ZxApp IT Users Guide

5.5. Creating Records in The Editor

To create a record in the editor, type an @ symbol, followed by the first few letters of the record type you would like to create.  For example, to create a contact type "@con" and hit [CONTROL]-[SPACE].  The record-editor dialog will appear as shown in Figure 5.5.1 below, and allow you to set the properties of the contact.  

Figure 5.5.1: The Record Editor Dialog editing a Contact

Given the values entered in the example shown in Figure 5.5.1, the following record would have been created in the editor:

      @Contact

      {

            First Name: Sam

            Last Name: Smith

            Home Phone: 555-1212

            Home Email: ssmith@wherever.com

      }

Using the Type dropdown you can convert a record to another type of record.  If you do not know the name of the type you would like to create, simply type an @ symbol and hit [CONTROL]-[SPACE].  Once the Record Editor appears, select the type of the record you would like to create.

Complex types like Contacts have multiple group sets that allow you to view the properties grouped in various ways.  This helps to be able to quickly locate the desired property of a given record.  To change the group set, use the View dropdown to select the desired property groupings.

Once a record has been created, simply double click on the name of the type in the editor and the Record Editor Dialog will allow you to edit the record.

Single-line Record Syntax

By default, ZxApp IT uses multiple lines to define a record as can be seen in the previous example:

      @Contact

      {

            First Name: Sam

            Last Name: Smith

            Home Phone: 555-1212

            Home Email: ssmith@wherever.com

      }

If you would like the record to consume only one row, you can simply remove the new-lines from the sequence like so:

      @Contact { Name:  Sam Smith Home Phone: 555-1212 Home Email: ssmith@wherever.com }

If a record consumes exactly one row (no new-lines), then the Record Editor will honor this convention when it is used to edit the record.  If this format is difficult for you to read, then you can optionally enter commas between propertys like this:

      @Contact { Name:  Sam Smith, Home Phone: 555-1212, Home Email: ssmith@wherever.com }

Again, if you edit this record using the record-editor, it will honor your formatting by keeping the record in single-line syntax with comma separators.