# Building Java Page Flow Portlets

You can use the Portlet Wizard to built a portlet that uses Java Page Flows to retrieve its content. Java Page Flows allow you to separate the user interface code from navigation control and other business logic. Page Flows provide the ability to model both simple and advanced portlet navigation. They allow you to leverage other resources such as Java Controls and Web Services. Page Flows in WebLogic Workshop also provide a visual IDE environment to build rich applications based on Struts. The advanced page flow features are not necessary for static or simple, one-view portlets.

To invoke the Portlet Wizard, navigate in the IDE Application pane to the folder that contains the page flow. Open the folder, select the <page-flow>Controller.jpf class file, then right-mouse click and select Generate Portlet... from the menu. (This feature is available if you are running WebLogic Workshop Enterprise Edition, which includes the Portal functionality.)

If the page flow is in a web project that does not yet have the Portal libraries installed, WebLogic Workshop prompts you with the following message:

If you receive this prompt, click the Yes button. When the portal libraries are installed, the Portlet Wizard displays this dialog:

On this wizard dialog, the values for the Title and the Content URI (location of the page flow JPF class) are probably already filled in for you. You can specify additional options, such as whether the portlet should have Help and Edit icons. If you want those features on your portlet, specify the path to the JSP page that will provide the Help and Edit functions.

When you are ready, click the Finish button. A <portlet-name>.portlet file will be created for you, by default in the same directory as the page flow.

Related Topics

Guide to Building Page Flows

Creating Portlets