivelyenterdataintothe
SummaryofChapter3
SAP system. With theinformation provided, youshouldnowbeableto,amongother things, enter data usingData Entry Transactions,incorporate value help forInput Fields, copy multiplevalues from the screen, anddefine default values for anInputField.
References
http://help.sap.com/saphelp_oil46csp2/helpdata/EN/85/daf1d04bac11d1890e0000e8322f96/content.htm
Chapter4
Personalizing–ChangingSAPLookandFeel
This chapter will cover thepossible options that areavailable to personalize theSAP system according toyour preferences. All of thesettingsshowninthischapterapply to one particular user;thesettingsofotherusersarenotaffected.Chapter 2 described how toorganize your work usingFavorites. In this chapter, I
willcoverthespecificdetailsinvolved in personalizing thelook and feel of the SAPsystem. The following topicswillbecovered:·Personalizingtheinitialscreen,includingsettingthestarttransaction,modifyingthestatusfields,andchangingfavoritesandeasyaccessmenusettings.
·ChangingSAP
behavior,includingcontrollingcursorbehavior,switchinghistoryinputonoroff,changingyouruserprofile,andquickcutandpastefeatures.
·ChangingGUIandHelpsettings,includingthemesandfonts,adjustingdropdownlistdisplays,personalizingmessagedisplays,andchanging
thedisplayofF1andF4Help.
Thischapter ismeant tohelpthe user create a moreefficient and enjoyable SAPsystem. Some questions thatwill be answered in thischapterinclude:·HowcanIsetthestarttransaction?
·HowcanIquicklycutandpasteportionsof
text?·Whataremyoptionsforchangingthethemeandfonts?
·HowcanIpersonalizemessageswhentheyaredisplayed?
Along theway, therewill beexamples and screenshots tomake the task ofpersonalizing your SAPsystem as easy and
straightforwardaspossible.
Thissectionwilldiscussthreechanges thatmaybemade tothe default settings of theInitial SAP screen.Personalizationcanoccurbysetting the start transactions,modifying the status bar
4.1PersonalizingtheInitialScreen
fields,andchangingthemenuand favorites display. Let usnow see each of the three indetail.
4.1.1SettingtheStartTransactionA Start Transaction isdefinedasthefirsttransactiondisplayed (or that the user istaken to) after a successfullogon. One of the simplest
featuresaboutpersonalizationis to set a particulartransaction as the StartTransaction.Youmaysetthisto the most frequently usedtransaction or the firsttransaction that you startwithinyourdailywork.Since this is the first screenthat you are taken to, it willsave time because you don’thavetosearchwithinthetreeor type the transaction name
intotheCommandField.In order to set starttransaction, from the mainSAP menu choose Extras àSet Start Transaction asshowninFigure4.1.
Figure4.1:SetStart
Transaction
The dialog box appears asshowninFigure4.2.
Figure4.2:EnteringStartTransaction
Enter the transaction code in
the field provided and press"Enter". This will set thetransaction code. The nexttimeyoulogin,insteadoftheinitial SAP easy accessscreen, you will be taken tothe specified transactioncode.The value of the settransactionisnotdeleteduntilyouchangeorresetit.Evenifyou assign value to thetransaction at the end of a
working day, the settransaction will remain thereuntil your next log in(irrespectiveofwhenyoulogin).
4.1.2ModifyingtheStatusFieldDisplayInChapter 1, I discussed theStatus fields displayed in theStatusbar.Inthissection,wewill see how to modify the
status fields display (theinformation given here isrelevant for all SAP screensincludingtheinitialscreen).The information displayed instatusbar is shown inFigure4.3.
Figure4.3:StatusFields
Youmayclickonthe icontoseethelistofvariousfieldsthat may be displayed (andtheir values) as shown in
Figure4.3.Someoftheoptionsyoumaychoose from (relevant tousers)maybetheProgramorTransactioncodethatyouareexecutingaswellasyourusername. In addition, you maychoose to display theResponseTime.
NOTE:Youmayhidethe Status fields by
clickingonthe icon.
Tochangethefielddisplayedin the status bar, click theicon.Thisopensanumberofoptions as shown in Figure4.3.Some of the importantinformation that may bedisplayed in the statusincludes:·SystemandClient:This
displaysthenameofthesystemandtherelevantclienttowhichyouareloggedin.
·User:TheIDwithwhichyouareloggedin,forexample,JONR01etc.
·Program:Thenameoftheprogramyouareexecuting.
·Transaction:Thetransactionyouarerunning.
·ResponseTime:Thismaysimplybedefinedasthetimeittakesfortheexecutionofacertaintask(forexample,areporttransaction).Thistimeismeasuredinmilliseconds.Youmayexecuteareporttodisplaytheselectionscreen.EnterthedataontheselectionscreenandclicktheExecutebutton.Whenyouexecutethe
report,itwillshowthetimetakenforthereporttofetchdatafromthedatabaseandgeneratethereportoutput.
4.1.3ChangingFavoritesandEasyAccessMenuSettingsFor the initial SAP screen,youmaychange theway theEasy Access Menu and the
Favorites are displayed. Letus see in detail how this isdone.To change the menu andFavorites settings, access themenu option Extras àSettings.ThiswilldisplaythedialogboxasshowninFigure4.4.
Figure4.4:SettingsforFavorites
This has four checkboxes
(options), which arediscussedbelow:·DisplayFavoritesatendoflist:ChoosingthisoptionwilldisplaytheFavoritesatthebottomofthelistintheleftpane.ThisisshowninFigure4.5.
Figure4.5:FavoritesatEndofList
·DonotDisplayMenu,onlydisplayfavorites:Ifyoucheckthisoption,theentireEasyAccessmenuishidden,andonlytheFavoritesaredisplayed.
·Donotdisplaypicture:Inthiscase,thepicturedisplayedontherightpaneofthescreenisnotshown.
·DisplayTechnicalnames:Switchingonthisoptionwilldisplaythetechnicalnamesoftheitemslistedinthemenutree.Forexample,thetransactioncodeofthereportsandscreensthatyouworkwitharedisplayedasshowninFigure4.6.BothoftheitemsintheFavoritesaswellasthemenudisplay
thetechnicalnames.
Figure4.6:MenuItemsandFavoritesWithTechnical
Names
Inthefigure,thetransactioncodeoftheManager’sDesktopisshown(i.e.,PPMDT)byswitchingonthetechnicalnames.
In this section, I will cover
4.2ChangingStandardGUISettings
thefeaturesthatallowyoutochangecertainGUIandHelpsettings. These include howto change Theme and Fonts,how to adjust dropdown listdisplays, how to personalizemessagedisplays,andhowtochange thedisplayofF1andF4Help.
NOTE: Thescreenshots for this
chapter have been takenfrom the latest GUIversion 730. However,many of the features arealso applicable to theolder 710 GUI. Themajor difference is theway the Customizinglayout options appear. InolderGUI, insteadof thenavigation tree andnodes, thereare tabs thathave customization
options. If you are usingthe older GUI, use theappropriatetab.
For most of the changesshown in this section, theCustomizing Layout optionsare used. Click theCustomizing Local Layoutbutton on the standardtoolbar. From the menu thatappears,chooseOptions.Thiswill display the SAP GUI
options dialog box as showninFigure4.7.
Figure4.7:SAPGUI
CustomizingOptions
On the left of thedialogboxthere is a tree that shows thedifferentcategories (orareas)that contain the various GUIcustomizing options. Forexample, we have VisualDesign and InteractionDesign as shown in Figure4.8.
Figure4.8:CustomizableGUIOptionAreas
There is also a Search fieldthat you can use to quicklylook for the actual place
where a particularcustomization option is. Forexample, in order to directlygo to the screen forcustomizing error messages,you may simply type “errormessages”intheSearchfield.When this is done, therespective node will beshown in italics as shown inFigure4.9.
Figure4.9:Searchingfor“ErrorMessages”
The exact node and the pathforaccessingitwillbeshownin italics, whereas the otherirrelevant nodes will appeardim, making the desirablenode prominent. You maydouble-click on this node togo directly to thecustomization screen(Notifications node in ourerrormessagesexample).
NOTE: If at any time
you decide to restore(revert) to the defaultGUIsettings,youmaydoso by using the RestoreDefaults button (seeFigure 4.9). This buttonwill restore your defaultGUIsettings,suchas thefonts, theme, and cursorsettings, back to theiroriginalform.
NOTE: To access thehelp feature at any nodeor for any function,simply click the Helpbutton. The necessarydocumentation for thescreen that you are onwillbedisplayed.
4.2.1ChangingGUIThemeandFonts
You also have control overchanging the GUI theme andthe displayed fonts. In thissection,wewill take a closerlookathowthisisdone.At the top-left of the dialogbox shown inFigure4.9 is aTheme Selection list box. Inthe newer GUI version, youhave the SAP “SignatureTheme”selected.Ifyouwanttochangethetheme,chooseadifferent theme from the
dropdown list and clickApply.The new theme will only beapplicable when the SAPLogon pad is closed andrestarted.Within the Signature Themeyou can change the defaultcolor of the SAP windows.To change the color of theSignature Theme, choose thepathVisualDesign-->Color
Settings.Thiswillbefoundinthe left pane of the GUIOptions dialog (use theCustomizing Local Layoutshown earlier). On the rightside of the screen, select adifferent color (such as SAPGold or Purple). After youhavechosenacolor,clicktheApplybutton.The new color will beapplicable when a new SAPsessionisopened.
NOTE: From SAPGUI730,SAPprovidesanewCorbuTheme. Thistheme has a reducedcontrast as compared toSignature Design andalso has a different styleoficons.
Inaddition to the theme,youhave the option of changingthe fonts as well as the font
size displayed on the SAPscreen.Todothis,choosethepath Visual Design à Fontsettings.Therightsideofthescreen changes as shown inFigure 4.10 (these are thedefaultsettings).
NOTE: Fixed WidthFont Settings areapplicable for dataenteredintheinputfieldsand displayed in lists,
whereas Proportionalfonts are used forCaptionsanddescriptions(for items) shown on thescreen.
Figure4.10:FixedWidthandProportionalFont
Settings
For Fixed Width Fontspertaining to input fields andlists, you can set the Fonttype as well as the size byclicking the relevantbuttonundertheFixedWidthFont Settings area. This willdisplay a Font selectiondialog box, which can beused to specify yourpreferences(seefigure4.11).
Figure4.11:FontSelection
Whenyouaredonewithyourfontselection,clickOK.If you would like to keepseparate font settings forProportionalFonts,makesurethe Select Proportional Fontcheckbox at the top (underFontdialog) is on.Once thisisdone,click the buttonunder Proportional FontSettings. A similar font
selection screen is displayedasshowninFigure4.11.Hereyou may choose from avarietyoffontsizesandtypesaccordingtoyourliking.
4.2.2AdjustingDropdownListDisplayIn addition to other featuresof the screen, you maymodify the appearance of
Dropdown lists. By default,only the description of theitems is shown in theDropdown as shown inFigure4.12.
Figure4.12:PermanentAddressDropdownList
Youmayalsodisplaythekeyvalues along with thedescription, if desired, insorted order. Let us see howthisisdone.To access the Dropdown listcustomization, click theCustomize Local Layoutbutton and choose Options.Thedialogboxappears.From
theleftpane,double-clickthenode Visualization 1 shownunder Interaction Design (asshowninFigure4.13).
Figure4.13:Visualization1node
The screen on the rightappears as the one shown inFigure4.14.
Figure4.14:DropdownListCustomization
ForolderGUIversions,selecttheExperttabfromthedialogbox that appears (Figure4.15).
Figure4.15:Experttabon
OlderGUIs
The checkboxes displayedundertheControlsareaallowyou to customize thedropdownlist.Bydefault,thetwocheckboxesShowKeysinall Dropdown Lists and SortItems by Key are switchedoff. If the first checkbox, i.e.the one for showing keys inthe list, is switched on, thekeys (codes) as well as the
descriptionsof the itemswillbedisplayed.Inthiscase,thedropdownlistswillappearasshowninFigure4.16.
Figure4.16:AddressField
Options
Moreover, if you would liketosort the itemsbyusingthekey, make sure that the SortItemsByKey checkbox ison(this checkbox will only beenabled if the Show Keysoptionisselected).Switching on the key, alongwith the sorted key options,may significantly increaseperformance while entering
data. Since most users aremore familiar with the keys(codes) – rather than thedescription, itwillbequickerto search for the codewithinthedropdownlist.
4.2.3PersonalizingMessageDisplaysAs mentioned earlier inChapter 1, a variety ofmessages, such as
Information, Errors, andWarnings, are displayedwhileexecutingatransaction.Apartfromotherfeaturesthatcan be personalized, somelevel of personalization maybedoneformessagesaswell.The default behavior is thatmessagesappearinthestatusbar. You may change theform of the displayedmessages to more noticeabledialog boxes, which will
make them appear moreprominent.Youmayalsoturnasoundalertonoroffwhenamessage is displayed. Onemore benefit is that you cansetacontrolforeachmessagetype, such as Information,Error, or Warning. It ispossible, for example, toswitch on dialog boxesdisplay, for Warning andErrors, and let Informationappearasstatusbarmessages.
For personalizing messages,click the Customizing LocalLayout button from thestandard toolbar. From themenu, chooseOptions. Fromthe dialog box that appears,choosethenodeNotificationsunderInteractionDesign(seeFigure4.17).
Figure4.17:NotificationsunderInteractionDesign
Ontherightsideofthedialogbox, aMessages areawill bedisplayedasshowninFigure4.18.
Figure4.18:OptionsforPersonalizingMessages
There are four checkboxesrelated to personalizing yourmessages. The Beep atMessage checkbox allows
you to have a beep soundalertoccurwhenamessageisdisplayed(themoreimportantcheckboxes are below thisbeep-relatedcheckbox).For each of the messagetypes, you have a switch(checkbox) for displaying adialog box. Check thecorrespondingindicator(s)forthe type(s) of message thatyou want to see as a dialogbox. If you want to see all
Warnings, Errors, andSuccess messages as dialogboxes, check all threeindicators.Figure4.19showsan error shown as a dialogbox if the error checkbox isswitchedon.
Figure4.19:ErrorMessageinDialogBox
The same error previouslyshown in the status bar
appearedastheoneinFigure4.20.
Figure4.20:ErrorMessageinStatusBar
4.2.4ChangingDisplayofF1andF4HelpApartfromotherfeaturesthatmaybechangedaccordingto
your desires, some level ofpersonalization is alsopossible for theF1 InputandF4valueHelps.ForF1Help,you can change the display,whereas for F4 Help, youhavecontroloverthenumberofvaluesofthehitlistaswellasthehitlistitself.Letusseeindetailhowthisisdone.ChoosethemenupathHelpàSettings as shown in Figure4.21 (this is available in all
SAPscreens).
Figure4.21:“Settings”MenuPath
The dialog box appears as
showninFigure4.22.
Figure4.22:PersonalSettingsforyourUser
Two important tabs on thisbox are theF1Help and F4
Help. Let us discuss them indetail.·F1Help.Theprevious
FigureshowstheF1Helptab,whichhastwopossibleoptions.YoumaychoosetodisplaythehelpeitherinthedefaultPerformanceAssistantdisplayorintheformofamodaldialogbox.IfyouchoosetheModalDialogBoxoption,theF1helpwill
lookliketheoneshowninFigure4.23.
Figure4.23:ModalF1Help
The normal PerformanceAssistant help (as discussedearlier) is shown in Figure4.24.
Figure4.24:PerformanceAssistantHelp
·F4Helptab.Therearesomeuser-specificsettings
alsorelatedtotheF4Help.ClickonthetabF4Help.TheappropriatescreenwillappearasshowninFigure4.25.
Figure4.25:F4HelpUser-specificSettings
The important checkboxesand fields of this tab areshownbelow:·DonotDisplayPers.ValueListAutomatic.Ifthischeckboxison,thePersonalValuelistisnotdisplayedautomatically.Themainhitlistisdisplayed.Thereisa
PersonalListValuebuttonthatallowsyoutogotoyourpersonallist.(Thebuttonisonlydisplayedifthereisatleastonevalueinthepersonallist.)Youmayaddentriesintothepersonallist(fromthisscreen)usingthebutton.Ifthecheckboxisoff,thePersonalValuelistis
displayed.Youmaythengobacktothemainlistofallpossiblevaluesusingthe button.
·OnlyReturnValuedirectlyifonlyonehit.Ifthisindicatorisset,theinputfieldisautomaticallyfilledwiththevaluesatisfyingthesearchcriteriaentered,ifonlyonevalueexistsinthedatabasethatsatisfiesthegiven
condition.Inthiscasenohitlistorvaluescreenisdisplayed.Forexample,ifwehaveafieldnameandweenter“J*”initandpress"F4",thefieldwillbeautomaticallyfilledwith“John”ifJohnistheonlyvaluestartingfromJstoredinthesystem.
·Maximumnumberofhitstobedisplayed.Thisvaluedeterminesthemaximum
numberofentriesdisplayedinthehitlist.Youmayenterasuitablevalueaccordingtoyourrequirementsinthisfield,andthissettingwillbeapplicableforallinputfields.Supposeweenter“10”astheMaximumNumberofHits,thenonlythefirst10valuessatisfyingthecriteriawillbedisplayed.Ifthereare
morethan10values,amessageisdisplayedthatreadsTherearemorethan10possibleinputs.ThisisshowninFigure4.26.
Figure4.26:MoreThan1oInputsMessage
·MaximumWidthofHitList(inchars).Asthetextdenotes,thisisusedtocontrolthenumberof
columnsdisplayedinthehitlist.Forexample,thehitlistcontainsthreecolumnsof10,15,and30charactersoflengthrespectively.Ifwewanttoonlydisplaythefirsttwocolumns,then25mustbeenteredintheMaximumWidthfield.Likewise,entering10willdisplayonlythefirstcolumninthelist.
4.2.4.1F4Help:DialogandControlModeRadioButtonsThe Dialog and ControlModesoftheF4Helpdisplayare important. You maychoose either one of themdepending on yourrequirements. Let us take acloserlookatboth.·DialogMode.Whenthe
DialogModeisselectedandyoupress"F4"onaninputfieldonanygivenSAPscreenforaccessingthepossiblelistofvalues,theformatinwhichtheF4listofvaluesisdisplayedisshowninFigure4.27.Thevaluesaredisplayedinadialogbox.
Figure4.27:ListofValuesGeneratedfor
F4helpofSalesDocument
Field
This dialog box does notallowyoutoproceedwiththescreen on which you wereworking. If the list is toowide, there is a scroll bar atthebottomofthedialogbox.Before viewing the possibleset of input values, if youwouldliketheNorestrictionscheckbox to be displayed onthe initial screen of your F4
help selection (i.e. on theRestrictValueRange screen),you need to select DialogMode.Ontheinitialselectionscreen of your F4 help, thescreen will appear as showninFigure4.28.
Figure4.28:RestrictValueRange
Selecting this No restrictioncheckbox will turn offnumberrestrictionsofthelistof values to be displayed.This means that if there are10,000 values that fulfill thegiven criteria, all values willbedisplayed.
