StrataFrame Forum

Creating web pages menu options from XML file

http://forum.strataframe.net/Topic24261.aspx

By Doron Farber - 8/22/2009

Hi Trent,



I have the below sql which stores the menu options names. So this way I can populate into the web pages the options names etc... If you look at this web site: http://www.Intelius.com you will see People Search as the main option and then when you click that you will see all tabs. The name of the tabs are coming from the dbo.SearchCategories.SearchCategory and for the main Search option it is coming from the dbo.SearchOptions.SearchOption. It is generated as an XML file. Based on that XML the menu options and tabs are created on the fly. It is like a small Content Management. All Contents Management forms are created as smart clients app.



1)

How would you link that from the XML file into the Index.ASPX? I am trying to find the most productive way for this process.

2)

Do you handle your web site this way?





SELECT

dbo.ServiceOptions.ServiceOption,

dbo.ServiceOptions.DisplayOptionOrder,

dbo.SearchOptions.SearchOption ,

dbo.SearchOptions.DisplayOptionOrder,

dbo.SearchCategories.SearchCategory,

dbo.SearchCategories.DisplayOptionOrder,

dbo.SearchCategories.SearchCategories_PK,

dbo.SearchCategories.Comment,

dbo.SearchCategories.Tip

FROM

dbo.ServiceOptions

INNER JOIN dbo.SearchOptions

ON dbo.ServiceOptions.ServiceOptions_PK=dbo.SearchOptions.ServiceOptions_FK

INNER JOIN dbo.SearchCategories

ON dbo.SearchOptions.SearchOptions_PK = dbo.SearchCategories.SearchOptions_FK

WHERE dbo.ServiceOptions.DisableOption = 0 AND dbo.SearchOptions.DisableOption = 0 AND dbo.SearchCategories.DisableOption = 0

ORDER BY dbo.ServiceOptions.DisplayOptionOrder,dbo.SearchOptions.DisplayOptionOrder,dbo.SearchCategories.DisplayOptionOrder

FOR XML AUTO , ROOT('Menu_Options')





Thanks,



Doron
By Trent L. Taylor - 8/24/2009

Well, the query is somewhat irrelevant as the issue here is functionality and getting the menus populated with the desired data. So retrieving this from the server is really dependent upon your data structures, etc. However, if you are asking how to get the value from the server and into the page, then there are a number of ways to handle this. You can create an ASPX page that you add into you page as the menu that pulls from the database and builds the menu. This could work kind of like a download page where you change the content type and return a file, but in this case, it wouldn't really need to do that (content type change) but just retrieve the data and pull it into a parent page.
By Doron Farber - 8/24/2009

Hi Trent,



Thanks for your reply.



That query generates XML and the web page gets all labels for the menu and sub menu options from the XML It is a one time thing when the XML is generated.



I was looking to see if there is a technique somewhere to populate the aspx on the fly. Otherwise there is some manual work to do to populate each control for each page etc...



Thanks,



Doron