* Label on customised tab in property box

[Ed]

I've set up a customised tab on the property box using the excellent guidance in this wiki: http://www.fhug.org.uk/wiki/doku.php?id ... o_do_lists

I've also included a label for the To Do note box (using the instructions under the 'Create Custom Tab' section).

I would like to know if it is possible to have the label extend over two lines instead of one. I'm trying to use the label to provide a brief description of my preferred method of entering To Do tasks. Ideally, I would like to use the following description as my label: 'Prefix each task with a heading (Birth:, Death:, etc. - inc. a colon). New paragraph for each Task.' I know that the label can be accommodated in its entirety by resizing the property box. However, I don't want the property box to be so big. Having a two-line label would allow me to keep the property box at a size I prefer. But this results in only part of my label showing.

Is there a way to have the label go over two lines?

Also, again following the guidance in the above wiki, FH v5 does not seem to recognise 0000 as a valid date. I can use 0001 and that works fine. However, I would prefer 0000. Is there a way round this?

ID:6171

[tatewise]

Providing you do NOT use Return or Enter your labelled paragraph can be as long as you like.
The label text should automatically wrap to the width of the Property Box Note field (just like a paragraph in a word-processor).
Thus the entire paragraph label will all be visible, wrapped over however many lines are necessary.

FH V5 has introduced a number of new features that affect this To Do Attribute strategy.

I advise that you change the To Do Attribute Properties as follows:
Normal Time Frame: Pre-Birth
Fields Required
Untick all except Note.

Any existing To Do Attributes with a Date can have the Date value deleted, and the field will vanish next time FH is Saved and Opened.

With these settings the To Do Attribute will appear before all other Facts because of the Pre-Birth time frame.
May need to use Tools > Re-order Out-of-Sequence Data.

This advice will be added to the Knowledge Base shortly.

P.S.
If you usually want a new To Do Attribute to have that first paragraph then you can add it to the Fact Set definition.
In the Properties Fact Definition window click the Advanced button, and add the paragraph to the Auto-Create Note field at the bottom.

[Ed]

Thanks Mike. I wasn't aware of the different date settings in the attribute property settings - it's a nice feature.

As for my other problem - the issue surrounding the label - I don't think I explained myself too well. It's not the paragraph (the To Do task itself) that I want to wrap over more than one line, it's the actual label above the note box on the To Do tab I'm referring to. I've pasted the instructions below (from the wiki) and highlighted in red the part I'm referring to:

Create Custom Tab

In the Individual Property Box use the Menu > Customize option, click the New Tab button, enter the New Tab Name as To Do, and click OK.

In the Customize Property Box window, untick the Show most commonly-used items only option near the bottom.

Select (for advanced users), and add it by clicking the > button.
Enter the Custom Item Name as To Do and tick the Part 1 option.
Set the Label to To Do: and use its To Do > Note in order to set the Data Reference to INDI._ATTR-TO_DO[1].NOTE2[1].
Tick the Variable Height option and optionally the Label Above Data option, and finally click OK.

Instead of 'Set the Label to To Do:', I want to set the Label to 'Prefix each task with a heading (Birth:, Death:, etc. - inc. a colon). New paragraph for each Task.' and have the text from the label wrapped over two lines. As things stand, with the property box sized to suit my preferences, the wording of the label gets cut midway through the second sentence ('New paragraph for each entry.'). In order to see the text from the label in its entirety, I have to resize the property box to a size that's too big for my liking. Is it possible to have the text from the label wrapped over two lines?

Many thanks for your help.

[tatewise]

There is no way to put the label on two lines, but here is a workaround.

In the Customize Property Box window, create a new named say Advice.
Set the Part 1 Label to Prefix each task with a heading (Birth:, Death:, etc. - inc. a colon).
Set the Data Reference to any valid ref such as INDI._ATTR-TO_DO[1].
Tick the Fixed Width option, and set Min Width to 4 and Percent to 1.
Click OK.

Then use the Up/Down arrows to put this Advice Item above the existing To Do Item.
Edit the To Do Item so its label is New paragraph for each Task. and ensure Label Above Data is ticked.

You get a tiny data field box to the right of the label, but otherwise its close to what you want.
If you need to reduce the Property Box width even further, then create another Advice item and split the label between them.

Since you will not now need the Date custom Item, it can be deleted.

[Ed]

That's great Mike, just the job. Thanks for your help, it's very much appreciated.

[Ed]

I’ve been playing around a bit with the To Do tab and its settings and have stumbled upon a quick and simple way of setting a To Do flag on the To Do tab. This takes the form of a simple check box that you check or clear to set/clear the flag.

