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====== Purpose of the Lookup Manager ======

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{{:pergamonmu:pergamon_mu_logo048.png?nolink |}}**MU Users**\\
The Pergamon MU version of the software does not utilise the expansive Dynamic Indexing system. As a result, the Lookup Manager is rarely, if ever, used to create new Lookup Groups or Lookup Items. Within the Pergamon MU software, it is more likely to be utilised to maintain existing Lookup areas such as keywords, and to modify configuration areas such as Circulations Profiles.
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The lookup manager dialog is used to create, remove and manage lookup groups and item of the system.

===== An explanation of lookup items =====
Lookup items are an authoritive list of standard values that can be attached to records elsewhere in the application - they are supported as general lookup items however, in order to standardise those entries, prevent duplicates and spelling mistakes, allow central maintenance of changes to common items and create a far smoother and efficient search mechanism.

Usually, lookup items will appear in drop-down menus and selection lists. In most cases a user does not need to type the item, but simply select one or more of the items required from a pre-populated list of options.

In past versions of the application, these items each had their own dialog to maintain items of the same type and use. In the latest release of the application, all of the lookup values possible have been gathered together into a single lookup list, with item types gathered into groups for maintenance and control.

What this means is that maintenance of the lookup items is now greatly simplified and it is now possible to dynamically create new groups of lookup items as well as just the items themselves.

===== Lookup Groups / Types =====

Lookup groups are not selectable in themselves - they are a method by which items that will appear for selection can be collected together for easy management. For example, all of the possible types of media that can be added to the database are collected in the lookup group 'Media Types'.

Lookup Groups have the following information stored about them:

  * **__Focused on...__** - The focus of the group essentially tells a managerial user where the lookup group is intended to be used. This focus assignment is not seen by end-users, and is really present in order to prevent confusion between lookup groups that may have similar names, but will be for different purposes. There are five focuses that can be selected - [System], [Item Indexing], [Item Popup & and configuration], [Reader Indexing] and [Reader Popup & and configuration]. [System] should be reserved only for items that are used for application purposes - such as user permissions.

  * **__Sub-Group of...__** - Very few groups are marked as 'Sub-group' but where they are, they represent a range of items which, for ease of use, are better off grouped in a hierarchical second level. An example of this might be the group 'Religion' (which may include items Christian, Islam, Jewish etc.) created as a sub-group of 'Protected Characteristics' (which may include items Race, Religion etc.)
  * **__Text__** - The textual part of the group definition - it is this text that will appear on screen for the user to see.

  * **__Single Use__** - If a group is selected to be 'Single Use' it means that in areas on the application where the lookup group appears only one single item from the group can be selected at any one time. Any item which does not have the 'Single Use' option selected can have many items selected at the same time. Gender and Publisher for example, can only have a single value in use at any one time, while there may be many keywords and subjects attached to an item.

  * **__System Key__** - The system key is a text based identifier which is not required for either item or reader  indexing purposes - it is used only for system level lookup items. The system key is a unique identifier that allows the application to examine the current value of a specific lookup item. For example, the application may look for and examine a user permission using its system key to see whether the user is permitted to access an application function. While end-users are able to set the System Key value of any record, it is vital that they are not prefixed by the exclamation mark (!). This symbol, found at the begining of a system key will result in the key being recognised as a system level system key, and the field being locked so that it can no longer be modified in the future.

  * **__Advanced__** - The Advanced drop-down list provides a method of utilising one of the advanced editing extensions available to the lookup system. Setting this value does not affect the group, but instead provides an additional advanced editor for each of the items that are created within the group.

  * **__Check Means...__** - The 'Check Means...' field allows the group to present a textual hint to the user when creating new items. The hint is displayed next to the 'custom flag' (see below) in order to give extra meaning.

===== Lookup items =====

Lookup items are the actual entries that an end-user will see and act upon in various areas of the application. In the case 0f item indexing values for example, the user may select one or more lookup items in order to index an item. In user permissions, a managerial user may assign 'true' or 'false' to a lookup item description in order to restrict an end-user's use of the application.

Lookup items have the following information stored about them:

  * **__In group...__** - If the group in which an item has been created is marked as a sub-group, the item must be assigned to one of the items in the parent-group. For example, if the group 'Race' was created as a sub-group of 'Protected Characteristics', the item 'Buddism' could be created in 'Religion' and assigned to be 'In Group' 'Religion' item 'Tanks'. Most items however, do not belong to sub-groups and are self-standing item entries.

  * **__Text__** - The textual part of the item definition - it is this text that will appear on screen for the user to see.

  * **__Custom Flag__** - The custom flag is a true/false indicator that can mean different things to different groups. In the case of the 'Media Types' group for example, the custom flag is used to indicate whether the media type can be circulated. If in doubt, investigate the use of the custom flag in the current group before setting the flag.

  * **__System Key__** - The system key is a text based identifier which is not required for either item or client indexing purposes - it is used only for system level lookup items. The system key is a unique identifier that allows the application to examine the current value of a lookup item. For example, the application may look for and examine a user permission using its system key to see whether the user is permitted to access an application function.

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[[pergamonmu:lookup:lookup_manager|Lookup Manager]]\\
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