Multiline text box control

A multiline text box control is a large text box that can display several lines of text or accept this text from user input. Text boxes are often linked to select value lookups and detailed menus. You can place a multiline text box control within a section control.

General properties

Attribute name Description
Control ID

Each control in a presentation is assigned a unique Control ID that is read-only.

Default Label

This read-only value is the text value that is associated with the database attribute bound to this control.

Label

If you enter a text value in this field, it overrides the Default Label for the control. This label is specific to the application and is not stored in the MAXATTRIBUTE or APPFIELDDEFAULTS tables.

Hide Label

By default, the label is visible in the user interface. Select this check box to hide the label.

Attribute

You can associate this control with a database attribute. Not all attributes have a Default Label value.

Rows

Enter the number of rows you want in the multi line textbox.

Columns

Most multiline text boxes have a default width of 35. To increase or decrease the width of the box, enter a different value.

Data Source ID

Specify a data source ID if you want this control to use a different data source than the parent. If the control is creating a data source and the Data Source ID property is not set, the ID defaults to the ID of the control. If the data source is blank, the control inherits the data source from the parent. If no parent controls have a data source specified or if the parent is the application, MAINRECORD is the data source because it is the primary data source for the application.

Lookup

You can specify a lookup ID to link this control to a pre-formatted lookup table that pulls records from the main table. A user can select a record from the lookup table to use in this control.

Lookup IDs are stored in the lookups.xml file. To view the content of this file, export the system XML files.

Input Mode

Input mode options are:

  • Blank: An input mode with no value is read/write. Any information entered in this field is stored in the database column specified in the Attribute field.
  • Default: This mode is used for quick entry of default table data in tables.
  • Password: This mode is read/write and displays asterisks.
  • Password Readonly: This mode is read-only and displays asterisks.
  • Password Required: This mode is read/write and displays asterisks. The record cannot be saved unless there is a value in the field.
  • Query: This mode is read-only and shows a typed value.
  • Readonly: This mode is read-only and shows grayed-out text.
  • Required: This mode is read/write and the record cannot be saved unless the user enters a value in the field.
Menu Type

You can specify the value of a menu ID in this field to link the control to a preformatted drop-down menu. Menu IDs are stored in the menus.xml file. To view the content of this file, export the system XML files.

Advanced properties

Attribute name Description
Data Change Event
You can configure a control to perform one of the following actions if there is any data change to the control:
  • The REFRESHTABLE event refreshes the data source table for the control.
  • The RESETCHILDREN event deletes any child objects of the data bean of the control which then reacquires its MBOSetRemote references.
Always Synchronous

When deselected, the control can communicate with the database without pausing user activities. If selected, the user cannot perform activities in other fields until validations for this field are completed. Synchronous activity is disabled by default. If there are dependencies between values specified for this control and other controls in the application, you can enable synchronous activity for the dependent controls.

Notify Portlets

If selected, this control can send notifications to a portlet, if communication with a Tivoli Integration Portlet is configured.

More information

You can specify the values to construct a URL for a Knowledge Center topic using the following format: com.ibm.mbs.doc,application/helpfile.html The server address and other information for the URL are controlled by the mxe.help properties which you can review and configure in the System Properties application.

If you specify a URL, a More Information link is added to the field help (Alt + F1) for the control. When the user clicks the link, the target topic opens in the Knowledge Center.

The property is specific to the field ID in the presentation XML file. If you want to provide the same link in other controls or other applications, you must manually add the URL to each individual control.

Move to Data Source ID

Specify a record stored in a different object that the user can move to. You can select any data source ID from the presentation control.

By default, the system sends the move to event to the ResultsBean, which contains a set of records displayed in the List tab. The move to event affects the Move to Data Source ID object.

Signature Option

You can specify a signature option that can restrict access to this control or change the properties of this control based on a condition that you specify. To create a signature option, click Add/Modify Signature Options in the Select Action menu. To specify a condition, click the Configure Conditional Properties button.

Sig Option Data Source ID

An MBO must be used to evaluate whether or not a user has access to a signature option. Specify the value of the data source that performs this evaluation if it is different to the data source that is configured for this control.



Feedback