Difference between revisions of "OUTPUT.XML"

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[[Image:Xslt.jpg|thumb|Using XSLT and XML to generate a [[slip designer|Student review]].]]
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{{permissions|Reviews|Access student reviews|Add and modify student review designs|Allow users to add edit and delete review periods}}
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This file is generated by PARS every time a [[slip designer|Student review]] is run. It contains all of the [[Grading]], [[Behaviour]] and [[Attendance]] data for a student (even data not visible on the review) as well as a number of other useful pieces of information.
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This file is generated by PARS every time a [[slip designer|Student review]] is run. It contains all of the grading, behaviour and attendance data for a student (even data not visible on the review) as well as a number of other useful pieces of information. <br> <br>
  
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==How to generate an OUTPUT.XML file==
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=How to generate an OUTPUT.XML file=
  
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The file can be found in the local PARS/TEMP folder after generating a review, usually:
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==If a Review Period Already Exists==
  
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C:\program files\SIMS\PARS .net\TEMP
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The simplest method to generate an OUTPUT.XML file is to go to: <br>
 +
'''[[PARS main menu]]''' > '''[[Grading]]''' > '''[[Review periods]]''' <br> <br>
  
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To generate a review follow these steps, the review design you use does not affect the data that are outputted:
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An OUTPUT.XML file can be generated by selecting an existing review period and clicking the XML button on the top toolbar. This will open a student selector window. A maximum of 5 pupils should be selected, otherwise the OUTPUT.XML file will be too large. <br> <br>
  
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*PARS main menu > [[Grading]] > [[Review periods]]
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The method above will only work if a review period has already been configured. If that is not the case, the sections below explain how to create a new review period. <br> <br>
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*Add review period -> give a title.
 
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*Start and end dates should be at least the same as the grade entry period.
 
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*In the "Review description" columns select any template for the year group containing the pupil(s) who are to receive the final review. if you do not have a template configured, one can be found [[Default slip|here]]
 
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*Tick the "More options" column if the review is to have G&T or EAL information.
 
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*Click accept -> Click on the period you just created -> "Generate a review period" -> Select the pupil(s) who have had data entered.
 
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*Once the report has run check the PARS TEMP folder for the file OUTPUT.XML. The TEMP folder is usually found here:
 
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c:\program files\sims\pars .net\TEMP\
 
  
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N.B. if you are unable to access your local PARS/TEMP folder (e.g. due to permissions), generate a student review so it is visible in your web browser. Edit the file name shown in the address bar so it says OUTPUT.XML (keep the rest of the path the same) and press Enter. This will show the output.xml file on screen. Right click -> View source to see the actual contents of the file, copy this into [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Notepad_(software) Notepad] and save as OUTPUT.XML
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==Creating a Review Period==
  
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==Additional info==
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===Import the Default Slip===
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Student review designs use [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xslt XSLT] to layout the data in the OUTPUT.XML file, converting it to HTML in the final printable copy.
 
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A Default slip design is available that shows all grades available in the OUTPUT.XML file, if grades are missing or duplicated in a student review this design is useful to see all of the available data in the OUTPUT.XML. Create a Student Review Period using this design with the same date range as your design being troubleshooted.
 
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There are various free pieces of software that make it easier to work with XML and XSLT:
 
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[http://www.xmlfox.com/ XMLfox] rearranges the XML into a grid view and makes it easy to navigate through large files.
 
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[http://notepad-plus.sourceforge.net/uk/site.htm Notepad++] is a useful program for editing code and has settings for a wide range of different languages.
 
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The best way to work on a [[Review periods]] design is to copy the XSLT review design text to a new text file called e.g. example.xsl. Place this file in a folder with an OUTPUT.XML file containing students who already have had the relevant data entered in PARS. Open the OUTPUT.XML file and insert this text at the very top:
 
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<?xml-stylesheet type="text/xsl" href="example.xsl"?>
 
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Now open the OUTPUT.XML file in Internet Explorer (other browsers may not work) and the final report will be generated. Make changes to the XSLT file, save then refresh the browser window to see the effect of the changes.
 
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=Default slip=
 
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The slip design below will show all grades that are available in the output.xml. Use this to determine whether the date range of your review period is correct and the correct elements are linked to each student/subject.
 
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==To add this slip design to PARS==
 
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Click the [[PARS main menu]] -> [[Grading]] -> Configure -> Review designer -> Add  -> Give it a title e.g. "Default slip" -> Delete the code in the main text box, paste in the text from the box below, click "Accept" to save.
 
