7.4

l Input Task:Will either capture data from a specific location, or wait for input from a service or other computer to
start processing.
l Action Task:Will manipulate the data in any number of ways. An action task is any task that is not an input or output
task or a branch or condition.
l Output Task:Will output data to a specific location or send to a different service or computer.
Some tasks have a multi purpose and can be used as either an input, action or output task or any combination. These multi pur-
pose tasks are indicated as such in the task description and can be found in the most relevant section of the available tasks.
For more information on the tasks available to you in the PlanetPress Suite Workflow Tools, see the following pages:
l Input Tasks
l Action Tasks
l Process Logic Tasks
l Metadata Tasks
l Output Tasks
l About PlanetPress Fax
l About PlanetPress Image
About Branches and Conditions
While some processes can simply start with an input task, manipulate the data with a few action tasks and finish with an output
task, in some cases you may want to have more control over the flow of your process. For example, you may want multiple
outputs, such as printing to multiple printers as well as generating a PDFand emailing it. To do this, you will need branches.
You may also want to detect certain criteria in your data and act differently depending on that data, such as sending a fax only
when a fax number is found, or printing to a different printer depending on who send you a print job. To do this, Conditions are
used.
Branches
A branch is effectively a doubling of your job file. As your job file goes down the process, when it encounters a branch it will go
in that branch, process all tasks up to the output, and return to the main trunk to continue processes. You can have branches
within branches, and all branches must have an output. For more information on branches, see Branch.
A branch is represented as a crossing .
Conditions
Acondition will either execute the branch it creates or the main trunk, but never both. As your job file goes down the process,
when it encounters a condition it will verify whether that condition results in a "true"or "false"value. If the result is true, it
goes in the branch, processes all tasks up to the output, and the process finishes. If the result is false, it goes down the main
trunk and continues processing until the process finishes. For more information on conditions, see Conditions.
A conditional branch (or condition) is shown as a crossing with a red diamond over it
About Data
Data is what drives your business, and our software. We define data as anything that is obtained through an Input Task and
used within the process itself. Once the data is obtained, it becomes the job file that is passed from one task to another and
Understanding PlanetPress Suite Workflow Tools