Values for Drop-Down Lists in EDGE and EDP

There are three sources of values for the drop-down lists: the Enum File, Reference Values, and the Format Configuration File, and each is described below. The Enum File and the Configuration File can now be edited directly in EDGE using the Configuration Plugin Tool Form.

The Enum File

The enum file is an XML file linked directly to the format in the format XSD file.

<xs:include schemaLocation="EDGE-enum.xml" />

Values are entered manually in the enum lists. The lookup drop-downs are created with the "type" command in the element definition in the format xsd file:

<xs:element name="CollectedBy" type="collected_by" nillable="true" >

The text box will have a drop-down arrow, but the column header will not be colored blue. These values will be the same no matter where you open the format. Go to Create a Reference Value File for guidance on changing the enum file.

The Reference Values

Other drop-down lists have values that come from lookup tables, which are often reference tables (RT_), but can also be data tables (DT_). The text box will have a drop-down arrow and the column header will be colored blue.

<edd:table mode="lookup" target="dt_task" filter="task_type='Field'">

<edd:lookup source="ProjectID" target="task_code" include_columns="task_desc" />

</edd:table>

In EDGE and EDP Standalone, the values in the drop-down lists come from lookup tables in the reference value file (rvf). Go to the Create a Reference Value File noted above for guidance on creating the rvf file. In EDP Professional, which is connected to the database, the values in the drop-down lists come directly from the tables in the database.

Format Configuration File

View the description of the EDGE Configuration file in Understanding the EDGE Format Configuration File.