upgraded from Alpha 5--some issues in form/table fields, etc

[monsieurms]

Hi…I finally ditched my long time association with Alpha 5 (dbfs). I’m pleased to see that the import worked very well here. There are some lingering issues. I had to recreate forms of course. Mostly was pretty easy, but there are a few lingering problems:
a) Calculated fields. I have Quantity/Used/Left. In my old form/tables, this was set up so that “Left” would be the automatic result of Quantity - Used. is there a way to do that with my existing table and of course not destroying current imported data? (Most of the “left” fields now are based on what Alpha 5 had calculated prior to import)

b) ** Text Formatting.** There are some form fields (preferably table as well) that I’d like to automatically be in bold. Is there a way to program that?

c) drop-downs? That is, to take just an example, I had a field COUNTRY. Clicking the drop down arrow would give me a list of the countries I wanted to include. That could also have sub-fields (like cities) within countries.

Any advice appreciated. TIA.

[Ratslinger]

Hello,

First, this site is designed to ask a specific question to be answered. Yours has multiple questions and people searching for answers will not be readily able to see them. In the future please keep to single question.

Also it is typical to specify minimal info such as OS, LO version and when dealing with Base what DB you are using. Here I will guess it is the default HSQLDB embedded v1.8.

Calculated fields are not part of HSQLDB. They are available in other DB’s such as Firebird. These fields are normally not used because the information can (or should be) retrievable via the other fields used in the calculation.

Most form control formatting is done via the controls’ properties. In edit mode, select the control, then right click & select Control. This brings up the properties. On the General tab, as an example, there is the Font property where you can set it to bold. Table controls have little to no formatting capabilities.

Drop-downs (in LO it is a list box or combo box) are another subject and possibly lengthy. Best to start by looking at the documentation: LibreOffice Base Handbook. Specifically look at the mentioned controls in Chapter 4 - Forms. If you have further questions on this, please ask as a new question and please be specific as to what is wanted. Examples are always helpful. Also, this forum has MANY questions answered with examples regarding list and combo boxes. Just perform a search.

[monsieurms]

Thanks, I will investigate further. Sorry for rookie mistakes. For the record, unless I am clueless, which is entirely possible,; Alpha 5 v7 native files were d-base (DBF). I don’t think that is HSQLDB, but that may be a level of info I simply don’t understand.

[Ratslinger]

If in fact you are using dBase, please make sure this is mentioned in all future questions as it is limiting as to what can be done in Base. The type of database being used can be seen in lower left corner of opening Base screen.