NOTE: The No
Restrictionfeatureisonlyavailable for F4 help listvalues in the DialogMode.
·ControlMode.Inthiscase,theformatthatthelistisdisplayedisshowninFigure4.29.
Figure4.29:SearchHelpControl
This is the Search Help
Controlmode. It provides avariety of advantages. Youmay click the bar markedwith at the top toaccess the screen to furtherfilter thevaluesshownin thedisplayedlist.Thereisalsoaminimize button, which willminimize the list and allowyoutocontinueworkingwiththe SAP screen you wereworking on. In the case of acomplex F4 search help, you
may go to the other tabswhile you are on the list ofvalues.
In this section, I will coverthefeaturesthatallowyoutochange SAP behavior. Theseincludehowtocontrolcursorbehavior, how to adjust list
4.3ChangingSAPBehavior
displaysonSAPscreens,andhowtoadjusttheuserprofile.
4.3.1ControllingCursorBehaviorIn addition to the SAP GUI,fonts, and other visualelements, you may alsochange the way the cursorbehaveswhileyouworkwiththe system. To access thecursor settings, choose the
Interaction Design àKeyboardSettings node fromthe SAP GUI options dialogbox (using the CustomizingLocal Layout button shownearlier). The screen changesasshowninFigure4.30.
Figure4.30:CursorCheckboxesonKeyboard
Settings
NOTE: If you are
using the earlier GUIversion,accessthecursorsettingsontheCursortabof Customizing LocalLayoutoptions.
UnderKeyboardSettings, thefollowing checkboxes arerelevant to cursor settings.Letusdiscusseachindetail.·Automaticallymovefocustonextinputfieldon
reachingendoffield.Ifthissettingison,thecursormovesautomaticallytothenextinputfield(inthetabsequence)ofthescreen,whenthefirstfieldiscompletelyfilledwithdata.Theuseofamouseorthe"Tab"keyisnotrequired.Thisallowsyoutoenterdataquicklywithoutshiftingthefocus
yourself.ThisisalsoknownasAutomaticTabbing.Bydefault,thischeckboxisoff.
·Remembercursorpositionwithininputfields.Ifthissettingison,thesystemremembersthepositionthecursorwaslastatwithinaninputfield.Thismeansthatifyoutypedpartialdata(somecharactersinaninput
field)andwentontoentertextinanotherinputfield,thenexttimeyoufocusbackonthefirstfield,thecursorwillbeplacedafterthelastcharacter(evenblankspaces)thatyouhadentered.
·Positioncursorattheendofthevaluewhenenteringafield.Thischeckbox,ifon,bringsthecursortotheendofthetextentered
withinafield.Ifyouenteracertainvalueinafieldfollowedbyspacesandthengoonenteringinanotherfield,whenyouusethemousetofocusbackonthefirstfield,thecursorwillbeplacedattheendofthetextentered.Anyblankspacesyouenteredwillbeignored.Ifthissettingisswitchedoff,thecursorwillbe
positionedtothepointwheretheblankspacesended.
·AutomaticallyselectcompletevaluewhenenteringafieldinINSmode.Whenthisischecked,youcanoverwritethepreviouslyenteredvalueinaninputfieldwithasinglekeystrokeintheinsertINSmode.Ifthefocuscomes
toafieldeitherwithataboranautomatictab,theentirecontentofafieldisselected(asshowninFigure4.31).ThismakesiteasyintheInsertmodetoquicklychangeanalreadyexistingvalue.Ifyouswitchoffthisfeature,theentirevaluewillnotbeselectedandyoumustdeletethecharactersyourself.
Figure4.31:SelectedContentinField
4.3.2SwitchingHistoryInputOnandOffAs mentioned earlier, SAPremembers the history of
values entered in an inputfield. This is particularlyusefulwhenyouneedtoinputthe same (or similar) valueagain, because you do notneed to reenter the entirevalue. TheHistorywill helpusers make entries quicklyandeasily.CertainsettingsatyourlocallayoutallowyoutoswitchtheHistoryonandofforchangethewaytheHistoryisdisplayed.
To change the Historysettings,access theSAPGUIoptions box (using theCustomize Local Layoutbutton as shown earlier).Then choose the node LocalDataàHistory.Therightsideof thedialogboxwill appearasshowninFigure4.32.
Figure4.32:HistoryNodeDisplayed
You have three optionsrelated to the History Statusof input fields (see Figure4.33).
Figure4.33:HistoryStatusOptions
The three options arediscussedasfollows:·Off:Ifthisoptionis
selected,theHistoryforall
inputfieldswillnolongerbeavailable.Additionally,thesetofpreviouslyenteredvalueswillbedeletedandlost,evenifyouswitchontheHistorylater.InsomecasesyouwillwanttheHistoryforinputfieldstobedisabled,asitmayleadtoconfusionwhenmakingentries.
·On:ThiswillswitchontheHistoryfeature.The
Historywillbedisplayedwhenyouusethe"Backspace"keywhilethecursorisonthefieldinquestion,orwhenyoutrytoentersomevalueinthefield.
·Immediately:InnormalHistoryOnmode,theHistoryisonlydisplayedwhentheuserstartsenteringvaluesintheinputfield(orusesthe
"Backspace"key).CheckingtheImmediatelyindicatorwilldisplaytheHistoryassoonasthecursorisplacedonthefieldinquestion(eitherwithamouseclickorbyusingthe"Tab"key).
In addition to switching theHistory on and off, animportant option is to limitthe number of entriesdisplayed in the History list.
This may be done via theHistory Settings as shown inFigure4.34.
Figure4.34:HistorySettings
Therelevantfieldinthiscase
is the Maximum Number ofEntries.Youmay increaseordecrease the value from thedefault value of 20. Forexample, if you type "4" inthe field, the maximumentries displayed in a field’sHistorywillbe4.IfyouneedtoclearalloftheHistory, simply click theClear History button. Thiswill clear theHistory for theentire system and no history
will be shown for any inputfieldonanyscreen.
4.3.3ChangingYourUserProfileThe Own Data within yourUser Profile also offersoptionsforpersonalization.Inthis section, we will take acloselookat theUserProfileoptions available. To reachyour user profile, choose the
menu path System à UserProfile à Own Data (seeFigure4.35).
Figure4.35:UserProfileMenuPath
This will take you to thescreenshowninFigure4.36.
NOTE: In order to godirectly to theOwnDataof the User Profile, usetransactionSU3.
Figure4.36:MaintainUserProfile
This screen is comprised of
three tabs:Address,Defaults,and Parameters. On theAddress tab you can set thepersonal information relatedto your user ID. The variousfields that may be set areTitle,LastandFirstname,theDepartment, Room Number,Floor, and Buildinginformation.ThemoreimportanttabistheDefaults tab. Let us discusssome of the important fields
on this tab that can help inpersonalization.
Figure4.37:DefaultsTab
NOTE: Once you aredone with User Profilechanges, save yoursettings. Values enteredon theDefault tab applywhen you log in again.The system reads thesevalues at the time oflogon and changes itselfaccordingly.
·StartMenu.Thisisthe
areamenudisplayeddirectlyafteryoulogintothesystem.Itissimilartothestarttransaction.Use"F4"toselectavaluefromthelistthatappears.Ifyouleavethisfieldblank,theSAPEasyAccessmenuwillbedisplayed.
·LogonLanguage.Thisisthelanguageapplicableafteryoulogin.Allelementsdisplayedonthe
userinterface,suchasthemenuitemtexts,applicationtoolbarbuttontext,screenfieldlabels,aswellasthedocumentation,areintheselectedlogonlanguage.
·DecimalNotation.Thedecimalnotationletsyoucontrolthewaythedecimalfigures,includingamountsthataredisplayedontheSAPscreensand
lists,areformatted.ThethreeformatsinwhichyoumaydisplaydecimalsareshowninFigure4.38.
Figure4.38:DecimalFormats
Choosetheappropriateformatbasedonyourliking.Thefirstformatincludesaperiod‘.’for
everythousandnumbersandacommawillappeartodenotedecimalspoints.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,theprintdialogboxthatappearswhileprintingwillalsohavetheOutput
Immediatelycheckboxonbydefault.OnceyouselectthePrintoption,theprintingwillbecarriedoutimmediately.YouarenotrequiredtomanuallydeleteyourrequestsfromthelistofSpoolrequests(formoreonSAPprintingrefertoChapter8-PrintingGuide).ChoosingtheDeleteAfterOutputbuttonwilldelete
theSpoolrequestonceyourprintinghasbeencompleted.Ifthisoptionisnoton,therequestsremaininthespoollistandwillonlybedeletedbythesystemafterasetperiodoftime.
The Parameters tabwithin the Userprofile (when filled
with appropriateParameter IDs) offerssome valuablepersonalizationoptions.These optionsservetwopurposes:·Ifyouarecarryingouta
taskinvolvingtherepetitiveentryofdatainaparticularfieldonascreenformultipleobjects,you
maysetadefaultvaluefortheinputfield(eachtimethesamescreenisencountered).Bydoingso,thedefaultvaluewillautomaticallybeplacedintheinputfieldandwillnotrequireyoutoenterthesamedataintothefieldoverandoveragain.Thisoptioncansavealotoftimeandeffortwhenyouneedtoentermultiplesets
ofrepetitivedatainagivenfield.
·Moreover,someSAPscreensareprogrammedsothattheyappearorbehavedifferentlydependingonthevalueassignedtoagivenParameterIDintheprofileoftheuserinquestion.Forexample,ParameterIDUGR(CountryGrouping)maybesettodenotea
specificcountry,suchastheUnitedStatesortheUnitedKingdom.Thiswillshowtheusers,ifapplicable,thescreensrelevanttothecountryspecified.(Thismeansonlythatthefieldsspecifictothecountry,forexampletheUnitedStatesortheUnitedKingdom,willbeshown.)
NOTE:Avaluemaybedefaulted by entering thefield'sParameterIDintheUser Profile, if theparticular field has adefined ID. To check ifthis feature is supportedforaparticularfield,press"F1"toaccessthehelpforthe field and then choosethe Technical Informationbutton . From the box
that appears, note downtheParameterIDasshowninFigure4.39.
Figure4.39:ReadingParameterID
To enter a Parameter ID andassign an appropriate value,click the Parameters tab. Anumber of Parameter IDsmay already be there asshowninFigure4.40.
Figure4.40:ParameterIDandValue
ToenteranewParameter IDanditsvalue,placethecursoron a blank line. Enter theParameter ID in the firstcolumn saying “ParameterID”. The default value mustbe entered in the “ParameterValue” column. Once youpress "Enter", the descriptionwill automatically be filled(seeFigure4.41).
Figure4.41:ParameterIDandValue
When you are done, saveyourentries.Thechangeswillthen take place when youopenanewsession.YoumaychangethevalueofthegivenParameterlater.The value will only be
defaulted in the given fieldfor the user who enters theParameter in this profile.Otherusersarenotaffected.
4.2.4QuickCutandPasteFeatureTheQuickCutandPaste isan important feature thatyouneedtoknowinordertocopyand paste content quickly.This feature significantlyreducestheworkfor theuserandwill save plenty of time,particularly when a lot ofcopyingandpastingoftextis
required.Using this feature maychange the normal SAPCopy/CutandPastebehavior.By default this function isswitched off. In order to usethisfunction,youfirstneedtoswitch on Quick Cut andPaste. Follow the stepsshownbelow:·ClicktheCustomizeLocalLayoutbutton on
thestandardtoolbar.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: Switching on“QuickCutandPaste”willallow you to copy textsimplybyselectingitfromany SAP screen. (Nocopying is required either
with "CTRL+C" keys ormouse right-click.)Likewise, you can Pastetext simply with a mouseright-click.
SummaryofChapter
This chapter discussedchanges that can be made topersonalize the look and feelof your SAP system. Withthese directions, you shouldnow be able to personalizeyour initial screen, changevarious SAP behaviors, andalsochangetheGUIandHelpsettings. Utilizing these
SummaryofChapter4
techniques in your SAPsystemwillmake for amoreefficient and pleasantworkingexperience.
Chapter5
ExecutingReportTransactionsand
DownloadingOutput
In this chapter, we willdiscuss the various ways inwhich you may executereport transactions anddownloadtheiroutput.This chapter will cover the
followingimportanttopics:·TypesofReportOutputs·OnlineExecutionofReports
·ExecutingReportsinBackground
·DownloadingListOutput
·DesktopShortcutsforPrograms/Reports
This chapter will begin withthe procedures that are
available for executing andgeneratingoutput. Itwill thenmove into discussing how tosavetheoutputsonyourlocalPC in various formats. Thechapter will end with adiscussion on various desktopshortcutsthatyoumayuseforbothprogramsandreports.Some questions to beanswered in this chapterinclude:
·HowcanIexecuteareport?
·Whatarethedifferentformatsthatcanbeusedfordisplayingreports?
·HowdoIexecutereportsinBackgroundMode?
·HowcanIdownloadalistontomyPC?
Throughoutthechapter,therewill be examples and
screenshotstohelpthereaderunderstand the process ofexecuting reports and savingoutputs to their PC. In thischapter the terms Report,Report Program, and ReportTransaction will be usedinterchangeably.
5.1TypesofReportOutputs
In this section, we will seesome of the various formatsinwhichdata isoutputtedbyReport programs. These areABAP List Viewer (ALV),classic ABAP List, Smartforms, and Adobe PDFForms. Let us review themonebyone.
5.1.1ABAPListOutputand
ALVformatOneformat thatmaybeusedfor displaying reports is theABAPList format.Youmayget the report output in atypicallistformatasshowninFigure5.1.
Figure5.1:ReportOutputinListFormat
Lines separate the displayedcolumns,andthetextmayberepresented by differentcolors.In addition to theABAP list,a popular format that userscome across while runningSAP report programs is theALV format (or moreprecisely,SAPListViewer).
The ALV output has anumber of functions on thetoolbarthatyoumayperformon the displayed data. AtypicalALVoutput is showninFigure5.2.
NOTE: For detailedinformation onALV outputs and thefunctions supported,please refer to theChapter 7 - ALV
Displays.
Figure5.2:ALVOutput
5.1.2FormOutputApart from the list andALV output, you may alsorun programs and they maygenerate a form-like output.There are typically twopossible formats: SmartForm andAdobe Forms inPDF format.Aprint previewisshownforthetwotypesof
formsinthescreen.The Smart form output isshowninFigure5.3.
Figure5.3:SmartFormOutput
The PDF form output isshowninFigure5.4.
Figure5.4:PDFFormOutput
You may print the forms orview a Print Preview. Theformopens inaPDFViewerwithin the SAPwindow, andall PDF functions such as“Save a Copy,” “Zoom in”,and“Zoomout”areavailableontheuserscreen.Inadditionto the read-onlymode, formsmay be editable (Interactive)depending on therequirement.
Asmentionedearlier,areporttransaction may be executedfrom the SAP EasyAccess Menu by double-clicking the relevant node inthe SAP Easy AccessMenu.Alternately, you may choosethe transaction node fromFavorites and then double-
5.2OnlineExecutionofReports
click(asshowninChapter2)orchoosemenuoptionEditàExecute.For online execution of areport transaction, you mayalsotypethetransactioncodein the Command field andpress "Enter". All of theaboveoptionswilltakeyoutothe selection screen of thereport program. A typicalselection screen is shown inFigure5.5.
Figure5.5:SelectionScreenYou may then enter theappropriate entries on the
screen and press "F8" togeneratetheoutput.Formoreinformationonhowto fill the selection screen,refertoChapter6-MasteringSelectionScreens.Apart from the onlineexecution, you may also runprogram reports inbackground.Thisisusefulforlong-running reports. Theoutputof thereport issent to
thespoolandmaybeprintedlaterbytheuser.
For long-running reportprograms, you may executethem inBackground mode.For running the report inbackground, first run the
5.3ExecutingReportsinBackground
transaction so that the reportselection screen appears.Then, choose the optionExecute in Background.Alternately,youmaypressthe"F9" key. The print dialogappears as shown in Figure5.6.
Figure5.6:ExecuteinBackground
Then you will see thescheduler dialog box asshowninFigure5.7.
Figure5.7:DialogBox
Once done, the dialog box
appears for specifying theStartTime.
Figure5.8:StartTime
DialogBox
This is an important dialogbox,asweneedtospecifytheexacttimeatwhichyouwantthe Report to start and thenstop. For example, we canspecify either Immediate orany specific Date and Timewhen the program executionshouldstart.Click the Date/Time button.This will show the fields
required to specify the dateand time for the report inquestion.
Figure5.9:Date/Time
Enter suitable values in theScheduledStartdateandtimefieldsasshowninFigure5.9.
The Periodic job indicatormaybecheckedifyouwouldlike to run the jobperiodically as shown inFigure5.10.
Figure5.10:PeriodicJob
When the indicator ischecked, it will display thedialogboxasshowninFigure5.11
Figure5.11:PeriodicJobDialogBox
Checktherelevantbuttonfor
your requirement, such ashourly, daily, or weekly.Finally, click the Checkbutton in order to ensure thecorrectness of your entereddata.Once you have made allrelevantsettings,makesuretoclick theSave button on theStart Time dialog box showninFigure5.8.The reportwillthen be scheduled forbackground execution instead
of online (foreground)execution. The output is thensenttoaspoolrequest.
A typical ABAP list wasshown earlier in Figure 5.1.Let’ssupposethatweneedtodownloaditonourPC.Inthissection,wewill see in detail
5.4DownloadingListOutput
the process of saving reportoutputs on your local PC invariousformats.You are able to downloadoutputs in a number offormats, such as simple textformat, rich text format(RTF), Excel, or HTMLformats.Whileyouareonthelist output, youmay save thelist output on your local PCby following the menu pathListàSave/SendàFile.
Figure5.12:SavingListOutput
The dialog box appears asshowninFigure5.13.
Figure5.13:SaveListinFile
Choosetheappropriateoptioninwhichyouwanttheoutputto be downloaded. There areanumberofpossibleformats.Theunconverted format letsyou store the output in asimple text file. Choosingthis option will display thedialogshowninFigure5.14.
NOTE: Fordownloading ALV in
Excel etc. refer to thechapterALVOutputs.
Figure5.14:StoringOutputinTextFile
Youmaythenenterasuitablefile name and choose a
suitable directory, forexample, the Desktop. Bydefault, the SAP workdirectory appears in theDirectory field. Enter asuitable filename in theFileNamefield,suchas“text.txt”.
Figure5.15:EnteringTXT
FileName
Next, click theGeneratebutton. The message willappearshowingthenumberofbytes transferred to the localPC,i.e.,thesizeofthefile.
Figure5.16:NumberofBytesTransferred
The text file is a simpleunformattedfile.
Moreover, your ABAP listwithitsvariouscolumnsmayalso be downloaded in theExcel format. In this case,choose the SpreadsheetoptionshowninFigure5.13.Thiswilldisplayadialogboxshown earlier. Enter asuitable name in the field asshowninFigure5.17.
Figure5.17:SavingasExcelFile
An Excel file is created onthe Desktop and may beviewedlater.You can also download theABAP list output in HTMLformat. Or you may choose
the Rich Text format (RTF)by choosing the relevantoptionsshown.Ifafilebythatnamealreadyexists, then choose theReplace button in order toreplacethefilewithyournewdata.
