Creating and Mapping Content Connector Containers

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Overview Overview
Creating a New Catalog Channel and Folder Creating a New Catalog Channel and Folder
Overriding Content Connector Default Mappings Overriding Content Connector Default Mappings
Changing the System Defaults Changing the System Defaults

Overview

Importing a catalog 

After you create a customized Content Connector site you will likely import your own catalog to the Commerce Server Business Desk. (For information on importing a catalog, see the Commerce Server 2000 Online Help.)

When a catalog is imported, all products are visible in the Web site as simple products. As a result, there are some management options to consider including the creation of channels, folders, and pages that are specific to that site. These containers store rich product pages, simple product pages, and specify paths to the appropriate templates.

This chapter outlines the steps for:

  • Creating new catalog channels and folders

  • Overriding Content Connector defaults

  • Changing the system defaults.

Creating a New Catalog Channel and Folder

When you import a new catalog, the Products channel is the default catalog root channel. All product pages automatically get created there. However, by creating a channel with the same name as your catalog under the default catalog root channel you can have the new product pages created there. (For information on creating new channels and folders, see the sections "Creating the documents channel" and "Creating folders" in Chapter 2, "Setting up Publishing: Creating Containers for Users.")

Screen shot

When you import a catalog some Content Connector properties such as the RichProductChannel, RichProductTemplate, and SimpleProductPosting mapping properties are automatically added to the catalog's various categories. These can be used for overriding defaults if you want product creation behavior to be different in different categories. One reason to do this might be performance, since large numbers of Content Management Server 2001 pages in a single channel can affect performance.

Overriding Content Connector Default Mappings

Overriding the catalog root channel default mapping

Once you import a new catalog you may want to create new channels and folders that correspond to categories in your catalog.

Method Systems uses the Products channel as its catalog root channel. Its sub-channel is MethodSystems which also has a category sub-channel called Accessories. The Accessory category overrides the Product channel default by placing all accessory products in the CS2000/Products/MethodSystems/Accessories channel.

Screen shot

To create channels and folders for catalog categories follow the procedures outlined in the sections "Creating the documents channel" and "Creating folders" in Chapter 2, "Setting up Publishing: Creating Containers for Users."

To have your pages appear in the category channels instead of the catalog root channel (like the Accessory category in Method Systems), you must change the mapping in the Business Desk.

  1. Open the Business Desk.

  2. From Catalogs, select the Catalog Editor module.

  3. Click the catalog you want to open. From the toolbar select Open Catalog. The Catalog opens.

  4. Expand Categories and select the category to assign a channel path to. Click Edit. The Catalog Editor window opens.

  5. Type the RichProductChannel path.

Screen shot

Overriding the rich product template

The Method Systems template gallery pictured below has two Product folders. The Authoring/Products folder contains the rich product templates and the Site Design/Products folders contains the simple product templates.

Screen shot

The default site behavior is to use either Rich Product or Rich Product Accessories as the rich product template for new pages. In the Method Systems site, the accessories category overrides this behavior by only using the Rich Product Accessories template for new product pages in that particular category.

For your customized site, you can create a new template or copy the existing Method Systems rich product template and make modifications to it. For information on creating or modifying templates see Chapter 2, "Creating a Template" and Chapter 8, "Editing a Template" in the MSCMS 2001 Page Template Designer's Guide. Also see Chapter 14, "Accessing the Content Connector Product Catalog" in the MSCMS 2001 Site Programmer's Guide. Only after the template is approved, can you override the mapping for a category. This is done in the Business Desk.

  1. Open the Business Desk.

  2. From Catalogs, select the Catalog Editor module.

  3. Click the catalog to open. From the toolbar select Open Catalog. The Catalog opens.

  4. Expand Categories and select the category to assign a channel path to. Click Edit. The Catalog Editor window opens.

  5. Type the RichProductTemplate path.

Screen shot

Overriding simple product postings

In the sample site, all simple products use the default simple product posting except accessory products which use the Accessory Detail posting. To override simple product postings for a category do the following.

Step 1: creating a simple product template

Create a new template or copy the existing Method Systems simple product template and make modifications to it. For information on creating or modifying templates see Chapter 2, "Creating a Template" and Chapter 8, "Editing a Template" in the MSCMS 2001 Page Template Designer's Guide. Also see Chapter 14, "Accessing the Content Connector Product Catalog" in the MSCMS 2001 Site Programmer's Guide. Approve the template once you're finished.

Step 2: creating a simple page

  1. Open the MSCMS 2001 Site Builder and click the Folders icon to display the folders hierarchy.

  2. Select the folder where you want to create the simple product page.

  3. From the File menu select New>Page. The Select Template window opens.

  4. Select the template for the simple product page. Click OK. The New Page window opens.

  5. Create your page. When you are finished, from the toolbar, click Save. The Save As window opens.

  6. Name your page. Click Save.

  7. Close the New Page window. The page you created appears in the list frame (the right pane of the MSCMS 2001 Site Builder window).

Step 3: creating a simple posting

  1. Right-click the page you created and click New Posting. The New Posting window opens.

  2. From the Select Channel pull-down list click Browse. The Select Channel window opens.

  3. Select a channel for your posting. It should correspond to the folder hierarchy. Click OK.

  4. Click OK in the New Posting window.

  5. Right-click the page you created and click Approve.

Step 4: mapping simple product categories

For the categories in your site to use your new simple posting, change those categories individually.

  1. Open the Commerce Server 2000 Business Desk.

  2. From Catalogs select the Catalog Editor module.

  3. Click the catalog to edit and from the toolbar click Open Catalog. The Catalog window opens.

  4. Expand Categories and select the category to assign a posting path to. Click Edit. The Catalog Editor window opens.

  5. Type the SimpleProductPosting path.

    Screen shot

Changing the System Defaults

Changing the default root catalog channel

To create a new channel structure you may want to change the root catalog channel path in the Commerce Server 2000 Manager. Setting the default paths in the Commerce Server Manager affects the entire site.

  1. Click Start>Programs>Microsoft Commerce Server 2000>Commerce Server Manager.

  2. Open the path Console Root\Commerce Server Manager\Commerce Sites\<Site Name>\Site Resources\Content Connector.

  3. Right-click Content Connector and select Properties. The Content Connector Properties dialog box opens.

  4. In the Selected Property Value field, specify the new path for the Catalog Root Channel.

    Screen shot

Changing the default rich product template

Once you've created or modified a rich product template and approved it, you have the option to use it for all new rich product pages. To do this you can change the system defaults for the rich product template in the Commerce Server 2000 Manager.

  1. Click Start>Programs>Microsoft Commerce Server 2000>Commerce Server Manager.

  2. Open the path Console Root\Commerce Server Manager\Commerce Sites\<Site Name>\Site Resources\Content Connector.

  3. Right-click Content Connector and select Properties. The Content Connector Properties dialog box opens.

In the Selected Property Value field, specify the new path for the Default Rich Product Template. You have the option to map either the gallery or a single template. Mapping a gallery provides additional template choices.

Change default simple product posting

Once you've created or modified a simple product template and approved it, you can use it for all simple products on the site. To do this, change the system defaults for the simple product posting in the Commerce Server 2000 Manager.

  1. Click Start>Programs>Microsoft Commerce Server 2000>Commerce Server Manager.

  2. Open the path Console Root\Commerce Server Manager\Commerce Sites\<Site Name>\Site Resources\Content Connector.

  3. Right-click Content Connector and select Properties. The Content Connector Properties dialog box opens.

  4. In the Selected Property Value field, specify the new path for the Default Simple Product Posting.