Setting form view properties


Set form view in the Properties tab to specify pane layout, create aliases that describe how requests are named, predefine searches that you think users might want, disable user access to selected features, and define the color of rows of a results list pane.

The following categories are available in the Properties tab for Standard views:

  • Basic—Defines the variable names that uniquely identify a form view.
  • Appearance—Defines how a view appears on forms viewed in a browser.
  • Aliases—Defines how form aliases and entry point labels are displayed in AR System.
  • Defined Searches—Defines common searches for users.
  • Menu Access—Allows you to enable or disable toolbar buttons on forms viewed in a browser.

To define form view properties

  1. Open a form in Developer Studio.
  2. Click the form view tab of the appropriate view at the bottom of the form editor.

    If you select a field in a form view (by clicking in the form view or in the Outline tab) the Property tab shows the properties for the field. To display the properties for the form view, click the view background or clear the field by holding down Ctrl and click it in the form editor or its name on the Outline tab.

  3. Set the properties on the Properties tab as described in Modifying-object-properties.

    Form view properties - Basic category

    Name

    Description

    Label

    Defines the label for the view. When a view is created, a label is automatically assigned for the new view. The assigned label can be changed. There is no enforced convention for specifying labels, but it is helpful to make the label descriptive, indicative of the view's function, and consistent across forms. Labels can be as many as 80 characters, including spaces. Labels can include double-byte characters, but do not use digits at the beginning of the label.

    If you want a specific view (other than the default set in Developer Studio) to be displayed in a browser by using a URL, make sure the label is unique.

    Locale

    Defines the view's locale. When a view is created, the Locale field is empty. If left blank, the locale of the user's operating system is assumed for the view.

    Localize

    Specifies if the text in a view must be translated. By default, this property is set to True, and attribute 287 in the view definition is set to 1. To ascertain which views must be translated, localizers can search .def files for the display-instance setting 287\6\1, where

    • 287 is the ID of the localization indicator attribute.
    • 6 is the data type for the attribute and can be ignored.
    • 1 is the attribute value that indicates localization is required.

    Master View for Server Processing

    If set to True, this view is used for processing to retrieve field labels and selection value aliases (not database values). For more information, see the description for Master View for Server Processing in Creating-form-views.

    Name

    Defines a unique identifier for a form view. This value is initially generated by AR System, but you can modify it.

    View ID

    A unique ID generated by AR System server and stored in the database, and you cannot change it.

    View Type

    Defines the type of view associated with the selected view. You select the view type when you create the view, and you cannot change it.


    Form view properties - Appearance category

    Name

    Description

    App-specific Image Path for Mid-Tier View

    Use the App-specific Image Path for Mid-Tier View property for forms viewed through applications in a browser. Set this property to the relative path from an application's Support Files top directory to the background image. If the file is not found in the application resource files, the path in this field is ignored. See Managing-resource-files.

    Background Color

    The color of the view background where there are no fields. The default is white.

    Background Image

    A background image (.gif.png.jpeg, . jpg, . bmp, or . dib format) for the view. Use the Background Image dialog box to select an image file that is saved with the form or a reference to an image object.

    Note

    Avoid using uncompressed .bmp and .dib bitmap files. Use images files with lossless compression, such as .gif and .png, for images that do not use continuous tones. Use .jpg for continuous-tone images, such as photographs and graphics with gradients.

    Avoid using a large image file. Although view definitions are cached when initially loaded, images associated with a view must first be downloaded. Changes to a form also force the image to be downloaded again, increasing response time. If you need a large image, create an image object that is downloaded and cached separately.

    Background Image Horizontal

    Position the graphic in the view and control whether it is stretched to fill the view, tiled, or neither.

    Background Image Vertical

    Layout

    This property is enforced only when the Layout Editable by User property is False.

    Layout Editable by User

    If this property is true, the layout selected in the Windows User Tool is applied. If this property is False, the positions are "locked,".

    Layout Style

    Defines the layout style (XY, Fill, or Flow) of a panel. See Panel-layout-styles.

    Maximize Window On Open

    Controls whether a view is maximized automatically when opened. For larger forms, the maximized view can free the user from having to scroll when viewing a form's contents. This option applies to a specific view of a form; each view of a form has its own maximize value. This option is ignored when the form is opened in Dialog mode.

    Prompt Bar Position

    The position of the prompt bar, at the top or bottom of the window.

    Right To Left

    Defines whether the text direction of a form view is displayed from left to right (False) or right to left (True). The default is False. For more information, see Using-buttons-and-menu-bar-items-to-execute-active-links.

    Title Bar Icon

    An icon image (.gif, .png, .jpeg, .jpg, .bmp, or .dib format) for the title bar of the form view. Use the Title Bar Icon dialog box to select an image file that is saved with the form or a reference to an image object. Images larger than 16x16 pixels are cropped.

    Web Footer Content

    HTML code to include in the footer of a Web - Alternate (Fixed) view. For more information, see Customizing-a-standard-or-web-view.

    Web Header Content

    HTML code to include in the header of a Web - Alternate (Fixed) view. For more information, see see Customizing-a-standard-or-web-view.

    Web Toolbar

    • Hidden—Does not appear in a form opened in a browser.
    • Visible—Appears in a form opened in a browser.


    Form view properties - Aliases category

    Name

    Description

    Request Identifier

    Allows a descriptive request name such as "current inventory" to appear instead of "asset 565." The Request Identifier can be any field except diary and long character fields.

    Short Plural

    Defines the shortened version of the plural alias that appears when the title does not fit in the Results and Details banners. The Short Plural alias is not used in the title bar of the window.

