Suites: Helix Design Suite, Helix Data Suite, Required Suite, Standard Suite, AppleScript Types

Helix Design Suite

Helix Design SuiteApple events in Helix that control the design elements of a collection. This version of the dictionary was produced from Helix RADE 6.2.1 (5970).
«suite helx»

Commands

Add

add (verb)Add an existing object or record as an element. Only one of the optional parameters (at or after) may be specified. (from Helix Design Suite)
«event helxaddC»

Function Syntax

set theResult to «event helxaddC» index element, field, abacus, post or menu item ¬
     «parameter aftR» abacus, field or integer ¬
     «parameter insh» integer or location specifier

Result

index elementThe added object or record.

Parameters

Parameter
Required
Type
Description
direct parameter required index element, field, abacus, post or menu item The object or record to add. This varies depending on what you are adding to. This needs extensive documentation.
after
«parameter aftR» 		optional abacus, field or integer Add the new item after the specified value. In a user menu, specify the ordinal position the item should be inserted after; items below this are pushed down. In an index, specify the icon in the ordering key to put this ordering key after.
at
«parameter insh» 		optional integer or location specifier In a user menu, specify the ordinal position where the item should be inserted; the existing item and all below it are pushed down. In an index, the front is the most significant key. 'front' is equivalent to 1. Only 'front', 'back', or an integer is recognized.

Allow incoming connections

allow incoming connections (verb)Controls whether new clients will be accepted. This is valid for Server only. (from Helix Design Suite)
«event helxAlIn»

Command Syntax

«event helxAlIn» boolean

Parameters

Parameter
Required
Type
Description
direct parameter required boolean TRUE to allow clients to connect; FALSE to disallow them.

Check rectangle overlap

check rectangle overlap (verb)Check that rectangles do not overlap. (from Helix Design Suite)
«event helxChRO»

Function Syntax

set theResult to «event helxChRO» template ¬
     «parameter AbtE» boolean

Result

list of error recordA list of rectangles that overlap

Parameters

Parameter
Required
Type
Description
direct parameter required template Checks for rectangle overlap.
stopping on error
«parameter AbtE» 		optional boolean Optional. If specified as true, any detected error will cause an error return. Default is false, which returns a list of errors as the result of the command.

Check structure

check structure (verb)Check the structure of the entire collection. The function of this command is likely to change in the future, but for now it writes a log file detailing any errors that it finds. (from Helix Design Suite)
«event helxChSt»

Function Syntax

set theResult to «event helxChSt» collection ¬
     «parameter AbtA» boolean ¬
     «parameter fixE» boolean ¬
     «parameter retL» boolean ¬
     «parameter dspP» boolean ¬
     «parameter wrtL» boolean

Result

integer or list of structure check resultThe maintenance count, unless 'returning list' is true: list of maintenance fixes.

Parameters

Parameter
Required
Type
Description
direct parameter optional collection The collection to check. This is optional because there is only one collection that can be checked.
displaying progress
«parameter dspP» 		optional boolean If specified as true, a progress dialog is displayed during the structure check, and summary dialog is displayed at its completion. If there are no errors and nothing to fix, the summary dialog is not displayed.
fixing errors
«parameter fixE» 		optional boolean If not specified or specified as TRUE, fixes any errors. If specified as FALSE, every error will cause an error to be returned.
returning list
«parameter retL» 		optional boolean If true, returns a list of errors. If the structure check stops with an error, the error list is returned in the partial result of the catch block, otherwise the error list is returned as the value of the command. Only the first 32767 errors are returned. If a list is not requested, the count of the number of errors corrected is returned instead. Note: macOS 10.4 does not support the 'true' option.
stopping for errors
«parameter AbtA» 		optional boolean If specified as TRUE, any error detected will return an error. If not specified or FALSE, only structure damage will return an error.
writing log
«parameter wrtL» 		optional boolean If false, will not write log file to ~/Library/Logs/Helix/SC_.log

Close

close (verb)Close a window or icon. (To close the collection, see close collection.) (from Helix Design Suite)
«event helxclos»

Description

A window is simply a representation of an underlying object within Helix. A window may display information about an icon, such as when a relation window displays the contents of that relation. A window may also display other information about the current Helix environment, such as the information displayed in the Collection Information window.

