Specifying column extended attributes

In addition to adding a comment to associate with a column, you can specify extended attributes for each column. An extended attribute is information specific to PowerBuilder that enhances the definition of the column.

1. Do one of the following:

   • Highlight the column in either the Objects view or the Object Layout view and select Properties from the Object or pop-up menu.

   • Click the Properties button.

   • Drag and drop the column to the Object Details view.

2. Select a tab and specify extended attribute values:

   Select this tab	To modify these extended attributes
   General	Column comments.
   Headers	Label text used in free-form DataWindow objects. Header text used in tabular, grid, or n-up DataWindow objects.
   Display	How the data is formatted in a DataWindow object as well as display height, width, and position. For example, you can associate a display format with a Revenue column so that its data displays with a leading dollar sign and negative numbers display in parentheses.
   Validation	Criteria that a value must pass to be accepted in a DataWindow object. For example, you can associate a validation rule with a Salary column so that you can enter a value only within a particular range. The initial value for the column. You can select a value from the drop-down list. The initial value must be the same datatype as the column, must pass validation, and can be NULL only if NULL is allowed for the column.
   Edit Style	How the column is presented in a DataWindow object. For example, you can display column values as radio buttons or in a drop-down list.

3. Right-click on the Column property sheet and select Save Changes from the pop-up menu.

   Any changes you made in the property sheet are immediately saved to the table definition.

Extended attributes are stored in the PowerBuilder system tables in the database. PowerBuilder uses the information to display, present, and validate data in the Database painter and in DataWindow objects. When you create a view in the Database painter, the extended attributes of the table columns used in the view are used by default.

In the Database painter, you create display formats, edit styles, and validation rules. Whatever you create is then available for use with columns in tables in the database. You can see all the display formats, edit styles, and validation rules defined for the database in the Extended Attributes view.

By default, PowerBuilder uses the column names as labels and headings, replacing any underscore characters with spaces and capitalizing each word in the name. For example, the default heading for the column Dept_name is Dept Name. To define multiple-line headings, press Ctrl+Enter to begin a new line.