2.14.11 Help Text Considerations when using Panel Groups
In general, apart from the considerations below, help text for Panel Groups can be entered in exactly the same way as help text using the LANSA display facility.
Window Size
LANSA determines the UIM help window width for an object (Field, Function or Process) from the longest line entered for the object, including the window title. The user can influence the window width by keeping the lines of text longer or shorter. The window length is determined by the cursor position at execution time and can not be influenced. For consistent help text presentation, site standards for window width should be considered.
Text Formatting
In the LANSA implementation of Panel Groups, text formatting by UIM is disabled, so the text is shown at execution time exactly in the way that it is entered through SEU using the LANSA supplied facilities, as long as the text entered does not exceed a total of 66 characters per line.
Wrapping of Text onto the Next Line
To avoid the wrapping of text onto the next line, the help text entered should have a maximum line length of no more than 66 characters. From position 67 onwards, all positions in the source file should be left blank when editing help text.
Window Title
LANSA automatically designs a window title for Fields, Functions and Processes. For fields, this title consists of the field description, plus the field name if enough space is available (i.e. if the description is no longer than 35 characters, the maximum allowable title length in UIM being 55 characters). For processes and functions, this title consists of the process or function description.
To replace the automatically designed title with a different title, use the $$TITLE substitution value described in the section on substitution/control values. The title will be truncated if it exceeds the maximum allowable in the UIM language of 55 characters.
Automatic Help
Automatic help produced by LANSA is recorded at the time the Panel Group is compiled. The help text presented by a Panel Group will not reflect any subsequent changes in field definitions or validation rules, or any other help text changes, until the Panel Group is re-compiled.