Windows are identified by their index number, which is the front-to-back order of all of the open windows. Using this index number, a window can be closed by specifying its current position, as in close window 1 to close the frontmost window. You can also close an icon’s window by specifying the icon as the direct parameter for the close command, as in close relation "Customers" or close relation 3. You should not attempt to close a window by name, as in close window "Customers" — to close an icon by name, specify the icon itself.

Additional notes:

  • When the direct parameter is omitted, the window of the current target is closed.
  • When an icon editor window is closed, changes made to that icon are automatically committed.
  • Windows are managed by the Helix application, and are not technically part of the collection itself, so when working with windows, the target should be the application itself, not a specific icon within an open collection.
  • If the close command is sent to an icon that is not open, no error is returned. (Sending the command to a non-existent window does return an error.)

Command Syntax

«event helxclos» window, list of window, helix icon or list of helix icon

Parameters

Parameter
Required
Type
Description
direct parameter optional window, list of window, helix icon or list of helix icon the window(s) or icon(s) to close.

Classes

The following classes respond to the close command:
sequence window form query power query field
relation data icon collection user post
abacus index view template helix icon

Close collection

close collection (verb)Close Collection (from Helix Design Suite)
«event helxclHp»

Command Syntax

«event helxclHp» collection ¬
     «parameter savo» save options ¬
     «parameter HeK9» boolean

Parameters

Parameter
Required
Type
Description
direct parameter optional collection The collection to close. This is ignored since currently Helix can only have one collection open.
discarding unentered data
«parameter HeK9» 		optional boolean Setting this parameter to true discards any unentered records without a dialog asking for permission. Note: when saving is false, this is automatically true.
saving
«parameter savo» 		required save options Specify whether to save changes, display dialogs, etc.

Commit

commit (verb)Commit changes that have been made. Returns an error if a specified icon does not have pending changes. If the icon(s) can not be committed, an error occurs. Examine the 'partial result' property of the error for specific objects that prevented the commit. (from Helix Design Suite)
«event helxKmit»

Function Syntax

set theResult to «event helxKmit» helix icon or list of helix icon

Result

list of helix iconList of icons that were changed. On error, the 'partial result' property of the error lists the specific icon(s) that prevented the commit.

Parameters

Parameter
Required
Type
Description
direct parameter required helix icon or list of helix icon The icons to commit

Classes

The following classes respond to the commit command:
template field

Commit all

commit all (verb)Commit all outstanding changes to the collection. Changes to entire collection are committed, no matter which object receives this command. If any icon can not be committed, none is committed and an error is thrown. (from Helix Design Suite)
«event helxKmtA»

Function Syntax

set theResult to «event helxKmtA»

Result

list of helix iconList of icons that were changed. On error, the 'partial result' property of the error lists the specific objects that prevented the commit.

Delete all data

delete all data (verb)This removes all data from a field or relation. Deleting all data can take a long time, so be sure to specify a timeout value in your script. (from Helix Design Suite)
«event helxdelD»

Command Syntax

«event helxdelD» field, list of field, relation or list of relation

Parameters

Parameter
Required
Type
Description
direct parameter optional field, list of field, relation or list of relation

Do menu

do menu (verb)Selects the specified menu item, just as if a user had chosen it from the menu. If the menu item leads to a dialog, that dialog will be presented and the script will hang until the dialog is handled by the user. (from Helix Design Suite)
«event helxHEdm»

Description

The do menu command is a ‘menu driver’ with no real intelligence of its own. An example of usage: a system administrator can create a launchd task to run script that used ‘do menu’ to invoke a sequence that need to run during off-peak hours. (However, for this particular task, the run sequence command is a better choice.)

do menu searches for the specified menu item beginning in the left-most menu (the Apple menu) and working across to the right. Each menu is checked, and the first instance of a matching menu item found is processed.

If no error is encountered, no reply is returned by do menu. If no matching menu item is found, error 280 is returned; if a matching menu item is found, but is disabled, error 290 is returned.

In Helix RADE do menu works in both Design Mode and User Mode, and is also available in Helix Client and Helix Engine.

