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Descriptive Flexfield Concepts

Descriptive flexfield segments

Descriptive flexfields have two different types of segments, global and context-sensitive, that you can decide to use in a descriptive flexfield structure.

A global segment is a segment that always appears in the descriptive flexfield pop-up window, regardless of context (any other information in your form). A context-sensitive segment is a segment that may or may not appear depending upon what other information is present in your form.

Context-sensitive segments

If you have context-sensitive segments, your descriptive flexfield needs context information (a context value) to determine which context-sensitive segments to show. A descriptive flexfield can get context information from either a field somewhere on the form, or from a special field (a context field) inside the descriptive flexfield pop-up window. If the descriptive flexfield derives the context information from a form field (either displayed or hidden from users), that field is called a reference field for the descriptive flexfield.

A context field appears to an end user to be just another segment, complete with its own prompt. However, a context field behaves differently from a normal flexfield segment (either global or context-sensitive). When a user enters a context value into the context field, the user then sees different context-sensitive segments depending on which context value the user entered. You define a context field differently as well. You use a context field instead of a reference field if there is no form field that is a suitable reference field, or if you want your user to directly control which context-sensitive segments appear.

A context-sensitive segment appears once the appropriate context information is chosen. The context-sensitive segments may appear immediately if the appropriate context information is derived from a form field before the user enters the descriptive flexfield.

For a descriptive flexfield with context-sensitive segments, a single "structure" consists of both the global segments plus the context-sensitive segments for a particular context field value. That is, a structure consists of all the segments that would appear in the pop-up window at one time (after the structure has been chosen).

See Also

How Segments Use Underlying Columns

Different Arrangements of Segments

Planning Your Descriptive Flexfield

Descriptive Flexfield Structure Planning Diagrams


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