    Short Singular

    Defines the shortened version of the singular alias that appears when the title does not fit in the Details banner. The Short Singular alias is not used in the title bar of the window. The web does not use the short alias and precedence is as follows:

    • If long and short aliases are defined, the title bar displays the long alias.
    • If only the short alias is defined or if no aliases are defined, the title bar displays the form name.

    Singular

    Defines the alias that appears in the Details banner and the title bar of the window.

    For each view, use the Defined Searches category to define the searches that appear in the Search menu list on the Details banner.
    Use this feature to create predefined searches that you think might be helpful to your users; for example, finding all open requests or entries. You can define as many as 18 searches.
    Click the ellipsis button in the Defined Searches property to open the Defined Searches dialog box.

    Form view properties - Defined Searches dialog box

    Name

    Description

    Name

    If you do not enter a Description, defines the name of the predefined search. This name appears in the Results pane banner after users perform a search.

    You can create parameterized searches for users who use a browser. For more information, see Including-parameters-in-saved-or-defined-searches.

    Description

    Defines the name of the predefined search. If you do not enter a Description, the text in the Name field is used. For example, if you enter "Open Requests" in the Name field and "Search for open requests" in the Description field, users see "Search for open requests" when they view the list of Defined Searches.

    Qualification

    Creates search criteria that you want users to access from the Search menu. Use it for any search that your users frequently perform; for example, 'Status' < "Closed by QA", to find all requests that are not closed. Click in the Qualification cell and click the ellipsis button that appears to open the expression editor for help in building the qualification. For information about building qualifications, see Building-qualifications-and-expressions.

    Form view properties - Labels category

    Name

    Description

    Entry Point, New Mode

    Defines the label of a new (submit) entry point that appears in an application list field. For more information, see Creating-and-managing-fields.

    You enable the entry point in the form's Form Properties.

    Entry Point, Search Mode

    Defines the label of a search (query) entry point that appears in an application list field. For more information, see Creating-and-managing-fields.

    You enable the entry point in the form's Form Properties.

    For each view, use the Menu Access category to control which buttons appear in the toolbar of a form viewed in a browser. For example, if you do not want users to have Modify All capability, you can disable it.
    In the Menu Access category, select the Accessible Menu Items property and click the ellipsis button to open the dialog box.

    Form view properties - Menu Access Items dialog box

    Name

    Description

    Browser toolbar button

    Advanced Search

    If set to False, the Advanced Search capability is disabled. If workflow shows or hides an Advanced Query bar form action field (ID 1005), the toolbar button should toggle 1005 to the opposite state. (In such a case, you should remove the Advanced Search button from the toolbar for that view.)

    +

    Auto Refresh

    If set to False, all user actions to invoke Auto-Refresh (polling refresh) of the results list are disabled.


    Clear All

    If set to False, Clear and Clear All are disabled.

    +

    Delete

    If set to False, Delete is disabled.

    +

    Help

    If set to False, help is disabled. If set to True and a user clicks the button in a browser, the help opens in a new window.

    +

    Home

    If set to False, the menu, button, and keyboard actions for opening the home page are disabled. If set to True and a user clicks the button in a browser, the home page opens in a new window.

    +

    Logout

    If set to False, Logout is disabled.

    +

    Modify All

    If set to False, Modify All is disabled.

    +

    New Request

    If set to False, New Request is disabled.

    +

    New Search

    If set to False, New Search is disabled.

    +

    Options

    If set to False, Options is disabled.


    Print

    If set to False, the ability to print the entry is disabled. This includes disabling the print option of table and results list fields on a form.


    Reporting

    If set to False, the ability to generate a report on data in this form is disabled. This includes disabling the report option of table and results list fields on a form.

    +

    Save

    If set to False, the menu, button, and keyboard actions for saving a request are disabled. This is useful when users do not need to save a form, such as in control panels. This option can also force the user to save by using a button you create on your form.

    +

    Saved Searches

    If set to False, Saved Searches is disabled.

    +

    Search

    If set to False, the menu and button actions for searching for requests are disabled. This is useful when users do not need to search a form, such as in control panels. This option can also force the user to search by using a button you create on your form.

    +

    Set to Default

    If set to False, Set to Defaults is disabled.

    +

    Status History

    If set to False, Status History is disabled. If set to True, when the user clicks the button in a form viewed in a browser, the status history opens in a new window.

    +

    Copy To New

    When selected opens a new record with the date from the previously selected record.


    All these form view properties work with keyboard short cut keys if toolbar buttons are disabled.

    Form view properties - Results category

    Name

    Description

    Initial Row Selection

    Defines the item you want selected when the results list is loaded.

    • Select First, Fire Workflow—The first item is shown selected and any workflow defined is activated. This is the default setting.
    • No Selection—No item is selected.

    Results Color

    Controls the color of requests that appear in the results list pane after a search in the Mid Tier. In the Results Color dialog box, select a Selection Field and a color for each value. For example, you can choose to color all New requests red and all Assigned requests green.

    Size of Chunk

    Defines how many rows of data to return at one time (or "chunk") if a search yields a long list of requests in the Mid Tier results list pane. Buttons are provided for displaying previous and next chunks. A value greater than zero in this field enables the chunking feature. The default value is 0.

    Table Drill Down

    Gives an option for displaying the record.

    • True—When you double click on the record in the result list, the record is displayed in a separate window. This is the default setting.
    • False—The record is displayed in the same window.

 

Tip: For faster searching, add an asterisk to the end of your partial query. Example: cert*