MAINTAIN ASSET USER-DEFINED INFO

Use this alternative menu option to edit, enter additional information for, or view user-defined data from the fields in the User-Defined Info subtask of an established Asset Master record. This data entry option is available only for existing Asset Master records.

With this menu option, user access to data fields in other Asset Master subtasks is not automatically available and must be granted by the system administrator for each subtask on a screen-by-screen basis.

Note:  You can enter, edit, and view user-defined data for an Asset Master record by accessing the Maintain Asset Master Info screen, which automatically grants access to all the available subtasks. An alternate access route to Asset Master subtasks gives you more flexibility in setting up screen security options for users with different access needs. If screen rights are set up so the user can access the Maintain Asset Master Info screen from the Asset Master Records menu, the Asset Master main screen and ALL its subtasks are automatically accessible to the user. If screen rights are NOT set up for the user to access the Maintain Asset Master Info screen, the system administrator can alternately grant or deny rights using the direct menu option on a screen-by-screen basis. In this manner, each user can access only the permissible subtasks in an Asset Master record.

Although the data displays in columnar form in the table window in this screen, data entry functionality and data rules for each column are identical to their corresponding fields in the main screen of the Maintain Asset Master Info screen regardless of which entry screen methodology you establish for each user.

This screen is different from other maintenance table windows throughout Costpoint because the line functions in the menu bar (New, Insert, Repeat, Delete, and Undelete) are disabled.

You cannot use this screen to add new asset records. You can enter additional optional data, change existing data, or delete existing data within the system rules already established for an Asset Master record that was originally added using the Maintain Asset Master Info screen and its subtasks. Four types of optional user-defined information can be entered: Date, Numeric, Text, and Validated Text.

You can use the user-defined data functionality to record additional information that may be specific to your company for which there are no system-defined standard fields with the desired terminology. The primary advantage in using validated text data lies in the consistency of the entry format and the subsequent ability to print reports that use this consistent data format. When setting up validated text, you can define your own valid entries or you can select a field from an existing Costpoint table as the source for data validation.

Before you can enter user-defined data in this screen, you must first initialize the user-defined label information in the User-Defined Labels screen. Setup includes the label type, the label name, the sequence number that controls the order of the label display, a short description for the label, and whether data entry for the label should be required. If none of the labels has been designated as required, user-defined data entry in this screen is optional. You can also designate during setup whether the label should accommodate validated text or access the designated field from the selected Costpoint validation table. If you have selected the validated text option for the label, you must also establish the data to be validated against.

You cannot use this screen to add new asset records. You can enter additional optional data, change existing data, or delete existing data within the system rules already established for an Asset Master record that was originally added using the Maintain Asset Master Info screen and its subtasks.

You can enter and edit data in this screen at any time after you have established the label initialization data in the User-Defined Labels screen. Although you can change the information in this screen at any time, use caution in the timing of your data edits, which may affect the types of records included in system-generated and/or user-defined reports.

Note:  As with all dependent data tables within Costpoint, you cannot delete a label from a row in the User-Defined Labels screen if user-defined data for the label currently exists in an Asset Master or Asset Template record.

Table Window

Warning:  Technically, in this version of Costpoint, you can use the standard Windows Find and Replace functionalities at any child table window screen (including this screen). You can safely use Find because its sole purpose is to help you locate specified data within the table window.
The Replace function, although inherently powerful when used in the proper circumstances, can also be dangerous. The Replace function will change the specified data when you save the table window and will NOT create an audit trail. In addition, dependent data rules within Costpoint can complicate the Replace functionality.
We recommend  that you NEVER use the Replace functionality in this screen because this function is inappropriate for the data contained in this table window. Instead, use Find and Replace from the Asset Master Info Global Change and/or the Asset User-Defined Info Global Change screens. These screens write and store the change details to an audit table, where they can be accessed via Impromptu. For more information about Find and Replace, please see the Basic Functions documentation.

Asset No

This column is not available for user entry or edits.

Use Find if you know the asset number for which you wish to enter user-defined data. You can use Query if you need to search for asset records based on specific criteria.

The system displays the asset number assigned to this record when the asset was saved in the Maintain Asset Master Info screen.

Item No

This column is not available for user entry or edits.

Use Find if you know the asset number for which you wish to enter user-defined data. You can use Query if you need to search for asset records based on specific criteria.

The system displays the item number assigned to this record when the asset was saved in the Maintain Asset Master Info screen.

Short Desc

This column is not available for user entry or edits in this screen.

The system displays the optional short description entered for this record, if applicable. 

The Short Desc data may have been entered/edited in the Maintain Asset Master Info screen or in the Maintain Asset Desc Info screen. Any edits to this column must be made in the Maintain Asset Master Info main screen or directly in the Maintain Asset Desc Info screen.

Table Window

In this table window, you can enter or edit the data for each user-defined label that displays. If the label has been set as required in the User-Defined Labels screen, however, you must enter data for the label in this screen before you can save the record. User-defined labels must first be set up in the User-Defined Labels screen. The labels from that screen display in this table window along with the short help description.

