element validation causes form confusion

[p38]

I have an isuniquevalue validation on an element.

All works Ok if the validation event is not fired. I can Cancel and Save.

Now force a validation by entering a previous value.

The validation message is shown which is correct. Now press CANCEL and you will see the form remains visible and you cannot close it.

Now press SAVE, and altho the Success Save message is shown, the form remains and you cannot get out of it.

Paul

 

[rob]

is this from a form that is loaded via ajax in a pop up window?

 

[troester]

I don't know what Cancel is doing (wrong) in this case.

But I think the SAVE behaviour is the expected one:
SAVE is going to "history" (one back), if you've used CANCEL before, it's going to the canceled form (same with SAVE after APPLY, see http://www.fabrikar.com/forums/inde...-to-behave-the-same-as-the-save-button.35900/)
So you should add a redirect pluging if you have additional buttons (Cancel, apply) beside SAVE.

 

[p38]

no ajax, just plain default settings.

To my mind, if you press CANCEL (actually the Back button, I simply called it cancel) then you must go back out of the form screen.

I think the logic is incorrect, irrespective of history. perhaps the concept of "Back" button should not be used for Cancel actions, but there is no cancel button.

I am not sure why there is not a "Cancel" button available, this would solve any grey areas.

I only use the save and back button, nothing else.

 

[rob]

Well go back simply does that - goes back 1 in the browser history. So a failed from submit redirects the browser to the same form with the failed validation messages. Thus, going back '1' in the history takes you back to the form again, I don't really see a way round that

 

[p38]

problem is, in the scenario I gave you, the user is caught in an endless loop and cannot get out of that screen, even if he saved the correct details after a validation failure.
So if you have a screen that does not have an menu items to fallback onto, then the user is stuck.

So if you had a Cancel button, this would solve it. Is there a reason why a Cancel button was never implemented?

 

[rob]

cancel is to my mind the same as goback and will suffer from the same issues. I could imagine it being quiet difficult to accurately asscertain which page the user means to go back to as apposed to which page is actually the previous page in the history. Its the kind of thing that sounds simple, but I can see quiet a few gotchas which would produce undesired effects.

I'd presume your users can still navigate with the site menu, so are not actually stuck. If he saves the correct details after a validation are you providing a redirect plugin to manage things?

 

[p38]

do you agree my scenario will put a user form into an endless state that he cannot get out of (assuming one does not have a Home menu option as a backdoor exit)?

Paul

 

[rob]

Well I'd hardly call a menu a 'back door'
Yes its a loop, but as I've tried to explain that's "just the way it is with the back button" - its EXACTLY like pressing back in the browser. Could you answer my question regarding the redirect plugin?

 

[rob]

If its such an issue - then for a specific form you can add a HTML link to the page that you believe the user might have come from before hitting the form page.

 

[p38]

After developing software for over 30 years, I have come to the conclusion that most users need to be spoonfed and handheld and invariably suffer from BBAK sickness......."between brain and keyboard"

I know for a fact I will get support calls regarding this, even if there are menu items and links to escape.

Here is a suggestion if at all possible..... can one not add a "Custom" button to the form buttons with a URL placeholder supported link property? Then we can implement any "user required intervention", which will be quite nice as we can also have added functionality to the form, eg: preview via popup, or cancel completely and go elsewhere.

Alternatively, the Custom button can link to the redirect plugin, and action whatever has been setup there?

Paul

PS: In the many sites if have done using fabrik, I have never needed to use the redirect, I was not aware that we needed to use this when pressing SAVE.

 

[rob]

an one not add a "Custom" button to the form buttons with a URL placeholder supported link property?

I think that was what I was suggesting in my last reply? If you want a button to take you to a fixed url you can add that into the form template

 

[cheesegrits]

PS: In the many sites if have done using fabrik, I have never needed to use the redirect, I was not aware that we needed to use this when pressing SAVE.

If you don't use a specific redirect, we redirect to the referring page (the 'http_referer' environment variable in PHP). So for most Fabrik usage, where the user clicks Add on a List, that's fine. They'll end up back at the List they came from.

But for any usage where they may not be coming from a List, they'll just wind up "where they came from", which obviously we have no control over, and could be the form itself, if they failed validation.

So it's usually best to add your own specific redirect location, even if it may seem unnecessary. It won't hurt, and can avoid unexpected issues.

-- hugh