Text Area
Introduction
A text area is used to display and, optionally, allow the end-user to edit the value of an attribute of data type String. It differs from a text box In that the value can be displayed over several lines.
A text area must be placed in a data container and displays an attribute of the object(s) retrieved by that container. The name of the attribute to be displayed is shown inside the text area, between square brackets, and colored blue.
For example, the following text area allows the end-user to see, and set, the Notes about a contact.
Properties
An example of text area properties is represented in the image below:
Text area properties consist of the following sections:
Common Section
Data Source Section
This selects which attribute will be used within the widget. You can only select attributes which have the correct data type(s).
For more information on selecting a data source, see the Data Source Section section in Properties Common in the Page Editor.
Design Properties Section
Editability Section
Editability determines whether an end-user can change the value in an input widget.
For more information on properties of this section, see the Editability Section section of Properties Common in the Page Editor.
Events Section
On Change
The on change property specifies an action that will be executed when leaving the widget, either by using the Tab key or by clicking another widget after the value has been changed.
On Change Behavior
The on change behavior property lets users select how on change is handled in Studio Pro via the following options:
- When user leaves input field (Default)
- While user is entering data
When User Leaves Input Field (Default)
Text area will apply changes when a value is different than a previously saved value in the database and the following condition is met:
- Blurred: this will trigger on change and on leave events
This means that there is no way for users to trigger an on change event while typing. To address that use case, please use the second option: While user is entering data.
While User is Entering Data
This option allows users to trigger an on change event while they are typing.
Text area will save changes if both these conditions are met:
- The value is different than the previously saved value in the database
- The last change occurred after the configured Apply after (ms) length of time
With While user is entering data, users can adjust one more property called Apply after (ms) (described above). This will reduce the amount of the calls made for an on change event, thus improving app performance.
On Enter
The on enter property specifies an action that will be executed when the widget is entered, either by using the Tab key or by clicking it.
On Leave
The on leave property specifies an action that will be executed when leaving the widget, either by using the Tab key or by clicking another widget.
This differs from the on change property in that the event will always be triggered, even if the value has not been changed.
General Section
Grow Automatically
This property defines whether the text area grows automatically depending on the amount of text in it.
Default: No
Number of Lines
Number of lines determines the size of the text area, based on the height of the lines. If the text in the text area contains more lines, a scroll bar will enable the end-user to see it all. This property is only used if Grow automatically is set to No.
Default: 5
Counter Message
This is the text displayed when typing in the text area. This text has two parameters. The first parameter contains the number of characters already typed and the second parameter contains the maximum number of characters.
For example, if you use the counter message You've used {1} characters of the {2} characters that are allowed. for your text area, the end-user will see this message displayed below the text area widget:
Text Too Long Message
This is the text displayed when the number of characters is higher than the maximum allowed number of characters.
This type of message can also occur when a loaded or stored value exceeds the character limit
Maximum Length
This property specifies the maximum number of characters that can be typed in this text area.
| Value | Description |
|---|---|
| Attribute length (default) | The maximum number of characters is the same as the maximum length of the connected attribute |
| Unlimited | The maximum number of characters is unlimited |
| Custom | The maximum number of characters is specified in the widget properties |
Placeholder Text
The placeholder text is shown when no text has been entered yet, or when a displayed attribute is empty.
It can be used, for example, to give a hint to the end-user what kind of text should be entered.
Autocomplete
The autocomplete property specifies if a text area should have autocomplete enabled. The autocomplete attribute also improves mobile devices’ ability to pre-populate fields.
AutoFocus
If true, the text area will be rendered focused with the device keyboard opened.
Label Section
A label describes the purpose of a widget to the end-user.
For more information on properties of this section, see the Label Section section in Properties Common in the Page Editor.
Validation Section
Here, you can specify predefined or custom validation which must be applied to the widget value before the data can be used. You can also customize the message which the end-user will get if the data does not pass the validation.
For more information on input widget validation, see the Validation section of Properties Common in the Page Editor.
Visibility Section
Visibility determines whether a widget is displayed to the end-user as part of the page.
For more information on properties of this section, see the Visibility Section section in Properties Common in the Page Editor.