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==When grades are missing from a student review==
 
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Replace the review design in PARS with the design below. Do the grades appear in the resulting report? If they do not (and they are visible elsewhere in PARS) then it is most likely that the date range of the review period is incorrect. This should always be set to cover the whole school year, apart from in certain rare cases where attendance or behaviour data should only be gathered over a limited time period.
 
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If the grades do appear then the review design will need amending. If your review design has a function debugMode() near the top, set this to "true" to see the grade element codes that are being checked in each cell. Are these correct?
 
  
 +
To generate an OUTPUT.XML file go to: <br>
 +
'''[[PARS main menu]]''' > '''[[Grading]]''' > '''Configure''' > '''[[Review designer]]''' <br> <br>
  
 +
If there is no existing design called "Default slip", click the Add button at the top left of the page. Name the new design "Default slip" and copy the following text into PARS: <br> <br>
  
 
  <nowiki>
 
  <nowiki>
Line 142: Line 109:
 
</nowiki>
 
</nowiki>
  
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===Create a Review Period===
 +
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Next go to: <br>
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'''[[PARS main menu]]''' > '''[[Grading]]''' > '''[[Review periods]]''' <br> <br>
 +
 +
Use the Add button at the top of the page to create a new review period. The review period will need a title and the date range should cover the academic year. Click the ellipsis button next to a year group to open a new window. In the drop down at the top of the window, select the Default Slip design, then click OK. Repeat this for each year group. <br> <br>
 +
 +
On the Review Periods page, select the review period you have created then click the XML button on the top toolbar. Select a maximum of five students for whom you wish to generate an OUTPUT.XML and the file will be downloaded to your computer. <br> <br>
 +
 +
=Additional info=
 +
 +
Student review designs use [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xslt XSLT] to layout the data in the OUTPUT.XML file, converting it to PDF or HTML in the final printable copy. <br> <br>
 +
 +
There are various free pieces of software that make it easier to work with XML and XSLT: <br>
 +
[http://www.xmlfox.com/ XMLfox] ''rearranges the XML into a grid view and makes it easy to navigate through large files.'' <br>
 +
[http://notepad-plus.sourceforge.net/uk/site.htm Notepad++] ''is a useful program for editing code and has settings for a wide range of different languages.'' <br> <br>
 +
 +
Changes to Student review designs can be made by our programmers or by staff at school. For staff, the best way to work on a Student review design is to copy the XSLT review design text to a new text file called e.g. example.xsl. This file should be placed in a folder with an OUTPUT.XML file containing students who already have had the relevant data entered in PARS. The OUTPUT.XML file would need to be edited to insert this text at the very top: <br>
 +
<?xml-stylesheet type="text/xsl" href="example.xsl"?>
 +
 +
The OUTPUT.XML file can then be opened in Internet Explorer (other browsers may not work) and the final report will be generated. Changes can be made to the XSLT file using [http://notepad-plus.sourceforge.net/uk/site.htm Notepad++] or a similar text editor. Refreshing Internet Explorer would then display those changes in the report. <br> <br>
  
 
[[Category:Grading]]
 
[[Category:Grading]]
 
[[Category:Technical]]
 
[[Category:Technical]]
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[[Category:Misc]]
 

Latest revision as of 13:45, 15 July 2016

Lock.gif| Permissions required
to access this module:
Section:
Reviews
Permission(s):
Access student reviews
Add and modify student review designs
Allow users to add edit and delete review periods

This file is generated by PARS every time a Student review is run. It contains all of the grading, behaviour and attendance data for a student (even data not visible on the review) as well as a number of other useful pieces of information.

How to generate an OUTPUT.XML file

If a Review Period Already Exists

The simplest method to generate an OUTPUT.XML file is to go to:
PARS main menu > Grading > Review periods

An OUTPUT.XML file can be generated by selecting an existing review period and clicking the XML button on the top toolbar. This will open a student selector window. A maximum of 5 pupils should be selected, otherwise the OUTPUT.XML file will be too large.

The method above will only work if a review period has already been configured. If that is not the case, the sections below explain how to create a new review period.

