Field Definition

Location: Site Configuration > {Module} > Field Definition

Encodify uses fields to store all information uploaded to the system. This is basically information relating to companies, their products, services or activities, such as the name of a company, its address and telephone number, a type of a product, a picture of a product, a date of a planned activity, etc.

Data relating to one particular project, company, product, etc is kept in a module as a separate entity referred to as an item. An item is essentially a set of fields in a module. A module may contain any number of items, but only one type of item. That type of item is defined within the module in the Field Definition configurations section.

The administrator must determine the types and number of fields that will serve to contain information relevant to the purpose of the module. Correct determination of pertinent information is crucial since it prevents having to add information to each item, or superfluous information from being entered initially.

Information in the system need not be undifferentiated. Though information about, say, a product, such as Name, Description and Price could all be classified as text, it might be worth classifying the price as a Decimal. This is useful for two reasons:

• This ensures that the entry made by the user is of the right type;

• More importantly, however, it allows the system to treat the data differently. Unlike text, a number (integer) or decimal can be used in calculations that the system can carry out.

There is also certain data that cannot be represented as text, such as files. Different types of content that fields can contain are referred to as Field Content.

There are the following types of Field Content: 

The concept of fields implies not only content but also a form that determines how the content is presented or entered in the system by the user. In the system this is referred to as Field Type. One can distinguish between the following categories of ways to enter information: 

The Field Type has visible effect on the user interface being the means by which the user interacts with the information in the system. 

There are many possible combinations of Field Content and Field Type, all of which provide a number of options. Below we will look at the different types of Field Content and Field Type and explain their effect on the system.

When defining a field in a module, after you have chosen Field Content and Field Type, there are some standard options that can be configured. Not all of these standard options are available to all combinations. In the right frame (Field Values) there are some less standard configurations. These configurations vary greatly.

Fig.2.: Creating a new field: the field is defined and options are set in the left part of the dialog box, and the field values are specified in its right part

Different combinations of Field Content and Field Type will yield further options to configure. Many of these options are available for most combinations, but a few are available only for very specific combinations. In the table below all the options that may become available are described:

Field Definition options

Specific combinations of Field Content and Field Type determine the types of values and options to specify in the right part of the Field Definition window conventionally known as Value Window. These dependencies are stated in the table that follows below. Note also that selecting a specific Field Content reduces the number of available Field Types.

There are 7 possible types of value windows, all shown in figures below the table, along with the necessary explanations.

Field Definition — Value windows 

1. This value window provides a field for entering a default text that will always appear when an item containing the field in question is created. The other field is a selectbox that enables you to set this field to be filled out automatically from another module, with a field selected from the list box below it with all viable fields.

   The fields, both of the supply module and the recipient module, must be text fields. A module field linking to the supply module must be created prior to the creation of this field. When the user selects an item from the supply module (identified by the Name Field) the text field is filled.

   Instead of filling text field with values from supply module you can use User field as a trigger and fill the text field with user details information (name, email, address etc.).
   If User field is selected in “Field that activates Automatic Field Content” selectbox, the list of user details is available in “Field with content for Automatic Field Content”.
   When configuration is done, changing the user in the User field in Add/Edit Item window will correspondingly fill the related fields with corresponding user details.

2. The fixed text option provides a means of entering fixed text that will appear among the other fields when the item is created.

   

3. This value window prompts you to enter values for selectable fields. Use the Sort Order box to determine the order of the menu items. By default, the order will be alphabetical for fields with textual content, and numeric for fields with numerical content. Optionally items may be ordered as listed. If this option is selected, small arrows will appear next to the menu items on the list so you can shift them up or down.

   The menu items themselves are entered below in the text field labeled Create. Once you’ve entered the text and clicked OK, the new menu item appears below the text field. To delete an option, click the Delete icon next to it. You may also choose to make one (or more, if the type allows it) of the menu items preselected. To pre-select a menu item select the radio button (or checkbox, if it is a multi-select field) opposite it.

   A field template can be assigned to the particular options of selectbox fields. When user selects a value in the option field, fields corresponding to the template assigned to this option value will be displayed in addition to those displayed by the base template of the module.

   

4. Automatic numbering only requires that you designate the initial value. The default initial value is 0

   

   Fig.6.: Field Definition: Automatic numbering field 

5. Selecting the type Module for a field prompts you to select the module that the field must link to. By default, the field made available through the module field is the Name Field of the supply module.

   Setting “Delete referencing items on parent removal” allow to tightly connect the items in current module to the linked parent module. If the option is enabled, the child linked items will be removed on parent item removal. The removal method in referencing module is respected (delete or inactivate). E.g. If “Make inactive” is set as a deletion method for the referencing child module, all the referencing items will be correspondingly made inactive.
   Note, that referencing items are not deleted even if option in enabled in case user does not have “Delete” access to the referencing module or particular item.

   

6. This window configures the filtering of the User field. A filter limits the number of users shown in the user field. Only users with the values selected in “Define Filter” will be displayed. If “No Filter” is selected, all active users will be shown.

   It is possible to filter by Title or User Groups. If filtering by Title is enabled, a list of the titles defined at Site Configuration > User Settings > Titles will appear in a multi select box. Selecting titles in the box includes users with those titles in the user field. Users who have a title not highlighted in the multi select box will not be displayed in the user field.

   When filtering by User Groups is enabled, only users who are in the same group with the current user will be available for selection in User field.

   Note! Filtering by User Groups is ignored for Site/System administrators.

   

7. Selecting the type 'Field Reference' for a field prompts you to select the module that the field must link to and the field with content from that module:

Name of this field type generates automatically and updates on save. By default, name duplicates the Field Name selected as 'Field with Content from Source Item' (on example above, Field Name will be "Text box"). There is an option to 'Include Source of Reference as Name of Prefix', when enabled, Field Name will be composed from both field names selected in the right hand side of the Field Configuration modal (on example above, Field Name will be "ML to Asset Text box").

Known Limitations (related with Field Reference fields):

1. Only single select fields (selectbox, status, radiobutton) are available in ‘Field that is Source of Reference’;

2. Reference fields are not shown in Fields Log (like all other Fixed Text fields);

3. It is impossible to retrieve changes from Reference fields via Notification Rules;

4. Value from Duration field will be copied in milliseconds to the reference field (as it is for fields with auto content);

5. Classic UI: Field Reference fields are not shown in the Filter;

6. After module import, some reference fields can be imported with empty Field with Content from Source Item: added warnings in Fields Overview for references with errors after import.

To create a new field in the module, follow these steps:

1. On the toolbar, click Create Field.

2. In the dialog box that opens, type a name for the field in the Field Name box.

3. Specify the Field Content and the Field Type.

4. Configure the options for the field.

5. Enter the required values in the value window.

To edit an existing field, follow these steps:

1. Click the Edit icon next to the field that you want to reconfigure.

2. In the dialog box that opens, change the field name if desirable.

3. The Field Content is unalterable but fields of a simple type can be altered to another simple type and selectable fields can be changed to other selectable types. The only exception is Status Field, which is unalterable.

4. Configure the options for the field.

5. Change the values in the value window as necessary.

To delete a field, follow these steps:

1. Click the Edit icon next to the field that you want to delete.

2. In the Edit Field dialog box that opens, click Delete on the toolbar.

Do not delete a field once the system has been brought into use unless entirely certain that the field will not be used in the future! Once a field is removed from the system, all data entered in that field becomes unrecoverable. Altering the content of a field yields the same effect.]

Note: It is not possible to edit values for the field content Titles, Countries, Regions, Sub Region, Divisions. Those fields are not sortable in module search result.