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Case Lists

A case list presents all of the cases that have been started for a particular procedure.

To view a case list, select (single click) a procedure in the procedure list:

When you select a procedure, one of two screens is displayed:

•	The case list (as in the example above)

•	A filter dialog for the case list

The window that is displayed depends on how your system has been set up. By default, the case list is displayed. However, there is a user options setting that allows you to specify that if the number of cases for the procedure exceeds a specified threshold, to automatically display the filter dialog first. This allows you to enter a filter expression to pare down the list before displaying it.

From a performance standpoint, it’s important that you understand that when a case list is displayed, the information about all of the cases in the list is downloaded from the iProcess Engine. There can potentially be thousands of cases for a particular procedure; if you download all of them, it could take a long time. That is why if the number of cases exceeds the specified threshold number, the system is suggesting you filter the cases prior to listing them (they are not actually downloaded from the iProcess Engine until you display the case list). Also note that there is a configuration parameter that can be set by the system administrator that specifies the maximum number of cases to download at one time. For more information, see Limiting the Number of Cases Displayed.

For information about specifying whether or not to display the filter dialog first, see Filter Options.

For information about using the filter dialog to filter the case list, see Filtering a Case List.

If the case list is displayed, and the Filter icon on the case list toolbar has a green check mark next to it, the list is currently being filtered — the last filter expression applied to the case list is in effect. For more information, see Filtering a Case List.

Also, if the Sort icon on the case list toolbar has a green check mark next to it, the list is currently being sorted — the last sort criteria applied to the case list is in effect. For more information, see Sorting a Case List.

Information about each case is provided in the columns of the case list. The specific information that is displayed on your system will depend on how your system was set up — see Customizing Columns in a List.

 

Selecting Cases in a Case List

The effect of selecting a case from the case list (i.e., single-clicking an item, or moving the highlight bar with the keyboard arrow keys) depends on whether or not the preview feature is turned on:

•	If preview is turned off, selecting a case from the case list has no effect.

•	If preview is turned on, selecting a case from the case list causes the case summary to be displayed in the Preview Pane section, as follows:

The case summary provides more information about the case than what may be available from the columns in the case list.

Double-clicking on a case in the case list constitutes opening the case. Opening the case causes the case details for that case to be displayed. For information about opening cases, see Opening Cases.

The preview feature can be turned on and off clicking the icon on the toolbar, or by selecting Preview from the case list View menu.

The following drop-down menu is displayed:

You can turn preview on by selecting either of the first two selections — the difference between the two is where the case details will be displayed when you open (double-click) the case in the case list.

You can turn off the preview feature by selecting the Preview Off selection.

For additional information about selecting items in general from lists, see Selecting Items in a List.

Case List Columns

By default, certain columns are displayed in a case list. You can easily customize the columns that are displayed by either using the Column Selector, or by changing them manually. For information, see Customizing Columns in a List.

The following table describes the columns of information that can be displayed on the case list:

 

Column Name	Meaning
Description	The case description that was entered when the case was started. See Starting a Case of a Procedure.
Host Computer	The name of the computer containing the TIBCO iProcess Engine to which the iProcess Workspace (Browser) is connected.
Host Node	The name of the TIBCO iProcess Engine to which the iProcess Workspace (Browser) is connected.
Number	A unique number used to identify the case. This is generated when the case is started.
Open / Open Image	True - The case is currently open (active). False - The case is closed.
Procedure Description	A description of the procedure that was given when the procedure was defined.
Procedure Name	The name of the procedure that was started to create the case (a case is an instance of a procedure).
Reference	This is a case reference number that is built from the procedure number and case number; it uniquely identifies the case on the host node. For example, case reference number 4-1290 — the procedure number is 4 and the case number is 1290.
Started By	The name of the user who started the case.
Started Date/Time	The date and time the case was started.
Status	An icon that identifies the current status of the case. For information, see Case Status.
Suspended / Suspended Image	True - The case is currently suspended. False - The case is not suspended. For information, see Case Suspensions.
Terminated Date/Time	The date and time the case was terminated (i.e., closed).
Version	The version of the procedure that the case is an instance of.

Number of Cases in a Case List

There is an indicator in the header bar of the case list to tell you how many cases are in the list. This number is displayed to the right of the Find button. In this example, there are 26 cases.

Note that this number may indicate the number of cases in the list after it has been filtered using the filter dialog — if the list has been filtered in this way, there will be a green check mark next to the Filter icon (for information about using the filter dialog to filter cases, see Filtering a Case List).

If this number is displayed in the format “##/##” it means the list is being filtered using the Find button. In the example below, 10 of the 26 possible cases are listed.

For information about using the Find button, see Finding Items in a List.

Limiting the Number of Cases Displayed

By default, when a case list is displayed, all available cases for the selected procedure are downloaded from the server. If there is a very large number of cases for the selected procedure, the list may be slow in displaying.

For this reason, there is a configuration parameter that can be set by the system administrator that limits the number of cases that are downloaded. If this parameter is set, and you select a procedure that contains a number of cases that exceeds the maximum specified, only the specified number are displayed. If this occurs, a message is shown on the bottom of the case list that tells you how many were downloaded, as well as the number of cases that were not downloaded because they exceeded the maximum number. For example:

If the configuration parameter is not set, or if it is set and the number of cases does not exceed the maximum, the message on the bottom of the case list is not displayed.

Finding Cases in the Case List

The case list contains a Find button that can be used to quickly find the case you are looking for.

For general information about using the find function, see Finding Items in a List.

When using the find function on case lists, it is often used in conjunction with the filter function (for information about the filter function, see Filtering a Case List). When used on the case list, the intent is for the find function to refine the search that has already been done using the filter function. Typically, the filter function is used to present a list of cases that are of continual interest. You can then use the find function to further refine the search through the list of filtered cases. When you are done with the find function, and close it, the list returns to the list presented by the filter function. If you want a different list of cases that are of continual interest, the list should be filtered using the filter function.

Note that the Filter, Sort, and Refresh icons and menu selections are disabled while the find function is being used — you must close the find function to change filter or sort criteria, or to refresh the list.

Refreshing a Case List

When a list of cases is initially displayed, it is a snap shot of the cases at that point in time. You can refresh the list to get the most recent list of cases from the iProcess Engine by:

•	selecting Refresh Cases from the Tools menu, or

•	by clicking the icon.

Be aware that every time you refresh a list, it causes the entire list to be downloaded from the iProcess Engine. For information about the impact of this, see the note on page 142.

Note that if you have defined filter and/or sort criteria for the case list, they will be applied on the refreshed list of cases — the case list is displayed if the number of cases does not exceed the specified number; the filter dialog is displayed if the number of cases exceeds the specified number. (For more information, see Filtering a Case List.)

Case Status

By default, the first column in the case list displays icons that indicate the case’s status. The following table shows the possible icons and their meanings:

 

Icon	Case Status
	The case is active.
	The case is suspended.
	The case is closed.
	The case has been purged. If the case list is refreshed, the purged case will no longer appear in the list.

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