Select Field

A Metadata Select Field allows the user to select a value from a pre-defined list of values. This field can be set up to allow the user to select multiple values from the list.

Bookmarks to the headings on this page:  

  1. Details Screen

Details Screen

The Details screen allows you to configure the settings for the Metadata Select Field.  

Details

This section allows you to change various details to do with the Select Field. The Details section of the Details screen is shown in the figure below.

The Details section of the Details screen of a Select Field
The Details section of the Details screen for a Select Field

The following fields are available:

  • Field Name: by default, the name that was entered when this field was created will appear in this field. You can change the name of the field by clicking into this field and entering the new name.  

    Tip: You should choose a name for your field that is unique across all Metadata Schemas in your system.  

  • Friendly Name: enter a friendly name for the field. This will be displayed as the field name on the Metadata screen of an asset. If the name of the field is complicated or does not reflect what should be entered, you may want to enter a Friendly Name. For example, if you have named your field DC.Keywords, you may want the label on the Metadata screen to show Keywords instead.
  • Description: enter a description for the field. This will be displayed on the Metadata screen of an asset. It can be used to display instructions to your users about how to enter a sensible value into the metadata field. For example, if your field is called Subject you may wish to enter a description Please select a subject from the list provided.
  • Scheme: enter the industry standard scheme for this field, for example AGLS. This will be placed in the HTML source code of a page.
  • Language: enter the language for this field, for example English. This will be placed in the HTML source code of a page.
Settings

This section allows you to set up the list of values to use for this field. The Settings section of the Details screen is shown in the figure below.

The Settings section of the Details screen of a Select Field
The Settings section

The following fields are available:  

  • Allow Multiple: select whether or not to allow a user to select multiple values from the list. The value that is selected in this field and the Style that is selected for the list will change the style of the list that is displayed on the Metadata screen. For more information on the different styles, refer to the Style of Select Field section below.
  • Allow Empty: select whether or not to allow the user to select an empty value from the list. If this option is set the Yes, the Empty Text field will appear under the Style field. You can enter a description of the empty text value in the Empty Text field, for example -- Leave Empty --. This will be shown in the list on the Metadata screen.
  • Style: this section allows you to change the style of list that is displayed on the Metadata screen.  
    • Style: select either List or Checkbox from the list provided. The value that is selected in this field and the value selected in Allow Multiple, will change the style of the list that is displayed on the Metadata screen. For more information on the different styles, refer to the Style of Select Field section below.
    • Type: select the type of list to use. You can select either Table or Unordered List.
    • Height: enter the height for the list in rows.
    • Columns: enter the number of columns to use for the list. This field is only relevant if the style of list is either a check box list or a radio button list. For more information on the different styles, refer to the Style of Select Field section below.
    • Empty Text: enter a description of the empty text value, for example -- Leave Empty --. This will be shown in the list on the Metadata screen. This field will only show if Allow Empty is Yes.
  • Options List: this section shows the options that have been added to the list. It allows you to change the Key and Value or delete an option from the list. If you have not added any options, no information will appear in this section. When you add an option, it will appear in this section, as shown in the figure below.  

    The Options list for a Select field
    The Options List  

    By default, the Key and Value that was entered when the option was created is displayed. You can change the Key or Value by clicking into the relevant field and entering the new value. To delete an option from the list, select the Delete box and click Commit.
  • New Option: this field allows you to add a new option to the list.  
    • Key: enter the key for the option. By default, this is displayed in the HTML source code of a page.
    • Value: enter the value for the option. By default, is displayed in the list on the Metadata screen.
    You can change which part of the option is displayed in the HTML source code in the Frontend Part field under the Options section.
  • Default Value: this section allows you to select a default value for the list. If you have not added any options, this field will not appear on the screen. When you add an option, a list will appear, as shown in the figure below.  

    The Default Value list for a Select field
    The Default Value list  

    Select a default value from the list of options.
  • Upload from CSV File: this field allows you to select a comma-separated values (CSV) file to upload, automatically inputting the options for the Metadata Select Field. This can be useful when batch uploading a number of options or if you are importing an existing question's options.
     
    The CSV file to upload can have up to three fields: the first specifying the Key of each option, the second specifying the Value of each option, and the third indicating whether or not the option is the default value for the Metadata Select Field (1 for yes, 0 for no).
     
    Please note that if a CSV file is specified in this field, it will overwrite any options that had previously been configured on the Metadata Select Field.
  • Column Headings in CSV File?: if you have selected to import options via an uploaded CSV file, enabling this field will indicate to Squiz Matrix that the CSV file being uploaded contains column headers. When this field is enabled, these column header values will be ignored, allowing the system to correctly import the option information in the CSV file.
Options

This section allows you to change the options for this field. The Options section of the Details screen is shown in the figure below.

The Options section of the Details screen of a Select Field
The Options section 

The following fields are available: 

  • Editable: select whether or not this field should be editable on the Metadata screen. If you have entered a default value that you do not want your users to override, you can change this option to No and the field will not be editable.
  • Required: select whether or not this field is a required field. If you select Yes, the assets that have this Metadata Schema applied to it will not be able to go Live until a value has been entered into this field.
  • Contextable?: select whether or not this field is context-aware. If you select Yes, this field will be allowed to take a different value for each context within the system. The default value of this field can also be set individually for each context. For more information, refer to the Contexts manual.
  • Show On Frontend: select whether or not to show this field in the HTML source code of a page.  The options you can select from include:  
    • Always: select this option to always show this field in the HTML source code of a page.
    • Only if Filled: select this option to only show this field in the HTML source code of a page if it has been filled in.
    • Never: select this option to never show this field in the HTML source code of a page.
  • Frontend Part: this field allows you to change which part of the option to show in the HTML source code of a page. By default this option is set to Key, meaning that the value that is entered into the Key will be shown. If you set this field to Value, the Value will be shown instead.
Style of Select Field

Depending on what options are selected in Allow Multiple and Style, will depend on the style of list used on the Metadata screen. The styles of list can appear in one of four ways:

  • A drop-down list
    A drop-down list  

    Drop down list: this style list will be used if Allow Multiple is No and Style is List. The user can only select one value from the list.

  • A multi-select list
    A multi-select list  

    Multi-select list: this style of list will be used if Allow Multiple is Yes and Style is List. The user can select one or multiple values from the list by holding down the Ctrl or Shift key on the keyboard.

  • A checkbox list
    A checkbox list  

    Checkbox list: this style of list will be used if Allow Multiple is Yes and Style is Checkbox. The user can select one or multiple values from the list by clicking on the box next to the value.

  • A radio button list
    A radio button list  

    Radio button list: this style of list will be used if Allow Multiple is No and Style is Checkbox. The user can only select one value from the list by clicking on the box next to the value.
Adding Values to a Select Field

To add a value to a Select Field go to the Details screen of the field. In the New Option field, enter the Key and Value for the option. By default, the Key will appear in the HTML source code of a page and the Value will appear in the list on the Metadata screen. Once you have done that, click Commit. The option will appear in the options list.

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