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Generating readable element names

Describes the naming conventions and limitations during the creation of readable element names

For objects which are used during configuration, a GUID makes configuration pretty hard. So, during creation of a value in a list of values (e.g. language), an user, an user group and an output format, a readable element name is generated based upon a prefix (e.g. VSTATUS, VUSER, VOUTPUTFORMAT,..) and the label of the object.

How is the element name generated?

During the creation of a LOV value, a user, a user group or an output format, the element name is automatically generated using the following algorithm:
  • Add a static prefix (e.g. VSTATUS, VUSER, VOUTPUTFORMAT,..)
  • Uppercase the label
  • Replace all unallowed characters by a base32 encoding
  • Truncate the element name to 100 characters

Which prefixes are used?

The prefix depends on the type of object.

TypePrefix
UserVUSER
User roleVUSERROLE
User groupVUSERGROUP
Output formatVOUTPUTFORMAT
List of values

For LOV values the prefix is based upon the element name of the LOV.

The values of the status LOV with element DSTATUS will get the prefix VSTATUS, while the values of the language LOV with element DLANGUAGE will get the prefix VLANGUAGE.

Which Base32 encoding is used?

During the Base32 encoding we use the RFC 4648 Base32 alphabet.

This uses an alphabet of A-Z, followed by 2-7. 0 and 1 are skipped due to their similarity with the letters O and I. We drop the equal sign.

Examples

TypePrefixInitial Label ValueResulting Element Name
UserVUSERReviewerVUSERREVIEWER
User groupVUSERGROUPResearch & DevelopmentVUSERGROUPRESEARCHEYAADEVELOPMENT
Output formatVOUTPUTFORMATPDF (A4 Manual)VOUTPUTFORMATPDFFAAAA4MANUALFEAA
Output formatVOUTPUTFORMATPDF A4 ManualVOUTPUTFORMATPDFA4MANUAL
StatusVSTATUSTo be translatedVSTATUSTOBETRANSLATED
LanguageVLANGUAGEENVLANGUAGEEN
ResolutionVRESOLUTIONThumbnailVRESOLUTIONTHUMBNAIL

Remarks

In order to have a predictable, readable element name, we advice to first give an English name (of maximum 70 characters) which allows the system to generate a readable element name. Later you can change the label of the object so it holds the unallowed Unicode characters for the user interface.