Specifying Column Triggers
Analyzer offers options for colorizing cells in View columns based on specified column "Triggers". Triggers are logical conditions that are applied to a column, which result in a chosen color being applied to the background or the text of any cell that meets the specified Trigger condition within the column.
To specify Triggers for a column in the View:
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Double click the column heading in the View or right-click and select either Modify Columns or Column Properties. |
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Click the [Triggers] button. |
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A Manage Triggers dialog appears where you can Add, Update, Delete and Move Triggers. |
Note: As you can define more then one Trigger for a column, it is best to order them from top to bottom in order of highest precedence to lowest. Use the [Move Up] and [Move Dn] to move highlighted saved Triggers up and down in the list. The highest precedent Trigger condition that is met for a cell dictates the color displayed for that cell in the View.
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Click the [Add] button to create a Trigger. |
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To create a Trigger you must: |
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Specify a name for the Trigger |
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Enter a logical expression (e.g., AMOUNT<0) or choose an existing logical computed field - click the [Expression] button to launch the Expression builder help build or select a logical expression. |
Note: A Trigger condition for a column can reference any other columns in the table layout - the condition is not restricted to the column for which the Trigger is being built.
Tip: For complex logical conditions, pre-build a conditional computed field first, then select this computed field from the Expression builder when creating the column trigger.
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Choose whether to colorize the column background or simply the text within the column - based on this choice, an example is shown to the right of what the choice will look like. |
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Choose the color to use by clicking on the color square to launch a color palette. |
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Choose the desired color by clicking on the color in the color palette and then click [OK]. |
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Click [OK] to save the Trigger |
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Click [DONE] to exit the Manage Triggers dialog. |
Note: To set column triggers, you have to right-click on a column in the View which highlights the column. When finished setting your triggers, you must remove the column highlighting in order to see the effect of your triggers on the column. To remove column highlighting, click anywhere else in the View. For more information on color precedence, see Rules of Precedence below.
Rules of Precedence
There are a couple of rules of precedence to keep in mind when working with column Triggers.
Color Precedence
The background color of cell in a column is determined in the following order:
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Highlighted (selected) column color |
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Highlighted cell color |
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Trigger color for cell |
Note: If the Trigger uses text coloring rather than background coloring, then highlighting a cell or column will not override the Trigger color.
Trigger Precedence
When multiple Triggers are specified and a cell in the column meets more than one Trigger condition, the order for choosing the appropriate Trigger color is based on the first valid Trigger encountered (determined by how Triggers are listed from top to bottom in the Manage Triggers dialog).
To change the listed order when multiple Triggers are specified for a column, individually highlight each Trigger in the Manage Triggers dialog and click the [Move Up] or [Move Dn] buttons to arrange the Triggers in the ideal order of precedence.
Complex Triggers
When setting column Triggers, only single logical condition can be specified directly when creating a Trigger. To specify complex logic using multiple conditions, create a named conditional computed field in the Edit Table Layout dialog and then select this computed field in the Expression builder when specifying the Trigger condition.
Triggers on Multiple Columns
Individual Triggers can be set for more than one column in the View. This may get confusing when cells in different columns within the same row display Trigger colors. As the Trigger conditions may vary between columns, the fact that cells in the same row are colorized, does not necessarily indicate that the Trigger condition being met is the same. A best practice is to use Triggers sparingly and on as few columns at a time as is reasonable. Also use distinctly different colors when Trigger conditions on columns are not the same.