Value List Field Display Order?

[kellerman]

I want a value list to display one value and enter another. Is this possible?

I've set up a value list that pulls a Title from one field and then an ID# from a second and diplays them on a single row, like this:

Title1 #1234

Title2 #5678

Title3 #2345

Searching by title is the only way to go, as the number of items in the list is 500-600. But I need to enter the ID# and not the title.

It's easy enough to create another value list with the ID# as primary and the Title as secondary field, and then change the sorting order so that the list is still sorted by Title, but it's not only ugly it also renders the keyboard search useless (so you'd have to scroll through hundreds of items to find the one you're looking for). What would have been great was a simple checkbox that reverses the display order as well, and not only radiobuttons for the sorting order.

Making use of a portal to display the values doesn't solve the problem of keyboard searching. With hundreds of items in the list it's crucial that you can navigate the list using the keyboard as any pull-down/pop-up menu.

Does anyone have any solutions or suggestions?

Edited February 12, 2007 by Guest

[*susan*]

what version of Filemaker?

*susan*

[kellerman]

FileMaker Pro 7, but if newer versions support this, please let me know ... might be reason enough to upgrade. ;-)

Cheers!

m.

[M Rosales]

Hi,

I have enclosed a basic solution that you maybe able to build upon. I allows two fields to be presented in the value list, the keyboard search will allow you to jump to the values, and the display after making a choice will only a prefix for the final choice.

Value_List.zip

[kellerman]

Yeah, thanks ... but it doesn't solve the problem, does it (or am I missing something)?

I want the user/customer to choose from a long list of plain text titles/descriptions, and be able to use key strokes to jump to certain titles in the list (ie. hit S to land on the first item starting with an S, TALK to land on the first item starting with talk [or the closest equivalent], etc.). But when the choice has been made I want an id number/article number to be entered rather than the title/description.

My workaround is a value list containing all the titles, to pick (and keyboard-search) from, that simply enters the title picked. And a second field that looks up the id number using a relation.

This however, results in two visible fields, whereas it's really just the ID# that's supposed to be visually present. I suppose I could solve this with user interface tricks, like maybe making the first field really small and maybe hiding it under a pull-down menu button/graphic, and have the second field display on top of the same button or soemthing like that.

But I'm really surprised that FileMaker hasn't come up with a solution for this problem. All they need to do is add a checkbox in the value list definition window that, when checked, reverses the display order for the two values in the value list. Like this:

A value list of the field "ID#" with secondary data from the field "Title" sorted by the secondary data (the titles), that enters the ID# (as it's the primary field) and not the titles (the secondary data) ... all possible today ... but then a checkbox that reverses the display order of the fields, so that the value list doesn't show as ...

3333 Aaa

2222 Bbb

1111 Ccc

... and can only be keyboard-searched by ID#,

but rather ...

Aaa 3333

Bbb 2222

Ccc 1111

... that can be title searched using the keyboard, but still enters the ID#.

FileMaker employees, sit up and pay attention! It's a very easy fix on your end. ;-)