FreshenBrowse Challenge

[Tom Cone Jr]

A number of recent message threads have involved questions about how one can arrange for an embedded browse to be updated automatically. This usually seems to arise when folks have loaded a form with the browse, and then call a second form to do data entry into the linked child table.

Here's an example that illustrates the problem.

If you push the Delete Current Phone button, the current child table record is, in fact, deleted, but the browse is not refreshed to show it.

If you add a new Phone Record, calling a regular form or calling a dialog form, the new phone record is not shown when the called form closes.

Hope this is clear and useful!

Ok guys and gals. What's the best way to automatically refresh the browse?

-- tom cone

[Tom Cone Jr]

RE: FreshenBrowse Challenge

Let me try to upload the zip file one more time.

-- tom

[CraigSchumacker]

RE: FreshenBrowse Challenge

Tom:

Out of curiousity, is there any reason in particular you are disabling the buttons on the main form?

Does pressing the F5 key refresh the browse?

If so, try eliminating the this.enable() and this.disable(), and adding a sys_send_keys("{F5}") just before the end statement. You could also add one to the 'on activate' for the form.

I can only intermittingly duplicate the issue here, but have found that the sys_send_keys() seems to work more consistantly that .refresh().

Craig

[Tom Cone Jr]

RE: FreshenBrowse Challenge

Craig,

Each button's OnPush event script begins with a

this.disable()

to prevent the user from inadvertantly running it twice by double clicking.

This is commonplace. I don't think it's responsible for the behavior of the browse object.

Your suggestion regarding sys_send_keys() and F5 is one of several I hope to see articulated in this thread.

--tom

[Tom Cone Jr]

RE: FreshenBrowse Challenge

Craig,

Just now I found that F5 doesn't refresh the browse after a new child record is added, unless the browse object has focus when F5 is pushed.

F5 will refresh the browse after a child record has been deleted, whether the browse object has focus or not.

Have not tried coding a solution that will work in all cases. Have you?

-- tom

[Steve Dentler]

RE: FreshenBrowse Challenge

You can try this. Sorry, had to get rid of all that action script stuff. Don't have a clue how to use that stuff.

[CraigSchumacker]

RE: FreshenBrowse Challenge

Tom:

Yes. I have an app that does this extensively. It is too complex to describe easily.

My app differs in that I use on row double clicks to open the subsequent forms, so the browse has focus on return...

Craig

[CraigSchumacker]

RE: FreshenBrowse Challenge

Tom:

I looked back at the app to which I was specifically refering.

In brief, a company receives a part to be repaired. The part is made up of many components, and many other smaller parts. Each of the smaller parts are made up of components, and even smaller parts.

The app, based on part number in parent, fills in the primary disassembly matrix when the user clicks in the browse.

Double clicking on a line with a "part" opens a new form with an empty embedded browse. Clicking on the embedded browse loads THAT parts disassembly matrix.

As each matrix is completed, closing the form marks the previous forms browse with an "accept" or "reject" and refreshes that browse to reflect the results.

Hard to explain.

Anyway, all this required SYS_SEND_KEYS() on several events, based on various possiblilties. .REFRESH and .RESYNCH were inconsistant...

Looking at the app, I'm thinking that there is no "end all way" for resolving this issue with the browse refreshing. Each would need to be handled on it's own terms. My conclusion was, and is, that SYS_SEND_KEYS was the most reliable method.

Have you tried browse1.activate() after this.enable() and before the sys_send_keys("{F5}")?

Craig

[Peter.Wayne]

RE: FreshenBrowse Challenge

not sure how to attach file, but here's one solution to your challenge.

[Tom Cone Jr]

RE: FreshenBrowse Challenge

Steve,

Thanks. It's good to see someone else's approach. My sometimes friend, Ignatious A. Pickypicky, says however that you should be disqualified from the challenge. Your data entry occurs through the first form by direct manipulation of the child table, instead of through the called form. Personally, I think your idea is clever, and will be giving it some more thought. I see also that after the child table record is added you fetch_goto()the new record, and then use fetch_prev() to move the row selector to the first position. This is what refreshes the browse object, and is also a useful thing to see. Hmmm, maybe I can get Pickypicky to reconsider.