Creating a Review Period

Import the Default Slip

To generate an OUTPUT.XML file go to:
PARS main menu > Grading > Configure > Review designer

If there is no existing design called "Default slip", click the Add button at the top left of the page. Name the new design "Default slip" and copy the following text into PARS: 

<?xml version="1.0"?>
<xsl:stylesheet version="1.0" xmlns:my="http://whatever" xmlns:msxsl="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:xslt" xmlns:xsl="http://www.w3.org/1999/XSL/Transform" xmlns:fo="http://www.w3.org/1999/XSL/Format" >
	<xsl:template match="/" >
<html>
	<head>
	
<link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="" />
<script type="text/javascript" src="" />
		<meta HTTP-EQUIV="content-type" CONTENT="text/html; charset=UTF-8"/>
		<title>all grades</title>			
		<style type="text/css">
body {font-family:calibri}

table
{
    border-collapse: collapse;
}
.studName{font-size:25pt; font-weight:bold;text-align:center;}
		</style>		
	</head>				
		<body bgcolor="white" TOPMARGIN="0"  onload="" >			
			<center>
				<xsl:apply-templates select="//STUDENT" >					
					<xsl:sort select="surname" order="ascending"/>					
				</xsl:apply-templates>	
			</center>
		</body>				
</html>		
	</xsl:template>
<xsl:template match="//STUDENT" >
<table class="oneStud" border="1" frame= "box" cellpadding="3" width="100%">
	<tr><td class="studName" colspan="8"><xsl:value-of select="forename"/> <xsl:value-of select="surname"/> (<xsl:value-of select="reg_group"/>)</td></tr>
	<tr><td>Subject</td><td>Class</td><td>ElementID</td><td>Description</td><td>CODE</td><td>Date</td><td>Ev_inst_id</td><td>SCHEME1</td><td>ACTUALMARK</td><td>COMMENTTEXT</td><td>SIMS Details</td></tr>	
	<xsl:apply-templates select="SUBJECTS" >				 
		<xsl:sort select="SUBJECTDESC" order="ascending"/>				
	</xsl:apply-templates>
</table>
<br/><br/>
	<br style="page-break-after: always"/>
</xsl:template>
	<xsl:template match="SUBJECTS" >
	<xsl:for-each select="CLASSES/GRADEISSUE">
		<tr>
			<td><xsl:value-of select="../../SUBJECTDESC"/></td>
			<td>
				<xsl:if test="../CLASSDESC=''">(Subject)</xsl:if>
				<xsl:value-of select="../CLASSDESC"/>
			</td>
			<td>				
				<xsl:value-of select="ELEMENTID"/>
			</td>
			<td>				
				<xsl:value-of select="DESCRIPTION"/>
			</td>
			<td>				
				<xsl:value-of select="CODE"/>
			</td>
			<td>				
				<xsl:value-of select="DATE"/>
			</td>
			<td>				
				<xsl:value-of select="EV_INST_ID"/>
			</td>
			<td>				
				<xsl:value-of select="SCHEME1"/>
			</td>
			<td>				
				<xsl:value-of select="ACTUALMARK"/>
			</td>
                        <td>				
				<xsl:value-of select="COMMENTTEXT"/>
			</td>			
			<td>				
				<xsl:value-of select="SIMSDETAIL"/>
			</td>			
		</tr>
		<xsl:if test="COMMENTTEXT!=''">
			<tr>
				<td colspan="8">COMMENTTEXT:<br/><br/>	<xsl:value-of select="COMMENTTEXT"/></td>
			</tr>
		</xsl:if>
	</xsl:for-each>
	</xsl:template>	
</xsl:stylesheet>

Create a Review Period

Next go to:
PARS main menu > Grading > Review periods

Use the Add button at the top of the page to create a new review period. The review period will need a title and the date range should cover the academic year. Click the ellipsis button next to a year group to open a new window. In the drop down at the top of the window, select the Default Slip design, then click OK. Repeat this for each year group.

On the Review Periods page, select the review period you have created then click the XML button on the top toolbar. Select a maximum of five students for whom you wish to generate an OUTPUT.XML and the file will be downloaded to your computer.

Additional info

Student review designs use XSLT to layout the data in the OUTPUT.XML file, converting it to PDF or HTML in the final printable copy.

There are various free pieces of software that make it easier to work with XML and XSLT:
XMLfox rearranges the XML into a grid view and makes it easy to navigate through large files.
Notepad++ is a useful program for editing code and has settings for a wide range of different languages.

Changes to Student review designs can be made by our programmers or by staff at school. For staff, the best way to work on a Student review design is to copy the XSLT review design text to a new text file called e.g. example.xsl. This file should be placed in a folder with an OUTPUT.XML file containing students who already have had the relevant data entered in PARS. The OUTPUT.XML file would need to be edited to insert this text at the very top: 

<?xml-stylesheet type="text/xsl" href="example.xsl"?>

The OUTPUT.XML file can then be opened in Internet Explorer (other browsers may not work) and the final report will be generated. Changes can be made to the XSLT file using Notepad++ or a similar text editor. Refreshing Internet Explorer would then display those changes in the report.

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