Command Syntax

«event helxHEdm» text or list of text

Parameters

Parameter
Required
Type
Description
direct parameter required text or list of text Menu item to choose. When the parameter is a list, only the first item in the list is processed.

Get color index

get color index (verb)Get the RGB color at given index in the Helix color table. (from Helix Design Suite)
«event helxgCiX»

Function Syntax

set theResult to «event helxgCiX» color index

Result

RGB colorThe color at the specified index

Parameters

Parameter
Required
Type
Description
direct parameter required color index The index of the color to get. Must be between 0 and 255.

Get index for color

get index for color (verb)Get index of a color (from Helix Design Suite)
«event helxgXCi»

Function Syntax

set theResult to «event helxgXCi» RGB color ¬
     «parameter XcMt» boolean

Result

color indexWhere the color was found in the index table

Parameters

Parameter
Required
Type
Description
direct parameter required RGB color The color to look up in the color index table
exact match required
«parameter XcMt» 		optional boolean If false or omitted, Helix returns the index of the closest entry in the color table. If this is true, Helix returns the the index only if it is an exact match. If there is no exact match, Helix returns an error.

Login

login (verb)Identify the user to protect against unauthorized access. (from Helix Design Suite)
«event helxlogN»

Command Syntax

«event helxlogN» text ¬
     «parameter pwdH» text ¬
     «parameter modP» boolean

Parameters

Parameter
Required
Type
Description
direct parameter required text User name of a user with Design Mode access.
modify
«parameter modP» 		optional boolean If TRUE, two important things happen: (1) The collection cannot have any external access. That is, no clients (if Server) and no data Apple Event processes may be active (if RADE, Engine, or Server.) (2) Subsequent Apple Events may change the structure of the collection.
password
«parameter pwdH» 		optional text The user's password.

Logout

logout (verb)Terminate Apple Event access to the collection. (from Helix Design Suite)
«event helxlogT»

Command Syntax

«event helxlogT»

Move

move (verb)Move rectangle to a new ordinal (z-index) value. Only one of the four optional parameters may be specified. In a normalized template, background rectangles appear only at the back of the page rectangle. This command does not enforce that requirement. (See the normalize template command.) (from Helix Design Suite)
«event helxmove»

Command Syntax

«event helxmove» template rectangle ¬
     «parameter aftR» template rectangle ¬
     «parameter insh» location specifier ¬
     «parameter forW» integer ¬
     «parameter bckW» integer

Parameters

Parameter
Required
Type
Description
direct parameter required template rectangle The rectangle to move.
after
«parameter aftR» 		optional template rectangle The new ordinal (z-index) value for the object. This can be used to move a rectangle between bounding rectangles (border or repeat rectangles), but not from one template to another. (To do that, make a new rectangle with the same properties.) In a normalized template, all background rectangles are directly in the page rectangle.
backward
«parameter bckW» 		optional integer Number of rectangles to pass in the backward direction.
forward
«parameter forW» 		optional integer Number of rectangles to pass in the forward direction.
to
«parameter insh» 		optional location specifier Only 'front' or 'back' is recognized. It moves the rectangle to the named end of the group or repeat rectangle that it is currently in.

Normalize template

normalize template (verb)Deprecated command. This no longer does anything. Templates are always normalized. (from Helix Design Suite)
«event helxShRc»

Command Syntax

«event helxShRc»

Rebuild

rebuild (verb)Rebuilds an index (icon or keyword) when records appear out of order, or when a format change invalidates current indexes. (from Helix Design Suite)
«event helxRbld»

Command Syntax

«event helxRbld» index or field

Parameters

Parameter
Required
Type
Description
direct parameter required index or field The icon (index or keyword field) to rebuild

Remove

remove (verb)Remove an element. Either the direct object or the at parameter may be specified, but not both. (from Helix Design Suite)
«event helxrmvC»

Function Syntax

set theResult to «event helxrmvC» index element, location specifier, integer, post or menu item

Result

index elementThe object or record removed.

Parameters

Parameter
Required
Type
Description
direct parameter optional index element, location specifier, integer, post or menu item The object or record to remove. An integer can also be used to specify the item by its ordinal (z-index) value.

