Searching the Help
To search for information in the Help, type a word or phrase in the Search box. When you enter a group of words, OR is inferred. You can use Boolean operators to refine your search.
Results returned are case insensitive. However, results ranking takes case into account and assigns higher scores to case matches. Therefore, a search for "cats" followed by a search for "Cats" would return the same number of Help topics, but the order in which the topics are listed would be different.
Words and Phrases
| Search for | Example | Results |
|---|---|---|
| A single word | cat
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Topics that contain the word "cat". You will also find its grammatical variations, such as "cats". |
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A phrase. You can specify that the search results contain a specific phrase. |
"cat food" (quotation marks) |
Topics that contain the literal phrase "cat food" and all its grammatical variations. Without the quotation marks, the query is equivalent to specifying an OR operator, which finds topics with one of the individual words instead of the phrase. |
Using Boolean Operators
| Search for | Operator | Example |
|---|---|---|
|
Two or more words in the same topic |
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| Either word in a topic |
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| Topics that do not contain a specific word or phrase |
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| Topics that contain one string and do not contain another | ^ (caret) |
cat ^ mouse
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| A combination of search types | ( ) parentheses |
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- Forms Designer controls and tools
- Attachments control
- Button control
- Calendar control
- Chart control
- Checkbox control
- Combo Box control
- Comfill control
- Convert Form Layout tool
- Date control
- Decimal control
- Dynamic Form control
- Embedded Viewer control
- File control
- Frame control
- Graph control
- Grid view tool
- Group control
- HTML Editor control
- HTML Viewer control
- Image control
- Label control
- Link label control
- List Builder control
- Marquee control
- Notebook tab control
- Notebook control
- Radio Button control
- Selection tool
- Script control
- Subform control
- Table column control
- Table control
- Text area control
- Text control
- Timer control
- Visualization control
- Web Preview tool
- Wrap label control
Decimal control
Use this control to add an input field that accepts only numeric input and offers spinner buttons to increase or decrease a value.
To place a decimal field on a form, click Decimal and then click the form.
Be sure to put the name of the database field or variable that you want to associate with this control into the Input property.
| Property | Usage |
|---|---|
| Name | Specify a unique identifier for the object on the screen. (Optional) This name is used by external applications, such as RAD, to dynamically change the properties of the object. |
| X | Specify the object’s horizontal position based on the left edge of the object. |
| Y | Specify the object’s vertical position based on the top edge of the object. |
| Width | Specify the width of the object in alignment grid units. |
| Height | Specify the height of the object in alignment grid units. |
| Visible | Select this option to make the object visible on the form. Clear the check box to hide the object from view on the form. |
| Visible Condition | Specify an expression to override the Visible property when that expression evaluates to true. |
| Caption | Specify a text caption for the object. |
| Caption Condition | Specify an expression to override the Caption property when that expression evaluates to true. |
| Input | Specify the database field or variable to associate with this control. |
| Accessible Name | Specify a component name for use with accessibility software. (Optional) Note: This function is only supported by the Web client. If no name is present, the Web client defaults to looking for a nearby label to use for the name of the component. For buttons, check boxes, or radio buttons, it uses the component’s text. Accessibility software can query the Web client to get this information and use it to present data to the user in a variety of ways. For example, speech simulation software says the name and the type of component when the component has focus. |
| Accessible Description | Specify a component description for use with accessibility software. (Optional) Note: This function is only supported by the Web client. If no description is present, the Web client defaults to looking for a nearby label to use for the name of the component. For buttons, check boxes, or radio buttons, the Web client will use the component’s text. Accessibility software can query the Web client to get this information, and use it to present it to the user in a variety of ways. For example, when a component gets focus, speech simulation software will say the name and the type of component, based on the settings in the Accessible Name and Accessible Description fields. |
| Tab Stop | Specify the tab sort order for this field. By default, the TAB key navigates the focus on a form from top to bottom and left to right. Objects that have a non-zero Tab Stop are visited first, in ascending order. For a button, file, radio button or check box, you will almost always use the default of 0. |
| Input Conversion | Specify the name of an Input Conversion routine. This property is used by RAD subroutines that mask the display of data on an input field, or check and validate the entry of data into an input field. If specified, the routine is called at runtime to convert the contents of the field before it is displayed on the screen. For examples, refer to the RAD input and output routines. |
| Mask | Specify the mask value (the condition that sets a value to be passed for this field to the input and output conversion routines). When a field has a mask value and you save the record, the format of the mask value displays in the field. For example, you decide to update the purchase cost information of a contract in Configuration Management. You enter a date in the Currency EX Date field of the Financial tab as 02/26/09. The condition for the mask value is set as: xxx dd,yyyy. When you save the record, the Currency Ex Date field displays the date format of February 26, 2009. Valid values for the mask vary depending on the routine being called. |
| Output Conversion | Specify the name of an Output Conversion routine. This property is used by RAD subroutines that mask the display of data on an output field, or check and validate the entry of data into an input field. If specified, the routine is called at runtime to convert the contents of the field before it is displayed on the screen. For examples, refer to the RAD input and output routines. |
| Read-Only | Select this option to disable editing capabilities and provide only viewing access to the field. Give read–only fields a tab–stop value of –1 to prevent users from tabbing into them. |
| Read-Only Condition | Specify an expression to override the Read-Only property when that expression evaluates to true. |
| Decimals | Specify the number of decimal points for numbers in this field. Service Manager modifies numbers entered in the field to the number of decimal points you specify. |
| Parse | Select this option to verify that the text entered in a field is the correct syntax. The syntax for the field is defined by the type of field it displays (date, expression, number, and so forth). |
| Mandatory | Select this option so that a red asterisk indicating a required field is displayed. This is a visible change only. - To make the field mandatory for any form it appears on, use the System Definition Utility. - To make the field mandatory for a small number of forms only, use Format Control. |
| Mandatory Condition | Specify an expression to override the Mandatory property when that expression evaluates to true. |
