APPLICATION FUNCTIONS: GENERAL INFORMATION

This section provides information on fields, options, and buttons used throughout the Costpoint product suite. It also explains terminology and software behavior.

Browse, Add, Change

To browse information, click Query. You can use Query to locate and display records.

Adding data records or changing existing ones, operates in just one of two modes:

Main Screens vs. Subtasks

When you select an application, the main screen for that application displays. When you select one of the links located at the bottom of an application, a subtask screen displays. Subtasks collect and store additional information (also known as child data) related to the selected record on the main screen.

Table Windows

When you add, delete, or edit a line while working in table windows, symbols display beside each line that designate which lines will change when you save your table:

To enter a new row of data into a table window, you must first select the New Record option from the Line menu.

Find

To find a value in a column, right-click the column heading and then click Find. On the dialog box, enter your search criteria and then click the Find button.

Replace

To replace a value in a column, right-click the column heading and then click Replace. On the dialog box, enter your replace condition(s) and then click one of these buttons:

Lock/Unlock Columns

You can freeze a column when you scroll to the right when you apply the Lock Column feature.

To do this, right-click the column heading that you want to lock, and then click Lock Columns. You can unlock the column when you right-click its heading and click Unlock Columns.

Resize Column

To resize a column, on the column heading, hover to the right border of the column until a bi-directional arrow appears. Click and move the arrow to adjust the column size. You can also right-click the column heading and then click Resize Column. Click and move the bi-directional arrow that appears to adjust the column size.

Move Column

To move a column, click the column heading and drag it to a certain position in the table. You can also right-click the column heading, click Move Column, and drag the column to a certain position in the table.

Sort Ascending

To sort a column in ascending order (that is, from the lowest value to the highest), right-click the column heading to sort so you can see the sort options available. And then, click Sort Ascending.

Sort Descending

To sort a column in descending order (that is, from highest to lowest), right-click the column heading to sort so you can see the sort options available. And then, click Sort Descending.

Arrange Table Columns

You can change the order of the columns in a table window when you click and drag a column heading to a certain position in the table. Another way is to use the Arrange Table Columns dialog box. To open this, right-click any column heading and then click Arrange Table Columns. On the dialog box, arrange the order of the columns through the Move Up or Move Down buttons. Enter the number of columns you will lock when you scroll to the right in the Locked columns on left side field. Click Apply to save changes, and click Close to exit the dialog box.

To return to the original positions of the column headings, click Options » Reset Default Positioning and View or press SHIFT+ALT+Z.

Show/Hide Screen Controls

To show or hide columns, right-click the column heading and then click Show/Hide Screen Controls. On the dialog box, click Data Fields or UI Controls to see the options available. Select the Always Hide check box next to the item(s) you want to hide, and then click Apply. The selected item no longer appears in the table layout. Click Close to exit the dialog box.

To make changes permanent, save the Application Layout after clicking Apply.

To display hidden columns, open the dialog box, clear the Always Hide check box, click Apply, and save the Application Layout.

IDs and Codes

When creating IDs and codes or entering them in a field (for example a part ID), you should observe the following guidelines:

If you are unsure of an ID or code required for a particular field, you can use Lookup to search and select available values.

Segmented IDs

In certain fields (for instance, account, organization, project, reference number 1, reference number 2, alternate project reporting, and alternate organization), segment separators (periods or dashes) automatically display when you enter a value. These multi-level items are called "segmented ID" fields.

Range Options

Use Range Options to limit the scope of records you want to include in a report, process, or inquiry. The system-defined options are:

Select/Delete (or Deselect)

Use the Select or Delete buttons when you make selections and transfer items between two table windows.

OK

Click OK to save the current data and return to the previous screen.

Cancel

Click Cancel to remove your additions, changes, and deletions and return to the previous screen.

Logging Out

To exit, click on the Navigation Toolbar, click File » Log Out from the Global Menu, or press CTRL+SHIFT+F12.