Revert

revert (verb)Forget changes that have been made. Returns an error if a specified icon does not have pending changes. (from Helix Design Suite)
«event helxRbak»

Function Syntax

set theResult to «event helxRbak» helix icon or list of helix icon

Result

list of helix iconList of icons that have had changes discarded

Parameters

Parameter
Required
Type
Description
direct parameter required helix icon or list of helix icon The icon to revert

Classes

The following classes respond to the revert command:
template field

Revert all

revert all (verb)Discard all pending changes to all icons. (from Helix Design Suite)
«event helxRbkA»

Function Syntax

set theResult to «event helxRbkA»

Result

list of helix iconList of icons that have had changes discarded

Set color index

set color index (verb)Set an indexed color. DEPRECATED. Indexed color will be removed in a future version of Helix. (from Helix Design Suite)
«event helxsCiX»

Command Syntax

«event helxsCiX» color index ¬
     «parameter colr» RGB color

Parameters

Parameter
Required
Type
Description
direct parameter required color index The index number of the color to set
color
«parameter colr» 		required RGB color The color to set at the given index

Set permissions for

set permissions for (verb)Change allowed operations (from Helix Design Suite)
«event helxsetP»

Command Syntax

«event helxsetP» view ¬
     «parameter data» allowed operations or list of allowed operations

Parameters

Parameter
Required
Type
Description
direct parameter required view The icon to change allowed operations for. This command can be used two different ways: tell <user> to set permissions for <view> to <permissions>, or. tell <view> to set permissions for <user> to <permissions>. Permissions may be examined by looking at the permissions elements of a user (but they cannot be changed there)
to
«parameter data» 		required allowed operations or list of allowed operations Permissions to set for this user/view combination

See Also

menu item permissions elements

Version

version (verb)Returns the version of Helix that is running. DEPRECATED: get the 'version' property of the application instead. (from Helix Design Suite)
«event helxHEvi»

Function Syntax

set theResult to «event helxHEvi»