If the label has been set up to use validated text, you must select from user-defined validated text data that displays when you access Lookup. If the label has been set up to validate against Costpoint data, you must select from the data that displays when using Lookup.

Data Type

This non-editable column displays the data type for the label as it was initialized in the User-Defined Labels screen. The data types available for setup are "D" (Date), "N" (Numeric), or "T" (Text).

Labels

This non-editable column displays the labels initialized in the User-Defined Labels screen in your designated sequence order. The Short Help Description that was initialized with each label during setup displays for the selected label to guide you in entering the user-defined data.

Values

The system displays the optional user-defined data entered for this label for this record, as applicable, when the asset was saved in the Maintain Asset Master Info screen. Data displayed in this column may have been edited in the User-Defined Field Info subtask of the Maintain Asset Master Info screen or directly in this screen.

Enter user-defined data in this column as follows:

If the label has been set up as type "D" (Date) in the User-Defined Labels screen for a new asset record, enter the user-defined data in date format. If the Required column for this row displays "Y," a date for this row is required before you can save the asset record. The Validated Text column will display "N" for a for a "D" type label. For an existing asset record, you can edit data that displays in this field. If the user-defined label has not been designated as required, you can add new data to a previously blank field.

If the label has been set up as type "N" (Numeric) in the User-Defined Labels screen for a new asset record, enter the user-defined data in numeric format. You can enter up to 12 numeric characters and two decimal characters (999,999,999,999.99) in this field. If the Required column for this row displays "Y," numeric data for this row is required before you can save the asset record. (Although only a single numeric character entered in this field fulfills the system requirement for data entry, you will find it more beneficial to supply meaningful data because your entry will display in the Asset Master record as well as in reports that use this field.)  The Validated Text column will display "N" for an "N" type label. For an existing asset record, you can edit data that displays in this field. If the user-defined label has not been designated as required, you can add new data to a previously blank field.

If the label has been set up as type "T" (Text) in the User-Defined Labels screen and the label does not required validated data, enter up to 30 alphanumeric characters of data in text format for a new asset record. If the user-defined label has not been designated as required, you can edit data that displays in this field for an existing asset or add new data to a previously blank field. If the Validated Text column for this row displays "N" AND the Costpoint Validation Field column is empty AND the Required column displays "N" for this label, you can enter text data of your choice that is not system-validated. (Although only a single character entered in this field fulfills the system requirement for data entry, you will find it more beneficial to supply meaningful data because your entry will display in the Asset Master record and in reports that use this field.)

If the Required column for this row displays "Y," you must enter text for this row before you can save the asset record.

The user-defined text label may have been set up to accept validated data only. In this circumstance, one of two sources for validated text was already designated during setup in the User-Defined Labels screen:

Costpoint Validation Field

This non-editable column displays the applicable validation "rules" for this label as initialized in the User-Defined Labels screen.

A user-defined text label may have been set up to accept validated data only. In this circumstance, one of two available sources for validated text was already designated during setup in the User-Defined Labels screen.

If a Costpoint field name displays in the Costpoint Validation Field column, you must select data from the validated entries that display when you access Lookup from the toolbar. This column is not available for user entry because it displays the Costpoint field name selected in the User-Defined Labels screen against which the data will be validated.

If the Costpoint Validation Field column is blank and the Validated Text column for this label displays "Y," you must select data from the validated data that you previously entered for this label. You can use Lookup to display the validated data options that you have established for this label.

Validated Text

This non-editable column displays the applicable validation "rules" for this label as initialized in the User-Defined Labels screen.

A user-defined text label may have been set up to accept validated data only. In this circumstance, one of two available sources for validated text was already designated during setup in the User-Defined Labels screen.

If the Validated Text column for this label displays "Y," you must select data from the validated data that you previously entered for this label. You can use Lookup to display the validated data options that you have established for this label. This column is not available for user entry because it displays the "Y" or "N" parameter set up for the label in the User-Defined Labels screen.

If a Costpoint field name displays in the Costpoint Validation Field column and the Validated Text column for this label displays "N," you must select data from the validated entries that display when you access Lookup from the toolbar.

Required

This non-editable column displays the "Y" or "N" requirement parameter set up for the label in the User-Defined Labels screen. If "Y" displays in this column for the label, you must enter data in the Values column for this row before you can save the asset record.

If "N" displays in this column for the label, data entry is not required before saving the record. (Although only a single character entered in the Values column fulfills the system requirement for data entry for non-validated labels that are types "N" and "T," you will find it more beneficial to supply meaningful data because your entry will display in the Asset Master record as well as in reports that use this field.)

Table Information

The system stores user-defined data displayed in this screen in the GENL_UDEF (User-Defined) table.

The system stores labels for the user-defined fields in the UDEF_LBL (User-Defined Labels) table.

The system stores validated text, if applicable, in the UDEF_VALID_VALUES (User-Defined Valid Values) table.