5.5DesktopShortcutsfor
Programs/Reports
For quick execution offrequently used programs,SAPalsoallowsyoutocreateshortcuts on the desktop ofyour PC. This functionalityprovidesmany advantages tousers:·Insteadofsearchingfor
programsorrememberingtransactioncodes,theusersmaysimplydouble-
Programs/Reports
clicktheshortcutonthedesktop.Thissavesusers’timebylettingthemquicklyexecutetheirmostusedtransactionsorprograms.
·Youmaycreateasmanyshortcutsasyoulike.
·Theshortcutonlyallowsauthorizeduserstoexecutetheprogramortransactioninquestion.IfnoconnectiontoSAPexists,
thesystemfirstverifiestheusernameandpasswordbeforeallowingaccesstothetransaction.
To create shortcuts, followthestepsshownbelow:·Selectanitemfromthe
SAPEasyAccessMenu(orfromtheFavorites)andright-clicktoaccessthecontextmenuasshowninFigure5.18.
Figure5.18:ContextmenuofaMenuNode
·ChoosetheoptionCreate
shortcutonthedesktop.AmessageShortcutcreatedonthedesktopisdisplayed.
Figure5.19:MessageofShortcutCreation
A shortcut then appears onthedesktopwithanSAPiconasshowninFigure5.20.
Figure5.20:DesktopShortcut
Toexecutethegivenprogramortransaction,simplydouble-click on the shortcut. Therelevant transaction screenwillappear ifyouarealreadylogged into the system. In
case you are not, you areasked to enter your user IDandpasswordbeforegoingtothetransaction.
This chapter outlined how toexecute reports and saveoutputsonyourPC.Withtheinformation provided, youshould now be able to
SummaryofChapter5
identify the different formatsthat can be used to displayreports, execute reports inBackgroundMode, save listsandotheroutputstoyourPC,andusedesktopshortcuts forprogramsandreports.
Chapter6
MasteringSelectionScreens
This chapter will focus onselection screens and thevarious ways that you canmakethemmoreefficientanduseful. I will discuss, indetail, theimportantconceptsrelated to typical reportselection screens within theSAP arena. The followingtopicswillbecovered:
·ComponentsofSelection
Screens,includingcheckboxes,radiobuttons,andsinglevalueinputfields.
·SelectionCriteria(Options)orRanges,includinghowtospecifymultiplesinglevaluesandrangesandhowtoentermassdataonaprogramscreen.
·Selection
ScreenVariants,includinghowtoretrieve,create,change,anddeleteVariants.
This chapter will enable thereader to master the variouselements of a typicalselection screen and willensure a more user friendlyand efficient workingexperience. It will answersuchquestionsas:
·HowcanIdefinemyselectioncriteria?
·HowcanIcopyvaluesfromtheclipboardandpastethemintotheSAPselectionscreen?
·WhataretheadvantagesofVariants?
There will be examples andscreen shots to guide you inthe process of mastering thevarious concepts within the
selectionscreens.
In this section, I will coverthedetails of a typical reportSelectionScreen (andscreenelements) that you mayencounter within the SAParena.
6.1SelectionScreenComponents:AnOverview
Atypicalselectionscreenforprograms is shown in Figure6.1.
Figure6.1:SelectionScreen
There may be a number of
blocks within a selectionscreen. Each block iscomprisedofinputfieldsthatcan allow either single valueinput fields or ranges knownas Selection Options. Inaddition,youmayhaveradiobuttons and checkboxes onthescreen.
NOTE:Onaselectionscreen, you may haveinput fields that are
mandatory, meaning theprogramwillnot executeuntil the field(s) is (are)filled with appropriatedata. The required fieldappearswith a tickmarkin it as shown in Figure6.2.
Figure6.2:MandatoryInputfield
You enter the data on thescreen and then choose theExecute button. Alternately,you may press "F8" toexecute the report based onyourselectioncriteria.Incaseyou need to enter data in arequired (mandatory) singleinput or range field, an erroris issued as shown in Figure6.3.
Figure6.3:Error
6.1.1CheckboxA typical checkbox is showninFigure6.4.
Figure6.4:Checkbox
For example, you may havean Output Log checkbox.This may, by default, be OnorOff.Theprogramexecutes
anddisplays resultsbasedonthe checkbox conditionspecified.Forexample,ifyouhaveanOutputLogcheckboxasshowninFigure6.4,itwilldisplay the Log only if thecheckbox is selected. Ascreen can contain a numberof checkboxes, and these areallindependentofeachother.You may check all of thecheckboxes or choose toleavethemallunchecked.
Within the screen, you mayalso have a Test runcheckbox. These are typicalof programs that update thedatabase.IfyouhaveTestrunon, all the results will begenerated (in simulationmode) and calculated, but itwill not be posted to thedatabase.
6.1.2RadioButtons
There are a number ofchoices available in the caseofa radiobutton.Bydefault,upon the execution of thereport,oneofthechoiceswillbe checked. You may thendecide which of the otherchoices to select. The radiobuttons are in groups, andonly one radio button choicewithin a group may beselected. A screen maycontain a number of radio
buttongroups.
6.1.3SingleValueInputFieldsSingle Value or Parametersaresingleinputfieldsthatdonot allow you to specifyrange (as shown in Figure6.5).
Figure6.5:ASingleValue
InputFieldA single field may takenumbers, texts, and dates asinput.Ifasingleinputfieldisleft blank, only the datapertaining to the blank valueofthatfieldwillbedisplayed.Based on a radio buttonselection or a checkbox, it ispossiblethatinputfieldsmaybecome visible or invisible,or they may be enabled or
disabled.Forexample, ifyouhave an input field linked tothe radio button optionLayout forRemun Statement,it may be possible that thegiven field is only enabledwhen the relevant radiobuttonoptionisselected.
Figure6.6:RadioButtonOption
You may have an F4 searchhelp associated with a singleinput field for possiblevalues. For example, in thecase of a date, you may use"F4"tochooseanappropriatedate.Note: At any time, you mayaccess the F1help/information for an inputfield.
One of the most importantelements that may existwithin a selection screen isthe Selection option orcriteria — also termed asRanges. This allows you toenter a range of values thatare to be read from the
6.2SelectionCriteria(Options)orRanges
database. If used wisely, itcan greatly reduce the workoftheuseraswellastheloadon the system. It can alsoimprove the system’sperformance.
NOTE: For selectioncriteria, F1 and F4 helpsarealsoavailable.
A typical selection option is
showninFigure6.7.
Figure6.7:SelectionCriteria
Thereare two input fieldsonthe selection screen (a LowandHigh field)aswell asanExtension (arrow button) ontheright.There are many options
available to you in order todefine your criteria. Theseoptions include enteringsingle values, one range, ormultiple ranges within theinput fields. You may alsokeep the field blank by notenteringanydata.If thefieldis left blank, all entries willbefetchedfromthedatabase.For example, if you enter areport on the personnelnumber 000001, the report
will only show the data ofthat employee. Keeping thepersonnel number blank willdisplayallemployees.In its simplest form, theselectioncriteriaallowyoutoenterarangeaswellassinglevalues. For example, if youenter the date range01.01.2011 and 31.12.2011,the system will show allrecords falling between 1January 2011 and 31
December2011.Ontheotherhand, ifwe enter 01.01.2011in the first input field andleave the second input fieldblank, only records that arevalid at 01.01.2011 will beshown.Ifthetwoinputfieldsareleftblank,alldatawillbeshown regardless of whatdatestheybelongto.
6.2.1Specifyinga
SingleValueorRangeThe rangesmay accept inputin the form of numbers ordates as well as characterfieldssuchasnames.The selection criteria (orranges) have a number ofselectionoptionsattached foreach input field. To displaythe various selection optionsandsignsapplicable,keepthecursor on the input field and
double-click. The variousselectionoptionsappear.Dependingonthetypeofinputfield as well as the valueentered before the double-click, ten selection optionsmay appear. These selectionoptionsarelistedinFigure6.8alongwiththeirmeanings.
SelectionOption Meaning
NotEqualTo
LessThan
GreaterThan
LessThanorEqualTo
Greaterthanorequal
EqualTo
Pattern
ExcludePattern
Range
OutsideRange
Figure6.8:SelectionOptions
The above options are usedwith two available signs,namely Include andExclude.On the selection optionsdialog, you may use the
button to switch ontheIncludesign,whereasthe
button isused for specifying theExclude sign. When theExclude sign is on, thevarious selectionoptionswillappearredincolor.
Here are some examples thatwillhelpclarifytheusageandexplore the power ofselectioncriteria.·SpecifyingNumberRanges:Supposeyouhavearangeforemployeenumbersthatyouneedtoenterandyouwanttospecifythemonanintervalofnumbersbetween1and100.Todothis,simplyenter“1”inthelowerfield
and“100”intheupperfieldasshowninFigure6.9.
Figure6.9:SelectingNumbers1to100
Ontheotherhand,thereareanumberofoptionsavailabletodeselectemployeesfrom1to100.Thismeansincludeallemployeenumbersexcept
forthosefallingwithintherangeof1to100.OneoptionforthisistousetheOutsideRangeselectionoption.Todothis,enterthevalues“1”and“100”inthelowerandupperfieldsrespectively,andthendouble-clickthelowerrangefield.ThescreenappearsasshowninFigure6.10.
Figure6.10:SelectionOptions
ChoosetheoptionOutsideRangeandpress"Enter".ThefieldwillthenappearasshowninFigure6.11.
Figure6.11:SelectingAllOutsideRange
Thiswillexcludeemployeesfrom1to100
fromtheselection.Alternately,fromthepop-upshowninFigure6.10,youmaypresstheExcludefromSelectionoption,choosetheRangeoption,andpress"Enter".ThefieldwillthenappearasshowninFigure6.12.
Figure6.12:Excludeallnumbersfrom1to100
·SpecifyingPatterns.IncaseyouhaveanamerangefieldandyouwanttoselectallnamesstartingfromP,youcandosobyspecifying“P*”inthelowerinputfield,asshowninFigure6.13.
Figure6.13:“P*”enteredinInputfield
Ifyouneedtoignoreall
namesstartingfromP,enter“P*”inthelowerinputfieldandthendouble-clickonthefieldtodisplaytheselectionoptionsasshowninFigure6.14.
Figure6.14:SelectionOptions
SelecttheExcludePatternoption and press "Enter".The input field will thenlookliketheoneshowninFigure6.15.
Figure6.15:InputFieldAnother way to eliminateallnamesstartingwithPisto click the Exclude from
Selection button and thenchoose theoptionPattern.Theinputfieldshouldlooklike the one shown inFigure6.16.
Figure6.16:Eliminating“P”
In the above-mentionedways,youmayexcludeallnamesstartingfromP.
·IgnoringBlankSpaces.
Toignoreallblankspaces,double-clickonthelowerinputfield.TheoptionsappearasshowninFigure6.17.
Figure6.17:“NotEqualto”Option
Selectthe≠(NotEqualto)option, and click theSavebutton.Theinputfieldwillthen look like the oneshowninFigure6.18.
Figure6.18:InputField
This ensures that blank
values are not used in theselectioncriteria.
·SpecifyingDateSelection.Supposeyouhaveadatefieldrangeandyouneedtospecifyalldatesbutignorethedate01December2012.YoumustselecttheNotEqualtooptionandspecifythedate12/01/2012inthelowerinputfield,asshowninFigure6.19.
Figure6.19:“NotEqualTo”Option
Likewise, if we need tospecify that all datesgreater than or equal to01/01/2013 must befetched, select the ≥(GreaterthanorEqualto)option as shown inFigure6.20.
Figure6.20:“Greaterthan”OptionforDates
6.2.2MultipleSelectionSpecificationsandOtherAvailableOptionsSelection options have a
number of other advancedoptions. You may enter asimplerange(oranumberofranges), or you may enter asingle value or a number ofsingle values that are to beselected.Inaddition,youmayspecifyanyrangeofvaluesorsingle values that are to beexcludedfromtheselectedordisplayeddata.Letusdiscussthemindetail.Selection options allow you
to:·Enteroneormoresingle
valuesthatneedtobeintheselectioncriteria.
·Enteroneormorerangevaluesthataretobeincludedintheselection.
·Specifyoneormoresinglevaluesthataretobeexcludedfromtheselection.
·Specifyarangeofvalues
thataretobeexcludedfromtheselection.
To enter multiple singlevalues and/or ranges, clickthe button next to theselection criteria. The screenappears as shown in Figure6.21.
Figure6.21:Values/RangestobeIncludedand
Excluded
6.2.2.1SpecifyingMultipleSingleValuesandRangesWithinthedialogbox(shownin Figure 6.21), you mayenter a number of singlevalues and ranges that youwould like to include orexclude in your selection.There are four tabs, namely,Select Single Values, SelectRanges, Exclude Single
Values,andExcludeRanges.Suppose you have a numberfieldandyouneed to see thedata for all numbers rangingfrom 1 to 1000 and from3000 to 4000, and also thetwonumbers2005and2008.However, you want thenumbers ranging from 50 to65 to be omitted from theselection. In this case, threetabs in theMultipleSelectionscreen must be filled in as
follows: The range “1”-“1000”and“3000”–“4000”willbeenteredontheRangestab.On the Single tab, you willenterthetwonumbers“2005”and “2008”. To omit thenumbers from 50 to 65, youshouldentertherange“50”–“65”ontheExcludetab.
6.2.2.2EnteringMass
DataonProgramScreenApart from the entryfunctions, a number of otherimportant functions aresupported on the MultipleSelection screen. Let usdiscussthemonebyone.Most SAP programs involvetheentryof inputdatabytheuser.Theremaybesituationswhen the data to be entered
into a certain screen fieldresidesinfilesstoredonyourPC. These files may becomprised of a large numberof records, whose manualentry may lead toconsiderablelossoftime.This section will explainsome of the tips and tricksusedtoentersuchdata.Thereare twoapproaches involved:copying data using thememory clipboard and
accessing the data directlyfrom a text file. These arediscussedbelow:·CopyingValuesfromtheclipboard.AquickandeasywaytoentervaluesistofirstcopythemintotheclipboardmemoryandthenpastethemintotheSAPselectionscreen.FromMicrosoftWordorExcel,selectthecolumnof
valuesthataretobeenteredusingthe"CTRL+C"keys.YoumayalsocopydatafromotherSAPscreensorlistsusingthe"CTRL+Y"and"CTRL+C"keys.Clickthe buttonnexttothefieldinwhichthefilevaluesaretobeentered.ThiswilldisplaytheMultipleSelectionscreenasshowninFigure6.22.
Figure6.22:MultipleSelectionScreenforField
PersonnelNumber
Onthisscreen,clickthebutton.ThevaluesstoredintheclipboardarepastedintotheSingleValuescolumnofthescreenfield.
·CopyingValuesdirectlyfromaTextFile.YoumayalsocopyvaluesdirectlyfromatextfilestoredontheharddriveofyourPC.OntheMultipleSelectionscreen,clickthe button.
AdialogboxappearsasshowninFigure6.23.
Figure6.23:EnteringfromaTextFile
SelectthefileandclicktheOpen button. Thispopulates the selectionscreen with the valuesstored in the file. In casethedataresidinginthefileis not in an appropriateformat, an informationdialog is generated asshowninFigure6.24.
Figure6.24:ConversionErrorDialog
6.3SelectionScreenVariants
Variants are simply definedas the (stored) set of inputvalues for a given field. In acasewhereyouneedtorunareport involving a largenumber of input fields thatyoudonotwanttomemorize,youmaychoosetoreadfromthe stored set of inputvaluesprovidedbytheVariant.Thisis beneficial in that it willrelieve the user from theburdenofentering thevalues
overagain.
NOTE: Variants storeallinputsspecifiedontheselection screen,including radio buttonoptions, checkboxes, andthesingleandrangeinputfields.
Variants provide thefollowingadvantages:
·Savestimebystoringthevaluesthataretobeenteredforagivensetoffieldsontheuserscreen.
·Insteadofhard-codedvaluesassignedtofields,youmayalsohavetheoptionofsettingdynamicvalues,suchasthevalueofsystemdate,etc.
·Youmayalsomakefieldsmandatoryorinvisible
dependingonusersettings.·Variantsalsostorethe
signsandselectionoptionsofanyrangeofinputfields.
The user may change thevalues retrieved from theselected Variant, and anumber of Variants may bedefinedforaparticularreport.You may name themaccording to the area for
which they are applicable orfor the frequencywithwhichthey are run. For example,you may name a Variant“Monthly” and “Yearly” todenote the yearly ormonthlyexecutionofareport.In the next sections we willtake a close look at howVariants are defined andretrieved.
6.3.1Retrieving
VariantsTo access a given Variant,proceedasfollows:·Fromtheprogram
selectionscreen,choosethemenuoptionVariantsàGetVariants.Alternately,youmaychoosethekeys"Shift+F5"shortcutorclickonthe buttonontheapplicationtoolbar(thebuttonappearsifatleast
onevariantexists).ThedialogappearsasshowninFigure6.25.
Figure6.25:VariantDirectory
You may then choose fromthe list the Variant that youwouldliketoretrieve.Incaseyou have a number ofVariantsdefinedbyanumberofusers,adialogboxappearsin which you can enter youruser ID in the Created Byfield and then choose thebuttontodisplaytheVariantsdefined by you (see Figure6.26).
Figure6.26:FindVariantYou may then choose theVariantyouareinterestedin.
6.3.2Creating
VariantsTorcreateVariants,gototheselection screen of theprogram, enter the values intheappropriatefieldsthatyouwishtosaveinVariantform,and click the Save button.This leadsyoutotheVariantAttributesscreenasshowninFigure6.27.For each input field on theselection screen, a row
appears on the Variantattributes screen (see theObjects for SelectionScreen table in Figure 6.27).A number of checkboxesappear for controlling thefield behavior. You may settheappropriatevaluesforthecheckboxes of the fieldsshownonthereportselectionscreen in order to get thedesiredresult.
Figure6.27:VariantAttributes
Enter a Variant name andmeaning in the fields
provided. If you do notwantthe Variant to appear whenthe program is executed inOnline/dialog mode, checkthe indicator Only forBackground Processing. Ifyou do not want the Variantto be changed by any users,makesuretheProtectVariantcheckbox is selected. Thenyou need to fill theObjects table, the mostimportant fieldsofwhichare
shownbelow:·FieldName.Thisisthe
longtextoftheinputfieldthatappearsontheselectionscreen.
·ProtectField.IftheProtectFieldindicatorischeckedforaparticularfield,inputisnotallowedforthegivenfield.Allinputfieldsthathavethischeckboxselectedappear
asgreyfieldswhentherelevantVariantisused.
·HideField.Thismaybeusedtohideormakefieldsinvisiblethatarenotmeantfordisplay.Yourscreenmayconsistofanumberofunwantedfields,andyoumayhidethemasyouwish.
