How to Add Fields to the Results by Analyte Display Pick List

Summary

The information in this article applies to LIMS 2.3.0 or newer.

The Results by Analyte Setup Screen’s Display pick list is used to specify a sample characteristic (e.g. project, location, customer, etc.) to display to distinguish the analyses on the results by sample screen. By default, the list of fields in the Display pick list is a subset of LIMS’ Sample table fields. Site-specific fields added to the Sample table through customization or other Sample table fields not included in the default list can be added to the Display pick list using a configuration record in the Options tab on the System Configuration screen.

More Information

This Display pick list’s options are defined using a value list in the field’s Row Source property. A value list is a list of text strings separated by a semicolon (;). The Display pick list consists of two columns. The first column is visible and contains the names displayed in the list. The second column is hidden and contains the actual field names. Therefore the value list consists of entries for both columns. For example, in the default value list below, the user will see “Customer’s Sample ID”; in the list (column 1) for the CustomerSampleID database field (column 2).

Collected Date;CollectedDate;Collected Time;CollectedTime;
Customer;Customer.Name;Customer's Sample ID;CustomerSampleID;
Location;Location.Name;Login Date;AddedDate;
Project;Project.Name;Sample Type;SampleType.Name;
Sampler;Sampler

The first step in updating the contents of the Display pick list is to build the new value list for the Row Source property. Let’s assume we have added fields ProductionDate and LotNumber to our Sample table through customization. Note that database field names normally do not include spaces. Our two-column value list pairs for these fields could be constructed as follows:

Production Date;ProductionDate;Lot Number;LotNumber;

The order of the value list pairs is the order in which they appear in the pick list. Adding our two new fields to the original list and preserving the alphabetical order, our new value list is show below.

Collected Date;CollectedDate;Collected Time;CollectedTime;
Customer;Customer.Name;Customer's Sample ID;CustomerSampleID;
Location;Location.Name;Login Date;AddedDate;
Lot Number;LotNumber;Production Date;ProductionDate;
Project;Project.Name;Sample Type;SampleType.Name;
Sampler;Sampler

To install the new value list, add a record in the System Configuration screen’s Options section. Complete the record as show below, entering the value list in the screen’s Data field and leaving the Value field blank and Inactive unchecked:

Option:

frmResultsByAnalyteSetup.cbxDisplayField.RowSource

Data:

Collected Date;CollectedDate;Collected Time;CollectedTime;
Customer;Customer.Name;Customer's Sample ID;CustomerSampleID;
Location;Location.Name;Login Date;AddedDate;
Lot Number;LotNumber;Production Date;ProductionDate;
Project;Project.Name;Sample Type;SampleType.Name;
Sampler;Sampler

If you encounter any errors after making these changes, make the necessary corrections to the Data field or check the Inactive field to restore the Display pick list’s default entries.