In this chapter we will create a simple workflow, to create invoices for a chosen contact. This uses many of the features of app building you have used up to this point, and adds a new feature - context variables - which are crucial as you take users from one screen to another in a workflow.

Intermediate step: assign transaction to contact

In this exercise, we will create the intermediate step of the workflow, where the user can assign a transaction to a chosen contact. In the exercise you will need a sample file of transactions. You can download the file here:

• Invoice Transactions.xlsx

Create this first step of the workflow in your app. To recap the steps in the video:

• Add a file collector to your model, call this Invoice Transactions
• Upload the test file Invoice Transactions.xlsx to configure the file collector and create a stream
• Load the list of invoice transactions
• Create a new dashboard Assign Transactions
• Add two views to the dashboard:
  • In the top half, create a form called Contact Details Assign Trans
  • Open the configuration form for the stream Contacts, and drag on all attributes on to the form
  • Hide the UID field, and re-arrange the fields on the form - don't forget about the layout options on forms under [right click] → Arrange the selected items
  • Create a grid view in the bottom half, from the stream Invoice Transactions, including all attributes from the stream
• Create an action on the Contacts stream - we will use this to initiate the invoice creation process from the Contacts dashboard:
  • Name: Start invoice creation
  • Display Name: Start invoice creation
  • In the section Action Completion:
    • (We will not tick Close Parent Dashboard - in this case, the parent dashboard is the Contacts dashboard, and we want to leave this open)
    • Tick Open Post Dashboard, then Apply
    • Drag in the dashboard Assign Transactions to create a dashboard rule
  • Open the section Context Parameters
  • Create a new context parameter:
    • Name: UID
    • Expression: _form.UID
    • This will take the value of UID from the currently select contact in the Contacts app, and save it to a context variable; we can then use this value at the next stage of the process
• Add a button to the Contacts dashboard to start the invoice process
• Call the button: Create Invoice
• Associate the custom action Start invoice creation with the button
• Update the button label to Create Invoice
• Apply a filter to the contact form in the dashboard Assign Transactions to show the selected contact:
  • Right click on the contact form in the dashboard, and go to Dashboard Options → Show Element Details
  • In the element details, add a background filter:
    • Name: by UID
    • Condition: UID = _context.UID (don't forget to make the condition an expression, by pressing the ABC button)

Open the Contacts dashboard, and go into App Mode. Select a contact, and press the Create Invoice button - this will take you to the Assign Transactions dashboard, with details for the selected contact shown.

Final step: create invoice