Re: How to enhance the forms?
Date: 1 Nov 92 13:49:30 GMT
Message-ID: <1992Nov1.154930.1_at_cc.helsinki.fi>
In article <1992Oct31.152120.24695_at_homebase.vistachrome.com>, andy_at_homebase.vistachrome.com (Andy Finkenstadt) writes:
> s897336_at_minyos.xx.rmit.oz.au (Lip Meng Soh) writes:
>>Is there any possible way to make the blocks in the form transparent to users? >>That's user dont need to keep track of which block he/she is presently >>in and to press 'KP--' to move to next block.
> KEY-NXTFLD trigger on the LAST field in a block where you want to switch
> to the next block:
> NEXT_FIELD;
> NEXT_BLOCK;
> The Next_Field trigger forces ON-VALIDATE field where appropriate, ON-VALIDATE
> record where appropriate, and leaves context in the SAME block before
> moving to the next block.
I would suggest using just the call
GO_FIELD('next-block-name.first-field-name');
as your this-block-name.last-field.KEY-NXTFLD trigger. Firstly, you don't need to do NEXT_FIELD; Forms executes any necessary ON-VALIDATEs when you exit the field/record/block regardless of the way you exit it.
And secondly, you should specify the field into which you want to jump in the next block to avoid user confusion - if you want to hide the block structure, then the user cannot know why the cursor jumps to the field that was "the current field" of that block last time he visited the block.
..
I know that block structure is hard for new Oracle end users; but the block structure is so tightly built into Oracle that IMHO you just have to explain it to your users. Or how are you going to hide block structure when the end user wants to perform multi-block query? Do you just say "go to a new screen which is a single block based on a view on the base tables of the original form?" Or how are you going to implement NEXT_RECORD/PREVIOUS_RECORD? I think that users should have some idea of the underlying ER schema of the data. Once they understand that, it's not very hard to tell them about blocks, because often blocks correspond directly to ER entities or relationships.
-- Juhani Jaakola jaakola_at_cc.helsinki.fiReceived on Sun Nov 01 1992 - 14:49:30 CET