Export data to XML - generate xml files?

weblike

Hi there,

I want to achieve to create a specific XML file from my apps.

Does anyone use this kind of files?

Do I need a java plugin?
Or someone knows a third party command line tool which generates XML from other file type like Html, PDF's?

Thnak you.

CalD

I have done a couple of different exports of differing formats. Its definitely not a strong suit of Aware IMO.
How complicated is the XML format, will it have data from multiple BOs etc

In my experience you wont get a command line etc tool to convert it from another format, and if you can work out how to create it in html, you should be able to do the same in xml anyway (it's all just text at the end of the day)

weblike

Thank you for your reply,

CalD wrote
(it's all just text at the end of the day)

You are right.

I want to export invoices, which has Invoice_BO and Line_Items_BO.
My question is how do you manage Line_Items_BO?

In html I use <table></table> with LIST_TABLE_START....LIST_TABLE_END,
but in XML how I deal with these lines? I do not want to appear any tags of <table></table>

Any giude I'll appreciate.

Thank you

ACDC

If you use the built-in Report writer, Document Type: Text document it would work.
Create the invoice layout as normal and then insert the xml tags in your text document and export to filename.xml

intra

Although I haven't done an XML export from AwareIM, I think it should be fairly straightforward via a custom java plugin.

Got a BSV with some test data and an example of the structure?

UnionSystems

I’ve had success using Python scripts to manipulate data files. What you would do is :

Create an initial template script in Python that converts a data file exported from AwareIM into the format of XML you require (use hard coded references for the input and output files in this initial script)
Convert that initial template script into an AwareIM Text Document template and change the input and output files to << Object.Attribute >> tokens do you can change the files dynamically
Create a process that EXPORT DOCUMENT that template to a Python text file and then EXECUTE PROGRAM that file

You will need to have Python installed on your server to do this. I’ve also included CSV outputs in my Python scripts to import result information from the script. Not suggesting this is better than writing a Java plug-in but it’s an option if Java skills are not available to you.

You will find lots of sample Python scripts on the Internet.

weblike

intra wrote
Although I haven't done an XML export from AwareIM, I think it should be fairly straightforward via a custom java plugin.

Got a BSV with some test data and an example of the structure?

Here is empty bsv

There are 3 BO's:

Customers
Invoices
InvoicesLineItems

Simulate:
1.Create new Invoice

I want to achieve to export the invoice in XML format like I said.

P.S. Thank you guys for your replies. I will check python scripts and report writer to see if it works.

Thank you

invoice_to_xml.zip

37.51kB

invoice_to_xml.zip

37.51kB

weblike

UnionSystems wrote
I’ve had success using Python scripts to manipulate data files. What you would do is :

Create an initial template script in Python that converts a data file exported from AwareIM into the format of XML you require (use hard coded references for the input and output files in this initial script)

Convert that initial template script into an AwareIM Text Document template and change the input and output files to << Object.Attribute >> tokens do you can change the files dynamically

Create a process that EXPORT DOCUMENT that template to a Python text file and then EXECUTE PROGRAM that file

You will need to have Python installed on your server to do this. I’ve also included CSV outputs in my Python scripts to import result information from the script. Not suggesting this is better than writing a Java plug-in but it’s an option if Java skills are not available to you.

You will find lots of sample Python scripts on the Internet.

Thank you for your reply.
I have searched for example scripts but not aware from where to start.

Can you hint some easy and good example site?
Thank you.

CalD

ok, without getting into java plugins etc there is one way I can think of to do this, you may not like it but typically I like to keep things within the environment I am working in, the more plugins and thirdparty apps you have the more you have to manage and keep on top of IMO.

So, create a BO that has one large text field call it XMLOut or similar (I use MS SQL, I would make it varchar(max)) and the only other item in the BO needs to be the relationship back to the invoice header.

Write a process to find the invoice you want to export, and update XMLOut field by field with the XML tags, so XMLOut=TRIM(XMLOut)+'<InvoiceNumber>'+InvoiceHeader.InvoiceNumber+'</InvoiceNumber>' and so on and so forth until you have done all the header fields, then run through the children lines doing the same, Then you will need to close off the xml to get the tags right.

Once the string is built, all you have to do is a text document out of the one XMLOut Field.

If you want to be efficient/Tidy, delete the XMLOut record when you are done.

Its not awesome but it would work, and all your logic/coding is still within aware.

