Login into zeroCode by entering the User name and Password.
Click on the create button.
Enter a name for the application. By default the option "destroy all the files in the site and start afresh" will come into effect. From the combo, select the database server where you have or would like to have your site's data hosted.
Key in the path name of the file, that contains the SQL for creating the tables that the site uses. You can also click on the Browse button and choose that file.
Enter the name of mail server, SMTP server and Time server in the respective fields.
Click on the Create button to continue.
zeroCode now analyzes the SQL you gave, it and directs you to the next stage, where you can select specific components and options for site generation.
The Build objects page appears on the screen.The General Options section appears by default. There are three options as follows:

Enter a name for the application in the first field. Description is optional.
If the site name already exists, choose one of the following:

While creating new applications, the foreign key relation of the tables in a schema, can be viewed in the 'browse-by-objects' tab of 'Build objects for site' page.

As you start constructing the application you will view an icon 'upload file' on the toolbar.
By clicking on this icon you will get a browse window. This allows us to specify the location of a file which you need to upload.

As you start constructing the application an icon 'download as zip file' can be viewed on the toolbar.
Check the directory which you wish to download, click on this icon. You will see a 'file download pop up'. This allows us to specify the location where you want to save the file in the computer.

As you start constructing the application an icon 'create new directory' is be visible at toolbar.
By clicking on this you get an explorer window. This allows you to specify the name of the directory you want to create.

In the application, check the directory you want to delete by finding it in its parent directory. Click on icon 'delete directory' at toolbar.

On the left navigator go to UDM files, then to custom, followed by directory in which you want to create a new UDM. Then click on 'Create a new custom UDM'.
Enter name and description(optional) of the UDM.
The default directory name appears in the directory field.
Select one of the relevant option by clicking in the radio button which best describes the function/utility of the UDM that is being created.

Use JavaScript style while naming. Please note that the name should not contain spaces in between or after the name.

While creating a new UDM you can choose the directory from the drop down beside 'Directory in which to create'. This allows us to change the directory in which you want to create the UDM.

After creating UDM, go to left navigator, choose node '0' (root node) which is the name of the UDM. Then click on icon 'Add a child to select a node'.
Enter name and description and continue with the design.

While creating the node, In Step 1: Specify the essential node attributes:
Choose one of the functions:

While creating the node, In Step 1: Specify the essential node attributes: Choose 'Yes' for 'Is List Node?'

While creating the node, In Step 1: Specify the essential node attributes: Choose 'NO' for 'Is List Node?'

While creating the node, In Step 1: Specify the essential node attributes: You can Choose Node numbers from the drop down at ID.

In the UDM, choose node '0' (root node), then click on icon 'add a child to the selected node'. This will create a sibling node to the first node.

In the UDM, choose a node, and then click on icon 'add a child to selected node'. This will create a child node of the node.

check the check box beside 'show attributes' on tool bar. This displays all nodes and sub - nodes at left navigator, where you will find the numbers of nodes.

While creating the node, in Step 2. Specify the node type: Choose a table from the dropdown beside the 'Database table'.

While creating the node, in Step 2. Specify the node type: Choose a number from the dropdown beside 'Maximum elements to be shown in the page'.

While creating the node, in Step 2. Specify the node type: Choose 'yes' for 'retrieve while processing a submission'. This gets the node's content from its data port while processing the UDM submission.

In Step 3. Specify database parameters for retrieving data:
Go to Matching Records (Simple Records).
Choose Record(s) containing the smallest value of, and a field can be chosen from the drop down.

In Step 3. Specify database parameters for retrieving data:
Go to Matching Records (Simple Records).
Choose Record(s) containing the largest value of, and a field can be chosen from the drop down.

In Step 3. Specify database parameters for retrieving data:
Go to Grouped records->Grouped aggregate values.
This displays only fields of the corresponding tables.
Choose the field from which we need to find Grouped aggregate values.

In Step 3. Specify database parameters for retrieving data:
Go to Matching Records (advanced matching).
Choose the table for retrieving corresponding record in that table.

Create a sibling/child node to the list node, In Step 3. Specify database parameters for retrieving data:
Go to 'single (derived) values', choose 'count of' option and parameter needed to be counted from Dropdown.

Create a sibling/child node to the list node, In Step 3. Specify database parameters for retrieving data:
Go to single (derived) values, choose 'smallest of' option and also choose a parameter from dropdown to get the smallest value.

Create a sibling/child node to the list node, In Step 3. Specify database parameters for retrieving data:
Go to single (derived) values, Choose 'Largest of' options, also choose a parameter from dropdown to get the largest value.

