Event Handlers dialog box

Use this dialog box to create, copy, edit, delete, enable or disable event handlers for the current form. You can also change the order in which event handlers execute and find strings in event handler specifications.

Note: This topic refers to the system of Windows client form events, and not to the Application Event System, in which events and handlers are defined for application-wide use.  

About the display

The content of the event handlers list depends on how you open the dialog box:

  • If you open the dialog box from the Events sheet for the component, with no event name specified, the list displays all event handlers for the form.
  • Similarly, if you open the dialog box from the Windows client menu bar (Edit > Event Handler), the list displays all event handlers for the current form.
  • If you open the dialog box from the Events sheet with an event specified, this dialog box lists only the event handlers that are associated with the specified event. In this case, the title bar of the dialog box identifies the event whose event handlers are listed.
Note: 
  • The dialog box indicates whether each event handler is defined on the base form or the extended form.

    See About creating new forms by extension.

  • Event handlers on the base form are grayed out, indicating that they are not available for editing on this form. To edit the event handler for the extended form, select it and click Edit . In the Event Handler Properties dialog box, first set the From Base Form property to False , and then you can edit it like any other event handler.
  • This causes the event handler to be associated with the extended form. Be aware that, if you have a base form event with multiple handlers, and you edit one handler this way, all the other handlers defined for that event also become associated with the extended form.

The grid in this dialog box displays this information about each event handler:

Column Description/Comments
Event Indicates the internal name of the event for which the handler is defined
Seq Indicates the order in which the event handler executes

This zero-based list number is significant only when an event has multiple event handlers. You can change this sequence using the Up and Down arrows at the bottom of the dialog box.

Type Indicates what type of event handler is defined
Disabled When selected, indicates that the event handler is not to be executed
Response Indicates how Windows client is to respond when the event handler executes

This typically consists of a set of parameters that define what the handler is to do.

Dialog box options

This dialog box includes these action buttons:

Button Description/Comments
Event filter To specify a single event for which you want to view the defined handlers, use this drop-down list.

To view all event handlers, select [ALL] .  

OK To finish working in the dialog box and save your changes, click this button.
New To create a new event handler, click this button.

This button launches the Event Handler Properties dialog box, which allows you to define the new event handler.

Copy To copy an event handler, select the handler to copy and click this button.

This is useful when you want to base a new event handler on an existing handler with changes.

This button launches the Event Handler Properties dialog box, populated with the attribute for the handler you are copying.

Edit To edit an existing event handler, select the handler and click this button.

This button launches the Event Handler Properties dialog box, populated with the attributes for the specified handler.

Delete To delete an event handler, select the handler and click this button.
Cancel To cancel any changes made and close the dialog box, click this button.
Handlers To filter the list of event handlers for the event generated by a handler of the type, click this button.

This is enabled only when the current handler is of the type Generate Event.

Find To search the list of event handlers for a particular handler, click this button.

You can search by keyword, method, parameter, or other specifications.

Up and Down arrows To change the sequence order of event handlers, use these buttons.

These buttons are enabled only if an event has multiple handlers.

Help To view the help topic for this dialog box, click this button.