Forms

Designer > Presentation > Forms

A well-defined form makes data entry and inspection easier and faster.

About Forms

Forms define the Fields that are visible to users in different roles when a Record in an Object is viewed or edited. The fields in a form can be ordered and organized into sections. Labels, spacer lines, and horizontal dividers can be added to create logical groupings, and sections can be added for Quick Links and for related records (Related Information).

The Elements Sidebar helps you to configure the layout for a Form.

Considerations

• Forms are associated with Objects
• Multiple forms can be created for an Object
• In addition to the standard forms, you can create your own custom Pages for viewing, adding, or updating a record, and select them for use in the object Properties section: Presentation Pages.

Users that have the Customize Objects permission can edit Form Layouts

Configuration Options

These configuration buttons are available:

• [Edit a Form Layout]
• [Form Scripting]
• [Clone a Form Layout]
• [Layout Rules]

Considerations

• When an Object is created, a Default Form is created
• The Default Form cannot be deleted or renamed
• When a user creates a new form layout, that user has full control over the design, and can add any combination of elements from a default list, or select from a list of existing elements

Working with Forms

Next to each element in a form is a series of icons you can use to edit the element, rearrange its position, add a script, or remove it from the form:

Note: The edit icon is not available for the built-in fields that are predefined for every object: Owner, date created, date modified, created by, modified by, object id, record id, and the workflow fields. The scripting icon gives you the ability to specify javascript code to execute when On Change and On Focus events occur for that field. That option is only available for fields that have a "raw data" type like string or number.

You can also add fields, sections, and other elements to the form using the controls at top left, as shown below.

Elements

The Elements section contains things you can drag and drop into the form.

Fields

The first tab is Fields. It contains the object fields that can be put into the form.

Form Controls

The second tab is Form Controls.

	Spacer	Add horizontal space between elements in a form.
	Label	Add a label to a form.
	Horizontal Divider	Add a dividing line between elements in a form.
	Section	Sections divide areas in a Form Layout for improved readability and organization Sections have a default setting to open expanded or collapsed Fields in sections can be hidden in a View, if the field contains no data Within a section, images can be displayed in the header, footer, left or right margins
	Quick Link	A Quick Link provides the ability to pass a value from a record to a website URL. For example, add a Google News lookup to an Account, or add a Facebook lookup to a Contact

New Section Constructors

Underneath the Elements section, there are two links you can use to create additional sections in the form:

New Grid Section	Adds related information records from another object Grid sections are displayed as a table or spreadsheet within a record For example, the Parts object can contain a grid section that lists component parts (from the Components object)
New Related Information section	A Related Information Section is part of each Record, and displays related records from other objects Related Information Sections are created by default in all Objects Use this link to create (optional) additional Related Information Sections. Learn more: Object Relationships

Manage Form Layouts

Manage Form Layouts

Layout Rules

Layout Rules provide the ability to create dynamic Forms that adapt and offer additional options as data is entered.

About Layout Rules

As data is entered into a form, Layout Rules can be used to hide or show fields, buttons, and form sections, or assign an initial value to a field. They can also be used to display a message.

Sample use cases:

• Show a discount button when an amount reaches some value
• Hide a section to prevent access to data until after a specific date and time.

Conditions and Actions

Layout Rules use an IF...THEN...ELSE model to customize a form layout:

IF <some condition> is TRUE

THEN do <some action>

ELSE do <some other action>

To specify a <condition> you use the Formula Builder to create a [Formula Expression]. That expression use record fields and fields in related fields.

Either a THEN clause or an ELSE clause can be specified, or both.

The possible Actions are shown below.

Considerations

• Each Layout Rule can include multiple actions
• Actions are executed in the order in which they are displayed
• Actions can be added, edited, deleted or reordered
• Sections can be opened based on a condition
• A condition can be applied on Add, View or Update of a Record
• To be available for use in a Layout Rule, the field must not be hidden in the layout.
  (If it should be hidden at times, then hide it using a Layout Rule.)
• Multi Object Lookup fields cannot be used to specify criteria for a Layout Rule.
  Learn more: Multi Object Lookup#Considerations

Note: A field can be referenced in either: a. A section for which Show Empty Fields in View has been disabled     (using Advanced Options in a Section), or b. A Layout Rule condition. But it cannot be referenced in both places. The Reason: If the field is empty, the server removes it from the page. The Layout Rule, meanwhile, is a JavaScript function in the page. When the Layout Rule tries to test that field, an error occurs.

