Useful PEGA Keywords

Abstract Class  -  A class that supports the definition of classes. An instance cannot be created for an abstract class. Abstract class names end with a hyphen.

Access Group  -  Access Groups determines the layout of a user's home page and the other user roles available. System administrators define access group sand associate them with users.

Access Role  -  Assigned to individual users to modify their access to rules. Access roles are instances of Rule-Access-Role-Name.

Action  -  A workflow (business process) action. Actions are defined by instances of Rule-Obj-FlowAction rules.

Activity  -  A unit of work that an individual is asked to perform. The activity has a clear purpose expressed in terms of creating or updating some artifacts such as a model, a class, or a plan.

Agent  -  A background process, executing at set intervals or times as an internal thread on the server. Agents preiodically monitor conditions and perform processing as necessary.

Aggregate Property  -  A property of a mode other than single value, such as a value list.

Aggregation  -  An association in which one class belongs to a collection. An aggregation has a diamond end point to the part containing the whole.

Application Accelerator  -  A PRPC application that creates a baseline application based on the information presented to it vai an Application Profile or directly into the Application Accelerator.

Application Explorer  -  Navigation features that is organized by class, category, and rule type and provides access to the rules in a selected work pool.

Application Menu  -  Provides access to information about your application.

Application Profile Wizard  -  A PRPC application that takes input from a user to create a high-level scoping document called an Application Profile. This document contains information related to an application during the Inception phase of the methodology.

Application Profile  -  A document produced as a result of running the Application Profile Wizard. This document uses a template to structure the format. This template can be customized to include and exclude information as necessary.

Application Rule  -  A rule that defines an ordered set of RuleSets that together identify the components of a PRPC application; listed in the Security rule category.

Assignment  -  Assignments record a temporary condition of an open work object within an executing flow that requires users or an external system to act on the work object for it to progress to the next step.

Assignment Shape  -  A PRPDC shape that represents a pause or potential pause in a flow. Signifies that person or system must act on a work object before the flow can progress.

Attachment Category  -  One of three gorupings used on the Application Explorer and Rules by Type Explorer. Attachments rae associated with work objects, and the attachment category identifies the buesinss process or purpose of the attachment.

Automic Use Case  -  A type of Use Case that is small and granualr in nature, would not take more than a few minutes to document, does not involve a change of ownership during processing and corresponds to a Flow Action, Flow, Screen Flow, Harness or Activity.

Background Processing  -  Automatic processing, without operator intervention.

Backward Chaining  -  A technique that Process Commander uses to allow a communication to advance even when the value of an input or parameter property is not available. This capability is provided by having the Declare Expression rules (Rule-Declare-Expressions rule type) and the Priorty-Seek-Value method working together. Process Commander also uses the internal dependency network of property relationships to develop inferences about how to obtain the missing property value.

Business Rules Engine  -  A system that manages buiness rules. PegaRULES BRE separates business logic from the mission-critical applications and enabels the enterprise to capture, manage, and execute business policies and practices.

Broadcast  -  A short text message visible to users. An instance of Data-Broadcast. Users cna define distinct messages for each organizational unit.

Build Order  -  Part of the Construction phase, the build order specifies the sequence in which rules and data instances are created when earlier phases are complete. The build order may differ in separate iterations of the implementation.

Business Architect  -  A business user or business analyst who defines and maintans business rules, service levels, and flows or processes.

Business Use Case  -  A type of use case that describes a business process from beginning to end without regard to process ownership.

Business value Assessment  -  A stage of the project implementation methodology that defines the success factors and expected return on investment of the project. A business architect has a major role in this stage.

Case  -  A collection of tasks or assignments that are completed to resolve an exception.

Cases and Content Slice  -  Available from the home page of the Developer portal. Use to access the attachment categroies, correspondence rules, work parties, properties, and service level rules associated with the current work pool.

Category  -  A way to grou pinformation to enhance learning and navigation. categories include rule types and data classes, attachments and reports.

Circumstance  -  An optional qualification and refinement of the rule resolution algorithm. Using a circumstance allows your application to support multiple variants of a rule easily. Fo example, variations of an ordinary rule can be applied to important customers or classes of customers.

Class  -  Contains the rule by which objects behave. Define rules such as properties, activities, flows, HTML forms, etc. available to other subordinate classes. Classes are organized into a hierarchy in which lower classes inherit from upper classes. A class is an instance of a Rule-Obj-Class rule.

