What is Theme 2?
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Theme 2 is a set palettes that contain ready-made layout components that you can drag into a dashboard. This page explains how to use Theme 2. It covers:
- what’s included in the theme
- how to use the palettes and layout components
- how to edit components
- how to change or add any components that you need.
If you are looking for tutorials on how to use PhixFlow, see the Training Courses.
Why Use Theme 2?
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The Theme 2 provides a responsive layout right out of the box, meaning that your application can adapt to the form factor of the device on which it is being viewed. This is achieved using a tiles. The tiles contain all of the application content and can be resized proportionally to one another depending on the content. So, for example, a tile is larger for a data entry form and smaller for a map.
We recommend using Theme 2 because it provides more functionality than Theme 1 or the standard palettes. It has more flexibility and is even easier to use. We’ve also included a set of the example dashboards that you can use to see how the tiles work in a dashboard. You can find the example dashboards in the PhixFlow repository → Packages → Theme 2.
What Does it Look Like on a GUI Screen?
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What Palettes Use Theme 2?
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Theme 2 is made up of 3 palettes:
- Base Components:
These are like the basic lego blocks from which all screens are created. They have minimal styling and can be used to create to create your own layout components or palette tiles. They include the attribute fields that allow users to create, review, update and /or delete (CRUD) records. - App Builder
These are preconfigured layout components. If Theme 2 - Base Components contains the basic lego blocks, these components are made up of several blocks already fixed together for you. Each component is something you commonly need in the GUI of an application. For example, you often need a CRUD form to update data tables. You may want users to add comments or notes to specific records. The Tiles in the Theme 2 - App Builder pallete make creating your own apps much easier and quicker, as it gives you ready-made screen components. - Buttons: This section provides you with a host of preconfigured buttons that can be used in your applications. These include simple action buttons with an icon, an embedded button with a field that auto generates an email and a filter button which shows the number of records for that filter.
All Theme 2 components have a consistent look and feel, so that your applications will look stylish and professional with minimal effort.
Remember, you can see Theme 2 in action in the example dashboards. You can find these in the repository → Packages → Theme 2→ T2 - Example Dashboard.
How do I Use Theme 2:
How a GUI Screen is Constructed
Before we look in more detail at the layout components in Theme 2, it helps to understand the levels of structure in typical GUI screen, as shown in the following picture.
Using Complete Forms
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Overview of Components
Complete Forms
The following areTheme 2 contains complete forms that can be added directly to a
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dashboard. You can find these in the Theme 2 – App Builder
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palette.
- Splash Screen
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- is useful as a landing page for an application.
- Form Complete
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- has all the elements for a standard dashboard
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- in one tile.
- Form Content - Complete
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- is similar to the Form Complete but it excludes the windows controls.
- Form Content - Empty
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- provides a blank canvas
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- to which
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- you can add your own form design.
- Form Popout - Complete
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- is standalone dashboard
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- for data entry or to display more information
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- in a smaller window.
- Form Confirmation
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- is the smallest of the complete dashboards
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- . it is designed
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- for binary options, “Cancel” or “Confirm”, “Yes” or “No”. It provides a means of styling the messaging.
- Comments Complete
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- is designed as a comments form. It can be added to its own dashboard panel or directly into a tile.
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Using Constituent
ItemsThe constituent parts are the elements which make up the complete forms. They are provided separately so that users can create their own designs more easilyComponents
If you want to tailor your form layouts, Theme 2 also provides parts of forms that you can combine easily into your own design.
- Windows Controls
- Primary Controls
- Consist of the top-level navigation for the application.
- Secondary Controls
- Secondary controls handle the operation of the window such as closing it or potentially an admin page.
- Windows Buttons
- Provides CRUD buttons housed in an area that apply actions at the window level. This bar is intended to be added at the footer of a window.
- Header
- Intended as a primary section header. It contains both static text for you to enter and dynamic text that can be driven from the data backing the form.
- Tile Container
- Houses and controls the layout of all tiles on a dashboard. All tiles must be placed in here to provide a responsive app.
- Tile
- Provide the building blocks of Theme2. Tiles are designed to house the content of the application. It typically consists of:
- Tile
- HeaderIntended to be used as a header for a tile. It acts as a secondary section header.
- Tile
- BodyDesigned to hold the main content of a tile e.g. data grid.
- Tile
- ButtonsFooter area designed to hold action buttons pertaining to the tile.
- Tabs
- TilesProvide a tabulated form of tile, Tab tiles can contain any number of tabs.
- We have two types:
- TabsThese provide an icon, header, and subtext.
- Tabs
- TabsProvides only an icon to indicate content.
- Tile Map & Tile Map
- DirectionsThis is a preconfigured tile that contains an integrated Google map. To implement it you will require a Google Map Key API, instructions for generating one can be found here.
- Resizable
- ResizableThis tile allows users to resize a tile in the application to suit their needs.
- Expanding
- TilesProvide an expanding area that can house additional content that is not always required to be visible e.g. more options.
- Comments
- This is a preconfigured card component designed specifically for adding comments.
- Base Components
- These are the standard PhixFlow building blocks from which all of the components we have discussed are constructed. These include fields and date pickers.
- Buttons
- Provides a selection of buttons designed to meet your design requirements. A specific video is provided to outline all the types of button provided
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