CAA Product Help

(HELP ?) Circles provide narratives on Training, Explanations, and Hints. These can be related to the overall screen, or to specific items on the screen.

This (HELP ?) Circle narrative is for the "ADD CUSTOM FIELD" Screen and Display Panel in MemberLink and specifically for the "Instructions for Custom Data Fields" section of the screen.

This screen is used to "Add" a Custom Data Field to the system. A Custom Data Field is also sometimes referred to as a User-Defined Data Field or a Church-Defined Data Field.

At the bottom of this (HELP ?) Circle narrative, there is an explanation of the corresponding "Modify" function.

The first section of this screen addresses the "Choose Field Type" and how to assign it to a Custom Data Field. After you select the "Field Type", proceed with the rest of the screen to "Add" or "Modify" the Custom Data Field by supplying the remaining information.

** Note: There is another (HELP ?) Circle on this screen that provides more detail on the "Field Type" section of the screen. It is next to the label that says, "Instructions regarding field types:".

The following (HELP ?) Circle narrative addresses the rest of the screen after the "Field Type" has been selected.

To ADD or 'create' a Custom Data Field:

First, choose a field type as explained above. Then proceed with remaining steps to complete this process.

Name of Custom Data Field:
To complete the rest of the screen, start by giving the Custom Data Field a name. Enter the name in the box provided.

** Note 1 on Names: Custom Data Fields must each have unique names, and can be up to 40 characters long. If the field name is longer than 40 characters, only the first 40 are the "true name" and must be unique. Anything after 40 characters is displayed but is not considered part of the name.

** Note 2 on Names: Custom Data Field names must begin with an alphabetic character (A to Z, upper case or lower case are both okay). Numbers and special characters are not permitted in the first position of the name.

Data Required Checkbox:
The [DATA REQUIRED?] Checkbox is used to indicate the data field CANNOT be skipped when entering a new record (adding a new person). If you check this box, the person's Profile cannot be created or updated without including data in this field. If this Checkbox is empty, that means this field can be skipped or left blank.

Field Name Color:
The (FIELD NAME COLOR) Radio Button is optional. The Custom Data Field will be shown in the default (BLACK) Radio Button color on the "PROFILE" Screen and on the ROW/COLUMN FORM of this screen unless the (GREEN) Radio Button color or (RED) Radio Button color is selected. You can use Green or Red colors to cause certain data fields to "stand out" "" for example, any fields marked "Admin Data Field Only?" could be flagged in Green to make them more obvious to system Administrators; and fields marked "Members Read-Only?" could be flagged in Red to separate them from the others and make them more obvious.

Show When Search/Selecting Checkbox:
The [SHOW WHEN SEARCH/SELECTING?] Checkbox is used to indicate if this data field should be included on the "SEARCH CONTACTS" Screen. Checking this box allows you to make the Custom Data Field a searchable field.

Admin Data Field Only Checkbox:
The [ADMIN DATA FIELD ONLY?] Checkbox is used to indicate if this data field appears on the "PROFILE" Screen ONLY in the Administrator Module. If the box is checked, "Regular Users" will not see this data field when they login to the Member Portal module. It will contain data that is only used by the Administrators and will not be visible in the Member Portal module.

Members Read-Only Checkbox:
The [MEMBERS READ-ONLY?] Checkbox is used to indicate this data field appears on the "PROFILE" Screen of both the Administrator Module and the Member Portal module. However, while visible in the Member Portal module, it will not be updatable there. Users can see the data field and its contents, but cannot change it. They will have to notify the church office to have it changed, allowing the church office to control the changes.

** Note 1 on Admin Read-Only: If both the [ADMIN DATA FIELD ONLY?] Checkbox and the [MEMBERS READ-ONLY?] Checkbox are NOT checked, the data field will be shown in the Member Portal module and will be updatable. The member will see it on the "PROFILE" Screen and will be able to change it themselves.

** Note 2 on Admin Read-Only: If you check both the [ADMIN DATA FIELD ONLY?] Checkbox and the [MEMBERS READ-ONLY?] Checkbox, the Admin-Only will take precedence. If you check Admin-Only, the data field will NOT be shown in the Member Portal module even if Read-Only box is also checked.

Toggle Help Field:
The "Toggle Help Field" gives you the opportunity to create a (HELP ?) Circle narrative related to this Custom Data Field. Click the + to open a (HELP ?) Circle text entry box. You can create and enter a context-sensitive "Help Text" narrative to describe this Custom Data Field and how to use it properly. This "Help Text" will be available on the "PROFILE" Screen where this Custom Data Field is displayed and used.

Finally, to add or create the new field, the last step is to click the [ADD CUSTOM FIELD] Button.

** Important:
If the field type is Drop-Down Box, Group Drop-Down Box, or Group Checkboxes, you have to complete this screen and then come back with an extra step to "Modify" the data field and create or assign those selection values. Those three "Field Types" can only be finalized by returning to this screen after clicking the [ADD CUSTOM FIELD] Button.

To MODIFY (update) a Custom Data Field:

If you are modifying an existing Custom Data Field (instead of adding one), this screen works in the same way as when you are doing an "Add". The original custom field name and parameters will be displayed, and you can change them accordingly.

Click the [MODIFY CUSTOM FIELD] Button to save your work.

** Important:
If you change the "Field Type", you might lose the data already assigned to your database contact records. You can change a Text Field to a Text Box, for example, and the data will be preserved. However, if you change a Drop-Down Box to a Text Field, for example, the Drop-Down Box values will be lost. It would be better to create a new Custom Data Field in most cases, rather than change the Field Type.

"CAA Product Help" from CAA Ministries at Support@CAAsoftware.com or 404-551-4230