Class Diagram  -  A diagram that procides an overview of a system by showing its classes and the relationship among them.

Class Explorer  -  Navigation feature that displays portions of the class hierarchy differntiating between abstract and concrete classes.

Class Group  -  A means to store instances from two or more concrete classes (that share a common key format) in a single database table. Class groups are commonly used to store intances of similar or related Work- concrete classes together in a relational database table.

Collaboration Diagrams  -  Diagram that conveys the same information as a sequence diagram but focuses on object roles instead of the times that messages are sent. See interaction diagrams.

Concrete Class  -  A class that can have instances.

Connector  -  A programmatic component that defines and implements an interface between a PRPC application, acting as a client, and an external system, acting as a server. Connectors are implemented through an instance of a connector rule.

Connector Flow Action  -  A flow actoin that complees an assignemtn, allowing the flow execution to progress along a connector arrow to another shape on the diagram.

Constraints  -  Define and enorce comparison relationships among property values within PRPC. Constraints can provide an automatic form of property validation every time a property value is touched.

Construction Phase  -  In the Construction Phase, all remaining components and application features are developed and integrated into the product, and lal features are thoroughly tested.

Correspondence  -  An outgoing e-mail message, printed letter, or fascimile transmission produced by a PRPC application and its users.

Correspondence Template  -  Definition of the format, content, and type of correspondence; refers to a correspondence rule.

Data Table Wizard  -  Wizard that creates interactive tables for business users to maintain the values of simple Data- classes without added priveleges or programming support; generates the class and supporting rules that make the data table an interactive data entry tool.

Data- class  -  A concrete class that the system uses internally while it operates. During installation, instances of Data- classes are created. As the system is used, other instances are created automatically.

Deadline  -  The maximum time allowed for resolving a case, configured in a service level agreement.

Decision Category  -  One of the groupings under the rule types and data classes category. The decision category includes rule types that test values and include decision trees, decision tables, and map values.

Decision Rule  -  A rule that defines computations and comparisons that may cause processing of a flow to continue along one path or another.

Decision Shape  -  A shaped used to call a decision rule such as a decision tree or map value.

Decision Table  -  Defines a series of tests performed on property values to allow an automsated decision.

Decision Tree  -  A decision rule that uses if/then logic to calculate a value in an user-friendly format based on rows of property values, computations, and comparisons; listed in the ecision rule category.

Declarative Rule  -  A rule that allows for the automatic processing of property values.

Declare Page Rules  -  A set of rules that define the contents of a clipboard page that is to be available in read-only mode to multiple requestors in your application.

Dependencies  -  A relationship that exists when one object requires/relies on the functionality of another object; depcited as dotted arrows between two objects within a diagram

Dependency Network  -  A set of rules that share properties

Directed Inheritance  -  The method that causes a class to inherit chracteristics directly from a specified parent class, regardless of any defined pattern inheritance.

Directly Capture Objective  -  DCO is a term used to describe the process for using PRPC as an integrated solution for capturing objectives, requirements, draft flows, draft UI, Use Cases and reusing these individual components over and over throughout the delivery methodology.

Division  -  The middle level of the standard three-level hierarchy. The organizational structure affects management reports and statistics and the RuleSet visible to users in that organization when they log in.

Document Button  -  Produces a Microsoft Word document listing all the rules associated with the selected application. Admins control what rules and which sections appear in the document.

Edit Validate Rule  -  Defines a java routine that tests the validity of an input value; listed in the Property rule category.

Elaboration Phase  -  in this Phase you analyze the problem domain, establish a sound architectural foundation, develpo the project plan, and eliminate the highest risk elements of the project. At the end of this Phase, the hard "engineering" is considered complete and the project undergoes its most important day of reckoning: the decision on whether or not to commit to the Construciton and Transition Phase.

Exception Path  -  The less likely paths paths a process takes to complete a unit of work. Also called alternate scenarios.

Expression Builder  -  PRPC feature that allows you to build and validate the format of an expression.

External Setup Wizard  -  This wizard prepares the envrionment for application development by configuring the prerequisite elements for logging on to PRPC and building applications.

Field Value Inspector  -  This tool supports testing, evaluation, and fine-tuning of localized applications, by allowing updates to field value rules that contain translations while viewing the application.

