Autocomplete in locator fields

When a locator field is used in a form, the user sees the field's label, a text box, the search (locator picker) icon, and the clear (X) icon. Autocomplete's goal is to reduce the user clicks needed to reach the final search target.

Autocomplete functionality is available for all locator fields. Specify whether or not your users have this feature in the USE_AUTO_COMPLETE_IN_LOCATOR_FIELD property in the TRIRIGAWEB.properties file. The default is for autocomplete to be enabled. For information about the properties files, see Properties files.

The AUTO_COMPLETE_MIN_CHAR property in the TRIRIGAWEB.properties file sets the minimum number of characters a user must type to trigger an autocomplete search. The default is 3 characters. Another condition for activating autocomplete is the user's keystroke speed. The system measures when to display the autocomplete list using a 400 millisecond lag. A slow typist, after typing the minimum number of characters, should see an indicator icon and, within a reasonable time frame, the list. A fast typist may need to pause after typing the last character in order to trigger the list.

Autocomplete is not case sensitive. As the autocomplete functionality is triggered, a list appears under the text box.

The list shows suggested items. The first suggested item in the list is highlighted. For each suggested item, if the locator field has defined locator mapping fields, those field values display. The characters in the main field value that match the user's input are bold.

The user can perform the following actions at this stage:

  • Accept the first suggested item by pressing the Tab key or Enter.
  • Use the up/down arrow keys to select an item. Pressing Enter or the Tab key completes the selection.
  • Scroll and click an item. The selection completes automatically.
  • Type in more characters to narrow the suggested items list.
  • Delete characters, which may broaden the suggested items list.
  • Key in a different set of characters.
  • Press the Esc key to clear the field and hide the list.

A user can take advantage of autocomplete and their familiarity with their company's data by entering one or two characters and pressing the Tab key. The system performs a query and one of the following:

  • If the query returns one record, that record completes the selection.
  • If the query returns more than one record, the system presents the records in a list.
  • If the query returns no records, the user sees a no record match message and the cursor stays in the field waiting for the user's next action.

Users that are using a screen reader do not see the data in the autocomplete list because the focus is on the input text field. In order to take advantage of autocomplete, such a user can use the following the steps.

  • Enter the exact string into the input text field and tab out of the field. This selects a unique record for the value of the field.
  • If multiple records display for the string that was entered, tab out of the field and use the search icon to select a value.
  • If no record matches the string that was entered, tabbing out of the field is not allowed. If the screen reader changes focus to the Tab key, select the Esc key. The user can then tab to the next element.

After the user completes the selection, the system populates all related fields. The system also updates the field's label to show the anchor link. If the user clicks this hyperlink, the system displays the selected record's detail.

The list disappears when the user clicks within the text box, tabs out, clicks outside the text box, presses Esc, or makes a selection.

If the user clicks a text box that has a value, presses a key to initiate an autocomplete search, and then clicks outside the text box, the original value in the text box is retained.

After selecting a record, the user can perform another search without clearing the field with the clear (X) icon.

Instead of using autocomplete, the user can click the field's search icon to popup the locator query full search window. This method is preferred for users that use a screen reader.

The autocomplete functionality also is available on single-record smart section text fields, as described in "Smart sections".