·SaveFieldWithoutValues.Incaseyouwanttoignoreaparticularfield
orfieldsduringVariantselectionandretrieval,youcansaveVariantswithoutanyvaluesforthefieldsbyclickingthisindicator.Forexample,ifyouhaveaDatefieldonthescreenandyouchecktheSaveFieldwithoutValuesindicator,uponretrievaloftheVariant,thevalueenteredintheDatefieldonthescreenisnot
affected.·Mandatory.Thiswill
ensurethatwhenthecurrentVariantisselected,therespectivefieldwillappearasarequiredfield.
NOTE: DynamicSpecifications of Values— An importantfunctionality existswithin the Variantcreation. Insteadofhard-
coded values, the systemlets you define valuesdynamically based oncertain variables. Forexample,youmaysetthevalue of a given inputfield as the system dateorthefirstdayofthenextmonth. In this case, thesystemwill calculate thedate according to thecurrent month and yearand display it in the
relevantfield.
Let us see how we canspecify in the Variant that adate field should alwaysdisplay the first day of thenext month in which theprogram is executed. Thiswill require a few additionalsteps.Keep the cursor on thecolumn Selection Variable
and press "F4". From thevaluesdisplayed,choose“D”denoting“Date”.Thiswillfillthe Selection Variablecolumnfortherelevantfieldswith“D”.Next,selecttheF4helpoftheName of Variable field andchoose the option “FirstDayof Next Month”. YourVariant attributes screen willlook like the one shown inFigure 6.28 for the given
inputfield.
Figure6.28:NameofVariable
NOTE: The threefields will appear greybutwillacceptinput.
6.3.3Changingand
DeletingVariantsTo delete Variants, you maychoose themenu pathDeleteà Variants and click on theappropriate rowthatneeds tobedeleted.You may simply change agivenVariant by choosing theVariant using the menu pathVariants à Get or using keys"Shift+F5".Thiswillpopulatetheselectionscreenfieldswith
the values stored in theselected Variant. Make yourchanges, and then choose theSave button.Youwill thenbetaken to theVariantAttributesscreen. You may then savechangesmadetotheVariant.Adialog box will appear (seeFigure 6.29) confirming theoverwriting of the Variant inquestion.
Figure6.29:OverwriteVariant
This chapter discussed thevarious options available toenhance your work
Chapter6Summary
experience with selectionscreens.Byimplementingtheuse of Variants,understandinghowtospecifysinglevaluesandranges,andmastering such componentsas radio buttons and singlevalue input fields, the usershould find working withselection screens to be easierand a more efficient use oftime.
Chapter7
ALVDisplays
SinceRelease 4.6, SAP hasempowered the reportingcapability by providing userswith the ALV data displays.
The ALV data displaysprovideavarietyofimportantfunctionstotheuser.ALV will display data ineither full-screen design orwithout it. I will begin withan explanationof both types,and then I will move on tocover the details of thevarious functionsprovided inALV. The following
topicswillbecovered:·ALVDisplays,including
selectingagivencolumn,movingcolumnsusingthemouse,andfreezingcolumns.
·ToolbarFunctionsAvailable,includingsorting(ascendinganddescending),navigatingleftandright,filteringdata,calculatingtotals
andsubtotals,andchangingviews.
·ExcelDownloading,inordertosavedisplayeddataondesktop.
·ManagingLayouts,includingchangeofcolumnsequenceandhidingthem,ifnecessary.
Thischapter ismeant tohelpthe user become comfortablewhile working within the
ALV format. It will answersuchquestionsas:·WhataremyoptionsfordifferentviewsavailableinALV?
·HowcanIdownloadmydataintoExcel?
·WhatarethetypicalfunctionsavailabletomeinvariousmodesofALV?
Along theway, therewill be
examplesand screen shots tomake operating withinALV as easy andstraightforwardaspossible.
ALV or SAP/ABAP ListViewer is a format fordisplaying data in reports.This format has a number of
7.1ALVDisplays:AnOverview
toolbar functions as well asmenu options and contextmenu functions to assist youwhen carrying out usefultasks. Mastering all of thesefunctions will help youachieve your goals in lesstime.There are two types ofALVdisplays,namelyaFull-screen display and aContainer display that is notfullscreen(thismodeisused
forALVdisplayedoutputforSAPqueries).An ALV Full-screen displayis shown in Figure 7.1. TheALVdataisdisplayedontheentire screen, and the set ofALV functions toolbar isdisplayed in place of theapplicationtoolbar.TheALVdisplay may also have aheaderarea.InFigure7.1,theheader displays the date,time,title,orcompanylogo.
Figure7.1:ALVFullScreenDisplay
Insomecases,eachdisplayedrow may have acorresponding checkbox for
selectinganynumberofrowsthat you desire.You are alsoable to carry out certainactions by choosing anappropriate toolbarbutton. Insomecases,anALVmayalsohave editable columns fortaking input from user, butthisisveryrare.An ALV may contain datacolumns comprised ofnumbers, amounts, text, anddates, as well as icons or
symbols, such as trafficsignalsdenoting the statusofa record as shown in Figure7.2. You may have ALV insingle-line and multiple-lineformats.
Figure7.2:SignalIconsDisplayedasColumns
There may also be a hotspotdisplayedwithinalistcolumn.
Clicking thehotspotmay takeyou to the details screen forthecolumninquestion.A list may also have keyfigures displayed in blue asshowninFigure7.3.
Figure7.3:KeyFieldsDisplayedinBlue
Note:Intheblackandwhiteprintbook,theblueappearsasdarkgray.
Scrolling to the right willmake thecolumnson the leftappear invisible, but the keyfields in blue will alwaysremain visible, as they arefixedcolumns.Youhavethedatadisplayedintheformofagrid,alongwitha toolbar with a variety ofuseful functions.
ALVdisplays may also haveadditional functions (buttons)specific to the application inquestion. The full-screenmode has a number of ALVtoolbar functions as shown inFigure 7.4. The functionslisted in Figure 7.4 are onlyavailable in the full-screenmode in a majority of thereports.
Details
SelectAll
DeselectAll
SortAscending
SortDescending
Filter
Export
Figure7.4:ALVToolbarFunctionsinFull-
ScreenMode
TheALV provides a numberof advantages to the user,some of which are listedbelow:·Unliketypicallists,a
varietyofpowerfulfunctionsaresupported.
·Youmaydownloadthereportsinanumberofdifferentformats,suchasExcel,Word,etc.
·Youcanreduce(filter)thedisplayednumberofrecordsbyspecifyingfiltercriteria.
·Manyfunctions,suchastotalandsubtotals,maybeperformedonthenumberandamountfields.
·Youmaychangethelayoutofdisplayedfields.Forexample,youcanhidecolumnsorchangecolumnpositionsandmovethem
backandforth.·Youmayalsosavethe
changeswithinthelayoutinordertousethemafterwards.
·Toviewdetailsofaparticularcolumnorrow,youmayclickonaroworahotspotwithinacolumntoviewdetails,ifapplicable.
·Chartsmayalsobegeneratedonthebasisofdatadisplayed.
NOTE: Depending onthe mode of theALVdisplay,thepositionof the toolbar may vary.The full screen displayhas the toolbar at theapplication toolbar place.In non-full-screen mode,the toolbar is within thescreen details area asshowninFigure7.5.
Figure7.5:Non-Full-ScreenMode
7.1.1SelectingaGivenColumnorColumnsBeforemovingforward,letusdiscuss an important featureofALVthat youneed to know:selecting columns of yourchoice.ToselectanentirecolumninALV, simply click thecolumn header. This will
select the column and it willappear in a grid as shown inFigure7.6.
Figure7.6:SelectedColumns“EndDate”and“ChangedBy”(in
orange)
To select multiple columns,
press the "CTRL" key afterselecting the first column.You may then select furthercolumns by clicking on therespective headers. (Makesure the "CTRL" key ispressed while multiplecolumnsareselected).
7.1.2MovingColumnsand
SearchingforValuesWithinALVGrids,youhavethe option of movingcolumns. The columnsdisplayed in Figure 7.7 areshown before their positionshavebeenchanged.
Figure7.7:ColumnsBeforeChange
Youmaymove theChangedby column to the second
position (beforeChanged oncolumn) by simply selectingit. Then, while holding theleftmousebuttondown,dragthe column to the left andplace it in the secondposition. The new positionsof the columns are shown inFigure7.8.
Figure7.8:NewPositionsofColumns
Within the column you maysearch for an entire word, a
partial set of characters or anumbervalue.For the normal full-screenmode, select a given columnandthenusekeys"CTRL+F"orusethemenuoptionEditàSearch.YoumayalsousethecontextmenuoptionFind.
NOTE: For non-full-screen mode, you mayhaveanadditionaloptiontoolbar button.Forthe
next occurrence, use thebutton.
The dialog appears as showninFigure7.9.
Figure7.9:SearchingTermswithinaColumn
Enter the search term in thedialog box (in our case“testing”).YoumaychecktheFindonlyentire word or valuecheckbox if that option isneeded. Next, press "Enter"and the various hits will bedisplayed in the givencolumn.IftheDisplayNumberofHitscheckbox is unchecked, the
hitsaredisplayedonebyonewithout the total number ofoccurrences of the given textin the given column as inFigure7.10.
Figure7.10:SearchResults
DisplayedWithoutTotalNumberof
Occurrences
Thenexthitwillbedisplayedafterpressing"Enter".If you check the checkboxDisplay Number of Hits, thehitsfoundwillbeshownasinFigure7.11.
Figure7.11:HitsDisplayedwiththe
“DisplayNumberofHits”CheckboxSelected
With each hit that isdisplayed, you will be taken
to therespectivecell thathasthematchinit.
7.1.3FreezingColumnsIn any given ALV output,theremay be important areasof key fields that you maywant to be visible as youscroll to the right or leftwithin the display. You maytherefore freeze one or more
fieldsoftheALVdisplay.Forfreezing fields, select thegiven field(s) and then right-click to choose the optionFreeze toColumn(seeFigure7.12).
Figure7.12:FreezetoColumn
All the columns from the
beginning (in our caseClt toAirfare)willbefrozen.Ifyouneedtounfreezethecolumns,right-click anywhere on theALV output and choose thecontextmenuoptionUnfreezeColumns.
NOTE: Copy andPasting Values from theALV is very easy. Aswith other places withintheSAPsystem,youmay
also use the "CTRL+Y"keys for Copy and Pastevalues data displayed inoneormorecells.
In this section, I will take aclose look at the various
7.2ToolbarFunctionsAvailable
function buttons available intheALVtoolbar.The typicaltoolbar displayed in the full-screen mode is shown inFigure7.13.
Figure7.13:Full-ScreenModeToolbar
Ontheotherhand,thetoolbarfor the non-full-screen modeisshowninFigure7.14.
Figure7.14:Non-Full-ScreenModeToolbar
Let us now discuss how tocarry out some simple taskswithinALV.Inthissection,Iwill also provide thecorresponding menu optionsforthetoolbaroptionslisted.
7.2.1Sorting(Ascendingand
Descending)You may sort the records inthe ALV display either inascending or descendingorder. The two buttons usedforthispurposeare andrespectively.Select a column whosecriteria you need sorted ineither ascending ordescending order. To sort inascending order, click the
button. The list will appearsorted.To sort in descendingorder,clickthe button.Ifmultiplecolumnsare tobesorted, click anyof the iconsagain.ThedialogboxappearsasshowninFigure7.15.
Figure7.15:DialogBoxFor
SortingMultipleColumns
Here you may use the button to add any of thefields in the column set (onthe right) to the Sort criteria(oryoumaysimplydraganddrop fields to the left). Youmay then specify whetherAscending or DescendingSort is applicable to the SortCriteriacolumns.To go directly to the Define
Sort Order dialog shown inFigure 7.15, use the menupaths Edit à Sort inAscending Order or Sort inDescendingOrder.
7.2.2NavigatingLeftandRightIf you are in the ALV listoutputmode(discussedinthesection 7.2.5.4 “PrintPreview/ListOutput”ahead),
and the columns within theALV list are more than thevisible width of the screen,youmay scroll left and rightusingthe and navigationbuttonsrespectively.The key fields/frozen fieldswillnotdisappeardespitethescrolling.Togototheendofthe list to the extreme right,use the button. To go tothe extreme left, use thebutton.
7.2.3FilteringDataALVreportingalsogivesyouthe power to filter dataaccording to your owndefined criteria. You maydefine the criteria using oneor more fields (and theirvalues)displayedintheALV.For example, if the Salarycolumn is there in youroutput,youmayset the filterin order to display salaries
ranging from $10,000 to $20,000.There are two steps involvedwhendefiningFilters:·Youspecifythefieldsthat
aretobeusedfordefiningthefiltering.
·Thenyouspecifythevaluesforthefilter-specificfields.
SimplyclicktheFilterbuttonon the ALV toolbar. The
dialog box appears as showninFigure7.16.
Figure7.16:DefiningFilterCriteria
On the right side, all of thecolumns appearing in theALVwillbelisted.Youmayselect a field or multiplefieldsandusethe buttontobring them to the left side,thus defining the filtercriteria. You may also draganddropfieldsfromtherightside to the left instead of
usingthemouse.Next, you need to specifyvalues for the filter criteria.Forthis,clickonthe iconshown at the bottom of thescreen.ThedialogappearsasshowninFigure7.17.
Figure7.17:DetermineValuesforFilterCriteria
A range of selection criteriaappears for each input fieldselected.Enter thevalues for
the criteria. For moreinformation on the variousinput options available infilterfields,refertoChapter6- Mastering SelectionScreens.The data will be filteredaccording to the definedcriteria.
NOTE: For quickdefinition of filters,
simplyselecttherelevantcolumn that you need touse in the Filter criteriausing thecolumnheader,and then click theFilter
button on theALV toolbar. This willtake you directly to thescreen shown in Figure7.17.
NOTE: To apply
filters in non-full-screenmode, click thebutton to access the listmenuoptionsandchoosetheSetFilteroptionfromthe menu that appears(seeFigure7.18).
Figure7.18:SetFilterOption
7.2.4CalculatingTotals,Subtotals,andAveragesIf at least a single number,amount field, or quantityappears in the display, theTotal button isvisibleandenabledonthetoolbar.Ifyouwant to total a particularcolumn,select thecolumnbyclicking on the columnheader and then click on the
Total button. This willtotal the column, and thetotalswillappearinyellowasshowninFigure7.19.
Figure7.19:TotalDisplayedforDistance
Fornon-full-screenmode, thetoolbar button is shown inFigure7.20.
Figure7.20:TotalButtoninNon-Full-ScreenMode
This button comes with fourfunctionsthatareaccessedvia
a listmenu.The functionsareTotal,Mean Value,Minimum,andMaximum.To access a particularfunction, choose the relevantoption, such as Minimum,Maximum, etc. The relevantfunctionwill then be appliedtothechosencolumn,andtheresultwillbeshowninyellowasseeninFigure7.21.
Figure7.21:AverageValueComputedforDistance
In the above figure, theaverage of the distance iscalculated.SupposethetotalinghasbeendoneforanALVoutput;you
may also compute subtotals.For the subtotal, you need acolumn that will be used asthe criteria for the subtotal.This must be a non-numericcolumn. Select the columnand then click on thebutton.
NOTE: Subtotals canonly be calculated aftertotals have beencomputed and based on
groupings of a non-numericcolumn.
This will calculate thesubtotals as well. In thefollowing figure, the AirlinecolumnvaluesareusedasthebasisoftheSubtotaling.
Figure7.22:CalculatingSubtotals
AsshowninFigure7.22, thesubtotals of the Capacitycolumnarecalculatedfor theAirlines.TheAirlineAAhasa subtotal (total capacity) of742,andAZhasacapacityof44.Finally, thegrand total isshown at the end of the line.The subtotals appearhighlighted in a light yellow
color.You may condense thesubtotaldetailsofaparticularAirline by clicking theicon.You may have differentviews for Subtotalscalculation.ChoosethemenuoptionSettingsàDefineDrillDown Options. The dialogbox in our case for Airlinesubtotalsappearsasshownin
Figure7.23.
Figure7.23:AirlineSubtotalsDialogBox
Choose the 1 - Airlinecriterion and press "Enter".Your entire display willappear in condensed formshowing only the Capacitytotals for each Airline asshowninFigure7.24.
Figure7.24:CapacityTotalsForEachAirline
To switch back to theexpandedformshowingallofthe data (as shown in Figure7.22), choose the 0 - Non-totallinescriterion.
7.2.5ChangingViewsOne important feature of theALV is to display your datainto different views. In thissection wewill discuss threeviews: Excel Inplace View,
Charts View, and ABCAnalysisFunctionView.Wewillalsodiscusshowyoucandisplay your data in PrintPrevieworListOutput.
7.2.5.1ExcelInplaceViewOnepopularviewistheExcelInplace view. With this, thetoolbar isvisiblebut thegriddisplay is replaced with an
Excel view embedded onyourSAPscreenasshowninFigure7.25.
NOTE: A settingneeds to be switched onfor the Excel Inplace toruncorrectly.FromExcelapplications, choose themenu option File àOptions.Fromthedialogbox that appears, chooseTrustCenterfromtheleft
pane. Then, click theTrust Center Settingsbutton.MakesureMacroSettingsareselectedfromthe left pane (see Figure7.25). On the screen,make sure the checkboxfor Trust access to theVBA project ObjectModel under theDeveloper MacroSettingsisswitchedon.
Figure7.25:TrustCenterMacroSettings
For a full-screenmode, oncethe Excel Inplace view is
chosen, the screen displaywill change as shown inFigure7.26.
Figure7.26:ExcelViewShownWithALVOutput
7.2.5.2GeneratingChartsViewYoumayalsogeneratechartsand other useful graphicsusingyourchoiceof thedatadisplayed in the ALV. Bysimply selecting differentcolumns, you can generate avariety of chart outputs for aparticularALVdata.
NOTE:Chartsmaybe
generated based on theselectedcolumnsor aftergroupings performed inSubtotalcalculation.
To generate charts, simplyselect the columns that youneedtoshowingraphicformand thenpress the button.(Alternately,youmaychoosethe menu path ViewsàGraphic.) A newALV Graphic window will
appear showing the chart.Youmayright-clickthechartandsendaprint.Suppose we have calculatedthe Airline wise subtotal ofthe Capacity column asshown in Figures 7.22 and7.23, and then clicked thebutton; the correspondingchart will be generated asshowninFigure7.27.
Figure7.27:CapacityofAirlineSubtotalsGenerated
asaChart
7.2.5.3ABCAnalysisFunctionViewTheABC Analysis functionlets you divide the data intothree (or even two) portions.There are four analysis typesavailable; themost important
of which is Key FigurePercent. This allows you todivide data based on thespecified percentages A, B,andC.Thepercentageof theA,B, andCmaybe set. Forexample, A may be set as70%, B as 20%, and C as10%. Part A constitutes themost important part of thedata.PartBislessimportant.PartCistheleastimportant.To carry out the ABC
analysis, select the numericcolumn you are interested in(inourcase,BookingsTotal)andclick the button. Thiswill take you to the screenshown in Figure 7.28showing the ABCAnalysis results. By default,the Key Figure Percent typeisapplicableandthevaluesofA, B, and C are 70%, 20%,and 10% respectively. Youmay change the values
according to your needs andthenpress"Enter".
