Fields are created, edited, and deleted in FIELD EDITOR. As noted in Introduction to Fields, configurations made to a field in FIELD EDITOR impact its appearance and functionality in any screen it's added to. For more information about configuring fields at the screen level, see Creating and Editing Screens and Screen Data Fields.
To create a new field, navigate to SETUP > FIELD EDITOR and click ADD FIELD.
Define the field's Table Type, Display Name, Data Name, and Type, and add any comments or tooltip text.
Table Type: the category of the field. Refer to Introduction to Fields for descriptions of the field categories.
Field Display Name: how the field will display in screens. The name cannot be more than 255 characters in length (pasted text that is beyond the character limit will be cut off).
Field Data Name: a unique identifier for the field. Once a field is saved, the Field Data Name cannot be changed. No two data fields can have the same Field Data Name. If you attempt to save a field with a Field Data Name already in use, you'll receive an error message. The name cannot be more than 98 characters in length.
Field Type: what type of data the field will collect. The nine different types of fields are outlined in Introduction to Fields. Once a field is saved, the Field Type cannot be changed.
Comments: additional information about the field. Core Fields associated with the HMIS Data Standards, for example, include the Data Element number and name in the comments.
Tooltip Text: text entered here will display in screens when a user hovers over the field.
After completing the initial field configuration, click SAVE CHANGES. Additional field(s) appear:
Publish to Data Analysis: includes the field in a Data Analysis model. Refer to our Custom Fields in Data Analysis article for additional information.
| Note: Please be aware that once a field is published to Data Analysis, it cannot be removed. |
Field Marker: If you select "Housing Inventory Custom" for the Table Type, a Field Marker toggle will be displayed after you click SAVE CHANGES.
- Designating a field as Field Marker enables the system to cascade data to a Housing Inventory setup screen from the screen above it. In other words, the value of a field on a Site screen can be pulled into a Building screen, and from a Building screen to a Unit screen, etc.
- If the Field Marker toggle is turned off, you can still use this field as a regular field, just not as a Field Marker.
- Field Markers can be used on Building, Unit Configuration Type, and Unit screens. Field Markers cannot be used on Sites screens because Sites screens are at the top of the Housing Inventory hierarchy, so there is no higher-level screen from which to cascade the information.
- After turning on the Field Marker here, the next step is to navigate to SETUP > SCREENS, select a Housing Inventory screen to edit, and either add that field to the screen or select that field to edit. You will see a Field Marker toggle in the SCREEN FIELD EDITOR. Refer to the Screen Field Editor Overview article for additional details.
Creating Picklist Selection Options
If the Field Type "Picklist" is selected, an additional Selection Options section will display, allowing you to create the drop-down menu options that will be available for the field.
Four options will automatically be included: "Select," "Client doesn't know," "Client refused," and "Data not collected." If not applicable, these selections can be edited or removed by hovering over the selection and clicking the delete or edit icon.
To add new selections, click Add Selection.
In the Edit Picklist Item popup, enter a Value and Description.
After you have finished adding selections to the field, click Save Changes.
System administrators can change the order of picklist Selection Options by clicking the option and dragging and dropping it to the desired location.
Editing and Deleting Existing Custom Fields
To edit or delete a field, hover over the field in the Field Editor search results and click either the edit or delete icon. If a field is currently included in a screen, you will not be able to delete that field until first removing it from any screens it's been added to. For more information on editing fields within screens, see Creating and Editing Screens.
