Set up browse categories for your workgroup

 

If you are a workgroup administrator, and your workgroup has a large number of probe groups or microarray designs, consider setting up browse categories. Your users can then access workgroup content by categories when they browse probe groups, microarray designs/sets, bait groups, and libraries. If you are a collaboration lead, you can set up browse categories for your collaboration.

When you set up a browse structure for your workgroup or collaboration, you create a hierarchical tree of categories. Each time you create a new category, you associate keywords with it. When the user selects a category as they browse, eArray performs a keyword-based search. The returned items are ones with at least one exact keyword match.

The categories that you create appear for all application types. However, when users browse workgroup content, only the items available for the currently selected application type appear. For example, if a user sets the application type to Expression and selects a workgroup category called "Cancer," eArray retrieves only the probe groups or microarray designs/sets for Expression type microarrays that match the keyword(s) defined for the Cancer category.

This help topic contains the following sections:

Browse structure and terminology

To create a subcategory

To edit a subcategory

To delete a subcategory

 

Browse structure and terminology

The diagram below shows an example of a browse structure.

browse_structure_diagram.gif

eArray creates a top (root) level category named Main for every browse structure. You cannot change this category name, and it is not visible to users. To create the browse structure, you add subcategories to Main. In the diagram above, categories A and B are subcategories of Main. Main is the parent node of categories A and B.

You then add subcategories to the subcategories. In the diagram above, for example, 1 and 2 are subcategories of  A, and A would be the parent node of 1 and 2. You can create many levels of subcategories, but in general a "flatter" structure with a limited number of levels tends to be easier for users to navigate.

When the user invokes one of the Browse functions, only the first level of subcategories appears, and the user must click plus_icon.gif to see the next level. The user selects a category, then eArray performs a search for the particular type of content, depending upon the browser invoked. The returned list contains items that have at least one exact keyword match with the keyword(s) that you defined for the category.

The hierarchical arrangement of categories just organizes the categories and subcategories into logical groups. When you select a given category, eArray returns only the items associated with the keywords for that specific category. eArray does not use the keywords of any of its subcategories in the search.

To create a subcategory

  1. Click the Workspace tab, or enter a collaboration.

  2. Click My Functions > Browse Structure.

    The new page appears.

  3. In the Browse Workgroup by Category pane, click the name of the desired parent category for the new subcategory. Click plus_icon.gif to expand categories, or minus_icon.gif to collapse them.

    The selected parent category appears in the Category Details pane in Category Name.

  4. Click Add Subcategory.

    The Add Category Details pane appears.

  5. Specify the following details about the new subcategory. All details are required, unless otherwise indicated.

Detail

Instructions

Category Name

Type the name of the category, as you would like it to appear when users browse workgroup content by category.

Parent Node

Select the parent node for the category from the drop-down list. By default, the category you selected in the Browse Workgroup by Category pane appears.

Keywords

Type the keywords you want associated with the category, separated by commas, semicolons, or pipe "|" characters.

You can also select keywords from a list:

  1. Click Select and Add.
    A keyword selection page appears in a new window.

  2. In Keyword, type all or part of a keyword, then click Search. To list all keywords available, leave Keyword blank. This search term is not case-sensitive.
    A list of keywords appears.

  3. Select the keyword(s) to associate with the category. Use the following as a guide:

    • To select a keyword, click its name. You can select more than one keyword.

    • To navigate to another page of keywords, use the Pages links. eArray does not remember your selections if you go to another page.

    • To reverse the order of the list, click the Keyword column heading.

  1. Transfer keywords to the Selected Keyword pane. Use the following as a guide:

    • To transfer the selected keywords, click Add.

    • To transfer all keywords on all pages, click Add All, then in the dialog box that appears, click OK.

    • To start over, click Remove All.

    • To remove a keyword from the Selected Keyword list, click its name, then click Remove.

  1. Click Done.
    eArray closes the keyword selection page. Your selected keywords appear in Keywords in the  Add Category Details pane.

Description

(Optional) Type a brief description for the category. This is for workgroup administrator use, and does not appear when users browse workgroup content.

Status

Select one of these options:

  • Enabled – The category will be visible, along with all of its contents.

  • Disabled – The category will be invisible, including all of its contents.

  • Note: Categories are enabled by default. When you disable a category, eArray also disables all related child categories down the hierarchy. eArray does not delete disabled categories — To re-enable one, change the status of the category to Enabled.

  1. Click Submit.

    eArray creates the subcategory. Its name is now appears in the Browse Workgroup by Category pane.

    A message informs you that your category was created successfully.

  2. Click Close.

 

To edit a subcategory

  1. Click the Workspace tab, or enter a collaboration.

  2. Click My Functions > Browse Structure.

    The Browse Structure page appears.

  3. In the Browse Workgroup by Category pane, click the name of the category you want to edit. To expand a category, click plus_icon.gif. To collapse it, click minus_icon.gif.

  4. Click Edit This Category. You cannot edit the Main category.

    The Edit Category Details pane appears.

  5. Set the desired category details. Refer to the previous section of this help topic for a description of the category details.

  1. Click Submit.

    eArray makes the requested changes to the browse structure. A message informs you that the category details were modified successfully.

  2. Click Close.

 

To delete a subcategory

  1. Click the Workspace tab, or enter a collaboration.

  2. Click My Functions > Browse Structure.

    The Browse Structure page appears.

  3. In the Browse Workgroup by Category pane, select the parent node of the subcategory that you want to delete. To expand a category, click plus_icon.gif. To collapse it, click minus_icon.gif.

    A list of the subcategories of the selected parent node appears under Subcategory List. To reverse the order of the list, click the Category Name column heading.

  4. In the Action column of the Subcategory List, next to the desired subcategory, click Delete.

    A dialog box appears that asks if you want to delete the selected category.

  5. Caution: When you delete a category, eArray permanently removes it from the system. To restore deleted categories, you must create them again.

  1. Click OK.

    eArray deletes the subcategory. Any child categories of the deleted subcategory become child categories of the currently selected parent node.

    A message informs you that the category was deleted successfully.

  2. Click Close.

See also

Browse probe groups

Browse microarray designs/sets