Figure7.28ABCAnalysisResults
The lower portion shows theresults of the Analysis. Thevalues for A, B, and Csegmentswechosedividethelistintothreeparts:·thesetofrowswhich
formapproximately70percentoftheentirebookingstotals(ASegment,seeFigure7.28)
·thesetofrowswhichform20percentofthebookingstotal(BSegment)
·theremaining10percent(CSegment)
By default, the list is sortedin descending order, whichmeans that the rows thathave the highest value ofBookings form the SegmentA and so on. In case you
want to sort the list inascending order, click the
button orchoose themenuoptionEditàSort.
7.2.5.4PrintPreview/ListOutputIn addition to the ALV Gridformat, you have the optionof displaying the printpreview of the data in ALV
list format. For this, click onthe button. Alternately,youmayusethemenuoptionList à Print Preview. Thiswill change the output asshowninFigure7.29.
Figure7.29:ALVListFormatOutput
Youmaysend theprint fromhere by choosing the menuoption List à Print. For thenon-full-screen mode, youmay click the button toaccess the available optionsas shown in Figure 7.30.Then choose the List Outputoption.
Figure7.30:ListOutputOption
The buttonmaybeusedtosendadirectprint (seeFigure7.30).
7.2.6ExcelDownloadingALV format lets youdownloaddisplayeddata intoa number of formats. Apopulardownloadforusersisto save the work in Excel.ThestepsforExceldownloadareshownbelow.To download into Excel inthe non-full-screen mode,click the button and
choose the Spreadsheetoptionfromthecontextmenuthatappears.
Figure7.31:ContextMenuinNon-Full-ScreenMode
Next, you will be presentedwith two options: Table andPivot table. Choose theoptionTable. Itwill takeyoutothedialogboxasshowninFigure7.32.
Figure7.32:Choosing“Excel”Download
You may then be asked toconfirm Microsoft Excel asyour format.After this,press
the"Enter"button.
NOTE:Anycalculatedappliedfilters,totals,andsubtotals are simplyignored in the Exceldownload. If the list istoo long, an error isdisplayed and nodownloadisperformed.
An Excel window will openandshowthedataasshownin
Figure7.33.
Figure7.33:ExcelWorksheet
You may also convert dataintoaPivot tableformat.Forthis, instead of Table option,choosePivottable.
7.2.7ManagingLayoutsApart from other usefulfunctions, you may alsochangethelayoutofthefieldswithin the display. InALV you may change the
sequence as well as hidefields (columns) and saveyour layout for the nextexecution of the report. Asalready mentioned, you maysetthefiltersaccordingtothegiven criteria, sort fields, aswell as change the sequenceof the displayed data. Thelayout includes any addedfilteraswellasgivesyouthefacility of saving the layoutforfutureuse.
To change the layout, clickthe button on the toolbar.Thiswill display theChangeLayout dialog box as showninFigure7.34.
Figure7.34:ChangeLayoutDialogBox
Youwillbepresentedwithanumberoftabsthatwillallowyou to hide certain columnsofyour choiceor specify theSort Order and the Filtercriteria.The first tab is for theDisplayed Columns (seeFigure7.35).
Figure7.35:DisplayedColumns
On the left side are thecolumns that are currentlydisplayed.Ifyouwishtohideany columns, they must beselectedandtransferredtotheright block labeled ColumnSet.
NOTE: For the non-full-screen mode, pressthe button to accessthe menu. Then choosethe Change Layout
option.
Figure7.36:ChangeLayoutOption
Youmay select one ormorefields using the "CTRL" keyandthenclickthe buttonto
hidethefieldsselected.IntheFigure 7.35, the CompanynameandLanguageKeywillberemovedfromthedisplay.YoumayalsospecifytheSortcriteria and the Filter criteriausing the Sort Order andFilter tabs respectively.When you press "Enter", thedata will appear changedaccording to the changedLayoutspecifications.To save the layout for the
future,click the button onthe Change Layout popupbox.Alternately,youmayusethe button on theALVtoolbarforthenon-full-screen mode. Simply choosethis button and click on theSaveLayoutoption.To load an existing layout,clickon the button. Fromthelistofoptions,choosetheappropriate layout. If nolayouts exists, the message
is displayed.Forthenon-full-screenmode,youmayusethemenuoptionSelect Layout as shown inFigure7.36.
This chapter discussed thevarious functions foundwithintheALVformat.Withthe information in this
SummaryofChapter7
chapter, you should now beable to select columns,movecolumnswith themouse,andfreeze various columns. Youshould also be comfortablewith the toolbar functionswithin both the full-screenandnon-full-screenmodes.
Chapter8
PrintingGuide
Nomatterhowpaperlessanenvironment becomes,
printingremainsanimportantpartof theworkinglifeofanSAPuser.Thepurposeofthischapteristointroduceyoutothe printing options availablewithinSAP.This chapter will cover thefollowingimportanttopics:·Printingwindowcontents
·Printingfromreportselectionscreens
·FormPrinting·Changingthelookandfeelofprintdialog
·PDFcreationsfromspoolrequests
·Print-relatedproblemsSince printing is such animportant activity for theSAP user, this chapter willdetail how you can directlyprintareportoutandsendthecontents directly to the
printer. Related to this, wewill have a look at the PrintImmediately and Send toSpool request options foreverydayprinting.Some questions that will beanswered in this chapterinclude:·HowcanIprintanentirescreenshotofmycurrentSAPsession?
·HowdoIcreateSpool
Requests?·WhatarethedifferentSpoolRequestAttributes?
·HowcanIconvertSpoolRequeststoPDFs?
Throughoutthechapter,therewill be examples andscreenshotstohelpthereaderunderstand the printingprocess.
8.1QuickHard
A simple way to print theentire screenshot of thecurrent SAP session withoutencountering any dialog boxis to use the HardCopy option. This sends thescreen's print to the defaultprinter of your PC. It willsend it directly withoutasking for any information.
8.1QuickHardCopy
This action takes a snapshotof the entire SAP screen. Tochoose this function,proceedasfollows:·ClicktheCustomizingLayout buttononthestandardtoolbar.ThemenuwillappearasshowninFigure8.1.
Figure8.1:Customizing
LayoutMenu
Choose the HardCopyoption.Thiswillsendaprint to the default printerimmediately.
To send a print of the SAPscreencontent,suchasa list,
8.2PrintingWindowContents
a form, or an ALV output,you may choose the Printoption by clicking thebutton. Alternately, you mayalsousethekeys"CTRL+P".The dialog box then appearsasshowninFigure8.2.
Figure8.2:PrintScreenList
The important fields on thisscreenareshownbelow:·OutputDevice:Thisisthe
nameoftheprinterasdefinedwithintheSAPsystem.YoumaychoosetheF4helptodisplayalistofdefinedoutputdevices.IfyouchooseLOCLorLOCAL,yourprintwillbesentdirectlytothedefaultprinterconnectedtoyourPC.
·Windows/frontendPrinter:ThisisadropdownlistthatallowsyoutochoosefromtheprintersconnectedtoyourPC.Chooseasuitableprinterfromthedropdownlist.
·NumberofCopies:Bydefault,thisfieldcontainsthevalue“1”.Ifyouwouldliketoprintmultiplecopies,enterthe
desirednumberinthisfield.
·NumberofPages:Youmayalsoselectthenumberofpagesthatyourequire.Bydefault,thePrintalloptionforNumberofPagesisselected.SelectingPrintallwillprintallthepagesofthelistorform(nomatteriftheyare100or1000).Incaseyouwanttoprintonly
acertainpagerangeofthelistorform,selecttheradiobuttonPrintfromPage…to…TheFromandTopagenumberfieldswillbeenabledasshowninFigure6.3.Youmaythenentertherangeyoudesiretoprint.Forexample,weprintedpages1to5.
Figure8.3:NumberofPagestoPrint
Once all field values arespecified, click the Enterbutton. If the PrintImmediatelysettingison(wewill see how this is done inthenextsection),thejobwillbe sent immediately to the
printer. The message will bedisplayedasshowninFigure8.4.
Figure8.4:PrinterMessage
However, if we have set theoptionSent toSpool,aSpoolrequestwillbecreatedandnoimmediateoutput issent (seemessage in Figure 8.5). Wewill see how the attributes
maybesetinthenextsection.
Figure8.5:NoImmediateOutput
If you choose the WithoutImmediate Output option, aSpool request is created andmay be viewed using thetransaction “SP02”.Alternately, you may usemenu path System à Own
Spool Requests. The screenappears as shown in Figure8.6.
Figure8.6:ListofSpool
Requests
Thiswill list theentireSpoolrequests that you havecreated. Each print job sentwithout immediate output isstored here under a uniqueSpool Number. The type(ABAP list or forms) is alsodisplayedalongwiththedate,time, and the number ofpages included in the printjob. Listed in Figure 8.7 are
the various types of Spoolrequestsandtheirsymbols.
Symbol Type
ABAPList(ReportOutput)
SmartformsFormOutput
AdobeForms
Figure8.7:TypesofSpoolRequests
Attheendofthelist,youwill
have lines showing the totalnumber of Spool requestsdisplayed,aswellasthetotalnumberofrequestsforwhichoutputs have NOT beengenerated.YoumayselectagivenSpool(or multiple Spool requestsusing checkboxes) and clickthe Print Directly buttononthetoolbar.Thiswillsendthe job to theprinter and thenumber of pages will be
printed. However, if youwouldliketoprintwithsomechanges in the spoolparameters,youmaydosobyclicking the Print withChanged Parameters button. This allows you tochange certain parameters asshowninFigure8.8.
Figure8.8:PrintParameters
You may, for example,changetheOutputdeviceandthe number of copies.Moreover, you may specify
the Start Date and Time forprinting. When you haveentered the appropriatevalues, you may click thePrint button on the screen(forsinglevalues)orPrintAllbutton if multiple Spoolrequestswereselected.To delete Spool requestsmanually,youmayselect therequest and then click theDeletebutton.
To display the contents of aparticular Spool request,select the request and thenclicktheDisplayContentsbutton. Alternately, you maypress"F6"orselect theTypesymbol of the given Spoolrequest.Thecontentwillthenbe displayed. You may alsodownload the content of aSpoolrequestintheformofatextfileoranumberofotherformats (rich text format
[RTF], Excel, or HTMLformats), if required. Oncethe contents are displayed,you may choose the menupath System à List à Save àFile. You may then specifytheformatandsavethespoolcontentonyourlocalPC.
NOTE: When usingthetransactionSP02,youmay also display outputof Adobe Forms in PDF
formats.
Onreportselectionscreens,itisalsopossibletoexecuteandprint the output together in
8.3“ExecuteandPrint”FromReportSelectionScreen
one direct step. For this,choose the menu optionExecute and Print as showninFigure8.9.
Figure8.9:MenuOption“ExecuteandPrint”
A Print Dialog will appear
and it will look the same asthe one shown inFigure 8.2.You may then specify thesettings as usual in order togeneratetheSpoolrequest.
In addition to reports, theSAP system also allows youto print forms output (bothSmartformsandAdobeforms
8.4FormPrinting
output). If you try to printforms,youwillseethedialogboxshowninFigure8.10.
Figure8.10:FormPrintingDialogBox
In addition to the parametersdiscussed previously, thereexist other parameters on thedialogthatarealsoimportant.Letusnowgothroughthem:·PageSelection.Theform
outputmayhaveanumberofpages.Youmaynotneedtheentiresetofpagestobeprinted.Ifthisisthecase,youmayspecifycertainpagesorrangeofpagesfromthegiven
outputtobesenttothespoolsystem.Forexample,youmayspecifythepages“1,2,4-6”.
·PrintImmediately.Tosendtheoutputtotheprinterimmediately,selectthePrintImmediatelycheckbox.TosendSpoolrequeststotheSpooler,uncheckthisindicator.
·NewSpoolRequest.
CheckingthiscreatesanewSpoolrequestforyourformprintjob.
·DeleteAfterOutput.Ifthischeckboxison,thecreatedSpoolrequestwillberetainedonlyuntiltheSpoolrequestcontentshavebeenprinted.
·CloseSpoolRequest.Ifthisison,theSpoolrequestcreatedwillbe
closedandnofurtherprintjobsmayuseit.Ifthischeckboxisnotchecked,subsequentprintjobsmaybeaddedinthespoolrequestandmaybeprintedlateralltogether.
There is a Print Previewbutton for previewing theoutput and a direct Printbutton for specifying Spoolrequest creation or to printimmediately.
NOTE:Spoolrequestsare temporarydocumentsthat contain the user’sitems that are to beprinted. Each Spoolrequest has a uniquenumber.
8.5ChangingthePrintDialogLookandFeel
Inthissection,wewillseeindetail how the default fieldsdisplayed on the Print dialogmay be changed. You mayaddupto10additionalvaluesto the Initial Screen of thePrintDialog(showninFigure8.2).Letustakeacloserlookathowthismaybedone.OnthePrintDialog,clicktheProperties button. This will
andFeel
leadyou to thescreenshowninFigure8.11.
Figure8.11:SpoolRequestAttributes
Thisscreenprovidesyouwitha list of Spool requestproperties (attributes). Asalready mentioned, you cantransferup to10attributes tothe PrintDialog. Let us nowdiscusssomeoftheimportantones:·TimeofPrinting.As
mentionedintheprevious
section,iftheTimeofprintingissetto“Immediately”thenthedocumentisprintedimmediately.However,therearealsotwootheroptionsthatmaybechosen.Theseareshownbelow:1. Send toSAPSpoolerfor now. This settingallows you to preventsending the document
to the printerimmediately.Whenthissetting is chosen, aSpoolrequestiscreatedthat may be viewedlater and printed usingtransactionSP01.
2. Print Later. Thisoption allows you toprint thedocumentat alater date and is timespecific. When youselectPrintLateradate
and time field appears.You may then fill inappropriatevalues.Thisoptionwillnotworkfordocuments sent toprinters connectedwithyour PC (frontendprinting).
·Format.ThisattributeresemblestheformatinwhichtheABAPlististobeprinted.Youmayspecifythecolumns
(width)androws(height)tobeprintedonagivenpage.YoumaychooseanappropriateformatusingtheF4helpoftheformatfield.Forexample,65rowsand80columnsareusedfortheformat“X_65_80”.
Figure8.12:FormatAttribute
Along with the above-listedattributes, a few moreimportant ones are listedunderOutputOptions.Letushaveacloserlook.·DeleteImmediatelyafter
Printing.Asthenamesuggests,thisattributeallowsyoutodeletethecreatedSpoolrequestfromthesystemoncetherequesthasbeenprinted.
·RetentionPeriod.ThisattributeallowsyoutospecifyaperioduntilwhichtheSpoolrequestistoberetained.Afterthistime,theSpoolrequestwillbedeletedfromthe
systemandwillnolongerbeaccessibleviaSP01transaction.
For each of the attributesmentioned, the valuemay bechanged by double-clickingthe attribute in question (seeFigure8.13).
Figure8.13:Selectingan
Attribute
The lower part of the screenwill then display the editableattributealongwithapossiblesetofvalues.Forexample, ifyou select Time of Printing,the editable list box appearsasshowninFigure8.14
Figure8.14:EditableAttribute
For theTime of Printattribute, you may choosefrom the options, “Send to
SAPSpoolerOnlyforNow”,“Print Immediately”, or“PrintLater”.·NewSpoolRequest.If
thisindicatorischecked,anewSpoolrequestwillbecreatedforthedocumentinquestion.However,ifyouwouldlikeanexistingSpoolrequestpreviouslycreatedbyyoutobeused,youshoulduncheckthisoption.
·DonotAppendPrintJobs.Ifthisvalueissetto“Yes”,thennofurtherprintjobsareaddedtotheSpoolrequestinquestion.However,ifthisvalueissetto“No”,thenthesubsequentprintjobs/documentswillbeaddedtothecurrentSpoolrequest.ThisattributemaybeusedinconjunctionwiththeNewSpool
Requestattribute.Iftheformerandthelatteraresetto“No”thenallprintjobsmaybeaccumulatedinoneSpoolrequest.SofromSP01,youmaychooseoneSpoolrequesttoprinttheentirerun,thussavingyoutime.
Alsoimportantisacheckboxthatisvisibleattheendofthescreen with the label ShowSelectedPrintParameterson
Initial Screen (see Figure8.14). For example, if weselect this indicator for theNew Spool Request attribute,the initial dialogwill displaythe given attribute as shownin the Print Dialog in Figure8.15.
Figure8.15:Attribute“NewSpoolRequest”Added
ThissectionwilldiscusshowaPDF filemaybe generatedusingaSpoolrequestnumberand a standard SAP program
8.6UsingRSTXPDFT4ProgramtoConvertSpoolRequeststoPDFs
RSTXPDFT4. For this, weassumethattheSpoolrequestfor the print job has alreadybeen created and exists intransactionSP01.YoushouldnotedownthenumberforthegivenSpoolrequest.Go to transaction “SA38”.Enter the name of theprogramRSTXPDFT4 in theProgram field and click theExecutebutton.Theselectionscreenoftheprogramappears
asshowninFigure8.16.
Figure8.16:SelectionScreenforProgram
RSTXPDFT4
Enter the Spool requestnumber in the field shown.Make sure the DownloadPDF file checkbox isselected. You may give asuitable path for where thefile is to be stored on yourPC.Next, click the Executebutton.ASaveAsdialogboxwill appear showing the path
for storing thegenerated file.Youmaychangethesevaluesat this stage aswell. Finally,clicktheSavebutton.A log will be displayedregarding the generating ofthe PDF file from the Spoolrequest.
8.7Printing-RelatedProblems
In this section, we willdiscuss the typical problemsyoumay facewhen printing.(There may be some issuesthat may be related to theprinter settings.) Let usdiscussthemonebyone.
NOTE: Sometimes,when you try to opentransaction Sp01 usingtheOwn Spool Requestsmenu option, a dialog
box appears statingMaximum number ofsessions reached. If thisis the case, close onesession and try thetransactionSp01again.
·PrintNotSent.Acommonproblemmaybethatwhenyoutrytoprint,theprintisnotsenttotheprinter.MakesurethatthePrintImmediatelyoption
isset.YoumayalsogotothetransactionSP01andthenchecktoseewhetheracorrespondingspoolrequestexistsforthecorrespondingprintjob.IfPrintImmediatelyissetandtheprintisstillnotsenttotheprinter,youmayasktherelevantbasisteammembersforhelp.
·GraphicsPrintedUpsideDownforSmartforms.
Thisisaproblemwiththedriverofyourprinter.Letyouradministratorknowandaskhimorhertoinstallthecorrectdriverforyourprinter.
·ShortDumpappearssayingSpoolBufferFull.Ifthisproblemoccurs,themostprobablereasonisthatthespoolbufferisfullandnomorespoolrequestscouldbeallocated
toyourrequest.Thisproblemcanbefixedbythebasisteammembers.
This chapter outlined thePrintingGuideforSAPusers.With the informationprovided, you should now,among other things, be ableto print window contents,
SummaryofChapter8
print from report selectionscreens, change the look andfeel of print dialog, convertspool requests to PDFs, andtroubleshoot any printingproblemsthatmayarise.
