Exploring the workspace
When you open an application in the Application Designer, the Workspace tab opens, containing the layout of the controls that make up the application. Within the workspace, you can select individual controls to modify them and to position new controls in the application user interface.
About this task
The workspace opens the main tab of an application but some tabs, windows, controls, and configuration tools are not immediately visible. Before you start developing applications with the Application Designer, use the following procedures to familiarize yourself with the workspace.
Procedure
- Open an application that you are familiar with in the Application
Designer. The application opens in the workspace, typically on the application List tab.
- Review the contents of the workspace when it opens, clicking on controls to select them.
- In the Select Action menu, click Toggle/Show
All Controls. You can use this action repeatedly to show or hide controls that are less frequently modified to conserve space on the workspace.
- Select any control in the workspace and either right-click
and select Properties or click the Control
Properties icon on the toolbar. The properties window for the control opens where you can review the properties that are configured for the control.
- In the Workspace, select a Section control and click the Control Palette icon on the toolbar.
- Drag a control icon from the palette into the selected Section control.
If the control cannot be placed within a Section control, it is not added to it. For example, you must place a Tab control within a Tab Group control and you must place a Button control within a Button Group control.
- Click the Edit Dialogs icon on the toolbar to see a list of the dialog windows that are configured for the application.
- Select a dialog to open it for review or modification in a temporary workspace.
- Click on the Applications tab to close
the workspace and do not save the changes when you are prompted to
do so. Changes you make in the workspace are stored temporarily until you click Save, when the changes are committed to the database.