Edit the Data Window
Basic data window display formats are indicated on a form by a single letter followed by underscore (_) characters showing the width of the field. The data window of each field on a form begins with the first letter of the display format, as follows:
• c = character format
• d = date template
• f = floating-point format
• g = floating-point format
• n = floating-point format
• i = integer format
• e = scientific notation format
The underscore line following these letters represents the number of characters allowed in the field. For example, c_________ denotes a character display type that is 10 characters wide. For long character fields, wraparound lines can be shown by multiple lines of underscoring.
For floating-point numbers, the underscores also indicate how many decimal places to display. For example, f___.__, denotes a floating-point display type with a maximum of four digits to the left of the decimal point and two digits to the right of the decimal point.
For date, numeric, and string input templates, the entire template appears in the field.
To edit the data display format in the data window
1. Place the cursor on the field and choose the Edit operation; then, choose the DisplayFormat operation.
Any single-letter display format identifier changes to the more specific letter-number-parameter display format identifier. For example, if the cursor is on a field shown as c_________, the display format identifier can change to +c10______.
2. Type the new format over the existing format.
For example, to change a display format from 10 alphanumeric characters to 15, type c15 over c10.
3. Press the Menu key when finished.
If you change a field's data display format to a type that is not compatible with the field's data type, VIFRED automatically changes the field's data type to match the display format. This can create problems if you use the field to access data in tables. If you do not also change the data type of the underlying table, a mismatch results between the field data type and the table data type.