Understanding MetaBots

For you to create MetaBots, understanding key MetaBot concepts is important for success. Learn about the MetaBot Designer, its options and operations, and understand how data are exchanged and transferred from and to the MetaBot Logic.

MetaBots recommendations

Bot developers capture and save their tasks then develop navigational logic in order to create reusable MetaBots. Review these recommendations for creating MetaBots:

Goals

Identify goals for the MetaBot to achieve an objective: whether it is to use MetaBots to calibrate new versions of applications or create reusable blueprints. Each goal serves a different purpose, therefore it is key to identify the level and type of reusability for your MetaBots.

Ownership

The ownership for developing and managing MetaBots is different depending on the goals and components you set for the MetaBot.

Change

The frequency and purpose of the MetaBot undergoing changes are critical in assembling its capabilities. For better MetaBots management, combine the MetaBots type and frequency within a single instance or single family of MetaBots.

Asset classification

When you include any assets (for example, DLLs, screens, and logic) in the MetaBot, ensure the functionality and behaviors are tested before including them. Ensure that any dependencies are removed before their inclusion.

Development

Follow these recommended steps when developing and debugging MetaBots:

• Complete all screen captures before creating the MetaBot Logic.
• Avoid copying a MetaBot for all users.
• Avoid using the MetaBot as a template.
• Avoid copying, pasting, renaming, or modifying the .mbot file.
• Avoid running in-use MetaBots.

Sizing

MetaBot sizing affects its portability, usability, management, and performance.

• Combined metrics
• • Assets
    • Combined metrics
    • Screen content types such as text and images
    • Number of screens and DLLs
  • Controls
    • Control types such as buttons, combo boxes, and tables
    • Control designs such as static or dynamic
    • Number of controls
  • Complexity
    • Number of controls used in a single logic
    • Number of logic developed against one screen
    • Inherent complexity in the logic
  • Size: Combined size (in MB) of the MetaBot

    • Apache Flex, Java, and Microsoft Silverlight might require more size

    • HTML and Microsoft Active Accessibility (MSAA) might require less size for the same number of assets
  • Sizing guidelines: Review the information in the following table.

    Physical size	Asset count	Control count	Logic count	Logic complexity	Example
    Up to 5 MB	1 to 5 screens/DLLs	5 to 15	1 to 5 logic	Simple (100 lines/logic)	Log in to applications, file processing
    Up to 40 MB	5 to 25 screens/DLLs	15 to 30	10 Logic	Low (150 to 170 lines/ logic)	Single SAP screen
    Up to 100 MB	25 to 50 screens/DLLs	30 to 50	25 Logic	High (~200 lines/ logic)	Multiple Oracle application screens

    • Restrict or limit the number of assets or Logic counts to include based on the complexity.
    • Keep MetaBot size below 100 MB for optimal performance.
    • Use smaller modular Logic files instead of one large MetaBot Logic file.

Operational guide

Use VCS for functionality and to preserve version-based file, in order to roll back to a previous version when issues occur. Follow these pre-migration and post-migration related activities to ensure that MetaBots migrated from 10.x to Enterprise 11 are successful:

• The Enterprise Client environment must be identical for pre-migration and post-migration.
• Ensure that all dependent bots or files are ready and added to a MetaBot.
• Validate the MetaBot behavior before and after a migration.
• Ensure all required plug-ins are installed sucessfully and enabled.