open child browse w/ no records - redux

[Bill Parker]

A couple of recent threads on this, and I have just run into it as well. The only problem is that when a form with embedded browse is opened with no existing records, then pressing {ESC} displays all of the records. By that I mean that the base query is lost. If other child records exist for the parent, then {ESC} does not lose the base query.

Why is possible to remove the base query in a form with embedded browse, while base query always stays in a plain form?

Attached is a sample database. The People(n) forms are the parent. A button displays the child records in a form (Phone) with embedded browse. The general approach in the button is this.

t = table.current()
vPersonid = t.person_id

query.filter = "person_id = " +quote(vPersonid)
query.order = ""

DIM layout_name as c 
layout_name = "Phone"
'varP_Phone = :Form.viewqueried(layout_name,query.filter, query.order ,"hidden-dialog","Center","Top")
'-------------------------------------
'revised so form will show even if no current phones exist.
varP_Phone = form.load(layout_name,"dialog","","Center","Top")
varP_Phone.basequeryrun(query.filter, query.order)

varP_Phone.show()

People6 form is the last resort. It handles the {ESC} and records are entered correctly, but is not the user interface I want. I also don't want to use OnKey to supress the {ESC} since it has legitimate use to cancel a record.

Let's say that People4 is the form I want to use. Go to the last record (no child phones), press the Edit Phones button. It displays a form with embedded browse, no records, and in data entry mode. If you do data entry, all works perfectly. OTOH, if {ESC} is pressed, then phones for the other parent records are displayed. This is what I want to avoid.

People5 is basically the same thing, but I put the basequeryrun in OnInit of the Phone2 form. same result.

Stan Mathews suggests adding a blank record before the form is displayed. I don't want that. If the user ultimately does not enter a record, I don't want a blank hanging around.

(People1-3 forms are the approaches that give the error if no child record exists, so of no use here.)

Bill.

[johnkoh]

Re: open child browse w/ no records - redux

Bill,

After pack the tables, works fine here on your form 4,5 & 6.

[Bill Parker]

Re: open child browse w/ no records - redux

John,

With form People4 displayed, are you saying that on person id 103 (if it still has 0 child phones), that Ctl-P displays the Phones form with no records from persons 101 or 102?

If so, what v11 build are you using?

Bill.

[Stan Mathews]

Re: open child browse w/ no records - redux

Bill,

Don't know if I suggested adding a blank record so much as saying it was the only way. So much for semantics.

What behavior do you see if you make the close button first in the tab order on the phone form so the browse doesn't get focus unless deliberately? Acceptable? You'll still see all records if the user begins a new record but abandons it with {ESC} but that could be handled.

[Bill Parker]

Re: open child browse w/ no records - redux

Stan, you are right that changing tab order solves the immediate problem when using Ctl-P, but putting focus on browse and pressing {ESC} still removes the base query (or that appears to be what is happening).

If adding a blank record is the ONLY solution (other than the People6 form approach), then it is time for an enhancement request for base filter to apply to browse (as it appears to apply to form) even if 0 records match filter.

Another question. I add the linking key in Phones record using a field rule. I thought I read of a way to do this automatically when a base query was in effect, but I don't find anything in the documentation.

Bill.

rats - After writing the above it occured to me to use People5 form and apply the base filter to browse1 in Phones2 instead of applying it to the form. But that made no difference.

[Stan Mathews]

Re: open child browse w/ no records - redux

Ignore, I misread as adding the linking field.

[johnkoh]

Re: open child browse w/ no records - redux

Bill,

Yes. I am on 103, bob's record from People4 and the child are blank records except when I clicked the close button, it created (saved) the FK value.

[johnkoh]

Re: open child browse w/ no records - redux

Bill,

I still have v9 and I am not able to read your button's query but I write this way whenever open a 2nd form.

t = table.current()
vPersonid = t.person_id

query.filter = "person_id = " +quote(vPersonid)
query.order = ""

DIM layout_name as c 
layout_name = "Phone"

'revised so form will show even if no current phones exist.

'Check the records from table.
dim tbl as p
tbl = table.open("phone")
qry = tbl.query.create()
rcd = qry.records_get()
If rcd > 0 then
     'Show me form
     varP_Phone.basequeryrun(query.filter, query.order)  
    varP_Phone.show()
else
    form.view("phone")  'See help for detail
    'new record
    'add default "PK" value before open a form
end if
tbl.close()

[martinwcole]

Re: open child browse w/ no records - redux

Bill, I think I have figured it out.

1. In an embedded browse, if entering a NEW record, by default Escape cancels the entire record, not the current field entry in the browse buffer.
2. If editing a saved record, it seems to work as advertised.

SO:
here was my solution - In phone3(or any of the forms) I mad a global variable
dim global pid as c
pid=id.value 'the value in the current record

then, in Phone, in the onkey event, I put this code:

dim global pid as c
if parentform.Records_Get()=0 'the only time this is an issue
	if a_user.key.value="{esc}"
		a_user.key.handled=.t.
		if a_user.key.event="down"
			response=msgbox("Note","Cancel Changes?",292)
			if response=6
				CONTROL_BROWSE1.cancel()			
				parentform.cancel()
				parentform.BaseQueryRun("person_id=var->pid","type")
				end 
			end if
		end if 
	end if 
end if

[Bill Parker]

Re: open child browse w/ no records - redux

Martin, this is close. Both People3 and 4 use the Phone form, so test can be on either. The problem for me is that pressing Ctl-P from a parent with no child records still displays all phones. Pressing {ESC} (now on the Phone form) then hides those phones because the base filter is re-applied by OnKey.

A curious display artifact is that when the Close button is pressed on the Phone form, all phone records appear briefly in the browse as the form is closing.

Bill.

[Bill Parker]

Re: open child browse w/ no records - redux

Problem solved. Cian had the good sense to ask why I was not basing my Phone form on the set vs. the phone table. Duh. The form still just has the embedded phone browse and no parent fields. But now the base filter can be at the parent level, and there is always 1 parent record that will be in the query. And now the browse works as I would expect regardless of the number of phone records.

Attached is a revised sample database. People7 is the way it now works. Due to removing a field rule, the other People forms no longer provide the linking key to phone. So just test with People7.

Cian pointed out that
count = varP_Phone.basequeryrun(query.filter, query.order)
returns a count of records (or 0) even though the return parameter is not mentioned in the documentation. That may be useful to some.

I still see no advantage to having a 'special case' for 0 records in query, which is treated as an invalid query as far as form.viewqueried(). But that is the way it will stay.

Bill.