Flow Action  -  Rules known as flow actions determine which data values are requested in the 'Take Action' area of a work object form. These choices are available as interim or final dispositions of an assignment they are processing. Rather than crate a new flow action rule from scratch, it is easier to create the new rule by copying the existing ManageResolve flow action rule. There are two types of flow actions: connector flow actions and local flow actions.

Flow Explorer  -  Avaiable from the Process Slice (Facility) on the Developer Portal, it lets you displaythe starter flows and helps you to understand the relationships amonth the flow rules in the selected application.

Folder  -  A folder is a type of work object that loosely packages many related work objects, cover, and other folders.

Fork Shape  -  A shape used to call when rules, where the flow chooses one of multiple different paths of processing based on conditions of the object.

Gadget  -  An HTML rule that defines the lable and function of a link on the portal, such as the worklist display. Gadgets are instances of the Data-Gadget class. By creating portal rules (of type Rule-Portal), system architects determine the appearance, labeling, and location of secitons on the home page (portal), and which parts sof the portal are visible to different groups of users.

Goal  -  The expected time to resolve a case or complete an assignment, configured in a service level agreement (SLA)

Governance  -  The processes that need to exist and be enforced to help guide projects to a successful completion. All departments associated with a project should participate in project governance for it to be successful.

Harness Rule  -  A rule that defines the layout of the workspace and contains section rules.

History- Classes  -  These classes are created automatically as a byproduct of the creation of other classes, to track changes to instances of other classes.

HTML Fragment  -  Defines reusable HTML not tied to a specific class and holds frequently needed HTML text, Javascript, or style (CSS) text; listed as part of the Technical rule category

HTML Property Rule  -  A rule that controls how properties appear on work object forms, correspondence, and other HTML forms; listed as part of the Property rule category

Inception Phase  -  In this Phase, the business case is identified, which takes into account the business context, success factors, and the financial forecast.

Inheritance  -  The mehtod in which characteristics of ancestor or base classes are automatically included in a class. You can add application-specific data elements (or properties) and other rules to your classes. Inheritance is computed by an algrothm in PRPC (known as a Rule Resolution).

Instance  -  A durable, potentially permanent, representation of a concrete class, stored as a row or record in the PegaRules database. An instance consists of property values, some of which form a unique key to the instance.

Integration Slice  -  Available from the home page of the Developer portal. Use the integration slice to access the connector rules, service rules, and data instances supporting your application.

Interaction Diagrams  -  Dynamic diagrams that describe how objects collaborate.

Inventory Button  -  Produces an interactive HTML report that lists all the rules associated with the application sorted by the Applies To clsas.

Iteration  -  A complete development loop resulting in a release (internal or external) of an executable product or a subset of the final product under development, which grows incrementally from iteration to iteration to become the final system.

Java EE  -  Java Enterprise Edition

JAR  -  Java ARchive, a file format based on the ZIP compressed-file format. A JAR file aggreagates many files into one.

List View Rule  -  A rule that enables report data to display as rows of data in tabular format.

Listener  -  A background Java thread that monitors a TCP/IP port, a mailbox, a messaging facility, or a directory for arrivin messages or files. Defined by an instance of Data-Admin-Connect-.

Local Flow Actions  -  These Actions permit users at runtim eto update, but not complete, an assignment; local flow actions are referenced inside an assignment task in a flow.

Map Value Rule  -  A rule that uses a table of numbers, text, or date ranges that converts one or two input values into a calculated result value; listed in the Decision rule category. At runtime, PRPC evaluates the rows starting at the top and then columns left to right.

Model  -  Defines initial values for properties of a specific class and is an instance of the Rule-Obj-Model rule. Analogous to a Java constructor. A model can also be a template user authenticated externally and in this case is an instance of the Data-Admin-Operator-ID rule.

Organization  -  The top level of the standard three-level hierarchy. The organizational structure affects management reports and statistics and the RuleSet visible to users in that organization when they log in. Organization is an instance of Data-Admin-Organization.

Page  -  A memory instance on the clipboard.

Page Group  -  A property mode that allows you to embed an unordered arry of pages.

Page List  -  A property mode that allows you to embed an ordered array of pages.

PAL  -  A built-in tool that is used to identify resource usage inefficiencies in a PRPC application; identifies reource bottlenecks; records how many times an event occurs and how long each event took to complete.

