Formatting records and fields (manually and with rules)

Contents

• Formatting example
• Formatting all cells for a field (column)
  • Double Tall Header
  • Rename Header…
  • Display Cell as Link to the [Entity] Detail Page
• Rule-based (conditional) formatting
• Row-based formatting
• Which rules rule?
• More information about formatting

You can use formatting to control how cells or rows appear in Flow Production Tracking. These adjustments can be made on specific pages, or set globally for all pages. You can change the cells for a field (column), or all cells in a row. Formatting options allow you to control background colors of both cells and rows, including thumbnails, and font-styling, such as bold, italics, and strike-through.

Formatting example

Below is a list of Assets and their Tasks. We've added the following rules to the page:

• Added a red background to the Asset thumbnail if the Asset status is set to "Omit.”t". This is an example of rule-based field formatting.
• Greyed out the Asset row and added strike-through to the text if the Asset status is set to "Omit." This is an example of rule-based row formatting.
• Highlighted in yellow the cells for Task Start dates if the date is Today.
• Highlighted in red the Task Due Date if the Task is overdue, which means the Due Date is before the current day, and the Status is not yet "Final.”

Formatting all cells for a field (column)

You can format all cells in a column, such as thumbnails. Setting a specific formatting on all thumbnails means you do not need to create a rule. We call this “explicit” formatting. As an example, to set the color of all the Asset Thumbnail fields to orange:

1. Right-click on the Thumbnail field’s column header and choose Format > Cell Color.

   

2. Set the background color to orange using the color picker in the formatting dialog box.

   

3. Click “Save” to close the dialog box. The thumbnail cell formatting will be rendered on top of the underlying row formatting.

   

To remove formatting on a cell, simply bring back up the dialog and click on the "Clear formatting" link. Then save.

Double Tall Header

Another formatting option is to double the height of a column’s header.

Simply select Double Tall Header.

Rename Header…

If you’d like to change the name of a column’s header, select Rename Header…

Display Cell as Link to the [Entity] Detail Page

By default, the names of the entity link to that entity’s detail page. For example, the Asset name in a field links to that Asset’s detail page. You can also choose to link different fields to that entity’s detail page. As an example, you could link an Asset’s description to its Asset detail page.

Rule-based (conditional) formatting

Although explicit formatting is useful, there are a lot more options with rule-based formatting. As an example, to highlight any overdue Tasks (any Task where the Due Date is before the current day but the status on the Task is not yet “Final”):

1. Right-click on the Task Due Date's column header, and then select Format > Change Cell Colors with Rules...

   

2. Select “Add New Global Rule.”

   

   Note: "Global" rules are used everywhere on all pages, which is useful for creating standard visual cues used throughout the application. “Page” rules are only used on the current page, which is handy for report-specific formatting.

3. Add filters to specify the rule on Task Due Date (if a Task is overdue, meaning the Due Date ie before the current day and the Status is not yet “Final,” highlight the Task Due Date in red).

   

When creating a rule, remember to:

• Give your rule a descriptive name.
• Click the + button to add a filter. These filters work just like the query builder on the pages, where you can select fields and then arguments for the fields. You can make multiple filters that work together.
• Define the formatting for the fields that match the query. For example, apply bold text and a red background color.
• Click 'Save' to exit the formatting query builder.

After clicking “Save,” you can see your new rule in the list. You can add more rules or click “Save” again to create the rule and update the page.

After you select “Save,” you will see the results of your rule.

Row-based formatting

You can also add explicit or rule-based formatting to rows on any page in list mode. Just right click anywhere in the row and select either “Row Color” or “Change Color Row with Rules…” under “Format All Rows.”

Follow the same steps as the field based formatting for the rows.

Which rules rule?

When there are multiple rules, the page evaluates rules in a specific order. The top rule is always prioritized. Here's the order for how the rules are evaluated:

• Field explicit rules. If there are multiple rules, the page looks at the order they are listed. That order can be adjusted in the dialog with the list of rules.
• Field global rules.
• Row explicit rules.
• Row global rules.
• Site preferences, such as formatting negative currency amounts in red.

More information about formatting

• Page specific rules will only be used on the current page, which is handy for building custom reports. Global rules are applied on all pages, which is useful for creating standard styles to be used all over the application. If a global rule conflicts with a page-specific rule, the page-specific rule always wins.
• Formatting on fields will work in all page modes, but can only be created and modified in list mode.
• Formatting on rows is only used in list mode.
• You can change default backgrounds for status fields by setting global rules on status fields (i.e., Status is omt results in a red background color)
• When copying pages, all of the page-specific formatting (explicit and conditional) gets copied over
• There are two default global rules that come pre-packaged with formatting:
  • Global row rule on People that sets the background color grey if the Person's status is deactivated.
  • Global row rule on Task that colors all text blue if the milestone field is checked.
• All special join fields, such as Asset-in-Shot fields, are shaded by default—without rules—but this can be overridden using formatting (explicit or conditional).