This past weekend we added a brand new field to the App Builder, a new Workflow report, and our first mobile responsive pages for logged in users. We also did more work around our enhanced submission search functionality, which is now ready for beta testing.
Mirror Field
We have not added a new field to the App Builder in a little while so we felt it was time. The Mirror field will let you automatically copy a value entered in a previous field. So if your mobile user enters information on the first screen and then needs to reference that data again on the 10th screen you can use the Mirror field to copy that data onto the 10th screen. This is all about saving your mobile users time out in the field so they can work faster and more efficiently.
There are certain fields that cannot be mirrored. They are: GPS, Photo, Drawing, Signature, Web Link, Payment
The Mirror field will also mirror the field type so if you are mirroring a Date then it will be a Date field (Behind the scenes!).
Once you drag a Mirror field onto your workspace you will need to choose the field that you are wanting to mirror. You will choose the screen where the field is located first ("Mirror from which screen?") and then you will choose the field on that screen ("Mirror which field?"). Note that we also call out the "Mirror Field Type" for you, too. That's it!
| Mirror Field | Field Settings |
|---|---|
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You still have functionality you're used to having. You can create Conditions. You can hide the fields on the PDF, set up export labels, etc. On the mobile device the fields CANNOT be edited. The fields behave like Calculation or Static Text fields where you cannot edit the value of the field. If you change the value in the field you are mirroring then the value of the Mirror field will update.
Read our Help topic to learn more.
Workflow Export Report
We added a Dispatch Export Report some months ago. We have now added a similar report for Workflow. You will find it in the same place as the Dispatch Export.
You now have two options on the export page. You can export Dispatches or Workflows. When you export Workflows you will also get the submission data (If there is any yet) associated with the workflow.
This will allow you to do some analysis on your Workflows. You can see which ones are not completed, how long they took to complete and more. You can open this file in Excel and quickly assess where you might have outstanding handoffs.
Read our help topic on exporting Workflows.
Mobile Responsive "Apps" and "Submissions" Pages
"Mobile Responsive" is a term that just means that if you browse a web page on a mobile device (phone, tablet), then the page adjusts so you can more easily navigate the page. We have been working for a long time now on making our site mobile responsive so folks visiting us on their phone or tablet browsers can more easily understand what we do.
We have now started making "logged in" pages mobile responsive. These are the pages our customers use when configuring their GoCanvas apps. Now the "Apps" page and the "Submissions" pages are mobile responsive. Go ahead and try it! Pick up your phone, browse to our site, log in and go to the "Apps" page and the "Submissions" page. See? They look like this:
| Apps Page | Submissions Page |
|---|---|
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Our side navigation menu pops up when you push the menu button in the top navigation bar (3 horizontal lines).
Lots and logs of other pages are not yet mobile responsive. So if you visit these pages and then click on a link to go to another page you won't be on a responsive page anymore that is optimized for using your mobile device. But we are getting there!
Submission Search Upgrade (Beta)
We are finally ready to turn this on for customers who want to beta test this. We have made a major upgrade to our search engine that is used when you are searching for submissions. Only the basic search has been upgraded so far. If you're interested in being a beta tester please email us at feedback@gocanvas.com.
Comments
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This is so amazing guys! I've been waiting for ages regarding this mirroring feature to become official :)
Thanks again GoCanvas Team!
Great work everyone!
The new 'Mirror' field type I'm assuming replaces the existing mirror option we were able to use? Previously I could mirror a field with the exact same title and that was all, correct?
Thanks!
Hi Chad,
Yes, in most cases it can replace the mirror backdoor. There are some cases where it won't, however, specifically:
In those cases, you still want to be using the backdoor in the receipt label field setting.
The new mirror field does give you the ability to:
So it's all about choosing the way that fits your use case.
hi Sara,
Is it possible to mirror a field that's in a loop?
thank you!
Emily
Hi Emily,
Great question! You can Mirror things INTO a Loop screen or within Loop screens, but not out of a Loop screen (I swear that made sense in my head). That is, a field within a Loop can be a Mirror of a field on a previous screen that's not in the Loop. You can also Mirror a field from one screen in a Loop to another screen in the same Loop. You cannot have a field that is Mirroring a field INSIDE a Loop, because it wouldn't know which iteration of the Loop to Mirror.
Happy to try to clarify further, as I think this might have just made things worse :)
Thanks Sara - it makes sense to me!
Hi Sara,
Unfortunately i need to mirror a field OUT of the loop, together with the loop iteration number that it matches. Its been a year now, has there been any clever updates to make this a possibility?
Sorry, Gerard, but nothing to report here. Because loops have a dynamic number of rows, if you tried to mirror out of it, the field wouldn't know which value to pull. Should it pull the first entry, or the 51st? I don't think there's actually a feature request for this, and I'd love to hear more about your exact use case, so I'd encourage you to submit one: https://help.gocanvas.com/hc/en-us/community/posts/new?community_post%5Btopic_id%5D=360000000247. Thanks!