Date Picker Form Element

The Date Picker form element allows the user to select a date using a calendar.

To use a date picker, the user clicks the left arrow or right arrow to change the month and year, and then selects the date in the calendar (). Alternatively, the user can type a date directly into the box. To close the calendar, the user either clicks the calendar's Close button or clicks outside the calendar (). To re-open the calendar, the user clicks in the date box.

Example of the Date Picker form element, shown in a Geocortex viewer

Date Picker Properties

The Properties table describes the properties of the Date Picker form element.

Property names in Workflow Designer's Properties panel are written using the capitalization and spacing of a title. Property names in expressions are valid JavaScript identifiers and start with a lower case letter. Expressions are case sensitive. When you access a form element property in an expression, you must use the correct capitalization.

In the table below:

If a property can be accessed in both the Properties panel and expressions, then the table gives both versions of the name.
If a property's name in the table starts with a lower case letter, then you can only access the property in expressions.
If a property's name starts with a capital letter and the table does not give a name to use in expressions, then you can only access the property in the Properties panel.

Properties of the Date Picker Form Element

Description

Type: String

A description of the element. The description appears below the element's title.

You can use the Description property to describe what the element represents or to provide instructions to the user about how to use the element.

You can format the description using Markdown.

Element ID

Type: String

The element's ID, which is used in other form elements and activities to access the element's properties, including the user's input. The ID must be unique across all elements in the form.

You cannot set the value of the Element ID property in an expression—you can only use the value that you configured for it. To use the Element ID property in an expression:

${Display Form ID}.state.{Element ID}.{property name}

For example:

$form1.state.datePicker1.visible

Enabled

Type: Boolean

Name in Properties Panel: Enabled

Name to Use in Expressions: enabled

Indicates whether the date picker is enabled in the running workflow. When a date picker is enabled, the user can select a date. When a date picker is disabled, the user can see the date picker but cannot interact with it. Disabled elements appear dimmed or shaded in the running workflow.

By default, date pickers are enabled. To disable a date picker, clear the Enabled checkbox. You may want to change the property's value at run time depending on the user's input in a previous form element.

To access the enabled property in an expression:

${Display Form ID}.state.{Element ID}.enabled

For example:

$form1.state.datePicker1.enabled

error

Type: String | MarkdownRef

Indicates whether an error occurred in the element.

We recommend using the Set Form Element Error and Clear Form Element Error activities to work with errors in form elements.

Required

Type: Boolean

Name in Properties Panel: Required

Name to Use in Expressions: require

The Required checkbox is intended as a quick way to do simple validation without having to add a validate event. When you add a validate event, the Required check is not performed even if the checkbox is selected. To force the Required check to be performed when a validate event is configured, add a Propagate Form Event activity anywhere within the event's subworkflow.

Indicates whether the user must select a date in the date picker. When the date is required, the user cannot submit the form until a date appears in the date box.

By default, date pickers are not required. To require a date picker, select the Required checkbox.

To access the require property in an expression:

${Display Form ID}.state.{Element ID}.require

For example:

$form1.state.datePicker1.require

styleName

Type: String

Indicates the name of the style that will be applied to the element.

To access the styleName property in an expression:

${Display Form ID}.state.{Element ID}.styleName

For example:

$form1.state.datePicker1.styleName

Title

Type: String

The element's title, which appears at the top of the element. You may want to change the title to describe what the element represents in your workflow.

You can format the title using Markdown.

Tooltip

Type: String

A message that displays when the user hovers the mouse pointer over the date picker. You may want to use the tooltip to provide help to the user.

type

Type: String

The variety of form element. Date pickers are type "DatePicker".

Use the type property to find out the variety of a form element in a form with many elements. Loop through ${Display Form ID}.state, comparing each element to the known form types and performing some action on the elements that meet your type criteria.

To access the type property in an expression:

${Display Form ID}.state.{Element ID}.type

For example:

$form1.state.datePicker1.type

value

Type: DateTimeRef

An object of type DateTimeRef that represents the currently selected date. The object has a value property that is the date value. To access the value in an expression:

${Display Form ID}.state.{Element ID}.value.value

For example:

$form1.state.datePicker1.value.value

Visible

Type: Boolean

Name in Properties Panel: Visible

Name to Use in Expressions: visible

Indicates whether the element is visible to the user. By default, date pickers are visible. If you want to hide the element, clear the Visible checkbox. You may want to change the visibility at run time depending on the user's input in a previous form element.

To access the visible property in an expression:

${Display Form ID}.state.{Element ID}.visible

For example:

$form1.state.datePicker1.visible

Date Picker Events

The following table describes the events associated with the Date Picker form element. As in Workflow Designer, the events are listed in the order that they fire.

Events for the Date Picker Form Element

load

The load event fires when the element finishes loading.

You can use the load event to set one or more of the element's properties at run time. For example, you could set the date picker's initial value.

change

The change event fires when the user selects a date.

You can use the change event to create dependencies between form elements. For example, you could configure a change subworkflow that enables or disables other form elements depending on the user's selection.

The change event fires every time the user's selection changes. This means that the change subworkflow can run multiple times. Because of this, you should make sure that the change subworkflow is not computationally intensive or long running.

validate

The validate event fires when the user clicks a button that causes validation.

You can use the validate event to verify that the user's input is valid before allowing the form to submit. If the input is not valid, use the Set Form Element Error activity to display an error to the user and prevent the form from submitting. If the input is valid, use the Clear Form Element Error activity to clear an existing error and allow the form to submit.

If you use a Set Form Element Error activity, make sure you also use a Clear Form Element Error activity to clear the error. Otherwise the form may get stuck in an invalid state.

By default, the Required property does not work when the date picker has a validate event. If you want the workflow to perform the Required check, add a Propagate Form Event activity to the validate subworkflow. The Propagate Form Event activity instructs the workflow to perform the Required check after the validate subworkflow completes.

For an example, see Example - Subworkflow for a Validate Event.