Epi7 Field Attributes

Field Attributes
Fields have properties or attributes that help control how or if they receive data. Each field type
has a set of available field attributes; however, some options may not be shown or may be disabled
(grayed out) depending on the field type selected.

Required field attribute makes a field mandatory in data entry. If a page contains fields
marked with the Required attribute, the Enter tool will not allow record navigation or the saving
of a partially completed record until a value is supplied in all Required fields.

Use With Caution! The Required attribute can potentially cause gridlock if, for any reason, the
required information is not available at the time of data entry. It is best to use this attribute
sparingly to avoid this situation.

Additionally, Check Code can be used to set or unset a fields required status. For more
information on this feature, refer to the topics in the Check Code Command Reference on the SET-
REQUIRED and SET-NOT-REQUIRED commands.

Read Only prevents data entry into the field. This attribute is used for fields that hold
calculated or prepopulated values that should not be edited. The cursor cannot be placed in the
field and therefore no data entry can occur. Also, since the cursor cannot enter a field with this
attribute, Check Code written for this field will not have a chance to run. The Read Only attribute
is useful for calculated fields that will not be changed directly. Read Only cannot be used in
combination with the Required attribute because those attributes are mutually exclusive.