Forms

Building and Customizing Data Entry Forms

Essembi's data entry forms enable users to create or modify records in the system. All data entry forms can be customized to fit the specific needs of your business, process or workflow.

To create a new data entry form or customize an existing form, navigate to Settings > Forms. The list of available forms will only show forms your user has access to in the app. You can modify a form by double-clicking the form or by selecting the form and then choosing the "Modify" button.

Form Designer

The form designer has four key elements:

Form Layout Designer: A mockup of the form layout. Objects can be resized, moved or deleted from the layout as needed.
Form Objects: A list of available form objects that can be dragged-and-dropped onto the form layout.
Save and Undo / Redo
Form Settings: Various settings for the form including Form Name, Active, and Default.

Form Objects

The form objects that are available to be dragged and dropped onto the form include each field type in the system plus a handful of other options.

Collapsible Sections: Creates a page wide section break in a form. The collapsible can be collapsed or un-collapsed by the user on the form. This is useful for hiding less used fields on a form. When building the form, the user can set the title and set if the form is launched with the section collapsed or un-collapsed by default.
Linked Records: Linked records help users establish and understand the connections between different pieces of information, improving overall data organization and accessibility.
Email Inputs: Email inputs are bound to short text fields. They enable users to enter an email address and use an input button to launch an email.
Links: Link inputs are bound to short text fields. They enable users to enter a web address and use the link button to launch that link in a new tab in your browser.
Rating: The rating object is bound to an integer field. It enables the user to input stars rather than an integer. It saves values in 0.5 star increments based on a 2x rating (e.g., 1 star is an integer value of 2).
Paragraph: Create a free text section where you can add instructions or notes onto the form.
Info: Gives the user the ability to add free form rich text content via a long-text field element. Used for instructions or guides within a data entry form for users.
Record Buttons: The record control buttons for the form (e.g., the save, undo / redo, history buttons).
Custom Buttons: Add a button that has an on-click event defined using custom JavaScript. These buttons can also be assigned a custom color using the "Color" field in the editor.
Sub-Tables: A sheet with related sub-table information can be added to a data entry form. For example, the work order form has the work order routing sub-table sheet that enables the user to edit linked work order routing steps for that work order.

Sub-Tables on Forms

Setup

Settings > Tables: Modify the table for the form and include the sub-table with its linkage field to the primary table in the "Sub-Table" tab.
Add the sub-table element to the form and select the sub-table record to use. It is recommended to utilize sub-table elements with a collapsible above it from a user interface perspective.
Navigate to the form and setup the fields you would like to see on the sheet using the sheet customizing options. Once complete, select "Save Layout".

The related record object on forms helps users establish and understand the connections between different pieces of data within Essembi. The goal is to help teams improve overall data organization and accessibility.

To access sub- and related records on forms, add the "Linked Record" control to any form. By default, this will show on the right hand side of forms in new Essembi apps. The "Linked Record" control will have two areas:

Sub-Records: This section shows tables that reference this form's table as a linked record. When the add button is selected, it launches the default create form for that record, enabling users to quickly add sub-records that are related to this record. Users can also select the individual sub-records from the list to edit them directly.
Related Records: This section enables users to create ad-hoc linked records to the current record. Select the add button to open the form to create the related record. Once created, the related records will show on both records' forms.

Parent / Child: This relationship signifies a hierarchical connection where one record is the parent, and another is its child.
Predecessor / Successor: This relationship indicates a chronological or sequential order between two records.
Duplicate / Duplicate Of: This relationship is used when two records contain similar or identical information.
Related: This is a generic relationship used when two records have some form of connection, but it doesn't fit into one of the more specific categories.

All Gantt Chart view dependencies are stored as predecessor / successor linked records. These are automatically displayed in the related records sections.

Standard Buttons on Forms

Save: Saves the selected record. The option has a drop down button to the right that enables other save options: Save & Create New, Save a Copy, and Save & Close.
Undo / Redo: Only active when changes have been made to the record in the current session.
History: Enabled when a record is an existing record, not a new record. When clicked, it launches a window that shows the original created date of the record as well as all changes since the record was created.
Next / Previous: Toggle between records in the view set. Next / previous is disabled if a new browser tab is opened with the record because the system cannot access the list in the other tab.

The Long-Text Editor on Forms

Essembi's long text object provides a robust solution for capturing and managing detailed information.

Creating Sections within Long Text

Users can create distinct sections within a long text field to organize their content effectively, and use the icon on the left side of the form to move sections up, down, or delete them.

Components Available in Long Text Fields

Links
Text
Attachments
Checklist
Code
Delimiter
Heading
Image
List
Table

Text Formatting

Bold: Highlight text and make it bold for emphasis.
Italics: Apply italics to text to indicate special terms or titles.
Underline: Underline text for added visibility.

Dynamic Field Expansion

As users input more data into the long text field, it dynamically expands to accommodate the growing content.

Shortcuts

Typing "* " into a long text field triggers an unordered list, and "1." triggers an ordered list. This only happens if these are the first two characters typed into a Paragraph type block.

Version Control on Forms

When editing a form via Settings > Forms, users will notice version control fields present:

Version: User defined version number for that form that can be set using the "Settings" option within the form designer.
Last Modified: Shows the timestamp for when the last form change was made.
Last Modified By: Shows the last user to make a change to the form.

There is also role-based security to control which teams can edit all forms or specific forms within Essembi.