Input and Output Parameters¶
The following types of input and output parameters can be used by the components:
Pages: Some components such as the navigation sequence (Sequence) component return a page as result. A Page element can be used by other components to extract data from it or to continue a navigation sequence from that point.
Records: Other components (e.g. the Record Constructor) return a structured group of information (in this example, this may be the structured representation of an information item).
Lists of records: ITPilot allows for some components (e.g. the Extractor component) to return lists of registers at their output or to accept them at their input.
Values: Other components can return simple values at their output such as the Expression component. Simple values can be of the following types: string, integer, date, double, long, float, url, boolean.
Browsers: Special simple values used by the browser persistence management components (see section Create Persistent Browser).
The input parameters are selected by mean of drop down lists which contain all the output variables whose type is compatible with the type of the input parameter (note that an input parameter can accept values of a single type or several types). It is also possible to type text in these drop-down lists, to search the variables starting with the typed text. This is especially useful in processes containing a lot of components (and therefore, a lot of output variables that can be used as input parameters in other components).