Result

integer

Classes

Abacus

abacus (noun), pl abaciAn abacus holds a calculation
«class Hclc»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
answer index
«property Cans» 		get integer The element number containing the root of the calculation tree for the expression represented by this abacus icon. if there are no dangling arrows, or more than one dangling arrow, this property is 0, indicating an invalid abacus.
background color
«property Tbci» 		get/set RGB color or color index The background color of the window that displays this icon. Meaningful only for view, form query, power query, relation and collection windows. Deprecated feature: When getting this property, use "as integer" to get the color index.
helix icon
backlinks
«property Dbkl» 		get list of helix icon List of some of the icons that refer to this icon. This list is used internally to optimize inter-icon updating, and is not very useful.
helix icon
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
closeable
«property Dcbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a close button?
helix icon
cold form
«property Dnup» 		get/set boolean (Formerly Keep Current) A cold form does not refresh when data changes would cause it to be updated. This property is meaningful only for view icons.
helix icon
comment
«property Fvdt» 		get/set text The comment on the icon
helix icon
common calculation
«property Cfvi» 		get/set boolean Retain the result of an abacus calculation in memory.
custom name
«property Fnam» 		get/set text The custom name of the icon
helix icon
data type
«property Lvty» 		get/set data types Specific type of data this field stores, or this abacus produces. The default data type for a new field is text. For an abacus, the data type is read only.
data icon
expression
«property Cexp» 		get/set text The entire abacus expression in a single line
format
«property Tfmt» 		get/set date format, fixed point format, number format, flag format, text format or missing value Characteristics used to display the data. The type of format must be matched to the 'data type' property.
data icon
has status box
«property Dssi» 		get/set boolean Does the view show the status box? (This is a Classic-only feature, and will be removed at some point.
helix icon
horizontally scrollable
«property Dhsl» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a horizontal scroll bar?
helix icon
id
«property ID  » 		get integer ID is unique within each collection
object
includes form tile
«property Cfrm» 		get boolean There is a form tile somewhere in this calculation.
includes form time tile
«property Cftm» 		get boolean There is a form time tile somewhere in this calculation.
includes inert field
«property Cdns» 		get boolean There is an inert field somewhere in this calculation.
includes lookup tile
«property Clkt» 		get boolean There is a lookup tile somewhere in this calculation.
includes post time tile
«property Cptm» 		get boolean There is a post time tile somewhere in this calculation.
includes statistics tile
«property Cstt» 		get boolean There is a statistics tile somewhere in this calculation.
includes today tile
«property Ctdy» 		get boolean There is a today tile somewhere in this calculation.
includes unique tile
«property Cuni» 		get boolean There is a unique tile somewhere in this calculation.
includes use from tile
«property Cget» 		get boolean There is a use from tile somewhere in this calculation.
includes user name tile
«property Cnam» 		get boolean There is a user name tile somewhere in this calculation.
invisible
«property Dinv» 		get/set boolean Is the window for this icon invisible?
helix icon
location
«property Tolc» 		get/set rectangle Coordinates of the window that opens when this icon is opened, including the title bar.
helix icon
locked
«property Dlck» 		get/set boolean Can the icon be modified? Note: Locking does not prevent all changes to an icon; some changes are still possible.
helix icon
name
«property pnam» 		get/set text The name of the icon
helix icon
parent
«property Dfth» 		get collection or relation The icon that contains this icon. For example: a fields parent is the relation it is in.
helix icon
position
«property Dwhr» 		get/set point The relative position of an icon when the collection or relation is in "View by Icon" mode. These are not fixed values, but represent an offset (in pixels) from the current center point of the icons. Minimum/Maximum values are ±32767.
helix icon
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item
resizeable
«property Dgbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a resize widget?
helix icon
selection
«property sele» 		get/set list of helix icon The icons selected in the icon. (Currently only supported in collection and relation icons.)
helix icon
show page boundaries
«property Dpgb» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon show page separation lines? Meaningful only for views.
helix icon
summary calculation
«property Csum» 		get boolean This is some kind of summary calculation.
used by
«property Dusd» 		get list of helix icon List of icons that refer to this icon
helix icon
vertically scrollable
«property Dvsl» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a vertical scroll bar?
helix icon
window type
«property Ddfp» 		get/set window types The type of window used when this icon is opened. Meaningful only for views.
helix icon
zoomable
«property Dzbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a zoom button?
helix icon

Elements

Element
Access
Key Forms
Description
abacus element get/ make/ delete by index
 One piece of the abacus calculation. Typically, this is a tile, but it may also be an icon when the abacus is improperly constructed.

Commands

The abacus class responds to the following commands:
Command
Description
close Close a window or icon. (To close the collection, see close collection.)
close Close a window or icon. (To close the collection, see close collection.) helix icon
open Open a collection if none is open, or open one or more icons in an open collection. helix icon

Superclass

The abacus class inherits elements and properties from data icon.

Where Used

The abacus class is used in the following ways:

element of relation class

direct parameter to the add command/event

abacus icon property of the data rectangle class/record

after parameter of the add command/event

calculated label property of the command rectangle class/record

calculation property of the conditional color item class/record

dangler property of the abacus element class/record

display value property of the dynamic popup class/record

host link icon property of the subform linkage class/record

iteration value property of the conditional sequence item class/record

parent property of the tile class/record

sorting icon property of the index element class/record

source query property of the dynamic popup class/record

stored value property of the dynamic popup class/record

subform link icon property of the subform linkage class/record

subform query property of the subform linkage class/record

validation calculation property of the field class/record

view query property of the view class/record

Abacus element

abacus element (noun), pl abacus elementsTiles and icons that appear on the surface of the abacus window.
«class Hvrf»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
dangler
«property Hdgl» 		get/set tile, abacus, field, template or relation The object that is not in any other tile.
location
«property Tolc» 		get/set point The upper left corner of icon or the upper left corner of a box around the dangling arrow.
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item

Superclass

The abacus element class inherits elements and properties from item.

