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Page 269

FIG. 12.3
Collapsing the Forms
object and expanding
the Built-In Packages.


Some of these objects such as triggers can be children under several different types of parent objects. For instance, a trigger can be under a form, a block, or an item. It's the same object but with different parents.

Table 12.1 Object Navigator Objects


Object Name Description
Attached Libraries Objects containing the names of PL/SQ libraries that are attached to the form.
Blocks Form module child objects that identify a section of a form usually related to a table or view.
Built-In Packages Objects containing the name of packages or programs developed by Oracle.
Canvas-Views Form child objects. A canvas is an area that contains objects such as fields and boilerplate. A view is a rectangle positioned on the canvas. This is the area of the canvas visible to the user.
Database Objects Objects containing the name of database objects such as database triggers.
Editors Names of the external editors that can be used by the form.
Forms Objects consisting of form source code modules or files.
Libraries Objects containing the names of available libraries. Libraries are collections of procedures, subprograms, functions, and packages.
LOV's Names of the various list-of-value (LOV) objects used by the form.
Menus Objects consisting of menu source code modules or files.
Modules Objects containing form or menu source code.
       										continues

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Table 12.1 Continued


Object Name Description
Object Groups Containers consisting of a group of objects. Objects such as a canvas, trigger, or block can be packaged and used in other files.
Object Group Children Objects listing the names of the objects in the Object Group.
Parameters Objects consisting of parameter lists that are used to pass values from one form to another.
Program Units Objects containing the names of any procedures, functions, package specifications, or package bodies that can be called by the form.
Property Classes Objects consisting of sets of properties that can be inherited by other form objects.
Record Groups Objects containing named select statements that are used to retrieve records for objects such as LOVs.
Visual Attributes Objects containing predefined sets of format property values that are assigned to common objects.
Triggers Objects containing PL/SQL code. The code is executed when a specific event occurs.
Windows Objects containing the name of the window used by the form to view the canvases.

The Object Navigator Tool Palette

The Object Navigator tool palette on the left side of the object Navigator consists of 15 icons arranged in a vertical row. To learn each icon's function, place your cursor on the icon. You'll see a message called a tooltip over the icon describing what the icon does.

Figure 12.4 shows the tool palette with the cursor over the third icon. This is the Start icon, which starts the current application in Forms Runtime.

The tool palette has two parts. The upper part contains two icons, the first one of which pictures a folder. When you click this icon, the folder-browsing dialog will appear. You can use this dialog box to find a file and bring it into the Object Navigator.

The second icon, picturing a disk, is the Save icon. You use it to save the currently selected file in the Object Navigator.

The lower part of the palette contains two icons.

The first icon pictures a green light. This icon launches Forms Runtime and the current application.

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FIG. 12.4
The Object Navigator
tool palette.


The second icon pictures the figure of a bug. This icon causes Forms Runtime to operate in the debug mode.

The middle part of the palette contains the cut, copy, and paste icons.

The first icon pictures a pair of scissors. You use this icon to cut marked items and place them in the Clipboard.

This is followed by the copy icon. You use this icon to place a copy of the selected item into the clipboard.

The next icon is the paste icon. You use this icon to paste items from the Clipboard to the marked spot.

You use the icon with the black and blue bars to copy properties from a property sheet onto the Clipboard.

You use the bottom icon to paste copied properties into a property sheet.

You use the icons in the second part from the bottom to create and delete objects.

When you click the top icon (picturing a green plus sign), it creates a new object. The new object is the same type as the one you marked in the Object Navigator.

The icon with the red negative "X" deletes any object you've marked in the Object Navigator. Clicking on this icon brings up an alert dialog box asking if you are sure you want to delete the object.

The bottom part contains expand and collapse icons. Like the turquoise icon, the icon with the plus sign expands marked objects.

The icon with the plus sign expands the marked object.

The icon with the negative sign collapses the marked object.

The icon with the double plus signs expands the marked object and all of its child objects.

The icon with the double minus signs collapses the marked object and all of its child objects.

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TIP
The Expand-All icon saves you time when you're trying to identify an object. It's tedious to open each object in the Object Navigator one at a time.
When you're searching a form for an object, you can mark the form module or file in the navigator. Then you can click the Expand-All icon to display all the objects in the file.
You can scroll through the list and, when you're done, collapse the form using the Collapse-All icon. This returns the Object Navigator to its original condition.

Designer Menu Options

At the top of the Forms Designer window is the menu bar. This menu bar offers a variety of options that are used throughout the design process. The default menu bar has six pull-down menus: File, Edit, Tools, Navigator, Window, and Help.

Displaying other Designer screens causes additional pull-down menus to be placed on the menu bar. These menus, along with their associated Forms Designer screen, are discussed next.

File Menu Options

The File menu, shown in Figure 12.5, offers administrative types of options.

To the right of some of the menu options are hot key symbols. You can save time by using these hot keys to select the option without having to open the menu to select it.

For instance, Ctrl-Y is listed next to the Form option. When you press Ctrl and Y simultaneously, Designer creates a new form file and places it in the Object Navigator.

The New, Open, Close, and Save OptionsThe New option creates a new default file in the Object Navigator.

When you select this option either by tabbing to the option and pressing Enter or by clicking it with the mouse, another menu is displayed to the right (see Figure 12.5).

The menu prompts you to select one of the three types of files: form, menu, or library. When you select the file type, the menu collapses and the new file is placed in the Object Navigator.

The Open option launches the standard Windows Open File dialog box, an easy way to find and open the file you want. The Close option closes the selected file and removes it from the Object Navigator.

If unsaved changes are pending, you're prompted to save the changes before closing the file.

The Save option saves the selected file. If you haven't named the file, the standard Windows Save As dialog box prompts you to name the file. The Saved As option also displays the Save As dialog box.

The Revert OptionYou can use the Revert option when you've changed the file and you want to discard the changes. Revert removes all changes since the last time you saved the file.

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