Presentation of simple attributes

When AwareIM generates the default form it uses the default representation of attributes. This default presentation depends on the attribute type and other properties. For example, for attributes with choices when other values are not allowed it generates a drop down control, for attributes of the “Yes/No” type it generates a checkbox control etc. Sometimes it is desirable to use other types of controls for certain attributes – for example, for attributes with choices we could use radio buttons instead of a drop down control. AwareIM allows a certain level of customization in how attributes are displayed (see also the “Adding/Editing Attributes”).

In this section we will change the default presentation options of the Gender and Status attributes of the Member object. Both attributes have two choices (Female and Male for the Gender attribute and Active and Suspended for the Status attribute) and other values are not allowed. Because we have quite a bit of space on the form we will represent these choices as radio buttons, rather than a drop down.

Open the Member object for editing and select the Gender attribute on the Attributes tab. Click on the Presentation tab on the list of attribute properties. Select Radio buttons in the Widget property drop down. Then click on the “Save” button to save changes to the object. Similar changes can be applied to the Status attribute.