These actions reach into another field and tell it to do something. Between them they are how the parts of a form are wired together.


Drop-Down Menu

Turns a Toolbar option into a menu holding further options instead of a command of its own. It has no settings; the options inside it are edited on the toolbar. Only available on a Toolbar - it does not appear elsewhere.


Modal / Panel Actions

Opens and closes a Modal Window or a Panel.


Field - The modal or panel to act on.


Command - Open Dialog/Panel, Close Dialog/Panel or Toggle Dialog/Panel.


This is the usual way a modal is opened. The same thing can be done by setting the modal's value to open or close with Set Field Value, which is what a workflow action or anything else that sets a field would use.


E-form Field Actions

Controls an embedded E-form.


Field - The E-form field to act on.


Command:

  • Save E-form - Saves the embedded form.
  • Cancel E-form - Abandons it.
  • Pull E-form Data to Parent - Brings the embedded form's values out to the surrounding form without saving, using the E-form field's Values to Pass Out setting.


Pull is the one to know. It lets the outer form read what the user has entered in the child form while they are still working in it, rather than waiting for a save.


Document Viewer Field Actions

Controls a Document Viewer.


Field - The viewer to act on.


Command - Includes Download Document, which hands the document to the user without them going through the viewer's own controls. Use it for a form that offers a plain Download button of its own.


Trigger Multi-Action Field

Runs a Multi-Action field's list of actions.


Field - The Multi-Action to run.


This is the action that keeps a form maintainable. Anything needing more than one step goes into a Multi-Action, and every button, timer and event that needs that behavior triggers it here rather than repeating the steps.


Trigger Button Click / File Upload Select

Clicks another button, or opens the file browser for a File Upload field.


Trigger Field Action - The field to trigger.


Use it to drive a button from somewhere else, and to let a large image or a styled area act as an upload target: the user clicks your own control, and the File Upload field's file browser opens.


Trigger File Upload Action

Starts a File Upload field's upload.


Field - The upload field.


Where the previous action opens the file browser, this begins the upload of what has been chosen - so a form can let the user pick files, ask them something about them, and then upload when they are finished.


Scan Documents to Record

Starts a scan on a Scanner field.


Field - The Scanner field to run.


The Scanner field has no appearance of its own, so this action is the only way to start it. Where the documents go is set on the Scanner field itself.


Sort Table by Column

Sorts a Table field.


Table Field - The table to sort.


Sort Column - Which column.


Sort Direction - Ascending or descending.


Use it to present rows in a sensible order after they have been added, or to give the user their own sort buttons above a table.


Make REST Call

Calls an external service from the form.


REST URL - The address to call. {FieldName} references and [variables] are replaced, so the call can carry what the user has entered.


Call Type - GET Call or POST Call.


Username and Password - Credentials, where the service needs them.



Send Data Handling - Parse as JSON Data or DO NOT Parse as JSON Data.


Data to Post - The body to send. If you are posting JSON objects or arrays directly, write the braces as {~{ and }~} in place of { and } so the variable replacement does not strip them - this is the single most common thing to get wrong here.



Content-Type - Unset (no header), JSON, XML, CSV or Plain Text.


Return Data Handling - Parse JSON Results to Text or DO NOT Parse JSON Results to Text.


Results to Field - The field the response is put into. Point a Multi-Action at that field's change event to act on the answer as it arrives.


The call is made from the user's browser, so the service has to be reachable from it and has to allow the call. Where that is not the case, or the credentials should not be on the form, use Run Action Set and make the call from the server instead.