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Radio button auto fill

Question asked by max1390 on Jun 2, 2018
Latest reply on Jun 3, 2018 by ThierryGuemboura

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Hi everyone, I’ve been trying for couple of days now to create a radio button that will be dependent on other field. I’ve read a lot of discussions here, but still didn’t get how to properly create it. So I have two date fiels - Date opened and date closed, as well as I have two radio buttons - opened and closed. I want radio button to be selected automaticly, based on the filled field. So when date opened is filled, opened radio button is selected automatically, but if date closed is filled as well - closed radio button selected.

Thank you for your help!

ThierryGuemboura Jun 3, 2018 12:51 AM

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So you have two Date Fields, respectively named Date_Opened and Date_Closed.

You create then a Opened_Closed Calculation with Result as Text and calculation =

Case (

IsEmpty ( Date_Opened) and IsEmpty ( Date_Closed); "";

not IsEmpty ( Date_Opened) and IsEmpty ( Date_Closed); "Opened";

not IsEmpty ( Date_Closed); "Closed";

)

Now on your layout:

The third field Calculation is duplicated and formatted with Radio Button. The left one with Value List = Opened and the right one with Value List = Closed. Then hide left calculation as follows: test::Open_Closed_Calc = "Closed" and hide right calculation as follows: test::Open_Closed_Calc = "Opened" or IsEmpty ( test::Date_Opened ). Also make sure that for both calculation fields Browse Field Entry is disabled (fourth tab of Inspector), in doing so, if user try to click in calculation field, there will be no warning message stating "this field is not modifiable".

Now slide right calculation on top of left (or vice-versa).

And then in Browse mode the Result is:

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15 Replies

bigtom Jun 3, 2018 12:15 AM
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I would use a Case function. Maybe a nested Case.
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philmodjunk Jun 3, 2018 12:34 AM
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Case ( not isempty ( dateClosedField ) ; “Closed” ;
not isempty ( dateOpenrdField ) ; “Open”
)

but you may not need any field at all for this. You could place a pair of graphic objects on the layout with hide object when expressions controlling which are visible.
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ThierryGuemboura Jun 3, 2018 12:51 AM
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So you have two Date Fields, respectively named Date_Opened and Date_Closed.
You create then a Opened_Closed Calculation with Result as Text and calculation =
Case (
     IsEmpty ( Date_Opened) and IsEmpty ( Date_Closed); "";
     not IsEmpty ( Date_Opened) and IsEmpty ( Date_Closed); "Opened";
     not IsEmpty ( Date_Closed); "Closed";
)
Now on your layout:
The third field Calculation is duplicated and formatted with Radio Button. The left one with Value List = Opened and the right one with Value List = Closed. Then hide left calculation as follows: test::Open_Closed_Calc = "Closed" and hide right calculation as follows: test::Open_Closed_Calc = "Opened" or IsEmpty ( test::Date_Opened ). Also make sure that for both calculation fields Browse Field Entry is disabled (fourth tab of Inspector), in doing so, if user try to click in calculation field, there will be no warning message stating "this field is not modifiable".
Now slide right calculation on top of left (or vice-versa).
And then in Browse mode the Result is:
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beverly @ ThierryGuemboura on Jun 3, 2018 4:31 AM
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I like what you did there, Thierry. This gets into the Boolean discussion where you really have 3 states (yes, no, empty).

IF OP really wants the Open AND Closed (unselected if empty):

Case ( not IsEmpty ( Date_Closed ) ; "Closed"; // regardless of having an 'open'
not IsEmpty ( Date_Opened ) ; "Open" ; // only tested if not closed
"" ) // default is nothing selected

So like Phil's calc, but I added the default of neither radio button selected if both fields are empty. While not necessary, to me it just seems clearer.
Also remember on the Auto-Enter Calculated value (above code), you need to also uncheck the "Do not replace existing value of field (if any).

I also like Phil's suggestion of using graphics with "Hide object when".
Or conditionally format icons/text (bold the text OPEN or CLOSED, for example, or color-code the icons).

It boils down to what is to be shown and when. Is it a reversible sign with "Open" and "Closed", is it a light which can be "ON" or "OFF", etc.?

Beverly
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onefish Jun 3, 2018 5:41 AM
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Max, if you want the radio button to also be selectable, with some cross dependancies, you will probably want to use a script or 2 and trigger them on field exit for the date fields and on modify for the radio button field. What I mean is have a script trigger upon exiting your date open field that checks first if IsEmpty ( Date_Closed), then Set Field [ Open_Closed ; "Open"]. Similar setup on the Date_Closed field. Then on the Open_Closed field (value list formatted as radio button) you could have a script that enters the current date in the one of the date fields depending on the value selected or open a custom dialog box and ask the user to cofirm before overwriting any values, etc.
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ThierryGuemboura @ beverly on Jun 3, 2018 6:41 AM
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I agree with you 100% Beverly. I wanted the calculation to be very clear for a beginner, though your comments in C language notation make the expression very clear.
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philmodjunk @ ThierryGuemboura on Jun 3, 2018 8:35 AM
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though your comments in C language notation make the expression very clear.
ummm, well those comments are in FileMaker notation and are something that I really should have included myself. I make a lot of such notes to myself in my actual development in exactly that format. It helps me understand the same scrpt two months later should I need to review it.
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ThierryGuemboura @ philmodjunk on Jun 3, 2018 9:12 AM
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Me too. I thought they were not necessary with my expression but Beverly's is clear for beginner because of the comments.
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bigtom @ ThierryGuemboura on Jun 3, 2018 12:49 PM
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To be more clear for the beginner, Case stop evaluating when a condition is true. Beverly alluded to this in the comments.

The Closed condition has to appear before Open in the calculation.
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ThierryGuemboura @ bigtom on Jun 3, 2018 4:24 PM
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I wrote my Case statement in chronological order which seems logical to me, you cannot be Closed if you haven't been Opened first.
If my statement is incorrect, with all due respect, you are going to need to give more than it "has to appear to be before Open" because I don't understand your point. Please explain. Thank you.
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max1390 Jun 3, 2018 1:34 PM
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Thank you everyone! I've got tons of new ideas, help and explanation, very grateful, thank you!
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philmodjunk Jun 3, 2018 1:44 PM
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I wrote my Case statement in chronological order which seems logical to me...
What's more important is the evaluation order for the function rather than the order in which the values are modified by the user. Since Case "Stops at the first true result", you can often simplify your case function by carefully considering the order in which the Boolean (logical) expressions evaluate.
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ThierryGuemboura @ philmodjunk on Jun 3, 2018 2:12 PM
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OK now I understand, you are using the default value = "" of the Case statement when Closed and Opened tests are False. I agree, it is shorter.
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bigtom @ philmodjunk on Jun 3, 2018 2:13 PM
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If open appears first, close will not evaluate since it will exit after it hits the true evaluation of Open being not empty.

A nested Case might eliminate this confusion.
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ThierryGuemboura @ bigtom on Jun 3, 2018 2:23 PM
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I understand, I have been burned in the past on some difficult Case statements, and it is why, very often, I use the "brute force" method to make certain I do not forget any possibility. But again, I now clearly see yours and Phil's point about using the Boolean engine to reduce the number of expressions evaluated by FMP.
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Radio button auto fill

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