<!DOCTYPE html
  PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN">

<!--
Copyright (c) 2006 UGS Corp.

All Rights Reserved.

This software and related documentation are proprietary to UGS Corp.
-->
<html>
   <head>
      <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8">
      <title>Assign</title>
      <script language="javaScript">
        abridged="false";
        displayConditions=new Array();
      </script>
      <link type="text/css" href="../css/main_styles.css" rel="stylesheet">
   </head>
   <body class="bodydocs" onload="top.pageLoader()" bgcolor="#FFFFFF">
      <div class="title_topic4" id="xps10_pagetitle"> Assign</div>
      <hr noshade="true">
      <p class="para_topic"> This option allows you to assign the data types discussed above. Attribute titles must be unique within a data type for the selected object. For example, you can have a floating point attribute with the title of &quot;Cost&quot;, and a date &amp; time attribute with the title of &quot;Cost&quot;, but you cannot have more than one floating point attribute with the title of &quot;Cost&quot;.</p>
      <p class="para_topic"> To assign Integer, Floating Point, Date &amp; Time, Null Value and Variable Length Character attributes:</p>
      <ol type="1" start="1">
         <li>
            <p class="para_item"> Choose a data type.</p>
         </li>
         <li>
            <p class="para_item"> Enter a title.</p>
         </li>
         <li>
            <p class="para_item"> Enter a value corresponding to the chosen data type (if Data Type is not Null).</p>
         </li>
         <li>
            <p class="para_item"> Enter another title and value within the same data type, or select another data type and repeat the two immediately preceding steps.</p>
         </li>
         <li>
            <p class="para_item"> Select the objects intended for the assignment of the above attributes.</p>
         </li>
      </ol>
      <div class="title_division"> Reference Attributes</div>
      <p class="para_division"> Assigning Reference Attributes involves a different procedure from that of the other data types. Choose Reference to display the Reference Attribute dialog.</p>
      <p class="para_division"> Reference attributes consist of a string attribute and optionally, embedded expressions.</p>
      <p class="para_division"> You can specify one or more expressions inside a reference attribute by including each expression name in the Attribute Value field, using the following syntax: &lt;Xm.n@exp_name&gt;</p>
      <p class="para_division"> If you click on an expression in the Expressions listing, the correct syntax and current format setting is automatically used to insert the expression in the Attribute Value field.</p>
      <table border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="3" width="100%" align="center">
         <tr>
            <td bgcolor="#c0c0c0" colspan="1" rowspan="1" valign="top">
               <p class="para_td"> Expression</p>
            </td>
            <td bgcolor="#c0c0c0" colspan="1" rowspan="1" valign="top">
               <p class="para_td"> Syntax Rules</p>
            </td>
         </tr>
         <tr>
            <td bgcolor="#f4f4f4" colspan="1" rowspan="1" valign="top">
               <p class="para_td"> &lt;&gt;</p>
            </td>
            <td bgcolor="#f4f4f4" colspan="1" rowspan="1" valign="top">
               <p class="para_td"> Delimits a single expression embedded within an attribute. You can enter multiple delimited expressions in the Attribute Value field.</p>
            </td>
         </tr>
         <tr>
            <td bgcolor="#f4f4f4" colspan="1" rowspan="1" valign="top">
               <p class="para_td"> X</p>
            </td>
            <td bgcolor="#f4f4f4" colspan="1" rowspan="1" valign="top">
               <p class="para_td"> Indicates that what follows is a reference to an expression.</p>
            </td>
         </tr>
         <tr>
            <td bgcolor="#f4f4f4" colspan="1" rowspan="1" valign="top">
               <p class="para_td"> m.n</p>
            </td>
            <td bgcolor="#f4f4f4" colspan="1" rowspan="1" valign="top">
               <p class="para_td"> Specifies the Format for both the minimum field width (m) and the maximum number of decimal places (n).</p>
               <p class="para_td"> &quot;m&quot; specifies the minimum field width. If necessary, the specification is padded on the left to make up unused field width.</p>
               <p class="para_td"> &quot;n&quot; specifies the maximum number of decimal places of the expression value.</p>
               <p class="para_td"> You can optionally use a comma (,) instead of a decimal (.) between the &quot;m&quot; and &quot;n&quot; parameters (i.e., &quot;m,n&quot;). This has the effect of displaying a comma instead of a decimal point between the displayed elements.</p>
