Button Area Components

You can simplify the definition of button areas with many buttons by creating and re-using button area components. Creating such components does not differ from creating regular button area objects. Every button area can also be a button area component. A component is used in a superordinate button area with the help of a component placeholder. As a result the superordinate button area is extended by the buttons of the component. For the different kinds of buttons this means:

Push Buttons
A block with frequently used push buttons can be inserted as component into an toolbar or a mask.

Index Cards
A block with frequently used index cards (partial index card system) can be inserted as a component into a maks.

Radio Buttons
A block with frequently used radio buttons can extend a radio button area at the field by further selections.

Note! In top button areas (toolbars) only push button components are useful. In mask button areas only components with push buttons and/or index cards and in radio button areas only components with radio buttons are useful.

Note! The nesting depth of button area components is limited to ten levels in order to prevent infinite loops.

How to define and use button area components:

  1. Create a regular button area with buttons/index cards or with radio buttons.

    In order to simplify the positioning of objects in the superordinate button area you should assign the row- and column position 0 to the reference button (upper left button) - e.g. for a block of push buttons.

  2. Create a component placeholder with the name @MENUNAME and any item text (it is of no importance) in the item master.
    The component placeholder is a special item object. It is sufficient to create it once. You will then be able to use it whenever you want to insert button area components.

  3. Insert the component placeholder into the menu-item relation of the superordinate button area, enter the name of the button area component in the relation attribute field Parameter and specify the position of the component in the Row and Column fields.

    The row and column position of a block of push buttons for instance now results from adding the button positions in the component itself (0 as an ideal case) and the position defined in the menu-item relation.

If you reconfigure a button area component in local memory, DataView will automatically update all button areas in main memory which the component is assigned to (also indirectly). Thus, superordinate objects already loaded into main memory will not have to be explicitly reconfigured.