Conference azur::mcc

    
    You've got the right paradigm.
    
    Try this:
    
    After it displays the requested information for the first entity
    (well, the last you selected, but that's how the list is kept), then
    use the mouse to select the "start operation" button again.
    
    Then you'll get the display for the next entity in the list, and so on.
    
    First time I did it, it confused me as well, especially since it
    displays the last one selected.  I thought it had already shown me 
    everything and only the last entity was lingering for me to see.
    
    -Jim Carey
    

    almost Jim, but DON"T hit start, instead you have to go to the
    navigation menu item. I fyou selected multiple entities you will
    notice that this menu item is NOT dimmed. From this item you can
    now select to see the next or previous entity for which this command
    was requested.
    
    jill
    

Thanks much to both .1 and .2 for the answers, but let's take this one step
further.

Now lets do a SET or other modify type operation.  Does MCC behave the same
way for multiple entities or different.  Since I'm doing this on the Easynet
I don't wish to try changing anything on those devices.

What I believe customers may ask for is the ability to select all necessary
icons or SELECT ALL and pick an operation.  Rather than take action between
the selections, the verb should be applied to all selected enitities
(i.e. SET SERVER ALL PROMPT thus and such).

Has anyone asked for this functionality yet?  If not I suspect they will
rather quickly after having the ability to do some of this in the traditional
products.

Al

A way to test this is to do the set on the reference attributes, this is
non-destructive to the entities themselves. Verna if you are reading you
probably know it off the top...

    
    
    Al,
    Selecting all icons in the map by way of some menu item is something 
    that's been on the wish list.  After these icons are selected, having
    a management window perform the desired operation on all of the
    selected entites is another matter.  If you believe this is
    truly needed, stated your case and describe how you think it should
    work in detail.
    
    Fred

Fred,

How do things work today is you want to do a modify directive (like a set)
on multiple entities; assuming you selected them using the point-shift/click
mechanism?

    
    I'm not certain if ther behavior differs between modify
    and show directives.  We can check this tomorrow!
    
    Al, I read your question to be "Will we be able to select multiple
    entities and modify them without the need to navigate in the
    management window?"  E.g. The user selects ten nodes and four bridges
    in the map, selects the Set menu, a management window then appears,
    the user types in the "thing" to set, hits Start and we set the
    "thing" in all fourteen entities.
    
    ...Or did I misread?
    
    Fred

    The current way to perform Set operations is the same as Show.  You'll
    have to navigate to each one and perform the operation.
    
    Christine
    

    Fred, I think you heard him right.
    
    For example, I want to set the Location Ref Attribute to LKG2-2
    for all the entities I have in the LKG2-2 domain so I select them
    all, and do the SET operation.
    
    I don't believe people will have the time nor the patience to do
    each and every one individually.
    
    I know that right now I get real tired to typing in each of the
    attributed even though I REALLY want to because it is awkward and very
    repetitive. I think computers should do the repetitive stuff. That's
    what they are best at.
    
    What happens when you pick an attribute that is not appropriate for
    some of the entities? Well, this would be a great place for a messages
    window. Just make a single popup that warns that not all operations
    were performed as requested ("Your call cannot be completed as dialed")
    and then log the details of what went wrong in the messages window.
    
    Little things (seemingly) like this will go a long way toward people
    loving the product cause it HELPS them get it done instead of making
    them work more to get it done.
    
    s/rob

I think Rob pretty well summed up my feelings in .9.  

I believe it would be an significant added value to be able to select multiple
items across different etities (i.e. term servers, bridges, nodes), but I
believe customers would be happy if they were able to have what they have now
in the individual utilites.  I believe in an earlier reply I made reference 
to TSM and the ability to SET SERVER ALL ...

Something like reference fields, which for the most part, are fairly new with
MCC, probably wouldn't require all that much checking, such as setting a name
or number for an entity manager.

I could only imagine the difficulty around checking each entity type to see if
the particular SET or what ever command was appropriate for each.

But for the most part, and I'll leave the specifics up to you the designer/
developers, if I can select a group of entities, I simply want to be able to
apply a command to all selected.  The simpler cases first, then add fuctionality
or intelligence, as in .9, later as difficulty approaches return on investment.

Hope this helps.

Al

Sorry not to have responded sooner, but I was on vacation.

Currently, if the user selects multiple entities of the same class from a
Map Window and then selects an operation, the first entity on the list passed
from the Map Window to the Management Window is displayed in the newly
created Management Window.  

If the operation is of type Examine, the operation is performed automatically.
By selecting the Navigation Menu, the user may Examine the Next or Previous
Entity or may choose List... and see a list of entities associated with the
Management Window, after which one may be selected and automatically shown.
Just pressing Start Operation re-executes the examine operation for the
entity currently being displayed.

If the operation is of type Modify, a form is displayed for the first entity
in the list passed from the Map Window to the Management Window. When the user
presses Start Operation, the values for any non-null attributes are encoded and
a Call Function is executed for the entity being displayed in the Management
Window (one entity only).  The user may select Next, Previous or List from the
Navigation Menu.  At this point, the form stays the same (except that any
fields which were relevant for the first entity but not for the next one due
to variants for the class).  To change values for this entity, press Start
Operation.  Thus the fields in the form stay as one navigates from one entity
to another (unless the user changes them) so the form can be used as a template.

Action directives work in a similar fashion to Modify directives.

It sounds like some users would like to have a choice between modifying only
one entity or modifying all entities selected.  This could be accomplished by
adding an entry perhaps to the Navigation Menu to select "ALL" rather than a
single entity.  Then we would have to be careful to ensure that the values 
displayed in the form apply to all entities selected OR alternatively display
error messages for any entities for which the field is not valid.

The above still does not allow for selecting entities from the Map Window
which are from different entity classes (re .7).  This is disallowed since
the group of operations which are valid for one entity class may not be the
same as those for another entity class.

If this is important, as it seems to be to at least a few users out there in
MCCland, it should be added to the wish list.

Verna

  Re, .-1
    
  > The above still does not allow for selecting entities from the Map Window
  > which are from different entity classes (re .7).  This is disallowed since
  > the group of operations which are valid for one entity class may not be the
  > same as those for another entity class.
     
    This is true except for the case of the reference attributes which I
    understand to be the same for all supported classes?
    
    s/rob