User-Defined Components
User-Defined Components in the desktop application applies for the Projects and Equipment hubs.
For the Equipment hub, you can add user-defined tabs, grids, and fields. For the Projects hub, you can add user-defined tabs, but not fields and grids. You add user-defined fields, grids, and tabs to other hubs using Screen Designer in the browser application.
Before you add new components, determine what information you need to gather that is not captured elsewhere in DPS. Also consider how you want this information grouped.
There are two types of tabs:
- Standard tabs are tabs that come as part of the product. In User-Defined Components, you can change the names and order of these tabs as well as add user-defined fields and grids to them.
- User-defined tabs are tabs that you add to hubs, Project Planning, and Activities Manager with the User-Defined Components feature. You can also add user-defined fields and grids to these tabs. User-defined tabs and fields can be used in any situation in which you need to track data that is not a standard part of the application.
For example, your company needs to track change orders for projects, as required for state architectural and engineering forms. You could set up a user-defined tab containing all the appropriate fields that are needed for the state form, and then place codes on the proposal templates that allow you to move information directly into the proposal forms.
You might want to create your own tabs or fields for information such as professional affiliations, bonding information, or contract types.
Additional User-Defined Capabilities
- Field Labels: In the desktop application in on the Labels tab, you can rename key fields, such as Project, Phase, and Task. Your new names then display throughout the applications.
- Lookup/Report Labels: If you change field names on standard tabs, you can create custom lookup lists and report labels to reflect these changes.
- Calculated Fields: You can create custom calculations using any of the existing numeric columns available for a given report. You can create your own calculations using the current list of numeric columns for a given report. When you save a calculated field, it is available in the column selection, like all other columns.
- Custom Report Options: Reporting options determine which information displays in the current report, how the data is formatted, and the sequence in which the data displays. You can select options for each standard report on the Options dialog box, available in the Reporting application.
User Defined Components and the Screen Designer
After you add tabs, fields, and grids using User Defined Components, open Screen Designer from within a hub in the desktop application to re-arrange tab elements, resize fields and labels, and determine whether you want certain fields hidden or locked, based on Security roles.
Screen Designer in the desktop application is a similar but separate application from Screen Designer in the browser application.