Action to open Form using Button

Hi please add an Action to open a Form (preferably overlay) using Button.

The rationale:
Currently, the Layout only linked to a table. Meaning one table can only have one layout active for its canvas. Unlike Forms (which is a view of a table) which can have its individual layout even though connected to the same table.
The problem is, when we want to use Button for people to add a new row for example, we can only activate the ‘Open Row for editing’ toggle. Which will open the canvas layout. And if we change the layout to use one of the layout we set for Form, the entire canvas layout will change. Because it is essentially open the canvas of said table.
So we can’t use Button for viewer to add an entry. And the only option is to use Form.
But on the other hand, Form can not be hidden, and it takes space on the page. Although it can only be collapsed along with a header text as its wrapper, it is not that intuitive for people to click on the small arrow.
So it would be great if we have an option to open a Form using Button.

Hi Sathya,

If I understand you correctly, you want to be able to have different buttons, to open different “layouts” of the same table?

The way to do that is not through layout functionality, but through making use of views.:
Here is the formula:
image

Here is the explanation for OpenRow()

And the link to the doc where I used that:

The reminders, appointments and meetings buttons all open different sets of columns, but all from the same table “To do List”.

I hope this helps.
Rambling Pete

1 Like

Ahhh. So you essentially using runactions to first add row without opening row for editing, and then right after that using openrow action (Which I never knew existed. Lol).
OK I’ll give it a try. Seems like Openrow created exactly for this issue.
Thanks!

Hmm seems like Openrow() can only borrow the layout that currently being used by one of the Views of the master table. Because the formula can only select a view table (along with its layout), and there’s no way to select the layout itself. Which means we can’t use layouts that are not being used by any view.
So if we have several Layouts that we’ve saved, we can’t specifically select which layout we want to open the row with…

Hopefully this will change. Because I don’t see any reason why the formula doesn’t allow to pinpoint the layout we’ve saved and instead just borrowing layout from an active view. Kind of a bummer. Although we can try another workaround by creating unnecessary views for each layout and hide them away just so they can be used by Openrow to select the layout, but it’s simply not an ideal approach.

Moreover, Forms are working as AddRow while Openrow and canvas working as editor. Although in most cases they won’t make any difference when used in backend use cases, the real issues may show up when used in published/frontend settings where user with Viewer role can’t edit the table/view directly, and can only use Forms to inject the data into the table.
So I think in the end we still really need a different Action than Openrow to allow Buttons and Forms integrated and used in published/frontend settings.

4 Likes