Chapter9
CreatingYourOwnReports
This chapter will focus onSAP Query and the ways inwhich it will let the usergenerate reports based ontheir own data and particularneeds. It places the power inthe hands of the user togenerate reports that aretailored tospecificneedsandpurposes. I will discuss, indetail, the need for creatingSAP Queries and how this
tool can help you generateyour own reports based onyour unique data. Thefollowing topics will becovered:·GeneratingBasicLists,thethreetypesofreportsthatcanbegenerated,andastepbystepaccountofhowtogenerateaBasiclist
·AddingControlLevels
toyourlist·AddingaHeadertoyourlist
·HowtoaddafootertoaBasicList
Queries are a very diverseand large topic, but in thischapter, Iwillonlycover thetopics thatareof interestandofusetoauser.Thischapterismeanttobeaguideforthebasic setup and use of SAP
Queries. Somequestions thatwill be answered in thischapterinclude:·HowdoIcreateaQuery?
·WhatarethethreetypesofreportsthatcanbegeneratedbyusingSAPQuery?
·HowcanIaddcontrollevelstoaBasicList?
Throughoutthechapter,there
will be examples andscreenshotstohelpthereadergain the greatest possibleunderstanding of how togeneratetheirownQueries.
TheSAPQueryisatoolthatallows you to generate yourown reports based upon data
9.1SAPQuery:AnOverview
stored into the SAP system.You do not need to rely onthe services of an ABAPdeveloper for it. You maygenerateyourreportoutputinanumberof formats, suchasALV, simple list, graphics,etc. SAP query also allowsyoutodefineyourownlistofheadersandfootersaswellasdefinecolumnheadings.Before creating a Query,therearecertainprerequisites
that must be created. Theseprerequisites include anInfosetandUserGroup.AnInfoset is the data sourcefromwhich the data is to beread and displayed in yourQuery. A user group is thegroupofusersthatcancreateand change queries of aparticular functional area.Both of these must existbefore you can commenceyourQuery.
Youmaygeneratethreetypesof reports through the use ofSAPQuery.ThethreereportsareBasicList,Statistics,andRankedLists.Letusdiscussthemonebyone.·BasicList:ABasicList
letsyougeneratesimplelistsconsistingofsingleormultiplelines.Youmayalsodefinelistheaders.ABasicListwithcontrollevelsmayalsobecreated
fordisplayingthesubtotalsbasedonacertaincriteria.Withcontrollevels,youmayspecifythefield(s)basedonwhichlististobesortedorwhichtotalsaretobecalculated.
·Statistics:InthecaseofStatistics,youcandefinestatisticalvalues—computedfromaparticularsetofdata.Thesestatisticalvalues
includecalculatedvalues,suchastotals,percentages,averages,etc.Inotherwords,Statisticsisasummarizedformofalargersetofdata.Forexample,youmaygenerateaStatisticsreportbasedonAirlineCodesorDepartmentNames.
·RankedList:RankedListisalistthatissortedaccordingtothevalueofa
computedStatisticalvalue.Forexample,StatisticalvaluesuchasaRankedListwithtop20averagevalues.
In this section, Iwill discussthe detailed steps required tocreate a Basic List through
9.2GeneratingBasicLists
theSAPQuerytool.
NOTE:Wewillprintalist of airline data thatwill be comprised of thecolumns Airline code,Flight Number, PlaneType, and the TotalBooking Amount of aFlight with relevantcurrency.Wewillassumethat the Infoset and theUser group are also
created.
In order to generate a BasicList using SAP Query,proceedasfollows:·Calltransaction“SQ01”.
ThescreenappearsasshowninFigure9.1.
Figure9.1:GeneratingaBasicList
Makesure that thecorrectuser group is chosen. Togo into the correct usergroup, choose the menupath Edit à Other UserGroup. A dialog boxappears showing thevarious User Groups.Select the appropriategroup and click the
button. Thiswillbring you back to thescreenshowninFigure9.1
butwiththetitleincludingyourchosenUserGroup.
·EnterasuitablenameforyourQueryinthefieldprovidedandchooseCreate.AdialogboxappearsasshowninFigure9.2.
Figure9.2:InfosetSelection
·Selectasuitable
Infosetasshown(inourcase,/SAPQUERY/DEMO_FLIGHTS),andpress"Enter".ThescreenappearsasshowninFigure9.3.
Figure9.3:EnteringTitleandDescription
·Onthescreenthatappears,enterasuitableTitleinthefieldprovided.Youcanalsodefineasuitableoutputformatatthistime.Youmaychoosethedefaultoutputformat,suchasSAPListViewer,thesimpleABAPlist,Graphics,etc.Youmay
alsospecifytheLinesandColumnsoftheoutputincasetheABAPlistisselected.Then, click the NextScreen button(orpress"F6"). This takes you tothescreenshowninFigure9.4.
Figure9.4:SelectingFieldGroups
·Onthisscreen,youwillbeselectingtheFieldGroupsthatyouneedtouse.StartbychoosingtheFieldGroupsthatyouare
interestedin.Intheexampleshown,wehavechosentheFlightDataandPlanegroups.AfteryouhavechosentheFieldGroups,clicktheNextScreenbuttontogothroughtothescreeninFigure9.5.
Figure9.5:ChoosingFields
Choose the fields of yourchoice out of your chosengroups (you may use thePageUp andPage Downbuttonstoviewthevariousfields available). In thisstep, you will choose allfields that you areinterested in, either as aselection parameter or anoutput field.Onceyouare
done, click the Nextbutton. This leads you tothescreenshowninFigure9.6.
Figure9.6:SelectionScreenFields
·Thenextstepallowsyoutospecifythefieldsthatareincludedintheselectionscreen.Onthisscreen,youwillseeallofthefieldsselectedinthepreviousstep.Usethecheckboxtoselectthedesiredfields.Intheexample,wehavechosenAirlineCode.Ifyouwouldliketochangethelabeloftheselectionfieldonthescreen,you
mayselecttherespectivefieldusingthecheckboxindicatorandpress"Enter".TheSelectiontextfortherespectivefieldwillthenbeeditableandyoumaychangethetextasneeded.AsshowninFigure9.6,IhavechangedthetextoftheAirlineCodetoAirlineID.Onceyouaredonewiththisstep,clickthe
button.Thiswill
takeyoutothescreenshowninFigure9.7.
Figure9.7:BasicListDefinition
ScreenWithoutGraphicalPainter
·NowyouneedtodefinetheappearanceoftheBasicList.ForsinglelineBasicList,enter“01”intheLinenumberforallfields.Forfieldsthatyouwouldliketodefineinthesecondline,enter“02”forthecorrespondingcolumn.Moreover,youneedtodefinethecolumnsequenceaccordingtoyourrequirements.Ihave
definedthesequenceshowninFigure9.7.Ifyouwouldlikeparticularfieldvaluestobesorted,youmayfillintheSortfield.Also,fortheTotalofcurrentbookingsfield,aTotalcheckboxisvisible.Ifyouwouldlikethetotalofthiscolumntobedisplayedattheendoftheoutput,switchonthecheckboxandthenchoose
theNextScreen.You may switch off theGraphical Painter bychoosing the menu pathSettings à Settings. Thedialog box appears asshowninFigure9.8.
Figure9.8:SwitchingtheGraphicalPainterOnor
Off
You may switch off thegraphical painter byunchecking the GraphicalQueryPaintercheckbox.If you choose a graphicalscreen option, the BasicList definition screenappearsasfollows:
Figure9.9BasicListDefinitionScreen
Figure9.10:LeftSideofPaneinGraphicalView
Select the Field’scheckbox to include themintheoutput.Thepreviewappears on the right sideof the pane as shown inFigure9.11.
Figure9.11:ReportPreview
Finally,saveandrunyourQuery using the Testbutton.ThescreenappearsasshowninFigure9.11.
Figure9.12:ReportSelectionScreen
The Query output on thechosenALV format lookslike the one shown inFigure9.12.
Figure9.13:ALVReportOutputWithGrandTotal
The ABAP list form ofreport for this is shown inFigure9.14.
Figure9.14:ABAPListOutput
Also,ifyouhavechosenagraphic output (pie chartoutput), it will look likethe one shown in Figure9.15.
Figure9.15:PieChartOutput
9.2.1AddingControlLevelstoyourListOnce you have generatedyourBasicList, you can addControl levels (based onSorted columns) to your list.You may then specify if theamounttotalsortotalnumberofrowsistobecalculated,orwhether descending sortingapplicable is based for thesortedcolumnvalues.
NOTE: We willmodify our list that wasdefined in the previoussection to print subtotalsof the bookings total ofeach Airline Code alongwith the Overall total.This will create separatetotals for each airline(AA,DL,etc.).
I copied the Z_FLIGHT
query that was created andnamed itZ_FLIGHT_CONT.Animportantstepindefiningcontrol levels is todefine therelevantfieldasaSortedfieldin the Basic List definition.On theBasicList screen,wewill specify “1” in the Sortfield for the Airline Code asshowninFigure9.16.
Figure9.16:DefineBasicList
Press the Next button, orfollow themenupathGotoàBasic List à Control Levels(seeFigure9.17).
Figure9.17:MenuPath
This will take you to the
ControlLevelsscreen,partofwhich is shown in Figure9.18.
Figure9.18:ControlLevelsScreen
Since our requirement is tocalculate the total (or actuallythe subtotal) based on theAirlinecode,wewillcheckthe
Totalindicatorasshown.Whenyou run the report, theoutputwill then be shown inFigure9.19.Eachairlinetotalisdisplayed.
Figure9.19:AirlineTotals
9.2.2AddingaHeaderandFootertotheBasicListAusefulfunctionprovidedbySAP query is the ability toadd headers and footers toyour list. In order to add aheaderandfooter,proceedasfollows:
·OntheBasicListdefinitionscreen,choosethemenupathGotoàBasicListàHeaders.ThescreenwillthenlookliketheoneshowninFigure9.20.
Figure9.20:AddingaHeaderandFooter
·Ontop,youwillfindanareawherewecanspecifythePageheader(I
specifieditas“OurReportHeader”).AtthelowerpartofthewindowisanareawherewecanspecifythePageFooter.Ihavespecifieditas“OurPageFooter”.
The final output with theheader and footer defined inABAPlistformatisshowninFigure9.21.
Figure9.21:FinalOutputwithHeaderandFooter
Tochangethecolumnheaderof a particular field, double-click the respective column
header under the definedheader of the report on thescreen shown inFigure9.20.ThiswillopenthedialogboxasshowninFigure9.22.
Figure9.22:ChangingtheColumnHeaderofaParticularField
For example, I selected theBooking total column asshown in Figure 9.20 andchangedthecolumnheaderto“Income Total” as shown inFigure9.22.ThereportwillthenlookliketheoneshowninFigure9.23.
Figure9.23:OutputReportWithNewColumnHeader
SummaryofChapter9
This chapter outlined theessentials of SAP Query forSAP users. With theinformation provided, youshould nowbe able to createreports based on SAP datawithout the involvement ofABAP developers. You willalso be able to add headersandfootersaswellaschangethe report column labelsquicklyandeasily.Moreover,for data output that consists
of amounts, quantities, ornumbers, subtotals and totalsmayalsobegenerated.
Chapter10
SAPBusinessWorkplacePart1-ManagingDocuments
This chapter will focus onthe SAP BusinessWorkplace with a primaryemphasis on managingdocuments. It will show youthe range of possibilitiesavailable through the use ofSAPBusinessWorkplaceandwill outline the basic stepsinvolved in accessing andusingtheBusinessWorkplaceefficiently. This chapter will
coverthefollowingimportanttopics:·TransactionSBWP·Creatinganewmessage·Usingattachments·Forwardingdocuments·Creatingdistributionlists
·Workingwithfoldersandsubfolders
·Searchingwithinfolders
andsubfoldersIt should be noted that withinthis chapter the termsdocument, mail and messageare used interchangeably tomeananycontentthatissenttoanother user through the SAPBusiness Workplace. Somequestionsthatwillbeansweredinthischapterinclude:·HowdoIaccesstheBusinessWorkplace?
·HowdoIsendmailthroughtheBusinessWorkplace?
·Whatisadistributionlistandhowisitcreated?
Throughout this chapter,there will be examples andscreenshotstohelpthereadergain the greatest possibleunderstanding of how toutilize the SAP Business
Workplace.
The BusinessWorkplace (transactionSBWP) lets you write mails(create documents), checkworkflows,andprocessworkitems.Itisanefficientsystemthat helps the user manage
10.1OverviewofTransactionSBWP
their ingoing and outgoingdocumentsthroughtheuseoffolders, subfolders, anddistributionlists.From the initial SAP screen,you may use the menu pathMenu à BusinessWorkplace (see Figure 10.1).Alternately, you may choosethe keyboard shortcut"CTRL+F12". The directtransactionfortheWorkplaceisSBWP.
Figure10.1:AccessingtheBusinessWorkplace
The main screen of the
BusinessWorkplace transaction isshowninFigure10.2.
Figure10.2:BusinessWorkplace
The left pane shows thevariousfoldersandareasthatexist, namely, Inbox,Outbox, Resubmission, andso on.Within the right panethere are two portions. Theupper portion displays a listof items pertaining to thefolder (folder node) from theleft side that is selected. Thelist is inALV format, and itprovidesanALVtoolbarthathas a number of functions
that may be applied to theitems displayed. For moreinformation on ALVfunctions,refertochapter6-ALVDisplayFormat.The details (preview) of theselected item (for example adocument) are shown in thelowerpartoftherightpane.
NOTE: There arePrivate and Shared
Folders within the SAPBusinessWorkplace.TheSharedFolderallowsyouto have a central storageplace where you andmany other users mayshare or accessdocuments and emails.On the other hand, theprivatefoldersareprivatetoyou,andnootherusermayaccessit.
Threeimportantfoldersareasfollows:·Inbox.Asthename
implies,theInboxliststhevariousdocuments(bothreadandunreadmail)aswellasworkflowworkitems.
·Outbox.TheOutboxlistsanymailthatyouhavesentandWorkflowitemsexecutedbytheuseror
forwardedtoanotheruser.·Resubmissions.Youmay
alsoresubmitworkflowworkitemsaswellasdocumentsforafuturedate.TheywillappearintheInboxwhenthesetdatecomes.TheresubmitteditemsareshownundertheResubmissionsfolder.
NOTE: Within theInbox and Outbox, youmay have the UnreadDocuments, Workflow,andDocuments.
NOTE:TheInboxandOutbox are PrivateFolders in your Inbox.You may createadditionalPrivateFolders
under the Private Foldernode.
If you need to see all of thecontents of a folder, simplyclick that particular node.WhenyouselectInbox in theleft pane, you will see thecontents of all the subfoldersof the Inbox. If you need toviewonlyUnreadDocumentsor Documents, select thatparticularnode.Forexample,
the unread documents whenselected are displayed in therightpaneasshowninFigure10.3.
Figure10.3:Unread
Documents
From the Message symbol,you may see whether amessage is Read or Unread.You will also see theAuthor(sender),theDatereceived,thetitleofthemessage,aswellasthe number of recipients towhom the message was sent.The Attachments symbolin the attachment columnindicates whether an
attachment is there or not. Ifyou place the cursor on thissymbol for a particularmessage, the number ofattachmentswillbedisplayed.Selecting a particularInbox Unread or Readmessage will display thecontents in the lower part ofthe right pane as shown inFigure10.4.
Figure10.4:PreviewofAMessage
You may switch the previewon or off using theSettingsàSwitchPreviewOn/Off optionunderthemenupath.Youmaydouble-click a particularmessage to view themessage
orworkiteminanewwindow.Atypicalfull-screendocumentdisplay is shown in Figure10.5.
Figure10.5:Full-ScreenDocumentDisplay
As alreadymentioned, at thebottomofyourreceivedmail,youmayhaveattachments ina variety of formats. Forexample, you may haveattachedfilessavedasExcel,Word,ortextformats.If youwould like to save anattachment, first right-clickthe attachment, then choosethe Save As option from thecontext menu that appears.Then follow the relevant
steps.
Letusnowseehowasimplemessage may be created.Similar to an emailmessage,yourSAPdocument alsohasasubject,arecipient list,anda body of the email withoptionalattachments.
10.2CreatingaNewMessage
To create a new message,clickthe buttononthe application toolbar. Thescreen appears as shown inFigure10.6.
Figure10.6:“CreateDocumentandSend”
Screen
Enter a suitable Title in thefieldprovided.Afull-fledgedtext editor with a number offunctions,suchasCut,Copy,andPaste, etc. is provided inorder to fill in the textof theemail.Fill in themessage text.Youmay also attach files to your
message (we will see howthis is done in the nextsubsection).Once you are done, click theSend button.Themessagethat you sent will appear inthe Outbox (underDocuments) of the SAPBusiness Workplace asshowninFigure10.7.
Figure10.7:MessageinSAPBusinessWorkplace
In the next subsections, wewill see in detail how therecipient'stablemaybefilled
in as well as the wayattachmentsmaybelinkedtomessages.
10.2.1RecipientPortionInDetailAs already mentioned, therecipient portion has anumber of important fields.Let us see in detail thefunctionofeachfield.·RecipientType.Thistype
determineswhetherthedocumentistobesenttoanSAPlogonUser,anInternetaddress,anorganization,oradistributionlist.
·Recipient.Thenameoftherecipient.IfyouselectthetypeasSAPlogonName,thenyoumayenteranSAPuser,suchasLEARN1orJONR.Ifyouhaveanexternaladdress,
youmayenteranemailaddress,suchasabc@gmail.com.Youmayalsospecifyadistributionlistname.ThepossiblevaluesoftherecipientareshowninFigure10.8.
Figure10.8:RecipientPossibleValues
·ExpressCheckbox.Selectingthisoption
displaysanexpressmessagedialogboxtotheusertellinghimorherthatthereisanemailinhisinbox.
·CopyEmailCheckbox.Checkingthisindicatorsendsacopyoftheemailtothedesiredrecipient.
·BlindCopymailCheckbox.Checkingthisindicatorforarecipient
willsendtheemailasablindcarboncopytotherecipientinquestion.
10.2.2AttachmentsAs with any email message,youmayattachanydocumentto the outgoing message. Toattach a file to the emailmessage, simply click thebutton on the toolbar of theCreateDocumentscreen.
This will show the dialogshowninFigure10.9.
Figure10.9:AttachingaFiletoanOutgoingEmail
You may then browse yourdesktop and attach the file,such asWord, Excel, or anyother format, to themessage.Repeat this step for each filethatyouneedtoattach.
10.3ForwardingDocuments
You may also forwarddocuments (you havereceived) to other users,provided the forwardingfunction is enabled on thedocument in question. To dothis, simply select thedocument and right-click toaccess the context menu asshowninFigure10.10.
Figure10.10Forwardinga
Document
Then choose the Forwardoption. This will display thedialogboxasshowninFigure10.11.
Figure10.11:DialogBoxforForwardingaDocument
Here, you may enter the listof the recipients and thevarious settings as discussedearlier in section 10.2.2.Whenyouaredone,clicktheSendbutton.