Working with Layout Rules

Users that have the Customize Objects permission can edit Layout Rules.

Adding or Editing a Layout Rule

1. Click the [Layout Rule] button at the top of the page.
2. Click the [Add New Rule] button to add a new Layout Rule,
   or click the name of an existing rule to edit it.
3. Fill in the layout rule settings.
4. Click [Save]

Settings

Name

Name of the Layout Rule

Enabled

Check the box to enable the Layout Rule, or uncheck it to disable the Layout Rule

Description

Description of the rule

Apply rule during

Executes the Layout Rule when any of the selected actions are taken on a record in the Object

• Add Record
• View Record
• Update Record

On Success do not continue to next Rule

Checkbox, unchecked by default

• If checked, and this rule is Triggered, then any rules that follow are not processed
• The order of processing rules is controlled with the [Reorder Rule] button.

If (specify the condition...)

Use the Formula Builder to define a Boolean expression that evaluates to true or false.

• Optionally, specify an action to take when the expression is true
• Optionally, specify an action to take when the expression is false.

Actions are displayed in rows which can be added, edited, deleted or reordered.

Actions

• Show/Hide Sections or Fields
• Disable/Enable Fields
• Assign Value to Field
  (Choose a field. Use the Formula Builder to create a value expression.)
• Setup Value in Picklist
• Display Message:

• Once During Form Save Only
• When Condition Matches

• Show/Hide Buttons
• Make Fields Required
• Make Fields Not Required

Consideration:

The more the layout rules, the lesser the performance.

The following table explains the Field Display Type available in the Add New Rule page and the Actions available.

Field Display Types	Add New Rule	Actions
		Show or Hide Sections and Fields	Disable or Enable Fields	Assign Value to Fields	Setup Value in Picklist	Display Message	Show or Hide Buttons	Make Fields Required	Make Fields Not Required
Auto Number	✔	✔	✔	✕	✕	✔	✔	✕	✕
Checkbox	✔	✔	✔	✔	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Currency	✔	✔	✔	✔	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Date	✔	✔	✔	✔	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Date Time	✔	✔	✔	✔	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Dependent Picklist	✔	✔	✔	✕	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Email Address	✔	✔	✔	✔	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
External Lookup	✕	✔	✕	✕	✕	✔	✔	✕	✕
File Field	✕	✔	✔	✕	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Formula	✕	✔	✔	✕	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Geolocation	✔	✔	✔	✔	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Global Picklist	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔
Image Field	✕	✔	✔	✕	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Lookup	✕	✔	✔	✕	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
*Lookup-Derived Field	✕	✔	✕	✕	✕	✕	✕	✕	✕
Multiple Checkboxes	✕	✔	✔	✔	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Multi Object Lookup	✕	✔	✔	✕	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Multi Select Picklist	✕	✔	✔	✕	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Number	✔	✔	✔	✔	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Number with decimals	✔	✔	✔	✔	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Percentage	✔	✔	✔	✔	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Phone/Fax	✔	✔	✔	✔	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Picklist	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔	✔
Radio Buttons	✔	✔	✔	✔	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Rich Text Area	✕	✔	✕	✕	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Text Area	✔	✔	✔	✔	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Text Field	✔	✔	✔	✔	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Time	✔	✔	✔	✔	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
URL	✔	✔	✔	✔	✕	✔	✔	✔	✔
Rollup Summary	✔	✔	✔	✕	✕	✔	✔	✕	✕

Note: Lookup-Derived fields cannot be created manually by the user. To configure lookup-derived fields, see Lookup-Derived Fields.

Reorder Layout Rules

1. Click the [Layout Rule] button at the top of the page.
2. Click the [Reorder Rule] button to change the order in which rules are executed.

