The initial step in creating Dexterity applications is to create the data types your application will use. The type of information displayed or stored in a field is determined by its data type. You’ll use data types to specify how data entry fields, such as string and currency fields, will store and display the information entered in them. In addition, you’ll use data types to specify the characteristics of several interactive objects in your application, such as push buttons, check boxes, radio buttons and list boxes.
All fields require a data type to determine how the field will be used in your application. Without a data type, a field doesn’t have the ability to store, control or display information. In this respect, most of a field’s functionality is based upon the data type it uses, including the field’s data storage capabilities for use in a table and information display and control characteristics when added to a window.
Information about data types is divided into the following sections: