Eclipse RCP – about of the box – is a fantastic platform for building applications. Especially if these are for engineer-like users When Eclipse RCP is used for enterprise applications – like for banks – one of major shortcomings is found in the missing ability to control screen flows. This talk describes how screen flow was implemented in a major banking application where we expect to add 2-300 screen flows, some very simple and some very complex.

1. PR0013 - 2008-11-18
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Implementing Screen Flows in Eclipse RCP Applications
Eclipse RCP – about of the box – is a fantastic platform for building
applications. Especially if these are for engineer-like users
When Eclipse RCP is used for enterprise applications – like for banks – one
of major shortcomings is found in the missing ability to control screen
flows.
This talk describes how screen flow was implemented in a major banking
application where we expect to add 2-300 screen flows, some very simple
and some very complex.

2. PR0013 - 2008-11-18
2
Agenda
 The Application
 Some requirements
 Wizards and shortcomings
 The implementation

3. PR0013 - 2008-11-18
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The Application
 Nordea is one of primary financial institutions in the Nordic countries with
branches in Denmark, Sweden, Norway and Finland
 The business includes banking, pensions and insurance
 The long-term aim of the project is to replace all the existing banking
applications (Swing, web-based and Win32) in one common integrated
desktop
 Customer management
 Teller
 Product Provisioning (loans, credit cards, pensions, insurances,…)
 End-users are all branch and call center personnel (clerks and managers)
 Organized in a number of levels with different working areas
 First version will focus on provisioning of loans, credit cards and other
types financial contracts with customers

4. PR0013 - 2008-11-18
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5. PR0013 - 2008-11-18
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Some Requirements
 Flows may not be modal
 A large number of parallel flows
 Design the flow pages with existing UI designers
 Pages may not exclude any layout technologies
 Flows must be opened and closed individually
 Full control of buttons
 Presence and enablement
 Flow can be chained

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Wizards and Shortcomings
 A page cannot be "stale" compared with the model
 Which of cause is fine as long as wizards are modal...
 Solved in another similar interfaces used in the Forms UI API (IFormPart)
 Pages are aware of the previous and next pages
 It is difficult to support alternate flows in wizards
 WizardPage.setControl(…)!
 Wizards simply does not work

7. PR0013 - 2008-11-18
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The Implementation
 The main functionality is made up of three classes:
 Container – Hosts the directors and provides a number of services
 Director – Manager a single flow
 Page – A single page in a flow
 Listener interface on the container
Container
Director
Page
n
n
1
1

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The Implementation
A look through the code

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About Me
 Founder and Owner of The RCP Company
 20 years of experience in system development in major
companies
 Regnecentralen (now ICL)
 Digital (now HP)
 Anritsu (previously NetTest)
 9 years experience as the Systems Architect of an 20+ MLoC
project
 5 years of experience with Eclipse and Eclipse RCP
 Add-in Provider Member of the Eclipse Foundation
 Chairman of Eclipse.dk

10. PR0013 - 2008-11-18
9
About Me
 Founder and Owner of The RCP Company
 20 years of experience in system development in major
companies
 Regnecentralen (now ICL)
 Digital (now HP)
 Anritsu (previously NetTest)
 9 years experience as the Systems Architect of an 20+ MLoC
project
 5 years of experience with Eclipse and Eclipse RCP
 Add-in Provider Member of the Eclipse Foundation
 Chairman of Eclipse.dk