            </td>
         </tr>
         <tr>
            <td bgcolor="#f4f4f4" colspan="1" rowspan="1" valign="top">
               <p class="para_td"> exp_name</p>
            </td>
            <td bgcolor="#f4f4f4" colspan="1" rowspan="1" valign="top">
               <p class="para_td"> Specifies the expression name that is embedded in the attribute value. The expression name, as in the expression dialog, is case sensitive. An expression from a part that is not the current work part can also be referenced by specifying it as follows:</p>
               <p class="para_td"> &lt;part name&gt;::&lt;exp_name&gt;</p>
            </td>
         </tr>
         <tr>
            <td bgcolor="#f4f4f4" colspan="1" rowspan="1" valign="top">
               <p class="para_td"> Format (m.n)</p>
            </td>
            <td bgcolor="#f4f4f4" colspan="1" rowspan="1" valign="top">
               <p class="para_td"> Represents the default field width for the value of an expression, and its maximum number of decimal places (see m.n above). If a different format is desired for different expression names, simply enter the desired format before selecting an expression from the Expressions list.</p>
            </td>
         </tr>
         <tr>
            <td bgcolor="#f4f4f4" colspan="1" rowspan="1" valign="top">
               <p class="para_td"> Filter</p>
            </td>
            <td bgcolor="#f4f4f4" colspan="1" rowspan="1" valign="top">
               <p class="para_td"> Limits the number of expressions that the system displays in the Expressions listing. If the desired expressions are not displayed, make sure the filter is correct. You can limit the display of expressions in the listing by typing character strings, and using asterisks as wildcards.</p>
            </td>
         </tr>
         <tr>
            <td bgcolor="#f4f4f4" colspan="1" rowspan="1" valign="top">
               <p class="para_td"> Current Value</p>
            </td>
            <td bgcolor="#f4f4f4" colspan="1" rowspan="1" valign="top">
               <p class="para_td"> Value of the attributes in the Attribute Value field, with the expressions translated into their numeric values.</p>
            </td>
         </tr>
      </table><br><p class="para_division"></p>
      <div class="title_division"> Creating Reference Attributes</div>
      <p class="para_division"> To begin creation of a reference attribute:</p>
      <ol type="1" start="1">
         <li>
            <p class="para_item"> Enter the title of the attribute in the Attribute Title field.</p>
         </li>
         <li>
            <p class="para_item"> Specify the Format. If no Format is entered, the number of decimal places specified in Preferences&rarr;User Interface&rarr;Text Field Decimal Places is used.</p>
         </li>
      </ol>
      <p class="para_division"> Begin entering the text of the attribute strings, and select expressions to use within the attribute in the order necessary.</p>
      <p class="para_division"> To enter an expression, click its name in the Expressions listing. The full syntax of the expression is automatically entered in the Attribute Value field, along with the format specified in the Format (m.n) field. You can edit any part of the attribute reference string, including the expressions.</p>
      <p class="para_division"> When you have entered all text for the attribute value, select the Show Current Value button. The resulting string displays in the field below.</p>
      <table border="0">
         <tr>
            <td valign="top" align="left"><img align="left" src="../graphics/note.gif" alt="Note" title="Note"></td>
            <td valign="bottom" align="left" width="100%">
               <div class="para_note">
                  <p class="para_note_body">  If you use the keyboard to enter an expression name that does not exist, choosing the Show Current Value button displays a literal translation in the Current Value field. Only when you enter a valid expression with the proper syntax is the translation of the expression to its numeric value performed.</p>
               </div>
            </td>
         </tr>
      </table>
      <p class="para_division"> Select OK to store the attribute and exit the dialog. Click Apply to store the attribute, and clear the dialog for the creation of other attributes.</p>
      <table border="0">
         <tr>
            <td valign="top" align="left"><img align="left" src="../graphics/note.gif" alt="Note" title="Note"></td>
            <td valign="bottom" align="left" width="100%">
               <div class="para_note">
                  <p class="para_note_body">  You cannot delete expressions that are referenced by a Reference Attribute.  </p>
               </div>
            </td>
         </tr>
      </table>
   </body>
</html>