View Editor

The View Editor is used to determine how columns, search criteria and sort order are displayed in any window in the system. We call these windows "list views", thus the way to edit them is via the View Editor.

If you know a particular screen that you would like to modify but cannot seem to find the corresponding view in the View Editor, you will need to find the table that is the basis of the list view. For instance, if you want to modify the Sales Master screen, it is helpful to know that the [Client] table is the table that corresponds to this screen. You would then look for "Client" in the list of tables in the View Editor.

Contact AcctVantage Support if you don't know the name of the table you want to edit.

Edit a View Definition

Open the View Editor

  1. To open the View Editor, navigate to Administration ➤ View Editor.
  2. Next, you will select the view you want to edit. Modifiable screens are indicated by an arrow icon next to the screen name. Click on the arrow to proceed.
    • In most cases you will select the Default view definition.
    • If you're using AV Mobile then you may have also defined a Mobile view definition that can be edited in the same manner.
    • In the screenshot below, I've selected the Default view for the Client window (aka Sales Master).

Some tables do not have a user interface. Only those with an arrow icon are editable. Contact AV support if you need help finding a specific table or field.

The Current View Definition area [at the bottom of the window] indicates the columns that are currently being displayed in the List View. You may highlight an entry in this area to modify:

  • Column Title: The column header as it appears on the List View. Highlight the title to edit and use the empty at the bottom of the list to edit the title.
  • Format: Certain field types (i.e. date or dollar fields) will allow alternate formatting. The options available here can be found at this link: 4D Display Formats
  • Just: Defines the justification (i.e. alignment) for data within the column. Double-click to change the value.
    • Def = default (this will use the standard justification defined internally for the field)
    • L = left
    • C = center
    • R = right
  • Width: In pixels, the default column width. Note that you can also change column width in the list view itself by dragging the column divider to a new width.
  • Footer: Numeric fields can be totaled in the column footer. Double-click to change the value to Sum.
    • Sum is the ONLY mathematical function available here.
    • This does not work for "calculated columns."
View Editor

Add a Column

A new column may be added to the View Definition by selecting a field name from the Available Fields list. Drag & drop the field into the Current View Definition area.

  • Available Fields: The drop-down menu at the top of the Available Fields section allows you to access to tables & fields other than the "master" table. This only works when there is a relation built between the tables. In the example below the Client table is the master table. There are two related tables: Contact and Tax [Area].
  • Reordering Columns: Columns may be rearranged by drag & drop. The topmost column here is the leftmost column in the user interface.
  • Insert Calc Column: There are some columns that are based on source code instead of a database field. Most of these columns were added at the time of implementation. This option should only be implemented under the guidance of AcctVantage Support.
View Editor - Add Column

Remove a Column

Any column(s) may be removed from the Current View Definition by highlighting the column and then selecting the Remove Column button found at the bottom of the screen.

Note: Selecting the Delete View button from the Current View area will delete the entire view! If this occurs, you'll need to recreate the Default view definition from scratch.

View Editor - Remove Column

Edit the Query & Sort Options

  1. Follow the steps above to Open the View Editor.
  2. Next, click on the Query & Sort Options tab.
    • This area is where you'll enable the fields that are available to use in the Quick Search menu. You can also set a default Sort Order for records displayed in the list view.
    • Fields in either area may be reordered by using drag & drop. This is the same process as previously mentioned in the Add a Column section above.

Query Options

  • Add: Use this to add a divider to the Query Options list. Highlight the field below where you want the divider to appear and click the Add button.
    • This is NOT used to add fields. It is only used to add dividers to the Query Options list.
  • Delete: Use this to either remove fields or dividers from the Query Options list.
  • Label:  Use this field to add a custom label that will appear in the Quick Search menu.

Sort Options

  • The Sort Options area is used to determine the default sort order for records displayed in the list view.
  • The arrow icon to the right of the field represents the direction of the sort; ascending (triangle points up) or descending  (triangle points down). To change the direction of the arrow, click on it once.

Edit the Quick Search menu

Use drag & drop to add fields to the Query Options section. These fields will appear in the Quick Search menu.

Add fields to the Quick Search menu

Change labels for Quick Search fields

  1. Highlight a field and then click on the Label column.
  2. Enter the text that you want to appear and Save.
  3. Close and reopen the list view to see the change take effect.
Change quick search labels

Example

In this example, we have changed the Client Name field to display as Customer in the Quick Search menu.

Quick search example

Define a custom sort order

Use drag & drop to add fields to the Sort Options section. By default, records displayed in the list view will follow the sort order set here.

Define a custom sort order