Understanding Forms

Use Oracle's JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Tools Form Design Aid (FDA) to create one or more forms for an application. A form is a graphical user interface where users interact with the system. A form can be used to search and display data, as well as enter new data and modify existing data.

A single application can contain one or more forms. Usually, a find/browse form is the first form that appears in the application. It enables the user to locate a specific record with which to work. Upon selecting a record, a subsequent form such as a fix/inspect form can be used to provide details of the record. With the introduction of power forms, applications can use one single power form to locate a specific record and display its detail records on one form.

A form has these elements:

• Form type

  The form type establishes the basic purpose of a form. Each form type has default controls and processes.

• Business view

  In an application, a business view (BV) links forms and tables efficiently by providing access only to that data required by the application. For example, if you have two tables with twenty columns each and the application only needs to access one column from one table and two columns from the other, you can make a BV that contains only those three columns. the application is more efficient because searches are limited only to those three columns, but the application still updates the actual tables when necessary. You must associate all forms, except the message form, with a BV.

• Controls

  All objects on a form are controls. Controls include grids, check boxes, radio buttons, push buttons, subforms, and more.

• Properties

  Properties define the appearance and function of the application, the forms in the application, and each control on each form.

• Data structure

  A data structure defines the data that can be passed between forms. Data in the form data structure can be passed in or out of the form.

• Event rules

  Event rules (ER) can contain processing instructions for specific events. Events are actions that occur on a form, such as clicking a button or using the Tab key to move out of a field. Use ER to attach business logic to any event. Events are triggered either as a result of user interaction with a control, such as clicking a button, or as a result of a system-controlled process, such as loading a grid.

  See JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Tools Event Rules Guide.

  JD Edwards ER Compare tool provides a side-by-side, visual comparison of an application's event rules, and another version of the event rules in another location. For example, ER Compare lets you compare a modified application to the original version of that application on the server or in an ESU.

  See "JD Edwards EnterpriseOne ER Compare" in the JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Tools Software Updates Guide.