Thanks again.

-- tom

[Steve Dentler]

RE: FreshenBrowse Challenge

I see also that after the child table record is added you fetch_goto()the new record, and then use fetch_prev() to move the row selector to the first position. This is what refreshes the browse object, and is also a useful thing to see. Hmmm, maybe I can get Pickypicky to reconsider.

------------------------------------------------------

Actually, Tom, I have this code in the script to always show the latest child record added. If you continue to add phone numbers beyond the rows contained in the browse, the script will cause the browse to "roll," and display the last line entered.

"Win if you can, lose if you must, but always cheat"
"They don't ask how you win, they ask did you win"
From an unknown source.

[Tom Cone Jr]

RE: FreshenBrowse Challenge

Steve,

Ahhh, now I see the logic in looping through the fetch_prev() 6 times. That's the number of rows your browse will show. I wondered where the 6 had come from, and thought maybe you were assuming that no more than 6 phone numbers would be added for each name.

thanks for clarifying.

-- tom

[Tom Cone Jr]

RE: FreshenBrowse Challenge

Dr. Wayne,

Thanks for your entry in the challenge.  Let me see if I can recap your solution for others:

1) the browse is refreshed when a phone record is deleted by
the OnActivate event script for the form.  In that script yousend an F5 to Alpha Five using sys_send_keys(), and the F5 refreshes the form.

2) the browse is refreshed when a phone record is added by the OnPush event of the Save Edits button on the called form.  Looking back to the calling form your script:

- gets a pointer to the instance of the set being used 
  by the calling form
- uses that pointer to get a separate pointer to the 
  primary table in the set, Names
- runs a query against the set, using the idnum in the 
  called form
- runs the same query against the names table
- resynchs the form
- refreshes the browse
- runs a query against the set again, but this time with 
  empty filter and order expressions (this has the effect 
  of show_all, and does not move the record pointer again, 
  right?)

My sometimes friend, Ignatious A. Pickypicky, would give you only partial credit, because the Add Phone Using Dialog form still does not work.  I'll try to convince him that the same approach used above would work well there, too.

Your approach seems like a lot of work, but it would have the advantage of resynching the calling form even if the user managed to enter a new child table record with a different link field value.  This probably isn't necessary here because the link field in the called form is read_only, and navigation is suppressed.   Nevertheless, it's good to see a working solution! 

Thanks again.

-- tom

[Tom Cone Jr]

RE: FreshenBrowse Challenge

(Let me try to reformat the previous...)

Dr. Wayne,

Thanks for your entry in the challenge.  Let me see if I 
can recap your solution for others:

1) the browse is refreshed when a phone record is deleted by
the OnActivate event script for the form.  In that script 
you send an F5 to Alpha Five using sys_send_keys(), and the 
F5 refreshes the form.

2) the browse is refreshed when a phone record is added by 
the OnPush event of the Save Edits button on the called 
form.  Looking back to the calling form your script:


- gets a pointer to the instance of the set being used 
  by the calling form
- uses that pointer to get a separate pointer to the 
  primary table in the set, Names
- runs a query against the set, using the idnum in the 
  called form
- runs the same query against the names table
- resynchs the form
- refreshes the browse
- runs a query against the set again, but this time with 
  empty filter and order expressions (this has the effect 
  of show_all, and does not move the record pointer again, 
  right?)

My sometimes friend, Ignatious A. Pickypicky, would give 
you only partial credit, because the Add Phone Using Dialog 
form still does not work.  I'll try to convince him that 
the same approach used above would work well there, too.


Your approach seems like a lot of work, but it would have 
the advantage of resynching the calling form even if the 
user managed to enter a new child table record with a 
different link field value.  This probably isn't necessary 
here because the link field in the called form is 
read_only, and navigation is suppressed.   Nevertheless, 
it's good to see a working solution! 


Thanks again.

-- tom

[Mick Magnuson]

RE: FreshenBrowse Challenge

Heres my spin. I need a life, playing with this on a Saturday night. lol. Thanks Tom!