Create a sibling/child node to the list node, In Step 3. Specify database parameters for retrieving data:
Go to single (derived) values, choose 'average of' option, and also choose a parameter from dropdown to get average of values.

Create a sibling/child node to the list node, In Step 3. Specify database parameters for retrieving data:
Go to single (derived) values, choose 'sum of' option, and also choose a parameter from Dropdown to get sum of values.

In Step 4. Specify additional database parameters.
Go to Tab Nullable terms Under 'Additional retrieval constraint terms (check the ones that apply)' it shows 'Nullable columns in where clause', choose one from dropdown and check it.

In Step 4. Specify additional database parameters.
Go to Tab selection terms Under 'Additional retrieval constraint terms (check the ones that apply)' check column, choose field, and choose operator from drop down and value. Value may be literal or value of field parent node table.

In step 4. Specify the visual aspects for attributes: (Non-Nullable attributes are in bold face.).Check the modification modes. Corresponding display elements will appear, along with extended types.

Select the node on the left navigator, Go to visuals tab, and change display element by selecting the suitable one from dropdown list.

After step 4. Specify additional database parameters.
Click on 'Save' after specifying visuals of the UDM, and click on the icon 'Regenerate html', followed by 'Generate' and 'save HTML'.

While generating html of a UDM you can change the Meta template by choosing suitable one from dropdown beside 'Meta-template to use'. Then click on ‘Generate’ followed by 'save HTML'.

While generating html, if you go to 'Show Source' you will get a text area containing html code which is editable. Or you may also go to icon 'Preview html', followed by 'show source'.

The Role of Client-side Scripting:
To fully decouple a generated application's user interface from its business logic and database access mechanisms, zeroCode-built sites use a macro-expansion engine called FreeMarker. To use it, zeroCode encapsulates HTML in templates. FreeMarker runs on the server and retrieves data, while the HTML renders on the client, along with the DHTML. DHTML is a combination of cascading style sheets and JavaScript/VBScript.
JavaScript is an extension of HTML that helps the programmer do special things like formatting and building advanced User interfaces with Web pages.

Using JavaScript in a Site: In a zeroCode-built site, the web server expects JavaScript files to be located in the …/webFiles/javaScript subdirectory of the site on the server. Designers can build new functionality using JavaScript and upload the relevant source-files into this directory. In building such functionality, designers must recognize that the architecture of their site, as generated by zeroCode, is predictable and scalable and the code that they construct must reflect that structure. Specifically, designers can take one of the two approaches:

Once the design of UDM is over, click on icon at tool bar to check the validity of UDM.
You can use this page to identify mismatches between the UDM and its data ports, and synchronize the UDM with its data ports. In particular, when you have recently updated your database schema, you can verify a previously-created UDM against the schema, detect any mismatches, and automatically update many of the discrepancies between the UDM and the database.

Relators can be used on, non-attribute, non-list nodes. Choose non-attribute, non-list node, and click on icon 'Add Relators'. It displays the tables that are related to it. Choose the required one and proceed. You can also choose relationship type one among 'one to one' or 'one to many'.

After generating html of a UDM, save it and copy the path, go to -> server -> link to app. It opens the index page, where we need to key in the path of our application to see the result.

In the left navigator of the application, go to filters and then click on icon 'Create a new filter' to open the Create a new filter page.
Name the filter. The name is case sensitive and cannot include embedded spaces or special characters.
Description and comment are optional. Select the table on which you would like to apply your Filter. Click on 'Next' to continue.
Click on ADD and you will get an ADD terms page. There it shows a table with a (arrow) symbol beside it.
Click on will show its' columns of table.
Click on beside the column, where in you need to apply the 'where' clause.
Click in the check box to prepare the respective 'where' clause and select the condition from the drop down box. Mention the clause in the box by keying in a hard code value.
Click on 'save' button.
The 'where clause' is added to the filter.
Click on the Finish button to save the filter.

You may extend the filter by adding a where clause to the existing filter in order to refine your search.
Similarly you can add/create another 'where clause' to facilitate an optional search. To perform this click on the ADD button to add another 'where clause' to the filter.
If your first 'where clause' is related to another table, that table will appear and allow you to apply 'where clause' on that table too and so on.
The 'where clause' gets added to the filter.
Click on the Finish button to save the filter.

If the filter is designed beginning with same table name that is used in the node of a UDM, the filter will appear at the data port of a UDM node. If you check it, it will be applied to the node.