Party  -  A person or entity involved in a case.

Pattern Inheritance  -  A type of inheritance that causes a class to inherit characteristics from classes that it resembles in name, moving up the visible class hierarchy.

PegaDISTRIBUTION Manager  -  An output correspondence server that sends HTML or Microsoft Word documents from PRPC to channels available on other systems. Correspondence can be printed, faxed, or saved in RTF format.

PegaRESEARCH Manager  -  A pegasystem product that provides a central repository for ctirical SWIFT messages and transaction data. PegaRESEARCH manager can retrieve SWIFT transactions, and map the results into a case.

PegaRULES Database  -  Relational database that houses PRPC data.

Policy Decisions Slice  -  Available form the home page of the Developer portal. Used to view a summary of or access decision rules associated with the current work pool.

Preflight  -  The Preflight button in the Manage Rules workspace performas a number of checks on the rules in the currently selected application. These checks are designed to encourage good design and implementation practices.

Pre-Inception  -  The process, associated with a project, that occur prior to the Inception phase. These usually include pre-sales activities and are primarily performed by the Sales Executives, Sales Consultants and/or Practice Leaders.

Primary Path  -  The most likely course of action a process follows to complete a unit of work.

Privelege  -  An access control element associated with a class and an access role, and is an instance of the Rule-Access-Privilege rule. Privileges offer finer tuning of access control than access roles alone.

Process Category  -  One of the grouping sunder the rule types and data classes category. The process cateogry includes rule types that support business process such as collection, correspondence, service levels, and flows.

Process Slice  -  Available fromthe home page of the Developer Portal. Use to see flow rules and simulation rules associated with the current work pool.

Property  -  An instance of the Rule-Obj-Property rule - deines and lables a value that can be associated with a class.

Property Mode  -  Determined by a setting in the Rule-Obj-Property rule. A property has 1 of 11 modes. Modes are variations of either isngle, array or list, and group.

Rendezvous  -  Occurs when multiple flows meet up at the end of the process.

Routher Activity  -  An activity that determines which user worklist or which workbasket is to receive an assignment.

Rule  -  A rule is a data construct that defines user interface, business logic, or data behvior within PRPC. Rules are constructed using rule froms, stored in XML format in a PegaRules database, and converted to Java at runtime.

Rule Assembly  -  A technique that improves system performance, and involvedgenerating and compiling Java code corresponding to a rule at the moemnt it is first needed to execute, rather than in advance. This technique avoids the cost of creating and compiling code that is never used, and produces more efficient Java code than the "generation at save" approach.

Rule Cache  -  An internal cache of compiled rules where the Java classed compiled during the rules assembly reside. The rule cache is specific to a given user.

Rule Form  -  An HTML-based form used in PRPC to create and modify a rule.

Rule Resolution  -  Rule resolution is a search algorithm that PRPC uses to find the best or most appropriate rule instance to apply in a situation. Rule resolution applies to most, but not al, classes derived from the Rule- base class.

Rule Resolution Cache  -  An internal cache that maintains sufficient information regarding rules and their versions to determine the applicable rule to be compiled during rules assembly. Specific to a given user.

Rules by Type Explorer  -  Navigation feature that allows you to quickly access rules and data objects; display all rules regardless of application.

Rules Inspector Tool  -  A tool that provides an easy way to locate rules present in the user interface.

RuleSet  -  A group of related object clsases, workflows, and business rules.

RuleSet Hierarchy  -  The ordered list of RuleSets in PRPC applications. The most general RuleSets that provide basic functions are at the bottom, RuleSets specific to your application are in the middle, and RuleSets customized for your organization are at the top.

RuleSet Version  -  dfines a three-level version number for a RuleSet name; listed in the SysAdmin rule category. Every instance of every rule type references a RuleSet version.

Section  -  A rule type defining the contents and behavior of a rectangular area on a work object form. Section rules are included within flow action rules and harness rules.

Sequence Diagram  -  An interaction diagram that is organized according to time and details how operations are carried out, including what messages are sent and when.

Service  -  A programmatic component that defines and implements an interface betewen an external application, acting as a client, and a PRPC system, acting as a server. Implemented through an appropriate Rule-Service rule.

Single Value  -  A property mode that has built-in data types for lower-level elements such as integer, decimal, or true/false.

Slice  -  One of six facilities available on the Developer portal that provides rapid access to tools and rules in one segment of your application.

