Actions

Actions allow you to perform operations using the data entered into controls. Before you can use actions, you must first understand Bindings. More information about Bindings can be found here.

To use Actions, in Forms Designer, select the Forms Settings button from the top panel and select the Actions tab from the Forms Settings dialog box that opens. If there are already Actions available, they will display under the Event which triggers the action, such as Load. You can select an Action by expanding the Event, selecting the Action, and selecting Save. You can delete an Action by selecting the Action and selecting the Delete icon. You can edit an Action by selecting the Action and selecting the Edit icon, which opens the Actions dialog box described below.

Adding Actions

As an example, we will add the contents of two numberbox controls and display the result in a third numberbox. Each numberbox must have a binding assigned to it before we can perform this action. To begin adding an Action to the form, select the Add button and the Actions dialog box opens. From the Script dropdown, select a Script for the Action or select New and then enter an appropriate name for the new Script. From the Event dropdown, you can select when you want the action to occur. Available options differ depending on the Script you have selected. We will select "On Focus" so that the action occurs when a user selects the numberbox.

Note: If you want to delete a Script from the Actions window, select the Delete

icon.

Once you have selected a Script, the Rules editor displays in the Actions window. From the section titled "If these conditions are met..." you can set the conditions that will trigger the Action to occur. In the first field, select the Bindings

button. From the dialog box that opens, select a Binding to assign and select Save. For this example, we will select "Number 1," a binding which we have previously created and assigned to the first numberbox. For more information about Bindings, click here. The binding displays in the first field of the Rules editor. Next, select the operator for the Rule. If you select a mathematical operator such as "=" you will need to select another binding or enter a value for the next field. We will select "Is Not Empty" so that the first numberbox must have data entered before the Action can occur. Add another Rule by selecting the Add

icon. We will select the "Number 2" binding, another binding which we have previously created and which we have assigned to the second numberbox. We will use the ">" operator and set the Value to "0" so that the second numberbox must have a number greater than zero entered before the Action can occur. If both Rules must be met for the Action to occur, select "and" from the dropdown. If only one of the rules needs to be met, select "or" from the dropdown.

Note: You can delete a Rule by selecting the Delete

icon.

Next, in the section titled "Then do these actions..." set the action that you want to occur when the rules are met. Select the Add icon where you can choose the type of action that should occur. The types of actions available differ depending on the control you are working with. We will select "Math." In the Target field, we will select Numberbox3 so that the result of the sum displays in this field. From the Action dropdown, we select "Sum." The controls that will be added together display to the right of the Action dropdown. Select Numberbox1 from the first dropdown, then select the + icon to choose the control which will be added to Numberbox1. Select Numberbox2 from the dropdown that appears. The action is now set up correctly, and you can select Close to save the action and close the dialog box. Now, when a user enters a number in Numberbox1, enters a number greater than zero in Numberbox2, and clicks or taps Numberbox3, the contents of Numberbox1 and Numberbox2 will be added together and the result will display in Numberbox3.