Choose filter by holding down 'shift key'. It brings you to 'edit filter page'.
You can extend or add new terms that are applied with 'OR' condition by clicking on the Add button. Note that the parameters from UDMs or 'passed parameters' should be enclosed by question marks.
Once you are through editing the Filter, click the 'Finish' Button to save it.

While designing a filter and when you click on the Extend button, you will also see a section 'Add aggregation terms'. This section shows maximum, minimum and count values that you can retrieve using this Filter.

To write print aggregation terms on the output screen edit html by using 'Free Marker'.
The retrieved data is shown as Free marker tags in the $ {...} format.
This will print a corresponding value at that node.

The Data tree structure has four classes with the following hierarchy:

Data Tree Node

Data tree non leaf Node

Data tree Vector Node

Data tree scalar Node

Data Tree Leaf

At 'UDM Details' move to tab 'Parameters'. Here you can provide the names of parameters that the UDM will expect,. When the UDM is requested at run time, these parameters can be passed either via URL parameters (if it is a GET request) or form parameters (if it is a POST request). Make an expression node and read variable with same name as in the parameter list.

To print the value of a parameter on the 'output', edit html by using Free Markers. The retrieved data is shown as Free marker tags in the $ s{...} format.

In the zDE,choose the 'siteName/metaTemplates' directory, where "sitesName" is the name of the application site you created.
Click on the "create Directory" button in the header frame.
Key in a name for the directory. Click the "OK" button to continue.
This creates a new directory for your meta-templates.

Choose the siteName/metaTemplates/standard directory where "siteName" is the name of the application site you have created.
Check the checkbox for the corresponding meta-templates you wish to copy. Click the icon "Copy file (s)" in the header frame in order to copy these files onto the clipboard.
Choose the siteName/metaTemplates/test directory where "siteName" is the name of the application site you have created.
Click on the icon "Paste from clipboard" in the header frame, to paste the copied files from the clipboard onto the new meta-template family.

Steps to achieve this: Open the view metatemplate under the sitename/metatemplates folder. • Change the Meta-Template.

Choose the siteName/metaTemplates directory, where "siteName" is the name of the application site you have created.
Check the checkbox for the corresponding meta-template family you wish to remove.
Click on the icon "Delete file(s)" in the header frame.

A conditional table is used to relate distinct unrelated tables. This conditional table contains foreign key references of other tables, which are 'not null fields'. If you choose 'none' in these fields 'null' will be inserted. The fields should not have even a null value. This condition can be handled by changing the html and JavaScript files of the custom UDM. In the html file the option values in the Combo can be set to " ".

An action sequence is a set of actions (or action units) that will be executed in a specific sequence, triggered by a UDM. An action unit can be anything that a UDM node supports - retrieval, addition, modification and/or deletion of data from a Dataport and the expression evaluation that a normal UDM supports.
Note: Action sequence does not have UI. It is used for the manipulation of conditional statements.

In the left navigator of application, click on actions Folder and further click on the icon 'Create a new action sequence'. Fill in the relevant details in the create action sequence screen that appears before you.
Enter an action sequence name in the first field. Description is optional.
Click on the Create button to open the Action details page.
Pass a parameter and click on the Save button.
Continue with design until the action to be performed is achieved.

The action sequence itself can be triggered as the "action hook" for a UDM, to be executed at any one of four points in a UDM's execution:

1. Before it is retrieved for data display.
2. After the data is retrieved but before it is sent to the user's browser for display.
3. After the user submits the UDM to the server for adding/editing data but before those operations are carried out.
4. After the add/edit operations of the UDM are completed but before control moves on to an optional response UDM.
   

At UDM Details move to tab 'submission'.
Since you need to hook the UDM to the action sequence, select the radio button.

1. This UDM is never submitted.
2. On submission, it inserts or updates the submitted records.
3. On submission, it deletes the submitted records.
4. On submission, it searches for matching records.

Bind variables. Data ports sometimes need bind variables that control their behavior. A data port's bind variable can be thought of as a "parameter" -- it is used to pass values from the UDM to the data port.
This association of bind variables to values is done at the time you create a new node that uses that particular data port.

Generate html of UDM.
Write FreeMarker Extensions (for syntax go to help -> FreeMarker extensions) by editing html. Save html.
You can then see the results on output by linking to App.
Note: Do not generate html of UDM again after editing old html page with FreeMarker. It will overwrite the previous html.

The retrieved result is shown as Free marker tags in the $ {...} format. It will print corresponding values at that node.

You can use auto UDM's by invoking their html pages in your UDM. If essential you can edit it by applying filters. The advantage with auto UDM's is it provides Drill-downs to related tables.