MAINTAIN TEMPLATE USER-DEFINED INFO

Use this screen to enter, edit, and view user-defined data for an established Asset Template record. This screen provides an alternative to the entry of user-defined data in the User-Defined Field Info subtask of the Maintain Asset Template Info screen.

Note: You can also enter, edit, and view user-defined data for an Asset Template record by first accessing the Maintain Asset Template Info screen and then selecting the UDF Info pushbutton. Data entry functionality and rules are identical, regardless of which entry screen you use. You can use this screen to enter user-defined data only for an existing Asset Template record.

If you choose this direct menu access screen for data entry, the system administrator can set up screen rights so that the user cannot access the Maintain Asset Template Info screen and its subtasks but can still enter user-defined data for an Asset Template record.

You can enter four types of optional user-defined information: Date, Numeric, Text, and Validated Text data.

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, label name, 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 entry. If none of the labels has been designated as required, 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.

Each column in this screen has a corresponding column in the User Defined Info subtask in the Maintain Asset Master Info screen and in the Maintain Asset User-Defined Info screen.

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.

If you plan to use templates, you should enter Asset Template data before you begin to establish your Asset Master records. You can begin to use template functionality at any point in time, however.

Note: If you have used a template to "import" data into an Asset Master record and you later make a change to a template data field, the data change will not automatically be copied to the Asset Master record without user intervention. In this circumstance, you will need to go back into the Maintain Asset Master Info screen and tab through the Template No/Rev No fields to re-import revised data from the template. Alternately, you can also create a new template or the same template with an appropriate revision number that incorporates the change. Or, you may decide to bypass the template record and manually make the desired change directly in this screen or in the UDF subtask of an Asset Master record.

Template

You can enter only user-defined data in this screen for established Asset Template records.

Use Find if you know the template number or use Query if you need to search for an asset template record based on specific criteria.

Rev No

You can enter only user-defined data in this screen for established Asset Template records.

This field, together with the Template No field, supplies the unique identifier for an Asset Template record. A revision number is not required when you set up asset templates, but if you have included a revision number with the template identifier during setup, you will need to also specify the revision number in this screen.

Use Find if you know the revision number or use Query if you need to search for an asset template record based on specific criteria.

Table Window

In this table window, you can enter or edit data for each label that displays, as desired. (If the label has been set as required in the User-Defined Labels screen, however, data entry for the label is required in this screen.) User-defined label initialization must first be set up in the User-Defined Labels screen. The labels from that screen automatically 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.

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. For more information about Find and Replace, please see the Basic Functions documentation.

Data Type

This non-editable field displays the data type for the label 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 field displays the labels initialized in the User-Defined Labels screen in the designated sequence order.

Values

Enter user-defined data in this column.

If the label has been set up as type "D" (Date) in the User-Defined Labels screen, for a new template 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 template record. For an existing template record, you can edit data that displays in this column. If the user-defined label has not been designated as required, you can add new data to a previously blank column, as desired.

If the label has been set up as type "N" (Numeric) in the User-Defined Labels screen, for a new template 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 column. If the Required column for this row displays "Y," numeric data for this row is required before you can save the template record. For an existing template record, you can edit data that displays in this column. If the user-defined label has not been designated as required, you can add new data to a previously blank column, as desired.

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 template record. If the user-defined label has not been designated as required, you can edit data that displays in this column for an existing template or add new data to a previously blank column, as desired. 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. If the Required column for this row displays "Y," text data for this row is required before you can save the template record.

Note: Although only a single character entered in this column fulfills the system requirement for data entry, you will find it more beneficial to supply meaningful data because your entry will display in Asset Template records, Asset Master records, and in reports that use this field, as applicable.

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:

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.
If a Costpoint field name displays in the Costpoint Validation Field column, you must select data from the validated entries that display when you select the Lookup button on the toolbar.

The data for the Short Help Description that you initialized with each label during setup automatically displays at the lower left of the screen for the selected row to guide you in entering the user-defined data for this column.

Costpoint Validation Field

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

If this column 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 automatically 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 this column displays "N," you must select data from the validated entries that display when you select the Lookup button on the toolbar.

This column will automatically display "N" for a "D" or an "N" type label.

Required

This column is not available for user entry because it automatically displays the "Y" or "N" requirement parameter set up for the label in the User-Defined Labels screen.

If "Y" displays in this column, you must enter data in the Values column for this row before you can save the Asset Master record.
If "N" displays in this column, 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 Asset Template records, Asset Master records, and in reports that use this field, as applicable.)

Table Information

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

The system stores the user-defined 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.