A Distribution List is acollection of email addresses
10.4CreatingDistributionLists
that allows you to emailmultiple people at once.Instead of typing eachrecipient’s contactinformation again and again,youmaycreateadistributionlistand thensimplyenter thenameof theDistributionListas the recipient shown inFigure 10.6. A DistributionListmayconsistofanumberofSAPaddressesandusersaswell as external email
addresses.To create Distribution lists,click thebutton on the toolbar. Thiswill lead you to the screenshowninFigure10.12.
Figure10.12:DistributionListsScreen
This screen lets you search,display, and create lists thatarebothsharedandprivate.
NOTE: In addition tomass mail sending, youmay also use aDistribution List in orderto share a folder amongvariousSAPusers.
To create a new list, choose
anappropriate list type (fieldwith labelTy.). For example,choose Private. Then clicktheCreatebutton.Thescreenappears as shown in Figure10.13.
Figure10.13:CreatingANewList
On the Attributes tab, enter
thenameof thenewlistasatitle description in the fieldsprovided.To define the content of thelists and listing the variousrecipients,simplyclickontheDistributionListContent tab.ThiswillchangethescreenasshowninFigure10.14.
Figure10.14:CreatingaDistributionList
Enter the Recipients in thespaces provided along with
the Recipient type and thevarious options. Then clickontheSavebutton.
Youmaycreateasubfolderinthe Private Folders or theShared Folder areas. Simply
10.5WorkingwithFoldersandSubfolders
select a folder. Then right-click and choose the CreateSubfolderoption.
Figure10.15:CreatingaSubfolder
This action will display ascreen as shown in Figure10.16. Now you may moveany document or work iteminto the created folder. Tomove a document into afolder, simply right-click thedocument and choose theMoveoptionfromthecontextmenu.
Figure10.16:MovingaDocument
This action will display thedialog box shown in Figure10.17.
Figure10.17:SelectingaFoldertoMove
Enter the name of the folder
to which you would like tomove your document. Thedocument will then shift tothespecifiedfolder.
Within the SAP BusinessWorkplace, you may search
10.6SearchingforFoldersandDocuments
for folders or documentsquickly and easily. Let ustakeacloserlook.When searching for aparticular folder, click the
button on thetoolbar. This will display thedialog box shown in Figure10.18.
Figure10.18:FolderSelection
Youmayentereitherafoldername or a folder title. Youalso have the option ofsearching within the Privateor Shared Folder areas. For
example, if you want tosearch all folders that havetheword“scripts”inthetitle,you should enter *script* inthe title field as shown inFigure10.18.Thesystemwillthenshowyouthefirstfolderthat matches the enteredsearch criteria as shown inFigure10.19.
Figure10.19:FolderMatchingSearchCriteria
In addition to folders, youmay also search fordocuments using certainsearch criteria. To search for
documents, click thebutton.Thiswill
take you to the dialog boxshowninFigure10.20.
Figure10.20:SearchRangeforDocuments
Here, you can specifywhether you want to searchwithin the Private or SharedFolders. For the Privatefolders, you may specifywhether you would like tosearch within the Inbox orOutbox,etc.Next,enterthesuitablesearchcriteria in the Attributes
section provided. You may,for example, specify thesearch string within theDocument title or search byentering the creator of thedocument’s name. You mayalso search for a documentchanged within a given daterange. For example, Figure10.20 shows the criteriaentered for searchingdocuments changed betweenthe dates July 11, 2011 and
October 9, 2011 containingtheword“completion” in thedocument title. Once youpress "Enter", the relevantdocuments are displayed inthetopareaoftherightpane.
This chapter discussed theSAPBusinessWorkflowwithan emphasis on creating,
SummaryofChapter10
sending, and filingdocuments. With theinformation provided, youshouldnowbeable toaccessthe Business Workflow,create a newmessage, attachdocuments to outgoingmessages, use folders andsubfolders to organize yourinbox, andcreatedistributionlists. In the next chapter, wewill discuss how to manageWorkflow and Work Items
within the SAP BusinessWorkplace.
Chapter11
SAPBusinessWorkplacePart2-ManagingWorkflow
WorkItems
As already mentionedearlierinthebook,Workflowis an important SAPfunctionality.WorkItemsareactive objects that aregenerated during workflowexecution. They are animportant component of the
Business Workplace, as theyare executable objects thatallow you to carry outdifferentactions.In this chapter, we willdiscuss what users may berequired to perform withWorkflow Work Items. Wewilldiscussthevariousstatesof a Work Item and thevarious forms (and purposes)inwhich theymay appear inyourinbox.
This chapter will cover thefollowingimportanttopics:·HowtoviewWorkItemswithinyourinboxandoutbox
·HowtohandleaWorkItemthathasadeadline
·Thevariousoutofofficesettings
·PersonalizationoptionswithintheBusinessWorkplace
Some questions that will beanswered in this chapterinclude:·HowcanIcreateandviewWorkItemsinmyinbox?
·WhatarethedifferentstatusesofWorkItems?
·WhataretheapplicablefunctionsonWorkItems?
Throughoutthechapter,therewill be examples and
screenshotstohelpthereadergain the greatest possibleunderstanding of how toutilize the SAP BusinessWorkplace.
11.1WorkItems:WhatTheyAreandHowTheyLook
A Work Item is anexecutable object that allowsyou to carry out actions onbusiness objects, such asPurchase Order, Employeeabsence, or Notification. Inmore simple terms, WorkItemsaregeneratedasaresultofworkflow execution.Theyare active objects that allowyoutocompleteanactivityinthe SAP system, such as anApprovalworkitem.
Work Items appear in theInbox of the BusinessWorkplace mainly under theWorkflow node (and a fewother nodes). Your Inboxreflects all work items forwhichyouarea recipient (orone of the recipients). Atypical Decision WorkItemisshowninFigure11.1.
Figure11.1:DecisionWork
Item
Here, you are presentedwithanumberofchoices (eachofwhich is represented by abutton) from which you canchoose the option you want.You may choose the optionYes I approve, orNo I don't.If you choose the Canceloption, the Work Itemremains in your inbox forlaterprocessing.IftheYesor
No options are chosen, thework item disappears fromtheinbox.Other than decisions, WorkItems may serve otherpurposes,suchas:·WorkItemsmaybeused
toprovideyouwithnotificationaboutanactivitythathastakenplace.
·WorkItemsmayrequire
youtoperformanactiononanobjectinSAPtransaction.Inthiscase,youmaybetakenfromtheWorkItemtothenecessarytransaction.SuchWorkItemsmayberequiredtoexplicitlyconfirmendofprocessing(orcompletion)inorderfortheworkflowtocontinuefurtherasshowninFigure11.2.
Figure11.2:ConfirmEnd
ofProcessing·DeadlineWork
Items/MessagesforindicatingthatanotherWorkItemhasbeenoverdue.
Depending on the scenario,multiple users may beinvolvedasrecipients.Inthiscase, theWork Itemmay bepresent in the Inbox of anumber of users. If one user
then processes the givenWork Item, the Work Itemwilldisappearfromtheinboxof the other users. A WorkItem may also containattachmentsthatmaybeusedinthesubsequentstepswithintheworkflowinquestion.
11.2WorkItemsViewWithin
Inbox
Within the Inbox of yourBusiness Workplace, thereare four folders that arerelated to Workflow workitems, namely Workflow,Overdue Entries, DeadlineMessages, and IncorrectEntries.
Inbox
Figure11.3:FourWorkflow-relatedFoldersDouble-click on the folderwhose details you want toview. This will display thedetails in the right pane.The
view regarding the WorkItemsisdifferentfromthatofthe documents as mentionedearlier. When you double-click theWorkflownode, theright pane appears as showninFigure11.4.
Figure11.4:WorkflowWorkItemsinRightPane
Theupperpartshows the listof work items (also referredto as theWorkList). At thetop is a toolbar that providesa variety of useful functionsthat may be performed onitems.The items shown in yellowindicate Overdue Items, i.e.,the items that are past theirdate for completion. Thelower part contains thepreviewof theWork Item in
question. This contains thedescription of the item andany attachments along withrelevant tips and tricks. Youmay place the cursor on theTips and Tricks part to fullydisplay the Tip provided fortheselectedWorkItem.Within the Object andAttachments shown within awork item,youmayclickonthe Object link to view thedetails of the object in
consideration, such as thePurchaseOrder,Notification,etc.The various columns(information)abouttheWorkList items are shown inFigure11.5.
Figure11.5:InformationabouttheWorkListItemsLetustakeadetailedlook:·Executable.Thesymbol
undertheExecutablecolumnforagivenWork
ItemindicatesthattheWorkItemmaybeexecuted.Typically,thissymbolappearsbesidetheonesforwhichyourinteractionisrequired.
·Title.Thisisthetitle(headingorsubject)oftheWorkItem,forexample,PleaseConfirmEndofProcessing.
·Status.Thestatusshowsthecurrentstate(denoted
byasymbol)theWorkItemisin.Someofthemostimportantstatuses(visibleintheSBWPinbox)areshowninFigure11.6.
Symbol Status Meaning
Ready
When aWork Item initially appears in theBusinessWorkplace,itsinitialstateisitcanbeexecuted(orprocessed).Also,whenaWorkItem is In Process status and then the Replacefunctionisapplied,it
ExecutedThis is a special status forWork Items thatmustbeexplicitlyconfirmed.Theseitemshavebeenexecuted
butnotconfirmed
Reserved
This indicatesreservedWork Itemwill disappear fromotherusers.Oncereserved,aWorkItemmay thenbereplacedbythesameuserorassignedbytheWorkflowadministratortosomeoneelse.
InProcess
WhenyouexecuteoropenaWorkItemorexecution,it gets the In Process status. Also, when you opendecisionWork Items butthattheyareinprocess.
Completed Thisindicatescompletionoftheworkitem.
Figure11.6:Statusesof
WorkItems
·Attachment.IfanattachmentforaWorkItemexists,the iconundertheAttachmentcolumnwillappear.
NOTE:Youmayalsosort all the itemsaccording to the columnvalues.Forexample,youmaysortaccordingtothe
TitlebyclickingonTitle.The itemswill be sortedaccording to theTitle asshowninFigure11.5.
·Priority.EachWorkItemhasaprioritythatindicatesitsurgency.Thismayhavearangevalueof1–9,with1indicatingthehighestpriorityand9indicatingthelowestpriority.
·ConfirmedExplicitly.AflagindicatorinthiscolumnforaWorkItemindicatesthattheconfirmation(completion)oftheWorkItemmustbedoneexplicitly,meaningthecompleteWorkItembuttonwillbepressedandthentheworkflowwillproceedfurther.
NOTE:Apartfromthe
toolbar, you may alsoright-clickonaparticularWork Item in order toaccess the context menushowing the varioussupported functions fortheselectWorkItem.
·WorkItemOverdue.AWorkItemmayalsohavealatestenddeadline.Thisisthetimebywhichtheworkitemwillbe
consideredlateoroverdueifnotcompleted.Thesymbol inthiscolumnindicatesthattheworkitemisoverdue.
Over the passage of time,yourWork Listmay becometoo long, and searching for aparticularWork Item, a typeof Work Item, or all WorkItemsofaparticularobjectIDmay be a challenging task.For this purpose, the
Inboxviewprovidesviewsofthree Work Item Groupings,which are shown in Figure11.7 (the nodes are alsoshown inFigure11.2). If theuser does notwant to see allWork Items, he or she canview them according to thegroupsshownthatareusedtorestrictthesearch.Selectingaparticular classification withthe various nodes groupingswill display the items falling
within the grouping in therightpane.
WorkItemGroupings
Meaning
Groupedaccordingtotask
Underthisnode,furthernodesmayexist.ThisaccordingtotheTasktext,i.e.,theWorkflowtaskfromtheWorkItemhasbeengenerated.Forexample,youmayhaveagroupwithintheGroupedAccordingtoTaskChangeNotificationTask
Grouped accordingtocontent
Groupaccording to theobject(withID)inquestion.Forexample,therewillbeseparatenodesundersuchasChangeNotification0041Selectingtheappropriateintherightpane.
Groupedaccording
This grouping is based on the content type rather than theactual content. For example, there may be a nodeNotificationwhichwhendouble-clickedwill displayboth
tocontenttype ChangeNotification0041rightpane.Therewillbenoseparatenodesforthenotifications0041and0042asintheGroupedbyContentclassification.
Figure11.7:WorkItemGroupings
11.2.1OutboxIn the Outbox, all theworkflow related items areunder the Started Workflow,Work Items Executed by me,and Forward Work Items.These list any workflows
started by you, the completelistofworkitemsexecutedbyyou,andanyitemsforwardedby you to another user,respectively.
Figure11.8:Outbox
TheWork Items Executed byme node gives the relevant
work items list. The toolbarof the Outbox also has avariety of useful functions,such as displaying of itemdetail,sorting,andfiltering.
Figure11.9:WorkItemsExecutedbyYou
By default, the last month'sitems are shown. However,
you may see the status of aday or week as well. Forexample,youmaychoosethe
button and access theToday Only or the Last 7Days option, whichever isrequired.
Figure11.10:ItemsfromVariousTimePeriods
11.2.2DeadlineMessagesFor manyWork Items, theremaybeadeadlineset for thelatestcompletionoftheworkitem. Once this time haselapsed, special DeadlineMessagesforWorkItemsareissued.Ifyouaredefinedasa
recipient of such a message,you will receive a deadlinemessage.These deadline messagesmust be set as completedexplicitlyviatheoptionSettoDone.Whenyou execute theWork Item, the Set to Doneoption appears as a toolbarbutton (discussed in section11.3). Also, you will find aMonitored Work Item buttonthat will allow you to get
informationfromtheoverdueWorkItem.
NOTE: Once youcomplete a Work Itemthatwas sent to you andother users, it willdisappear from yourinbox and from theinboxes of the otherusers. Until they arecompleted, they may bein the “In Process”, the
“Executed”, or the“Reserve”status.Inallofthese statuses, no otheruser may execute theWork Item until the“Replace” operation hasbeencarriedout.
11.3FunctionsApplicableOn
WorkItems
In this section, Iwill discussthe various functions thatmay be performed on WorkItems.·SettingaWorkItemto“Done”.Asalreadymentioned,forcertainWorkItems,includingDeadlineWorkItems,youmustexplicitlyconfirmcompletion.Thismaybe
WorkItems
donebyfirstselectingtherelevantworkitemandthenclickingtheOtherFunctions buttonfromthetoolbarandchoosingtheoptionSettodone.
Figure11.11:SetWorkItemto“Done”
NOTE: Since there isno auto-refresh in theworkplace,aftercarryingoutanyfunctiononworkitems,usetheRefresh button in the toolbar toget the newest state oftheWorkList.
·CreatingaLink.Youmaycreatealinktoanitem
withinafolderorasubfolderwithinafolder.Thesefoldersmaybeprivateorshared.Todoso,selecttheWorkItemandthenchoosetheEnvironment button.Fromtheoptionsthatappear,chooseCreateLink.
Figure11.12:CreateLink
The Folder Selectiondialog box appears asshowninFigure11.13.
Figure11.13:FolderSelection
Youmay then specify thename of the shared orprivate folder where thelinkoftheWorkItemistobecreated.
Supposewe store it in thePrivate folder. Afterspecifyingthefoldernameas shown, the linkwill becreated in the privatefolder.
·ChangingpriorityofaWorkItem.YoumayalsochangethepriorityofaWorkItem(asisthecasewithadocument).Todoso,clicktheOtherFunctionsbutton after
selectingtheitem.Fromtheoptions,chooseChangePriorityoption.ThedialogboxappearsasshowninFigure11.14.
Figure11.14:ChangePriorityDialogBox
Choosethenewpriorityofthe Work Item and then
press"Enter".·ResubmissionofWorkItems(anddocuments).AnimportantfunctionalitysupportedintheBusinessWorkplaceistoresubmitWorkItemsanddocumentsforafuturedate.ThismeansthattheWorkItemwillbemovedfromtheinboxandwillthenbeshownundertheResubmissionsfolder.The
WorkItemwillbeautomaticallymovedintotheInboxbythesystemonthespecifiedresubmissiondate.Select the relevant itemandclick theResubmit button. (Alternately, youmayright-clickandchoosethe Resubmit option fromthe context menu.) ThiswilldisplaythedialogboxasshowninFigure11.15.
Figure11.15:ResubmitWorkItem
Then enter a suitable datewhen you would like theitem to reappear in theInbox.Next,press"Enter".The itemwill then appearin the Resubmissions
folder until the datespecified.
NOTE: If you wouldlike to display theWorkflow log, you mayselecttheWorkItemandclick the button fromthetoolbar.
·ReservingaWorkItem.Asalreadymentioned,itis
possibleforyoutoreserveaWorkItemthathasappearedinyourinbox.OnceyoureserveaWorkItem,itwillnolongerbevisibletootherusers.EitheryouortheWorkflowadministratorcanreplacetheWorkItemmanually.ToreserveaWorkItem,firstselectitandthenclicktheReservebutton.Alternately,you
mayright-clickandthenchoosetheReserveoptionfromthecontextmenu.ThiswillreservetheWorkItem for you, and thestatus of the item will bechanged to Reserveddenotedbythe symbol.
·ReplacingaWorkItem.TheReplacefunctionsetstheWorkItemtoReadyandmakesitvisibleto
otherrecipientsaswellforexecution.ThisfunctionmaybeappliedonitemsthathaveaReserved,InProcess,orExecutedstatus.To replace a Work Item,select itandthenclicktheReplace button.Alternately, you mayright-clickandthenchoosethe Replace option fromthe context menu. This
willreplacetheWorkItemandthestatusof itwillbechangedtoReady .
·AddingAttachmentstoaWorkItem.YoumayalsoaddattachmentstoaWorkItem.YouhavetheoptionsofcreatinganewdocumentandattachingittotheWorkItemorimportinganexistingdocumentstoredonyourPC.
Toaddattachments,selectthe itemand right-click inordertoaccessthecontextmenu shown in Figure11.16.
Figure11.16:CreateanAttachment
Choose the option CreateAttachment. Alternately,you may click thebutton and choose optionCreate Attachment. ThedialogappearsasshowninFigure11.17.
Figure11.17:Create
DocumentHeader
NOTE:To importandattachfilesfromyourPC,clicktheImport buttonand follow the stepsshown.
Bydefault,SCRappearsintheTypefield.TheSCRdenotesthetextformatthatyoumayenterusing
theSAPeditor.SupposewechooseTXTastheTypeandenteratitleintheprovidedfield.Whenwepress"Enter",anotepaddocumentappearsalongwithadialogboxshowninFigure11.18.
Figure11.18:NotepadDocument
Youmayenterthetextinthetextdocumentandthen
savethetextandclosethenotepaddocument.Next,youwillneedtopresstheContinuebuttononthedialogboxshown.Oncethisisdone,theTXTfileisattachedwithamessagesayingAttachmentaddedtoWorkItem.
NOTE: You maydelete attachments thatyou have added, but you
may not delete/removethoseaddedbyothers.
TherelevantWorkItem'sAttachmentcolumnwillnowappearwithasymbol,denotingthepresenceoftheattachment.
