After 13 service packs, our customers and partners still provide us with suggestions on how to make SAP Screen Personas fit better into their large, enterprise deployments. Some of the recent feature recommendations involved integrating SAP Screen Personas flavors into streamlined workflows to allow Slipstream Engine to better use the camera or barcode reader on a phone or tablet. Others were to have better control of the SAPUI5 version. We also made some improvements to accessibility. This release announcement blog post will highlight:
As always, we’ll discuss support and provide some hints about where we are going next.
New switchboard runtime menu allows rapid changes to SAPUI5 versions or themes
Using URL parameters, it has been possible to set the UI5 runtime version and SAP theme. Now, to simplify the process, we have added a new menu to the top-level screen. This switchboard menu allows users at runtime to change runtime configurations such as:
Barcode Scanner enhancements for common industrial settings
In many warehouses or other industrial settings, packages may have more than one barcode on them. They might include the UPC code as well as internal information regarding lot number, warehouse location, or supplier data. This used to be hard to navigate with the barcode scanner in SAP Screen Personas.
Now, have enhanced the feature for these scenarios. We made it easier to focus on the right barcode as the scanner has an 'active scan zone' in the viewfinder. The barcode that will be scanned is highlighted by a green line when you focus the camera on it. When several barcodes are available, you can pick the one you want from a list. After you select, the number goes into the relevant field in the transaction and ends the scan session.
Upload pictures as attachments
If a picture is worth a thousand words, then including an image as an attachment can save lots of typing. One example is creating a service notification. Attaching a photo to indicate what needs fixing can provide lots of useful context beyond a vague description such as “broken transformer”. Did a part fail or was it a lightning strike? This will help allocate time and resources to fix the problem. People expect this functionality from enterprise mobile apps as they commonly attach receipts to their expense reports.
For SP13, we have extended the 'File Upload' feature in the camera attachment manager by allowing users to create and manage attachments through snapshots. The snapshots can be taken from available device cameras that use any modern HTML5 browser that supports camera access through the MediaDevices interface when no other built-in solutions are available.
Add scripting capabilities to align with screen lifecycle
Over time, the complexity of scenarios our customers build with SAP Screen Personas has increased. We are excited about how people are using the powerful product to improve the user experience for classic SAP GUI transaction screens. In response, we have added some new capabilities to our scripting engine, focused on the loading, refreshing, and changing of flavor scripts to align with the screen lifecycle
Compare various versions of SAP Screen Personas.
Support through 2040
Here is our current support strategy for SAP Screen Personas 3.0.
System requirements
SAP Screen Personas 3.0 SP13 works on a variety of systems from SAP S/4HANA to some much older versions. Specifically:
For SAP Screen Personas 3.0 SP13, the supported kernel releases and their corresponding minimum and recommended (as of June 18 2021) patch levels are listed below. These are the exact same requirements as for SP12. You do not need to update your kernel to move to the latest version of SAP Screen Personas, if your system is on a supported kernel release.
Kernel release 781 –> No minimum patch level
Kernel release 777 –> No minimum patch level –> Recommended patch level 100 or higher
Kernel release 773 –> No minimum patch level –> Recommended patch level 201 or higher
Kernel release 753 –> Minimum patch level 27 –> Recommended patch level 615 or higher
Kernel release 749 –> Minimum patch level 400 –> Recommended patch level 800 or higher
Kernel release 722 –> Minimum patch level 400 –> Recommended patch level 900 or higher
See the SAP Screen Personas 3.0 SP13 Master Note 3063651 for more details and updated recommendations.
For SAP S/4HANA 1809, 1909, 2020 customers who use Slipstream Engine
We have worked with the kernel team to resolve a long-standing Slipstream Engine compatibility issue. The situation arose when backend sessions could not be created due to a kernel limitation in the SAP Stack Kernel version 773 and above. Now, you can use Slipstream Engine with the latest versions of SAP S/4HANA to take advantage of optimized performance on mobile devices with your classic SAP GUI transaction. Please implement the correction from SAP Note 3071554 to use Slipstream Engine with SAP S/4HANA.
Here is some guidance on whether to use Slipstream Engine or SAP GUI for HTML (Web GUI) for rendering flavors on mobile devic....
Continuous improvement
We already have some exciting things planned for SP14, but we still have room for a few of your ideas. Please send us your requests (via email or as a comment to this blog) for anything you would like to see in SP14 and beyond.
Next Steps
For the SAP Screen Personas product team, peter.spielvogel.
- Switchboard runtime menu to change themes
- Barcode scanner enhancements for common industrial uses
- Upload pictures as attachments
- Scripting enhancements to align with screen lifecycle
As always, we’ll discuss support and provide some hints about where we are going next.
New switchboard runtime menu allows rapid changes to SAPUI5 versions or themes
Using URL parameters, it has been possible to set the UI5 runtime version and SAP theme. Now, to simplify the process, we have added a new menu to the top-level screen. This switchboard menu allows users at runtime to change runtime configurations such as:
- SAPUI5 versions
- SAPUI5 themes
- SAP Screen Personas theme
- SAP Screen Personas flavors
The switchboard menu allows users to change certain configurations at runtime.
Barcode Scanner enhancements for common industrial settings
In many warehouses or other industrial settings, packages may have more than one barcode on them. They might include the UPC code as well as internal information regarding lot number, warehouse location, or supplier data. This used to be hard to navigate with the barcode scanner in SAP Screen Personas.
