ProWikiCenter: VirtualData

September 19, 2018

ProWikiCenter

Virtual Data

VirtualData means that certain parts of ProWiki page content can be used as data. This data can be displayed individually or in lists. VirtualData is supported by VidaCaching which makes it so efficient that we can consider it "zero-cost" ("vida" is ProWiki slang for "virtual data").

Example assigments (used below):

data=3.456
test: this is an another example of VirtualData # a comment to be ignored
MAIL name(AT)somedomain.tdl

This is in real use (see below and in FolderVirtualData):

info: the general concept to have page content act as data

Note that the Context pages hold and use similar data for configuration purposes. But Context pages are excludes from normal VirtualData search and the syntax is slightly different (no comments, only "=" operator) for consistency and even more efficiency.

Format rules for VirtualData:

exists in bulleted lists
assigments may be written "variable=value" or "variable:value"
a comment after a leading "#" character is removed
whitespace may be used deliberately and is removed

Simple uses by CdmlDisplay

 [[display][variable=vida.data]]

results in:

Variable vida.data:

3.456

(the variable declared above; works on same page only)

Variable vida.test:

this is an another example of VirtualData

Simplified Syntax for List (more about CdmlList see next section)

 [[Vida]data]

results in:

Page	data
VirtualData	3.456
VirtualData2	4,55

Access VirtualData in CdmlList

Both commands:

[[list][type=*][vida=yes][variables=mailto:,data]]
[[list]mailto:,data]

will produce:

Page	mailto:	data
ContactUs	MAIL office (AT) wikiservice.at
EmailSupport	MAIL support (AT) wikiservice.com
HelmutLeitner	MAIL leitner (AT) wikiservice.at
HowTo/Link	MAIL leitner (AT) wikiservice.at
ProWikiProviderList	MAIL office (AT) wikiservice.at for offers.
VirtualData	MAIL name(AT)somedomain.tdl	3.456
VirtualData2		4,55
WikiService	MAIL office (AT) wikiservice.at

Access virtual data using the command line

ThisWiki:action=vida (you typically need Admin UserStatus for this)
see ActionVida for parameter details

Use VirtualData to make TalkingPages

You write "VirtualData##info" to get:

VirtualDatainfo: the general concept to have page content act as data

If you define a default "talking page variable name":

Variable PageAutoTalk:

info

This can even abbreviated to "VirtualData##" to get the same result:

VirtualDatainfo: the general concept to have page content act as data

Use VirtualData to enrich index and folder lists

Pretty much the same can work in folders and the PageIndex:

Variable IndexAutoTalk:

info

Look into FolderVirtualData to see the automatic display of the "info" variables.

FolderWikiFeatures FolderVirtualData

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