Figure11.19:AttachmentColumn
·ForwardingWorkItems.Aswithdocuments,aWorkItemmayalsobeforwardedtoanyotheruser.ThismaybedonebyselectingtheWorkItemandthenclickingtheForward button.Alternately,youmayright-clickandthenchoose
theForwardoptionfromthecontextmenuthatappears.ThedialogboxappearsasshowninFigure11.20.
Figure11.20:ForwardingWorkItem
EntertheUserinthefieldprovided and then press"Enter".ThiswillforwardtheWorkItemto theuserspecified. In the otheruser's inbox, your usernamewillbeshowninthecolumnForwardedByfortheworkiteminquestion.TheforwardedWorkItemwill be removed from allthe other users’ inboxeswhoinitiallyhadthework
item visible. The itemforwarded will appear inthe Outbox under then o d eWork Itemsforwardedbyme.
In this section,wewill coverthe steps required to set upoutofofficesettingsforwhen
11.4OutofofficeSettings
you are unable to send orreceive messages. Thisincludes creating a personalsubstitute and setting theforwarding option in youremail.
11.4.1CreatingSubstitutesIn case you are going out ofoffice,youmayallowanotheruser (known as your
PersonalSubstitute)toviewyour inboxandwork list andapprove the work items, ifrequired. To createsubstitutes, choose the menupath Settings à WorkflowSettings à MaintainSubstitute.ThedialogappearsasshowninFigure11.21.
Figure11.21:PersonalSubstitutesCreation
Position the cursor on youruser ID (in our case, it isSTUDENT009), then clickthe icon. A dialog boxappearsthatwillletyouenterasearchtermfortheuser.Inthe search term field, youmayeither enter thenameofthe user or a search term. Ifyou want to choose from all
available users, you mustenter the wildcard character(*).Press"Enter"toviewtheusers selected according tothesearchtermentered.Thenchoose from the list thatappears.Supposewechoosethenameof the substitute to be JaneAllen. The screen appears asshown.
Figure11.22:Detail
ScreenSubstitution
Enter the validity date(duration) of the substitutionas shown (it is also possibleto create substitutes for aweek or a month byspecifying appropriatevalidity dates). You canactivate the substitute bychecking the SubstitutionActive checkbox, and thenclicktheSavebutton.
The user Jane Allen will beone of your substitutesstartingfromMarch31,2012,and your work items willappear in her Inbox rightaway. She will remain asubstitute as long as youdon’tdeleteherentry.If the Substitution Activecheckbox is not on, yoursubstitute will have tomanually adopt thesubstitution in order tomake
yourworkitemsvisibleinhisor her Inbox. The menuoptionfordoingsoisSettingsàWorkflow Settings à AdoptSubstitution.
11.4.2AutomaticForwardingYou may also forward yourdocuments to another SAPuserorevensendanemailinyour absence. To do this,
follow the menu optionSettingàOfficeSettings.Thiswill open the Private OfficeSettings dialog box. Selectthe Automatic Forwardingtab and press the Createbutton. The AutomaticForwardingdialogappearsasshowninFigure11.23.
Figure11.23:AutomaticForwarding
To forward your documentsto another email address(Internet address), enter theemail address in the fieldprovided. On the right,choose the option Internetaddress from the drop box.Enter a validity period andpress"Enter".Nowalldocumentsonwhichforwardingispermissiblewillbeforwarded to thespecifiedaddress.
In this section, we will seesome of the personalizingsettingsrelatedtoworkitems.Toaccessthissetting,choosethe menu path Settings àWorkflow à Personal
11.5OtherPersonalizationOptionsofBusinessWorkplace
Settings.
Figure11.24:PersonalWorkflowSettings
A few useful settings areshownbelow:·EnableForwardingofWorkItemstoSeveralUsers.Asthenameindicates,thissettingallowsyoutoforwardtheworkitemtoseveralusers.Bydefault,thissettingisswitchedtooff.
·NoTipsandTricksofWorkItemsinWorkplaces.YoumayswitchofftheTipsandTricksdisplayedwithinaWorkitembyselectingthischeckbox.Bydefaultthissettingison.Afterdoingso,notipsandtricksareshown.
·ObjectDetailsShowninSameWindow.Bydefault,clickingontheObjectnamepertainingtoa
particularworkitemopensanewwindowshowingthedetailsoftheobject.Youmaywanttoswitchthisoffanddisplaytheobjectdetailinthesamewindow.YoucandothisbyselectingthecheckboxDouble-clickingobjectshowsobjectinSameWindow.
NOTE: If you wouldlike to switch back thedefault settings of theWorkplace press the
button.
11.5.1SwitchingOffPreviewYoumay also switch off the
work item preview shown inthe lower part of the rightpane. You can do this byselecting the menu option,Settings à Switch OffPreview.
Figure11.25:Switching
PreviewOff
This chapter discussed theSAPBusinessWorkflowwithan emphasis onWork Items.With the informationprovided,youshouldnowbeable to locate Work Itemswithin your inbox andoutbox, identify deadlines on
SummaryofChapter11
Work Items, and completethem appropriately. Youshould now also becomfortable with the varioussettings found withintransaction SBWP,particularly relating to out ofoffice settings andpersonalization of yourBusinessWorkplace.
Chapter12
MiscellaneousTopics
Thischapterwillfocusonavariety of additional topics
thatmaybeusefultotheuser.Iwilldiscussindetailhowtodisplay an authorizationcheck usingTransaction SU53 and willthen delve into the variousfunctions/services pertainingto theObjects that youworkwith on a day-to-day basis.These miscellaneous topicsare meant to help you roundoutyourknowledgebase.The following topics will be
covered:·DisplayingAuthorizationCheck
·TransactionSU53Output
·ObjectServices·AttachmentLists·MyObjectsLists
Some questions that will beanswered in this chapterinclude:·Icannotgainaccesstoa
transaction.WhatdoIdo?
·HowdoIdisplayanAuthorizationCheck?
·HowdoIalertthesecurityteamthatIneedaccess?
·WhatarethemostimportantObjectservices?
·HowdoIcreateanoteforagivenObject?
Throughoutthechapter,therewill be examples andscreenshots to help you gainthe greatest possibleunderstanding of how todisplayAuthorizationChecksand how to manageObjectswithintheireverydaytasks.
As alreadymentioned earlierin the book, the necessaryauthorization must be giventoyourUser(ID)inorderforyou to execute a report, tomake entries on a screen, or
12.1TransactionSU53–DisplayingAuthorizationCheck
to display data through atransaction. However, therewillbemanysituationswhenyou should be allowed to gotoatransactionorcarryoutacertain activity within thesystembutarenotallowedtodo so.Thismay also happenwhen you try to access atransactionviatheusermenuor the SAP EasyAccessMenu but cannot dueto lack of authorization. An
authorization error displayed,in such cases, is shown inFigure12.1.
Figure12.1:AuthorizationError
Insuchcases,youshouldaskthe security teammember toprovide you with necessaryauthorization. In order to doso, you need to point outwhich Authorization Object
check has failed. Theinformation on theauthorization object and thecheck that failed can bedeterminedusingtransactionSU53.Simply call transaction“SU53” or use menu pathSystem à Utilities à DisplayAuthorizationCheck.
Figure12.2:DisplayAuthorizationCheck
This will take you to the
AuthorizationDisplayscreen.The Authorization Datashown for a check that hasfailed will be similar to theoneshowninFigure12.3.
Figure12.3:AuthorizationData
Itwill be clearlywritten thatthe Authority Check Failedand the requiredAuthorization value for theuser inorder toproceedwiththe activitywill be shown inred.You may then send thisscreenshot to the Securityteam and ask for the
necessary authorization.Make sure that this SU53screenshotistakenrightaftertheauthorizationerroroccurs.Once the authorization isgranted,youmaythenusethedesiredtransaction.
NOTE: It is importantthat you call the SU53transaction immediatelyafter the failingtransaction.
If the last carried out checkwas successful, the screenappears as shown in Figure12.4.
Figure12.4:SuccessfulAuthorityCheck
The transaction SU53 outputshows the last authorization
checkthatwascarriedoutbythesystemwhiletheuserwascarrying out his or heractivity (even if it wassuccessful or not). Forexample,ifyouranthecheckseveral hours ago, theauthorization check historywill still be there. However,when you log off and thenagain log on to the system,you will have yourAuthorization check history
in transaction SU53refreshed.Until theuserdoesnot log off, the outcome ofthe last authorization checkwillremaininthesystem.
NOTE: A successfulmessagedoesnot requirethe user to do anything.The details about thegeneration of a failuremessage are what a usershould send to the
Securityteam.
Fortheobjectsthatyouworkwith (such as aDocument, aMaterial, or an Employee),there may be some generalfunctions known as ObjectServices available. Thesemay allow you to, for
12.2ObjectServices
example, enter a note orattach a file to the object inquestion. This will only berelevant to the particulardocument number or to theparticular employee towhichitisattached.To access the ObjectServices, click on theicononthetopleftcornerofthe SAP window in order toopen the submenu shown inFigure12.5.
Figure12.5:ObjectServicesSubmenu
Themenuprovidesanumberof options. All of these maynot be applicable to yourobject.Let us now look at themostimportant functions one byone.·CreatingandManagingAttachments.Tocreateanattachmentfortheobjectinquestion,youmayusethisfunction.Simply
choosethemenuoptionCreateàAttachment.Thepop-upappearsforspecifyingthefiletobeattached.Youmaythenattachanyfile(inanumberofformats,suchasWord,Excel,oranyotherformat).After at least oneattachment (or an addednote has been attached)exists for the object in
question, youmay displaythe attachments to theobject by choosing theAttachment list option asshowninFigure12.6.
Figure12.6:“Attachment
list”OptionThe Attachment list willappearasshowninFigure12.7. All files as well asNotes attached to theobjectwillbeshown.
Figure12.7:AttachmentList
NOTE: Private Notes
do not appear in theAttachment list of theObject.
·CreateNotes(andprivatenotes).Youmayalsoattachnotestothegivenobject.Thesemaybeaccessiblebyotherusers(normalnotes)ormaybejustaccessiblebyyou(privatenotes).
To create a note for allusers, choose the optionCreate à Note. The Noteeditor will appear asshowninFigure12.8.
Figure12.8:NoteEditor
Enter the title of the notealong with the text of thenoteandpress"Enter".On the other hand, tocreate a privateNote, youshould choose the optionCreateàPrivateNote.
Figure12.9:CreatePrivateNote
This will open thePersonal Note editorshowninFigure12.10.
Figure12.10:PrivateNoteEditor
You may then enter theprivate note and title andpressthe"Enter"button.
·SendObjectwithNote(inanEmail).ItisalsopossibleforyoutogodirectlyfromthesubmenutotheBusinessWorkplaceandcreateanemailwiththelinktotheobjectattachedtotheemail.Forexample,ifweareprocessingemployee
1280andwechoosetheoptionSendàObjectWithNote,thescreenwillappearasshowninFigure12.11.
Figure12.11:SendObjectwithNoteinEmail
We can then specify theTitle, the Body of theemail, and the Recipients,and then click the Sendbutton. On theAttachments tab, we willseethattheEmployeelinkisattached.
Figure12.12:AttachmentsTab
·StartingandDisplayingWorkflowsforanObject.Youmayalsohaveworkflowfunctionsattachedthatareaccessible
fromtheGeneralObjectServices.Inordertostartaworkflowrelatedtotheobjectinquestion,simplyselectthemenuoptionWorkflowàStartWorkflow.To view a list of theworkflowpertainingtotheobject, choose the optionWorkflow à WorkflowOverview. This willdisplay a list of the
workflows for the objectalong with the necessaryinformation.
·AddingObjecttoyourFavorites.YoumayalsoaddcertainobjectsalongwiththeirIDstoyourfavoriteObjectslist.ThismaybedonebychoosingthemenuoptionMyObjectsàAddtoMyObjects.
Figure12.13:AddObjectstoFavorites
Thiswilladdtheobjecttothe favorite list. (In thenext section, we will seehow the My Objects listmaybeviewed.)
As already mentioned, thereisaMyObjectslisttowhichyou may add your favorite
12.3The“MyObjects”List
objects. This is particularlyusefulwhenyouhavecertainobjects thatyouwant tonotefor future usage. The objectsthat are added to the list arenot removed until youexplicitlydoso.Youmaydisplay, change thelist, or create folders in theObjects list. To do this youmay use the menu pathSystem à My Objects à EditObjects shown in Figure
12.14. (This menu path isavailableinallSAPscreens.)
Figure12.14:EditObjects
The My Objects list will bedisplayed as shown in theFigure12.15.
Figure12.15:MyObjects
Suppose we added the
employee number 1280. Anodewill appear for it in thelist. You may then double-clickonthe1280nodeanditwill take you directly to thetransactionforprocessing thegivenobject.Youmay also create foldersin your favorite object list.To create a folder, click the
button. The dialogappears as shown in Figure12.16.
Figure12.16:CreateaFolderintheObjectList
Enter a suitable folder nameand then press "Enter". Thenew folder will be added toyourlist.
Figure12.17:MyObjectswithFolder
You may create as manyfolders as you like, and thendrag and drop any objects
into the folder. To delete anobject from the list or todelete the folder, select thegiven item and click theicon.PresstheSavebuttontosaveyoursetting.The list of objects remainsand may be accessed evenafteryouhaveloggedoff.
Thischapterdiscussedhowtogenerate and displayAuthorization Checks whenyou are unable to accesscertain transactions. It alsodiscussed different servicesthat are available to you forObjects that are used everyday. With the information
SummaryofChapter12
provided in this chapter, youshould now be able to applythe mentioned featureseffectively to your dailywork. I hope that thisinformation is useful to youand has helped round outyourknowledgebase.
Referenceshttp://help.sap.com/saphelp_erp60_sp/helpdata/en/c8/96c998142f11d389940000e8216438/frameset.htm
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
Command Field, 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
RehanZaidi hasmore than15 years of SAP experienceand has been writing aboutSAPtopicssince2001.Heis
the author of the SAPAdvanced ABAP Cookbookpublished from the UnitedKingdom, and has written anumber of SAP books andarticles about ABAP,Workflow,HRfunctionalandtechnical consultants, andSAPuserexperiences.Hehasbeen published in prestigiousAmerican publications suchas SAP Professional Journaland HR Expert. Rehan has
provided coaching forMobility and ABAP. He hasalso completed support andimplementation projects forvarious areas of ABAP andWorkflow. He holdsBachelor’s and Master’sdegrees in computer science.Rehan can be [email protected]
AboutthePublisher
JonReed is an independentanalyst, SAP Mentor and
Enterprise Irregular whoblogs and videocasts onenterprise trends. TheUltimate SAP User Guide isthe fifth book Jon haspublished, and the third SAPtitle.Jon’spriorSAP titlesare theSAP Consultant Handbook(1998), one of the mostsuccessful books in the SAParena, andTheUltimateSAPPricing Guide, by Matthias
Liebich. The home base forJon’s SAP publishingventures is JonERP.com,Career Answers for SAPProfessionals.Most recently, Jon is a co-founder of diginomica.com.Launched in the spring of2013 by Jon and four otherlong-timeenterprisebloggers,diginomica is focused onproviding originalcommentary and reporting
focused solely on theenterprisemarket.Jon is also the driving forcebehind JonERP.com, aninteractive web site for SAPprofessionals that featuresJon's long-running podcastandvideoseries.Inhisclientwork, Jon advises companieson enterprise go-to-marketandtheuseofmulti-mediatoreachnewaudiences.Contenttactics for reaching today’s
informedenterprisebuyerisamajor focus on Jon’sadvisory.
TheUltimateSAPUserGuide–Expert
ReaderBios
The Ultimate SAP UserGuideisindebtedtoitsexpertreader panel for invaluablefeedback to the final versionyou are reading now. Herearetheirbios.Simha R. Magal, Ph.D. isProfessor of Management
(MIS)andDirectoroftheERPprogram in the SeidmanCollege of Business,GrandValley State University. Dr.Magalhastaughtgraduateandundergraduate courses inbusiness processes andenterprise systems using SAPfor over a decade, and hascoauthored three best-sellingSAP books:Essentials ofBusiness Processes andInformation Systems (Wiley,
2 0 0 9 ),Integrated BusinessProcesses with ERP (Wiley2 0 1 2 ),Business ProcessIntegration with SAP ERP(Epistemy Press 2013). In2013,heco-foundedEpistemyPress, a digital publisher thatdelivers cutting-edge SAPknowledge to both academiaandindustry.In2012,Dr.Magalwasalsoselected by the SAPprofessionalcommunitytobe
anSAPMentor,a rare honorfor an academic. He can bereached on Twitter at:@ERPProf.Bill Wood has deep ITexperience since the mid1980s,includingover25SAPengagements since 1994.Wood’s diverse SAPexperience includes: SAPSolution Architecture, IT &business strategy integration,software & vendor selection,
ITAM / SAM audits, SAPCoE development, projectmanagement, SAP projectaudits, methodologydevelopment, SAP upgrades,rollouts, and dataconversions. Wood is ASAPcertified, a formerKnowledge Manager for theGrantThorntonSAPpractice,andaMensamember.WoodrunstheSAPcustomercentered site at R3now.com.
Wood can be reached onTwitterat:@r3now.PaulHawkingisanAssociateProfessor in InformationSystemsatVictoriaUniversity.HeisconsideredasoneoftheleadingcommentatorsonERPsystems and BusinessIntelligence and specificallySAPsolutions.Hisknowledgeis well respected in bothindustry and academia andaccordingly is often required
to assist companieswith theirSAP strategies andunderstandingSAPsolutions.Hawking was a pastChairperson and committeemember of the SAPAustralian User Group(SAUG)for10yearsandwasresponsible for knowledgetransfer. He now advises theSAUG on the content fortheir events. In 2009, 2011,and 2012, Hawking was
votedbytheSAPcommunityas one of the Top TenMostInfluentialPeople inSAPforAustralia and New Zealand.Hawking was awarded“Outstanding Academic2010” by SAP. He was thefirstacademicintheworldtobecome a SAP Mentor.Hawking can be reached onTwitterat:@paulhawking.LeonardoDeAraujoisVicePresident andmember of the
Executive Committee atBeyond Technologies. DeAraujo specializes in theimplementation,optimization,support and upgrade of SAPsolutions. He has over 17years of experience as aninformation technologyspecialist. During his career,DeAraujocarriedoutseveralmandates calling on his SAPsolutions expertise. With hisconsiderable technical
experience and his vastbusiness knowledge, headvises clients on thetechnology solutions adaptedto their needs in order tomaximizetheirprofitability.In 2009, De Araujo wasnamed anSAPMentor - oneof the most prestigioushonors in the SAPcommunity. He regularlydelivers speeches for theASUG (America’s SAP
Users’ Group) and the SAPTechEd conference (SAP’sannual technologyeventnowknown as SAP d-code). DeAraujo is based inMontréal,Québec. He can be reachedon Twitter at:@Leonardo_Araujo.Additional expert readers:Zaidi and Reed would alsolike to thank expert readersNadine Baghdadi (expertSAP trainer), Rachel Meyers
(expert training guidecreator), and MorrisRosenthal (publishingindustryexpert).
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