Disabling query conditions in an abstract query environment
View Patent ↗Embodiments of the invention provide techniques for temporarily disabling conditions in abstract queries. In one embodiment, a query interface is configured to present an abstract query, and to allow a user to select conditions of the abstract query to be temporarily disabled. By executing an abstract query having disabled conditions, the user may be able to determine the effect of individual changes to the abstract query without having to re-compose the abstract query after each change. The conditions to be disabled may be selected individually, by field, or by value. Each disabled element may be displayed with a visual indicator communicating that it is disabled. The user may then select specific disabled conditions to be re-enabled.
1. A computer-implemented method, comprising:
presenting, in a query interface, an abstract query comprising a plurality of conditional expressions arranged within multiple nested logical levels separated by one or more logical operators, wherein the plurality of conditional expressions is defined in an abstraction model that defines logical fields that model underlying physical data, wherein each of the defined logical fields is associated with a respective access method specifying a manner of mapping the logical field to a corresponding one or more physical fields of the underlying physical data, and wherein the respective access method is selected from two or more different types of access methods;
receiving a selection, from the plurality of conditional expressions, of one or more conditional expressions to be disabled in the abstract query;
presenting the abstract query in the query interface, wherein each of the selected one or more conditional expressions is presented with an indication communicating that the respective conditional expression is disabled, such that each of the selected one or more conditional expressions is maintained in a respective original location within the multiple nested logical levels of the abstract query;
executing the abstract query excluding the selected one or more conditional expressions, comprising:
generating a temporary abstract query based on the abstract query and the selected one or more conditional expressions, wherein the temporary abstract query excludes the selected one or more conditional expressions;
transforming the generated temporary abstract query into an executable query; and
executing the executable query against the underlying physical data to produce a set of query results;
and
returning the set of query results of executing the abstract query to the query interface.
2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein transforming only a portion of the abstract query is performed on the basis of the abstraction model.
3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein presenting each of the one or more conditional expressions with an indication comprises presenting each of the one or more conditional expressions in a struck-out font.
4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein the presented indication communicating that the respective conditional expression is disabled comprises one of: (i) a font color, (ii) a background color, and (iii) a symbol.
5. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , wherein any of the one or more conditional expressions may be selectively re-enabled by the user within the query interface.
6. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , further comprising permanently removing the one or more conditional expressions from the abstract query.
7. A non-transitory computer readable medium containing a program for processing an abstract rule, when executed, performs an operation, comprising:
presenting, in a query interface, an abstract query comprising a plurality of conditional expressions arranged within multiple nested logical levels separated by one or more logical operators, wherein the plurality of conditional expressions is defined in an abstraction model that defines logical fields that model underlying physical data, wherein each of the defined logical fields is associated with a respective access method specifying a manner of mapping the logical field to a corresponding one or more physical fields of the underlying physical data, and wherein the respective access method is selected from two or more different types of access methods;
receiving a selection, from the plurality of conditional expressions, of one or more conditional expressions to be disabled in the abstract query;
presenting the abstract query in the query interface, wherein each of the selected one or more conditional expressions is presented with an indication communicating that the respective conditional expression is disabled, such that each of the selected one or more conditional expressions is maintained in a respective original location within the multiple nested logical levels of the abstract query;
executing the abstract query excluding the selected one or more conditional expressions, comprising:
generating a temporary abstract query based on the abstract query and the selected one or more conditional expressions, wherein the temporary abstract query excludes the selected one or more conditional expressions;
transforming the generated temporary abstract query into an executable query; and
executing the executable query against the underlying physical data to produce a set of query results;
and
returning a set of results of executing the abstract query to the query interface.
8. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 7 , wherein transforming only a portion of the abstract query is performed on the basis of the abstraction model.
9. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 7 , wherein presenting each of the one or more conditional expressions with an indication comprises presenting each of the one or more conditional expressions in a struck-out font.
10. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 7 , wherein the presented indication communicating that the respective conditional expression is disabled comprises one of: (i) a font color, (ii) a background color, and (iii) a symbol.
11. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 7 , wherein any of the one or more conditional expressions may be selectively re-enabled by the user within the query interface.
12. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 7 , further comprising permanently removing the one or more conditional expressions from the abstract query.
13. A system, comprising:
a processor; and
a memory containing a program, which when executed on the processor, performs an operation, comprising:
presenting, in a query interface, an abstract query comprising a plurality of conditional expressions arranged within multiple nested logical levels separated by one or more logical operators, wherein the plurality of conditional expressions is defined in an abstraction model that defines logical fields, wherein each of the defined logical fields is associated with a respective access method specifying a manner of mapping the logical field to a corresponding one or more physical fields of the underlying physical data, and wherein the respective access method is selected from two or more different types of access methods;
receiving a selection, from the plurality of conditional expressions, of one or more conditional expressions to be disabled in the abstract query;
presenting the abstract query in the query interface, wherein each of the selected one or more conditional expressions is presented with an indication communicating that the respective conditional expression is disabled, such that each of the selected one or more conditional expressions is maintained in a respective original location within the multiple nested logical levels of the abstract query, wherein the indication comprises at least one of: (i) a font color, (ii) a struck-out font, (iii) a background color, and (iv) a symbol;
executing the abstract query excluding the selected one or more conditional expressions, comprising:
generating a temporary abstract query based on the abstract query and the selected one or more conditional expressions, wherein the temporary abstract query excludes the selected one or more conditional expressions;
transforming the generated temporary abstract query into an executable query; and
executing the executable query against the underlying physical data to produce a set of query results;
and
returning a set of results of executing the abstract query to the query interface.
14. The system of claim 13 , wherein transforming the abstract query is performed on the basis of the abstraction model.
15. The system of claim 13 , wherein presenting each of the one or more conditional expressions with an indication comprises presenting each of the one or more conditional expressions in a struck-out font.
16. The system of claim 13 , wherein the presented indication communicating that the respective conditional expression is disabled comprises one of: (i) a font color, (ii) a background color, and (iii) a symbol.
17. The system of claim 13 , wherein any of the one or more conditional expressions may be selectively re-enabled by the user within the query interface.
18. The system of claim 13 , further comprising permanently removing the one or more conditional expressions from the abstract query.