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#!N 
#!CSeaGreen #!N  #!Rtmacro Creating and Using 
Macros #!N #!EC #!N #!N Macros are collections of tools that 
can be represented by a single icon in the VPE canvas. 
Macros thus allow you not only to simplify the appearance of 
your visual program but also to share commonly used functions between 
programs. This section briefly introduces the basic concepts of creating and 
using macros. (The topic is treated in detail in IBM Visualization 
Data Explorer User's Guide.) The general procedure for creating a macro 
follows on the next page. #!N #!I0 #!N  #!F-adobe-times-medium-r-normal--18*   #!N #!N 
#!I30 #!N 1. Decide how many inputs and outputs your macro 
will have. #!N #!I30 #!N 2. For each input, select  #!F-adobe-times-bold-r-normal--18*   
Special #!EF in the categories palette and then  #!F-adobe-times-bold-r-normal--18*   Input #!EF 
in the tools palette. #!N #!I30 #!N 3. Position the mouse 
cursor in the VPE canvas and click once to generate an 
 #!F-adobe-times-bold-r-normal--18*   Input #!EF icon. #!N #!I30 #!N 4. Repeat Steps 2 
and 3 for  #!F-adobe-times-bold-r-normal--18*   Output #!EF . #!N #!I30 #!N 5. 
Open the configuration dialog box for each tool to give it 
an appropriate name, description, and default value. #!N #!I30 #!N 6. 
Select any additional tools you want to include in the macro 
and place their icons on the canvas. #!N #!I30 #!N 7. 
Connect the  #!F-adobe-times-bold-r-normal--18*   Input #!EF and  #!F-adobe-times-bold-r-normal--18*   Output #!EF icons to 
the appropriate tools. #!N #!I30 #!N 8. Select  #!F-adobe-times-bold-r-normal--18*   Macro Name 
#!EF in the  #!F-adobe-times-bold-r-normal--18*   Edit #!EF pull-down menu and name the 
macro. #!N #!I30 #!N 9. Save the macro. #!N #!I0 #!N 
#!EF #!N #!CIndianRed #!N #!N #!N  #!F-adobe-times-bold-r-normal--18*   For Future Reference #!N 
#!I0 #!N  #!F-adobe-times-medium-r-normal--18*   #!N #!N #!I30 #!N o To use the 
new macro, you must first load it into Data Explorer: select 
 #!F-adobe-times-bold-r-normal--18*   Load Macro #!EF from the  #!F-adobe-times-bold-r-normal--18*   File #!EF pull-down menu. 
#!N #!N Once loaded, the macro will be available from the 
tools palettes. Simply select it and place its icon on the 
canvas. #!N #!I30 #!N o For descriptions of the inputs and 
outputs specified when the macro was created, open its configuration dialog 
box. #!N #!I30 #!N o To see the component contents of 
the macro, click on the icon to highlight it and then 
select  #!F-adobe-times-bold-r-normal--18*   Open Selected Macro #!EF in the  #!F-adobe-times-bold-r-normal--18*   Windows #!EF 
pull-down menu. #!N #!I0 #!N #!EF #!N #!N #!N #!EC #!N 
#!N The following example illustrates the use of a macro in 
a visual program. #!N #!I0 #!N  #!F-adobe-times-medium-r-normal--18*   #!N #!N #!I30 #!N 
1. Select  #!F-adobe-times-bold-r-normal--18*   Load Macro #!EF in the  #!F-adobe-times-bold-r-normal--18*   File #!EF 
pull-down menu. #!N #!I30 #!N 2. Type /opt/local/dx/samples/tutorial/SampleMacro.net in the  #!F-adobe-times-bold-r-normal--18*   
Filter #!EF field at the top of the dialog box and 
press Enter. The name of the macro appears under  #!F-adobe-times-bold-r-normal--18*   Files 
#!EF on the right side of the dialog box. #!N #!I30 
#!N 3. Click on the macro name to highlight it, and 
then click on  #!F-adobe-times-bold-r-normal--18*   Load Macro #!EF at the bottom of 
the dialog box. A new category appears in the categories palette: 
 #!F-adobe-times-bold-r-normal--18*   Macros #!EF . #!N #!I30 #!N 4. Select the new 
category. The name of the new macro appears in the tools 
palette. Now you can open a visual program that uses this 
macro. #!N #!I30 #!N 5. Open and execute visual program .../UseSampleMacro.net. 
#!N #!N Although the visual program looks simple, the image it 
produces is quite elaborate. #!N #!I30 #!N 6. Click on the 
 #!F-adobe-times-bold-r-normal--18*   SampleMacro #!EF icon to highlight it and then select  #!F-adobe-times-bold-r-normal--18*   
Open Selected Macro #!EF in the  #!F-adobe-times-bold-r-normal--18*   Windows #!EF pull-down menu. 
A new window appears, displaying the "network" of  #!F-adobe-times-bold-r-normal--18*   SampleMacro #!EF 
: This macro performs various operations on the output from three 
 #!F-adobe-times-bold-r-normal--18*   Input #!EF modules (top) and feeds the result to a 
single  #!F-adobe-times-bold-r-normal--18*   Output #!EF module (bottom). It is this output that 
is fed to the  #!F-adobe-times-bold-r-normal--18*   Display #!EF module in the visual 
program. #!N #!I0 #!N #!EF #!N #!N #!N #!N  #!F-adobe-times-medium-i-normal--18*   Next 
Topic #!EF #!N #!N  #!Ltddint,dxall75 h Data-driven Tools  #!EL  #!N  #!F-adobe-times-medium-i-normal--18*   #!N 
