Problem with "Show All" option!

[Mike Turner]

I am attaching an example database which has two tables (table1 and table2) and two forms (table Form1 and table Form2). I have placed a button on table Form1 which opens table Form2 using the "records that match the value in the control on the current Form" selection criteria. When Form2 is called it desplays the matching record correctly but does not allow the "Show All" option to clear the selection criteria. In order to use this option the form has to be closed and reopened. Is this correct or should the "Show All" function work immediately?

Do I need to include anything else in Action Scripting when calling a form to get this to work?

Thanks,

Mike

[Scott Emerick]

RE: Problem with

Mike,

The reason this happens is Alpha uses a filter to set the record in form2 and show all is not available. If you need to remain on form2 to fetch other records then you can put a button on form2 with the folowing code:

topparent:tables:table2.filter_expression = ""
topparent:tables:table2.order_expression = ""
topparent:tables:table2.query()

This will release the filter and allow you fetch the other records that were not part of the filter.

Hope this helps.

Scott

[Mike Turner]

RE: Problem with

Thanks Scott, I will try this out. It would be much simpler if the "Show All" option could be made available! I have limited space on my Form and another button to clear a filter is a bit of an overkill.. This will also confuse my users who have just got used to pressing one button to get to the form in the first place. :)

Mike

[Keith Hubert]

RE: Problem with

Hi Mike,

I have the following script on a browse that OnRowDoubleClick takes me to a form with the record number on that row. I have a message box to pop up just to confirm that is the correct number. Once on the form normal navigation is posible. Try it and see, you will have to change the form and table names.

Keith Hubert
London.


dim fm as p
dim recno as n
dim rechar as c
dim response as n
recno=this:record_number.value
response=ui_msg_box("Confirm Record Number", "RECORD NUMBER "+str(recno)+chr(13)+"Press OK to Continue or"+chr(13)+"Cancel to Cancel Action",289)

if response=2 then ui_msg_box("Warning","Action Aborted",16)
END
end if
tbl=table.current()
query.description="Select Record Number"
query.filter="record_number=var->recno"
fm=form.load("Jobs")
fm:tables:Schedule.query_create()
fm.resynch()
fm.show()
fm.resynch()
fm.activate()
fm.show_all()
END

[Scott Emerick]

RE: Problem with

Mike,

You can make a custom menu for the form and do away with the button if you need to. There are other approaches you can use to avoid the filter, like fetching a record based on a variable. That would avoid having to filter and instead just open your form to the desired record. It really all depends on your real app as to what other options you have. Form 2 appears to me to be a support file for a main record in form one, so I don't know why you need to scroll form2's records, but thats just me. I am sure you know what you need to do.

Good luck, hope I have helped some.

Scott

[Mike Turner]

RE: Problem with

Thanks Keith, I would still like the "Show All" option to clear the filter for me as this would be a logical choice for a user!

Sorry that I did not get back to you today but we have had big problems with the upgrade of our Call Centre software, hence the problem you experienced when you tried to contact me.

I will try and touch base with you tomorrow.

Best regards,

Mike

[Tom Cone Jr]

RE: Problem with

Mike,

I agree with Scott.

If you want the user to be able to navigate after the called form is open, change the script to fetch the desired record without placing a filter on the form. Will run faster, too.

-- tom

[Scott Emerick]

RE: Problem with

Keith,

Very nice .. I like that ...

Scott

[Tom Cone Jr]

RE: Problem with

Michael,

The xbasic scripting language the Alpha Five uses is capable of directly manipulating the table beneath a form, and is also capable of manipulating the table through the form. In this case I think the action script is manipulating the table beneath the form, and then is using the form to simply display the result. Show All would appear if you opened the form manually and ran the query using the form to manipulate the table, instead of Xbasic. Since your script is working in the background, the toolbar is probably unaware that the table has been filtered. I believe it would be possible to alter your script to have the form run the query, instead of the script itself. In that event, Show All would probably appear. Care to post a copy of your database so that we can take a crack at modifying it to do this ?

-- tom

[Tom Cone Jr]

RE: Problem with

Mike,

Here's an example showing how one can run the query 'through' the form. Doing it this way the form's elements are aware of what's going on, and Show All is activated.

Unzip the attachment to an empty folder.

when you look at the script you'll see that the script does not directly manipulate the underlying table. Instead it uses methods available in the form object so that the form itself is manipulating the table... just as though the user were doing it manually.

-- tom

[Selwyn Rabins]

RE: Problem with

the show all button is INTENTIONALLY disabled on the form in this case, (and i might add we go to some trouble to make sure that it is disabled).

the reason is simple:

assume that you, the developer, put a filter on a form. say you put the filter "state = 'ma'" on the form (in the form's Filter property). we presume that you only want your users to see records where state is 'ma'. this will be the case when your user opens the form. we presume that you don't want the user to be able to remove the filter and see other records that you did not want him to see. so we disable the show all command (and also the change index command, and the change index button on the find by key dialog).

if you want to be able to have the show all button enabled, then you must open the form, and then apply the filter AFTER the form has been opened (in which case the filter is just as if the USER applied the filter). the show all button is then enabled.

instead of opening the form visibly, you can load the form, then apply the filter, then show the form.

[Tom Cone Jr]

RE: Problem with

This latter case is what my example illustrates.

-- tom