Design
Last updated
Last updated
An application is a visual representation of a sequence of steps, some of which are to be performed by a user, typically on a mobile device. The application consists of user steps, which require the user to do something; external system steps, which connect to underlying systems and databases thru connectors; various flow control steps, which for example tell the workflow how to proceed from the current step to the next.
The sequence of steps is determined by flow sequence arrows that bind them together.
The below image shows an application with a start step, three user steps, and an external system step. Above the first two user tasks is an external system step that only retrieves data and it is connected to the user task with a sequence data arrow.
An application is designed using Designer. It is a separate application that you need to install on your Windows computer before creating your Connect application. The installer can be downloaded from here.
Open the application by selecting the application card or use the context menu Open in Designer in Hub.
The application is opened in the Designer in edit mode.
Use the save icon in the toolbar to save your work to the server.
Create a new step by dragging and dropping a step from the toolbox to the application canvas, or right-click on the application canvas and select the step type you wish to create from the contextual menu.
To insert a new step between two existing, connected steps, right-click on the sequence arrows and choose the step from the Insert menu.
To insert an existing step between two connected steps, drag the step to insert onto the sequence arrow and drop it when the arrow turns green.
To delete a step, right-click on it and select Delete from the contextual menu or mark the step and press the delete button.
To edit the configuration for a step double-click the element or right-click and select "Edit Configuration..." from the contextual menu.
To add a sequence arrow from one step to another, right-click the source step and select Add Sequence arrow from the contextual menu.
To remove a sequence arrow, right-click on it and select Remove arrow from the contextual menu.
To change the target step of an existing sequence arrow, click on the target point, move the mouse to the new target step and click on it.
To change the source step of an existing sequence arrow, click on the source point, move the mouse to the new source step and click on it.
To add a joint point to a sequence arrow, right-click on the sequence arrow and select Add point from the contextual menu, or hold down the shift key and click on the sequence arrow.
To remove a joint point from a sequence arrow right-click on the joint point and select Remove point from the contextual menu, or hold down the shift key and click on the joining point
While creating or editing a sequence arrow, use the escape key on the keyboard to cancel the current operation.
While adding or modifying a sequence arrow, use the backspace key on the keyboard to remove the joint point closest to the mouse cursor.
While creating a new sequence arrow, create a new target element directly by right-clicking on the empty canvas background and selecting an element to create from the contextual menu.
To control the behavior of a Sequence Arrow, double click on the arrow text. The following window should then appear.
For the Sequence Arrow configuration, you can do the following:
Text: Change the name of the user step exit. This name is what the user will see as text on the exit button in the current User Step.
Available if: Use this configuration if you want to control when an exit should be available for the User. When the given expression evaluates to True, the exit will be available. FlowScript, including any variable from the workflow which can be used in the User Step, can be used to create an expression. Variables defined in the current User Step cannot be used for the Available if expression. If no expression is given, the exit will always be available.
Priority: Use Priority to control in which order the exit button in the User Step appears.
Default: This option can be used if the User Step has many exits and one of the exits should be set as the default exit. The Default option is especially useful when scanning is used to execute the workflow. If this option is checked, the current exit will automatically be selected when the user moves from the last input control on the User Step. This works the same regardless if you move forward using scanning or pressing Enter on your keyboard to move forward.
Applications are all about collecting and consuming data. Pieces of information supplied by the user or fetched from a system or database are stored in named variables in the workflow.
For example, a user step may prompt the user to scan a part number. We may choose to store this information in a variable called, for instance, partNo. The partNo variable will then be available to all user steps following the user step where the variable is created (that is, steps that can be deterministically reached by following the arrows from the user step).
The Flow Designer automatically checks the application to ensure that variables are used correctly; making sure that a variable cannot be consumed before it is created. However, unlike some programming languages, variables don't need to be explicitly declared beforehand - assigning a variable (in a user step or machine step) automatically brings it into existence.
When using variables in the user steps (for example in texts and lists) use {} to get a list of all available variables or write the name of the variable in {} like the picture below. In a machine step the syntax of how to get the variables differs depending on the connector used, read more about what syntax to use here: external system step.
To move the view focus to the start item, press the home button on your keyboard.
Scrolling through the workflow:
The Navigation panel, drag the red square to show different parts of the workflow
Hold down the Ctrl key on your keyboard and drag the mouse on the workflow canvas
The arrow keys on your keyboard
Zooming the workflow in or out:
The scroll wheel on your mouse
The View menu
Ctrl and + or Ctrl and -
Image/PDF export
To export the workflow as a PDF file, select "Export as PDF..." from the File menu
To export the workflow as a more print-friendly PDF file, select "Export as PDF(print)..." from the File menu
To export the workflow as an image file, select "Export as Picture..." from the File menu