ACDC

#46424 by ACDC
Mon Mar 05, 2018 8:03 am
If you use the built-in Report writer, Document Type: Text document it would work.
Create the invoice layout as normal and then insert the xml tags in your text document and export to filename.xml

I don't get it, why all these complex solutions when you can simply create a Text Document in the report writer as mentioned above with the embedded xml tags and then output the invoice by Exporting the Text Document to InvoiceName.xml ( unless I am missing something - I do this on all my xml output tasks)

CalD

Seems I am missing something, if you have data coming from multiple BO's i.e the invoice header and invoice lines situation, how do you achieve this? - when I have tried the tags for the invoice lines don't work, My text template, uses <<LIST ('FIND InvoiceLine WHERE (InvoiceLine.obInvoiceHeader=InvoiceHeader) ORDER BY InvoiceLine.LineNo',....)

How do you put the XML tags in there - assume 1 per field and a parent tag per line? everything I have tried either strips the xmltag out, or breaks the whole thing.

Would love to hear how to do it better.

Thanks

intra

Just to be clear, would the XML file look something like this?

Assuming (from the BSV) that i created two invoices for the same customer

Customer: Bob Smith

Invoice: 123
LineItem: 1
Product: Apples
Quantity: 1
Price: 1.00
Value: 1.00

Invoice: 345
LineItem:1
Product: Oranges
Quantity: 2
Price: 1.00
Value: 2.00

LineItem:2
Product: Bananna
Quantity: 3
Price: 1.00
Value: 3.00

So you would like a single xml file with all invoices for "Bob Smith" with formatting similar to this?

<Invoices>
<Invoice_ID="123">
<Line_Item>1</Line_Item>
<Product>Apples</Product>
<Quantity>1</Quantity>
<Value>1.00</Value>
<Price>1.00</Price>
</Invoice_ID>

<Invoice_ID="345">
<Line_Item>1</Line_Item>
<Product>Oranges</Product>
<Quantity>2</Quantity>
<Value>1.00</Value>
<Price>2.00</Price>
<Line_Item>2</Line_Item>
<Product>Banana</Product>
<Quantity>3</Quantity>
<Value>1.00</Value>
<Price>3.00</Price>
</Invoice_ID>
</Invoices>

weblike

Hi intra,
Thank you for your reply.

I want to be able to export 1 invoice per xml like this:

<Invoice_Details>
<Lines>
<Line>
<Line_No>1</Line_No>
<Product>Orange</Product>
<Quantity>5</Quantity>
<Price>25.0000</Price>
<Value>75.00</Value>
</Line>

<Line>
<Line_No>2</Line_No>
<Product>Apples</Product>
<Quantity>10</Quantity>
<Price>25.0000</Price>
<Value>250.00</Value>
</Line>
</Lines>
</Invoice_Details>

</Invoice>
</Invoices>

ACDC

Would love to hear how to do it better.

Create two reports Document Type : TEXT

Invoice Header (embed XMl Tags)
2.InvoiceLineItems (embed XML tags)

In the Invoice Header report insert sub report : InvoiceLineItems - and that should work

(forget using the LIST.. option, use the same method as creating a standard Invoice Document with line items inserted as a subreport )

weblike

ACDC wrote
Would love to hear how to do it better.

Create two reports Document Type : TEXT

Invoice Header (embed XMl Tags)
2.InvoiceLineItems (embed XML tags)

In the Invoice Header report insert sub report : InvoiceLineItems - and that should work

(forget using the LIST.. option, use the same method as creating a standard Invoice Document with line items inserted as a subreport )

Thank you guys for your replies.
Sorry, but didn't used before type Text reports and don't know how to add a sub-report. 🙂.........
Can you help with a little hint here, too, please!? 🙂
thank you

ACDC

Sorry, I have just remembered you cannot do a Text Document with a subreport. Maybe a standard report could work. I will have to check

CalD

A standard report is not purely text?

customaware

Standard Report is PDF Cal

CalD

Right you are, so back to the original question about exporting an invoice as xml, there is no point using a standard report - unless you are prepared to use a plugin of some sort to convert the pdf to xml.

I still don't see a better way than just building the text string into a large attribute or attributes as per my earlier suggestion, one enhancement on what I said earlier is you could possibly use REPLACE_PATTERN to tidy it up and make it easier to read.

intra

I think a plugin would be the way to generate this.

I'm going to attempt to write you one, i hope you're not in a rush for it as i'm doing it for my own curiosity. (in between writing a preso for the conference) 😃

I'll PM you over the weekend George.