Now, have enhanced the feature for these scenarios. We made it easier to focus on the right barcode as the scanner has an 'active scan zone' in the viewfinder. The barcode that will be scanned is highlighted by a green line when you focus the camera on it. When several barcodes are available, you can pick the one you want from a list. After you select, the number goes into the relevant field in the transaction and ends the scan session.
You can now select which barcode to scan if several are available.
Upload pictures as attachments
If a picture is worth a thousand words, then including an image as an attachment can save lots of typing. One example is creating a service notification. Attaching a photo to indicate what needs fixing can provide lots of useful context beyond a vague description such as “broken transformer”. Did a part fail or was it a lightning strike? This will help allocate time and resources to fix the problem. People expect this functionality from enterprise mobile apps as they commonly attach receipts to their expense reports.
For SP13, we have extended the 'File Upload' feature in the camera attachment manager by allowing users to create and manage attachments through snapshots. The snapshots can be taken from available device cameras that use any modern HTML5 browser that supports camera access through the MediaDevices interface when no other built-in solutions are available.
Uploading pictures is now easier.
Add scripting capabilities to align with screen lifecycle
Over time, the complexity of scenarios our customers build with SAP Screen Personas has increased. We are excited about how people are using the powerful product to improve the user experience for classic SAP GUI transaction screens. In response, we have added some new capabilities to our scripting engine, focused on the loading, refreshing, and changing of flavor scripts to align with the screen lifecycle
- onFinalize screen events:
Individual events are mostly triggered by user interaction; global events are triggered constantly. With this SP13 enhancement, the event processing flow is easier to follow and understand. The event is called as the last event of each user interaction. After the onFinalize event, there will be no more back-end-requests, therefore it can be used to do some final adjustments to the screen before it is rendered. - onStatusMessage events:
With this enhancement, a reference of all UI controls and the events that are bound to them will be listed. It also includes the named parameters that are passed to a script when a particular event is fired. This event will be fired only in a tab merging scenario. It gives the opportunity to register and handle status bar messages that would otherwise be lost when the tab selection is changed behind the scenes. - onMergeError events:
The associated event handler will be called when a problem occurs during a tab merging scenario.
Compare various versions of SAP Screen Personas.
Support through 2040
Here is our current support strategy for SAP Screen Personas 3.0.
- As a reminder, SAP Screen Personas 3.0 is aligned with SAP S/4HANA support. This is now through 2040.
- We support the current as well as the two previous Service Packs. What does this mean to you?
- SP13 will receive continuous innovation
- SP12 will get important fixes and selected down ports
- SP11 will receive emergency fixes
- SP10 and earlier will no longer be supported (time to upgrade!)
System requirements
SAP Screen Personas 3.0 SP13 works on a variety of systems from SAP S/4HANA to some much older versions. Specifically:
| Basis | Minimum Service Pack | Additional Notes Required? | Supported Kernels |
| S/4HANA | All | No | 749+ |
| 750 | All | No | 749, 753 |
| 740 | SP03 | Yes | 749, 753 |
| 731 | SP07 | Yes | 722 |
| 702 | SP09 | Yes | 722 |
| 701 | SP10 | Yes | 722 |
| 700 | SP25 | Yes | 722 |
For SAP Screen Personas 3.0 SP13, the supported kernel releases and their corresponding minimum and recommended (as of June 18 2021) patch levels are listed below. These are the exact same requirements as for SP12. You do not need to update your kernel to move to the latest version of SAP Screen Personas, if your system is on a supported kernel release.
Kernel release 781 –> No minimum patch level
Kernel release 777 –> No minimum patch level –> Recommended patch level 100 or higher
Kernel release 773 –> No minimum patch level –> Recommended patch level 201 or higher
Kernel release 753 –> Minimum patch level 27 –> Recommended patch level 615 or higher
Kernel release 749 –> Minimum patch level 400 –> Recommended patch level 800 or higher
Kernel release 722 –> Minimum patch level 400 –> Recommended patch level 900 or higher
See the SAP Screen Personas 3.0 SP13 Master Note 3063651 for more details and updated recommendations.
For SAP S/4HANA 1809, 1909, 2020 customers who use Slipstream Engine
We have worked with the kernel team to resolve a long-standing Slipstream Engine compatibility issue. The situation arose when backend sessions could not be created due to a kernel limitation in the SAP Stack Kernel version 773 and above. Now, you can use Slipstream Engine with the latest versions of SAP S/4HANA to take advantage of optimized performance on mobile devices with your classic SAP GUI transaction. Please implement the correction from SAP Note 3071554 to use Slipstream Engine with SAP S/4HANA.
Here is some guidance on whether to use Slipstream Engine or SAP GUI for HTML (Web GUI) for rendering flavors on mobile devic....
Continuous improvement
We already have some exciting things planned for SP14, but we still have room for a few of your ideas. Please send us your requests (via email or as a comment to this blog) for anything you would like to see in SP14 and beyond.
Next Steps
- Watch the Productivity Power Play video about SP13.
- Upgrade to SAP Screen Personas 3.0 SP13 (requires valid NetWeaver License).
- Take the free Introduction to SAP Screen Personas openSAP class to get a foundation for starting your project.
- Extend your knowledge with the Using SAP Screen Personas for Advanced Scenarios openSAP class to go deeper into how to use the product.
- Extend your flavors from your desktop to all your devices with our Building Mobile Applications with SAP Screen Personas
- Learn more on the SAP Help Portal for SAP Screen Personas with articles and videos on a variety of topics.
For the SAP Screen Personas product team, peter.spielvogel.
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