Create a new flag called To Do

In the Customize Property Box window, create a new named To Do Flag.
Set the Part 1 Label to Set/clear the To Do flag (or something meaningful to you).
Set the Data Reference to INDI._FLGS.__TO_DO.
Click OK.
Move the new item up or down the Item List according to where in the tab you want the item to appear.
Click OK.

You’ll now have a text label on the To Do tab that reads “Set/clear To Do flag” followed by a check box. Clicking on the check box will automatically set or clear the To Do flag.

Next, I added a To Do column in the Records Window.

Go into Configure Columns for the Individual Records List.
Scroll down the list until you come to the Flag items and select the To Do flag.
Send the flag to the pane on the right (using >) and re-order the list according to your preferences.
Click OK.

Every time the To Do flag is set – through whichever method you choose for setting flags (including the method described above) – a “Y” will appear in the To Do column of the Records Window.

I intend setting the To Do flag when creating the first To Do task for an individual. Any subsequent tasks will not, for my needs, require an additional To Do flag. It’s good enough for my purposes to have one To Do flag that lets me know that an individual has one or more tasks that requiring doing. The To Do column, with a simple “Y”, lets me see at a glance if an individual has any outstanding To Do tasks. The To Do flag, when combined with the queries described in the wiki, and the To Do tab itself, forms a pretty powerful and effective method of managing outstanding tasks.

Tatewise: Please feel free to add this feature to the existing wiki if you feel it’s worth it (you can edit it and add to it as you see fit). I won’t be offended if you don’t add it!

[tatewise]

Thank you for that suggestion.

Personally I do not like to add Flags when the data itself is a 'better' signal.

The trouble with Flags is you can forget to set them, or you could delete a completed To Do Attribute and forget to clear the Flag.

Try this Record Windows Column Expression instead of the Flag : =Exists(%INDI._ATTR-TO_DO[1]%)

This will automatically show Y when a To Do Attribute exists, and automatically clears when it is deleted after the To Do has been done.

A similar Expression can be used to add an Icon to a Diagram Box.

See Using Flags and Icons for more details and worked examples.

[Ed]

Interesting idea but weird results.

When I use the date ref =Exists(%INDI._ATTR-TO_DO[1]%), some of my other columns disappear.

I've got the following columns: Individual Records, Record ID, Dates, Birthplace and Relationship to Root. I've tried using the above data ref with the To Do flag, the To Do attribute, and a custom item. I call the column heading To Do, use the data ref =Exists(%INDI._ATTR-TO_DO[1]%) and click OK x2. Each time I click the final OK (to close Configure Columns for the Individual Records List), another of my columns disappears!

What am I missing?

[tatewise]

When you say 'disappears' do you mean 'scrolls off the screen'.

Is there a horizontal scroll bar at the bottom?
If so, then drag it to reveal the off screen Columns.

You can shrink the width of the Columns, just like in Excel, by dragging the join between the Column Headings.

[Ed]

Disappeared as in not there, gone!

There's no horizontal scroll bar, and the columns are not showing in the Configure Columns for the Individual Records List. Oddly enough, the only column that is showing in the Configure Columns for the Individual Records List is the To Do column, which is not showing in the Records Window. [confused]

[tatewise]

That is really weird.

You can restore the original Columns by using the Installation Settings button.

I know you are running FH V5 like me, but which version of Windows and in what type of Account?
I use Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit and Standard User account.

These Column settings are stored in the Windows Registry and I wonder what may upsetting them.
What firewall do you use?

Does it matter what Heading you choose?
Does a similar problem afflict other types of Record Window Columns such as Sources?

[Ed]

Goodness knows what's going on here! I've rebooted and tried again and the data ref =Exists(%INDI._ATTR-TO_DO[1]%) now works!!!

For what it's worth, I'm running XP media home edition (SP3) on a standard user account. My firewall is Comodo.

Thanks for your help, tips and advice.

[tatewise]

Glad it is all sorted now.
I also have an old XP laptop running Comodo Firewall.
I find Comodo can be over aggressive on occasions.

After all that, I hope you understood the pros and cons of using Flags versus the =Exists() function.

[Ed]

I agree with you about the pitfalls of relying on flags, namely the consequences of forgetting to set them. That's why I included the prompt and the ability to set/clear the To Do flag on the To Do tab. That way, it's a visible reminder for me to take the appropraite course of action.

I'll take a more detailed look at the ins and outs of the =Exists() function. Thanks for the heads up.

Keep up the good work. Your input is very much appreciated.