Scrolling window elements

Each scrolling window has a name, a linked table, a layout, attached scripts and properties for the scrolling window. To add a scrolling window to a window layout, open the window layout of the window where you want to place the scrolling window. Select the scrolling window tool from the Toolbox and draw the scrolling window on the window layout.

After you’ve drawn the scrolling window on the layout window, the Scrolling Window Options window will appear. You will use this window to begin specifying characteristics of the scrolling window.

Name

Only one name is required for the scrolling window, the name used in scripts to refer to the window. To make the name easier to use in scripts, you can use underscores (_) between parts of the name instead of spaces.

Linked table

Every scrolling window must be linked to the table that contains the fields you will add to the scrolling window. The Link Table list in the Scrolling Window Options window allows you to select one of the tables you created for your application. This table also must be attached to the form where the scrolling window is located. Unless specified otherwise in a script, sorting for the items in the scrolling window will be determined by the key you select in the Link Key list.

Scrolling window layout

After you’ve named the scrolling window and selected the link table, the scrolling window will appear in the layout area of the window you placed it in.

You can resize the scrolling window by selecting it and dragging one of its resize handles. You can select the scrolling window and then use the Properties window to change the visual characteristics of the scrolling window.

Once the scrolling window is drawn, you can begin the process of creating the scrolling window layout. Like all Dexterity windows, scrolling windows use a layout area so you can add fields and other objects to the window. To display the layout area for a scrolling window, double-click the scrolling window in the window layout.

When you create the layout for a scrolling window, you are creating the layout for only one line of the scrolling window. This line is drawn in the scrolling window once for each record in the linked table, until the scrolling window is full. The fields you add to the scrolling window determine what each line in the scrolling window will display at runtime.

The area in the scrolling window layout that corresponds to one line in the scrolling window is the area between the dashed line and the top of the layout area. This is known as the small line item. To mark the small line item, choose Mark Small Line Item from the Tools menu and click in the window where you want the dashed line to appear. Fields you drag into the scrolling window layout should be placed between the top of the layout window and the dashed line. In most cases it’s easier to drag the fields to the window first, then mark the small line item.

As you add fields, you can use the same visual and object properties used when you design other windows. When you’ve finished designing the scrolling window layout, close the layout window to redisplay the layout for the window containing the scrolling window.


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