Screen Builder Reference

While you may view a screen while CAPITAL is running, you should close any copies of CAPITAL active on your computer or network before you begin making changes.

If you do not take this precaution, you may be unable to access all the functionality of Screen Builder's editing tools and will be unable to save the changes you make.

The Toolbar

Click on the applicable icon for a quick guide to the function of each tool:

Screen Builder File Menu Options

Open Create

Select to open a screen or card file for editing or for creating a new card file.

Save

Saves all changes made to the existing screen.

Save As

Saves the existing screen as a different set of database files.

Test

Tests (previews) the screen as it will appear live when CAPITAL is running.

Object List

Displays a list of all the objects on the screen.

Field List

Displays a list of all the fields on the screen.

Properties

Sets screen properties. See the topic: Screen Builder Properties.

Screen Script

Allows you to define events associated with the overall operation of the Screen Builder. For more information see the topic: Script Creation.

Screen Builder Edit Menu Options

Edit Item

Opens the properties dialog of the selected screen object.

Undo

Undoes the last cut or deletion of a control. The undo function is specific to each page.

Cut

Removes the selected screen object. You can cut an object from one page, select another page, and then paste it onto that page.

Copy

Copies a screen object. This is useful if you wish to place it on another page. Select the page you wish to add it to and then select Paste from the menu.

Paste

Places the last cut or copied screen object onto the current page.

Delete

Removes the selected screen object.

Screen Builder Insert Menu Options

Field

Add a field object to the screen.

Text

Add a text object to the screen.

Box

Add a group box object to the screen.

Picture

Add a picture object to the screen.

Screen Builder Align Menu Options

Left Align

Left aligns all selected screen objects.

To select multiple objects hold down the shift key when clicking with the mouse.

Right Align

Right aligns all selected screen objects.

Centre

Centres selected screen objects.

Top Align

Top aligns selected screen objects.

Bottom Align

Bottom aligns selected screen objects.

Grid

Toggles the display of the alignment grid on or off.

Guideline

The guideline shows the approximate dimensions of different screen resolutions. It should be noted that the guideline is not an exact representation of the screen size at the specified resolution, as other factors such as fonts, caption bars, etc., may be customised by users on their PC's.

The Guideline appears over the grid. If the grid is turned off the guideline is also switched off.

Keep in mind that a typical office contains many different types and sizes of monitors, with different display capabilities. A screen designed to work well on a 19" monitor may be difficult to read or may not fit completely on a 15" or 17" monitor. In these cases scroll bars will appear around the screen and users will have to use the scroll bars to view the full contents of the record. This can be tedious for users. A good rule of thumb is to design screens that will fit well on the smallest monitors in your office.

Screen Builder Page Menu Options

Move Page

Transfers the entire contents of a page to another page.

Copy Page

Copies the entire contents of a page to another page.

Load Page

Loads the contents of a page from another screen file into the current screen.

Insert Blank Page

Inserts a blank page between two existing screen pages.

Cut Items On Page

Deletes all items on the current page.

Undo will reverse this operation.

Delete Page

Removes all the screen objects on a page and deletes the entire page.

Automatic Field Ordering

The automatic field ordering function will set the keyboard tab ordering based on the positions of controls from left to right and from top to bottom. If you are not happy with the automatic field ordering selection you can choose to manually specify the field order.

Manual Field Ordering

Tick the Manual Field Ordering menu item and then click on each editable screen object with the mouse in the order in which you wish operators to keyboard tab to each control. (An editable screen object is an edit control or check box where selections can be changed by clicking on them or by typing information into them.)

Continue to click on each control until you have selected all editable controls or select Manual Field Ordering again to exit from field ordering mode.

If you make a mistake, select Manual Field Ordering to turn off this mode. Select it again to turn it on, and begin again.

A common mistake after changing the design of a screen is to forget to set the field ordering.

Jump To Page

Moves you to a specific page. This is equivalent to pressing the tab page button above the screen.

Screen Builder List View Menu Options

These options only become available when you click on the List View tab button.

Add Column

Adds a column to the existing List View object. See the topic: Screen Builder Add List View.

Edit Column

Select a column with the mouse and select this menu item to edit an existing List View column object.

Delete Column

Select a column with the mouse and select this menu item to delete an existing List View column object.

Add List View

Adds a new List View to the screen. See the topic: Screen Builder Add List View.

Edit List View

Edits the selected List View.

Delete List View

Deletes an entire List View and all the columns assigned to it.

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Related Topics:

Screen Builder Dictionary

Screen Builder Formulas

Screen Builder Script Functions