Formats

Saving, Loading and Deleting Formats

After defining settings, click on (Save) to save a format.
Example: Defining labels

Click on (Load) to load a previously saved format.

Example: Selection level
The following dialog box is displayed (in this case the Save dialog box):
- To load a format, select one from the list or enter the first few letters of the desired format in the Name field.
- To save a format, enter the name of the format in the Name field.
Note: Select Extras > Other Options from the menu. Enable the Prompt before overwriting formats check box if you wish to be prompted whenever a format is about to be overwritten.
Conditions and transfer formats can be saved as global formats, in which case they are available to all users, see Global Formats.
If formats are defined on several stations, the name should be unique amongst all stations (e. g. including the name or number of the respective station); otherwise there may be communication difficulties.
- The entries in the Created on and Updated on columns indicate when the format is first added or last changed.
- You can send the format to other users by clicking on the Send button. Select the desired user(s) in the dialog box that opens, or enable the Select all check box to send the format to all users.
- If you do not want other users to edit a format you created, click on the Lock button or enable the Lock check box.
- If you do not want other users to be able to load a format you created, click on the Private button or enable the Private check box.
  Note: You cannot change the Private or Lock settings of a format when re-saving the format under the same name. You can only change these settings when loading the format for existing formats.
Click on OK.

Copying Formats

Your administrator (SU) can create copies of a format using the following options:

Selecting Create Backup from the context menu in the Format info area.
Clicking Create Backup in the Load or Save dialog for formats.

The original format's name is changed to include "<T>" at the beginning. The copy is assigned the original name and is used in place of the backup from now on.

The copy is linked to the original format. Only one copy can be created per format.

The original format can be restored by selecting Restore Original from the context menu or clicking on Restore Original in the Save/Load dialog. The copy is deleted and the backup is renamed to the original name (the "<T>" is removed).

For more information on managing formats, see CRM.cockpit User Manual.

Global Formats

You can save conditions (type "Search Condition") and transfer formats (type "Word processor") as global formats, allowing all users to access them.

Enable the Global formats option when saving to save the condition or transfer format as a global format.

When loading formats, enable the Global formats option to restrict the list of available formats to just global formats. If you disable the Global formats option, only those formats you have defined yourself are listed.

User-specific formats are displayed with the user name in the Format info area. No user name is entered for global formats:

Viewing and Printing Formats

Formats are created and loaded in the corresponding info areas or dialog boxes (e.g. selection formats in the Selection info area). The Format info area provides an overview of all formats. For information on the fields in the Format info area, refer to the online field help.

You can display, communicate and search formats. However, you cannot import or export them using the Import/Export module.

You can document important and complex formats (e.g. desktop formats) to help you find errors. The print preview is designed to provide a complete printout for documentation or debugging purposes.

Note: The print and XML views are not available for all format types.

Example: Print preview and XML view of a selection

Right-click on a record in the Format info area and select Print Format to open the print preview.

Right-click on a record in the Format info area and select View XML to open the XML view.

Note: The print preview for workflows does not display all information; it simply provides an overview of the defined parameters and processes.

The following commands are available:

(Back)	Returns to the previous view. Only available in the print preview.
(Forward)	Moves to the next link if you clicked on the Back button. Only available in the print preview.
(Save)	Saves the displayed data as an XML file (XML view) or HTML file (print preview). Note: The print preview includes picture files saved in Aurea.CRM's "system\xml" directory. To receive the same layout as in Aurea.CRM, save the HTML file in your Aurea.CRM user directory.
(Print Preview)	Displays a print preview.
(Print)	Prints the displayed data.

If a format includes references to another format for which a print preview is available, the name of this format is included as a hyperlink. Click on the hyperlink to switch to this format (answer the prompt with Yes). Click on the Back button in the level header to return to the original format.

The print preview always outputs text in the current language. The XML view is language-independent.

Exporting and Importing Formats

Reps with the necessary rights can export formats as XML, e.g. export the format from a test system and import it into a live system.

To export a format:

Click on Export in the Save dialog for formats.

The format is saved in the current user's user directory using the following file name:

<format type>_<format name>_<date>_<time>_<major version>_<service pack>

If the format name contains invalid characters, these are replaced by an underscore ('_').

To import a format:

Click on Import in the Load dialog for formats.

Only formats of the appropriate type are listed.

Note: The export and import functions are only compatible between databases in which the referenced reps, languages etc. have the same ID. Catalog values are compared using the value in the catalog base language.

The following formats cannot be exported: data model, archive, design, process configuration, user-specific formats and any format for which no XML view is available.

Format Header

The format header displays the same information for all formats:

Format Type	The name of the format type precedes the name of the current format.
	This format is locked.
	This format is private.
User	The name of the user who created the format.
Created on	Date the format is created.
Updated on	Date of the last changes to the format.