SmartPropmt  -  A text box used on many forms that dynamically creates a selection list of valid selections for fast user data entry. A blue triangle in the lower right corner identifies SmartPrompt text boxes.

SnapStart  -  A data import facility used to generate and pre-populate PRPC work objects from an external application, without a user log-in process. Note that SnapStart itself does not authenticate - it sends a user ID and password within the URL.

State Chart Diagram  -  A diagram that depicts the possible states of the object and the transitions that causes a change in the state.

Stateful  -  In programming, state is associated with the life of an object, property, etc.

Step  -  The primary processing unit of an activity or business process.

Step page  -  Identify the page on which the step is to act.

Straight-Through Processing  -  Automatic processing that occurs without operator intervention.

Subflow  -  A flow rule (Rule-Obj-Flow class) that is referenced in another flow rule. Also called a sub-process.

Summary View Rule  -  Rule that enables report data to display in two levels, one showing totals or other summary values, and a second "drill-down" level with supporting details. Also supports charts.

Technical Category  -  One of the groupings under the rule types and data classes category; includes rule types and data classes that typically require design and development by IT monkeys who understand Java, HTML, XML and Javascript.

Tracer Tool  -  Provides full debugging facilities including step-by-step execution, beak points, and watch variables. Use to dbug flaws, activities, services, parse rules, and declarative rules.

Transition Phase  -  In this Phase the software product is transitioned to the user community. Once this occurs, issues normally arise that require you to develop new releases, correct problems, or complete features that were postponed. The Transition Phase is entered when a baseline is mature enough to be deployed in the end-user domain.

Unit  -  The bottom level of the standard three-level hierarchy. The organizational structure affects management reports and statistics and the RuleSet visible to users in that organization when they log in. An instance of Data-Admin-OrgUnit.

Urgency  -  A numeric value between 0 and 100 that defines the importance of speed in completing and resolving an assignment. Urgency defines the order in which cases appear on a user's worklisst. Larger values correspond to higher importance.

Use Case  -  Defines a meaningful interactoin with a system by detailing the steps takn in each part of the interaction. Components of a use case include description of the interaction, actors, triggers, data outputs or updates and work objects and assignments.

Use Case Diagrams  -  A diagram that describes what a system does from the standpoint of an external observer (emphasis on what a system does rather than how)

User Interface Slice  -  Available from the home page of the Developer portal. Use to view a count of the harness, section, and flow action rules in the currently selected work pool.

Utility Shape  -  Calls an activity rule; specifies automated processing to be performed without any user interaction or input.

Utility Task  -  References an activity that updates a work object but does not require user interaction or input. PRPC comes with standard activities for utility tasks that you can use, or you can create additional ones.

Validate Rule  -  A rule that tests property values, typically immediately after they are submitted on a browser.

Verification  -  A task performed by a person who is double-checking prior work to catch possible mistakes or variances with policy before the work becomes final. Verification is common in financial processes involving large sums, sensitive legal committments, or correspondence.

Wizards  -  A sreies of prompts to help you acocmplish a task with minimal effort.

Work- classes  -  These classes define the data structures for processing work. You use them as a starting point for work-related classes inyour class structure. Every application requires at least one concrete class derived from the Work- base class.

Work Group  -  An instance of the Data-Admin- work group class that can identify a user who is a supervisor, together with a set of workers (users) and wrokbaskets that report to that supervisor. An operator ID data instance (Data-Admin-Operator-ID) usually identifies a work group to which the users belong.

Work Object ID  -  An ID associated with a work object that uniquely and permanently identifies the work object within the work pool. When you create your application, you define the optional prefix and suffix, and the numbering format, which together represent the unique key.

Work Pool  -  A collection of work objects of a related type. Work pools control how you present work to users who enter and select work objects for processing from one or more designated work pools.

Work Types  -  A concrete class derived from the Work- base class.

Workbasket  -  A centralized, shared pool of assignments from which users select work.

Workers  -  A role that defines the behavior and responsibilities of an individual, or a group of individuals working together as a team. The responsibilities we assign to a worker include both to perform a certain set of activies as well as being owners of a set of artifacts.

Workflow  -  A standard set of steps that resolves a case; a sequence of activities that produces a result of observable value.

Worklist  -  A list of items assigned to a specific user, ordered by urgency.