Using Enumerated Picklists in Layout Rules

Layout Rule criteria can be specified using Enumerated Picklist Values. The Display Label is not considered valid for criteria in Layout Rules.

About the [Save Changes] Button

If you are editing a form layout and attempt to navigate to a different tab in the object, the following message is displayed, which provides the option to [Cancel] the action and [Save Changes], or continue [OK] and abandon the edit process.

File:Confirmformlayoutchange.gif

For Developers: Form Scripting

About Form Scripts

Form Scripting lets you specify JavaScript code to execute when a Form is loaded or saved.

JavaScript code can be invoked at these form-level events:

• On Load

• This event happens when the form loads
• By default, the On Load scripts are triggered on any record action (View, Add, Update)

Optionally, invoke the script on a specific action (View or Add or Update)

Learn more: Trigger on a Specific Action

• On Save

• This event happens when a user clicks the [Submit] button on a form
• At this event, optionally perform custom front-end validations before sending the data to the server
• Return false to cancel the save

• Reusable Script Functions

• Available to be called from the On Load or On Save event form scripts
• Also available to be called from the On Change and On Focus event field scripts

Learn more:

• Compare to Post Selection JavaScript and Field Scripting
• Using AJAX and REST to communicate with the platform

Working with Form Scripts

Note: Please note that all the examples listed in this page are limited to the legacy AgileApps UI and not the new runtime AgileApps UI.

Editing Form Scripts

Follow these steps to add or change scripting in a form:

Note: To run the JavaScript in the LongJump UI and the legacy AgileApps UI, enter the script in the Legacy UI Script tab. To run the JavaScript in the New AgileApps UI, enter the script in the New UI Script tab.

1. Click [Form Script]
2. Click [Edit]
3. Enter or change the JavaScript in On Load Script, On Save Script, and/or Reusable Script Functions
4. Click [Save]

Writing JavaScript

Using JavaScript, you can

• Reference Fields in the current form.
• Use AJAX and REST to communicate with the platform.

On Load Examples

These examples perform operations when a form is loaded.

Add a Help Button to an Arbitrary Form

This code works for forms in all objects, including Cases, Tasks, and custom objects. And it works when adding a new record, as well as when viewing an existing record. For information about adding a help button to a form, see the tech community article Adding a Custom Button to an Arbitrary Form using Form Script.

Convert a Date

Create readable date string from the current date for display in the order_date field.

var v1 = new Date(); 
var v2 = new Array('Sun', 'Mon', 'Tues', 'Wed', 'Thu', 'Fri', 'Sat'); 
var v3 = new Array('Jan', 'Feb', 'Mar', 'Apr', 'May', 'Jun', 
                   'Jul', 'Aug', 'Sep', 'Oct', 'Nov', 'Dec'); 
date_string = v2[v1.getDay()] + " " + v3[v1.getMonth()] + " " + v1.getDate(); 
setTextFieldValue(_sdForm, "order_date", date_string);

Trigger on a Specific Action

To invoke a script On Load + Action (View, Update, Add or Clone a record):

Note: For new UI, see the section Variables and Methods Introduced in the Revamped UI in JavaScript Field Type Reference for New AgileApps User Interface

Trigger on record View:

var action = _sdForm.get(0).a.value; if ( action == "view") { // java script to be triggered on the view of the record only ... }

Trigger on record Update:

var action = _sdForm.get(0).a.value; if ( action == "update") { // java script to be triggered on the update of the record only ... }

Trigger on record Add or Clone:

var action = _sdForm.get(0).a.value; if ( action == "add") { //java script to be triggered on the add or clone of the record only ... }

On Save Examples

For examples related to the On Save action, see the tech community article Perform Custom Validations using Form Script in AgileApps.

Learn More

• JavaScript Field Type Reference for New AgileApps User Interface
• Referencing Form Fields in JavaScript
• Field Name and Field Value syntax
• Use AJAX and REST to communicate with the platform in JavaScript code.
• JavaScript Functions
• Accessing Additional Lookup Variables in a Form

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