Exercise 04: Creating Forms

Introduction

Forms

• A Form is the user interface for an Object
  • Defines what is displayed when a user views or edits a record
• Every Object gets an automatically-generated default form (Default Layout)
  • You can build other Forms to show data to different User Roles

Creating a Form

• Specify what to use the Form for:
  • Managing Records
  • Printing Records
  • Mobile Access
  • Web Forms

• Specify other options:
  • Properties
    • Show field hints
    • Display in sidebar: Actions-list, print action, Tasks, files/attachments, Processes, …
  • Form Scripts
    • On Load and On Save processing using JavaScript
    • Common functions used for both events can be defined
  • Layout Rules
    • Dynamically vary what is displayed and what is required, based on conditional expressions

Editing Form Layout

• WYSIWYG editor allows you to design the UI as it looks
• Forms have Field Elements (fields) and Form Controls (form spacers and sections used to structure the form)
• Drag and drop Fields and Form Controls from the palettes to any section in the Form

Form Fields

• To modify a Field in a Form, click one of the Field’s icons:
  • Edit Field
  • Move Field
  • Field Script
  • Remove Field

Form Controls

• Spacer
  • Vertical space between elements in a Form
  • Commonly used in a multi-column form where one cell is blank�
• Label
• Horizontal Line
  • Adds a divider between elements in a section�
• Section
  • A way to break one form into parts that will be displayed using separate tabs�
• Quick Link
  • Provides the ability to pass a value from a record to a website URL

Related Information Section

• Recap:
  • Objects can be related via Object Relationships
  • “Detail” Objects have (generated) Lookup fields �to their “Master” Object�
• Related Information section of a Form displays records of related Objects
  • Records of other Objects that contain a Lookup to the current record
  • Automatically created for all related Objects
  • Can be customized

• Example:
  • When viewing a Customer, the Related Information section shows you all Orders the Customer has made
  • That view is made possible by the fact that the Orders Object has a Lookup to Customers

Rollup Summary Fields

• Rollup Summary Fields summarize information contained in related records that have a Lookup to the current Object
• Rollup Summary Field can be used to get a Record Count, Sum, Average, Maximum, or Minimum value from related records
• The Lookup field that targets the current Object must be the first field in an Index defined on the detail Object
• Rollup Summary Fields are calculated asynchronously in the background by default
• Rollup Summary Fields:
  • are universal, read-only fields
  • should not be used to build filter criteria for Formulas, Data Policies, Validations, Indexes, or Searches.
  • cannot be created based on another Rollup Summary Field
  • can be created only in Master-record Objects

Mobile Access Forms

• The AgileApps interface is mobile-enabled, right out of the box
  • All interaction with Forms and other platform operations can be accomplished using a mobile device�
• You can also define Forms specifically for mobile use

• Also:
  • Clicking on a Geolocation Field automatically fills in the user’s location
  • Clicking on an Image Field automatically activates the camera

Web Forms

• Allows external customers to create new Object records
• Two types of Web Forms:�

a) Linked Form (also known as a "Case Form Link")

• Clone an existing Form (such as the Default Layout)
  • Specify “Use this Form for” = Web Forms
  • Add the From Name and From Address fields to the Form, make them required
• Create a Web Form of type “Case Form Link”
  • Choose a Form from a list of Forms that have been previously created on the platform
  • Choose to accept email from anyone or existing contacts only
    • Fields to include are chosen when you design the assigned Form
    • Web Form is hosted by the AgileApps platform -> copy & paste the link to your external page
    • Platform does error processing and messaging
    • HTML formatting and the [Submit] button label are fixed

b) Customizable HTML (also known as "Generated HTML")

• Create a Web Form of type “Customizable HTML“
  • Specify which fields to include in the form, arrange them, and specify which are required
  • Choose to accept email from anyone or existing contacts only
  • Copy the generated HTML into your page, customizing it in whatever manner you want
    • An HTML version of the Form is generated, with a [Submit] button
    • The HTML and button name can be fully customized
    • You must implement error handling on your own

Assigning Forms to Application Roles

After you create a Form:

• For each Application Role defined in the application:
  • Select the Form used to access the current Object's data
  • Make one selection for online access and one for mobile access

Validating Data in a Form

• When a User types data into a Form field
  • You can ensure that the data enter is valid
  • Example: a ZIP code has the correct number of digits
• Create Validation Expressions
  • Common functions: IF, DATECOMP (compare), TODAY, NOW
  • You can write expressions that are true when data is NOT valid
    • Write an expression for valid data, and surround it with: !(…)
    • Always [Check Syntax]
  • Specify the error message to display to the user if the data is not valid

Custom Form Actions

• For a User, Custom Form Actions appear in the sidebar in the Actions dropdown list
• You can configure Custom Form Actions to invoke:
  • JavaScript
  • A Page which is a standard JSP (Java Server Page)
  • For more complex actions use Macros (see later)
• Make the Action visible to Application Roles
• Example:
  • Create an invoice record when finishing a Case

Executing JavaScript in AgileApps Cloud

• Forms: “On Load” and “On Save” events (plus shared functions)
• Fields: “On Focus” and “On Change” events (plus shared functions)
• Custom Form Action: Action implementation
• Lookup Fields: Post Selection JavaScript
• JSP/HTML Page: Client-side processing without affecting the Agile Apps platform

Use to:

• Access data in Form fields
• Manipulate fields (validate, hide, make visible, make required)
• Execute platform REST APIs
• Access remote servers
• Add buttons
• Open a platform JSP page or external HTML page

Resources

• http://agileappscloud.info/aawiki/JavaScript
• http://agileappscloud.info/aawiki/AJAX_and_REST
• http://agileappscloud.info/aawiki/Static_Resources#Accessing_a_JavaScript_Resource_from_an_Object_Form

Exercise

In webMethods AgileApps Cloud, a Form defines the fields that are visible to a User when the User views or edits an Object record. This exercise has four parts:

• In Part 1, you update the Default Layout Form.
• In Part 2, you validate data in a Form field.
• In Part 3, you add new fields to your Objects, and update them in the Form.
• In Part 4, you create a new Form and assign it to an Application Role.
• In Part 5, you learn how to create a Web Form for Orders for use on an external site.

---

Previous

Next