Some of the WebSphere Commerce messages use the message composition services. Through the use of JavaServer Page templates, the composition services generate a message before it is sent through the transport. If the composition service is used for a message, it runs a JavaServer Page passing it information such as an order number or a store number. When the template is executed, the JavaServer Page may retrieve any additional information necessary for the message from the database using data beans. The output is generated and the formatted message is sent through the transport. You can modify the message templates just as you would any other JavaServer Page.
Some of the features of the generated message you may want to modify include:
- The layout of the message.
- The information about your store, the order, or the customer that is retrieved from the database and displayed on the page.
- The text of the messages to the customer such as "Thank you for ordering with us".
- The format of the output generated. For example, you may want to send a message in HTML format, plain-text format, or XML format.