Where Used

The abacus element class is used in the following ways:

element of abacus class

Application

application (noun)The application's top-level scripting object.
«class capp»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
apple event maximum add
«property AeMa» 		get/set integer Preference HxAppleEventMaxAdd. The maximum number of records to add in one Apple Event.
apple event maximum delete
«property AeMd» 		get/set integer Preference HxAppleEventMaxDel. The maximum number of records to delete in one Apple Event.
apple event maximum get
«property AeMg» 		get/set integer Preference HxAppleEventMaxGet. The maximum number of records to get in one Apple Event.
check structure on open
«property PrCo» 		get/set boolean Preference HxCheckStructureOnOpen. Check structure when opening collection.
check structure on save
«property PrCs» 		get/set boolean Preference HxCheckStructureOnSave. Check structure when saving collection.
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
current apple event processes
[synonyms: current processes]
«property AeCe» 		get integer The number of Apple event processes currently open.
current users
«property PrCu» 		get integer The number of clients currently logged into Server. For RADE or Engine, the result is always 1.
frontmost
«property pisf» 		get boolean Is this the frontmost (active) application?
maximum apple event processes
[synonyms: maximum processes]
«property AeMe» 		get integer The limit on the number of Apple event processes that can be open at one time.
maximum users
«property PrMu» 		get integer The limit on the number of users this program is licensed for. In Server, this is the number clients that can connect at the same time. In RADE, this is the number of copies of the program that can run at the same time.
name
«property pnam» 		get text The name of the application.
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item
selection
«property sele» 		get/set list of helix icon The icons selected in the front window (collection and relation windows only.) If the window does not support icon selection, missing value is returned.
version
«property vers» 		get text The version of the application.

Elements

Element
Access
Key Forms
Description
collection get by name
by index
by unique ID
 A Helix database structure, created with Helix RADE. A collection contains all the internally stored data and structures that have been created, entered and saved.
window get by name
by index
by range
relative to others
by whose/where
by unique ID
 A graphic interface element that shows the contents of an icon.

Commands

The application class responds to the following commands:
Command
Description
open Open a collection if none is open, or open one or more icons in an open collection.
print Print a document.
quit Quit application

Superclass

The application class inherits elements and properties from item.

Collection

collection (noun), pl collections[synonyms: col]This outermost structural object of a Helix collection. Contains relation, sequence, and user elements.
«class Hhep»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
active user
«property Vmbr» 		get user The user icon that is currently active. This may be a primary (top level), secondary (submenu) or administrator user type. Not available in Server.
autosave
«property Pasp» 		get/set autosave parameters The parameters for autosave, including the boolean to turn it on and off.
background color
«property Tbci» 		get/set RGB color or color index The background color of the window that displays this icon. Meaningful only for view, form query, power query, relation and collection windows. Deprecated feature: When getting this property, use "as integer" to get the color index.
helix icon
backlinks
«property Dbkl» 		get list of helix icon List of some of the icons that refer to this icon. This list is used internally to optimize inter-icon updating, and is not very useful.
helix icon
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
closeable
«property Dcbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a close button?
helix icon
cold form
«property Dnup» 		get/set boolean (Formerly Keep Current) A cold form does not refresh when data changes would cause it to be updated. This property is meaningful only for view icons.
helix icon
collection password
«property Xpwd» 		set text A password that is required to open the collection.
columns
«property Pseq» 		get/set list of icon list columns A list of four column names, indicating the order of the columns (after the icon column)
comment
«property Fvdt» 		get/set text The comment on the icon
helix icon
current users
«property PrCu» 		get integer The number of clients currently logged into Server.
custom name
«property Fnam» 		get/set text The custom name of the icon
helix icon
display mode
«property Pmod» 		get/set display modes The display mode
dividers
«property Pdvx» 		get/set list of integer Four integers in ascending order, indicating the left edge (in pixels) of the four named columns in the window.
file
«property file» 		get alias The disk path to the collection as an alias.
has status box
«property Dssi» 		get/set boolean Does the view show the status box? (This is a Classic-only feature, and will be removed at some point.
helix icon
horizontally scrollable
«property Dhsl» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a horizontal scroll bar?
helix icon
id
«property ID  » 		get integer ID is unique within each collection
object
invisible
«property Dinv» 		get/set boolean Is the window for this icon invisible?
helix icon
location
«property Tolc» 		get/set rectangle Coordinates of the window that opens when this icon is opened, including the title bar.
helix icon
locked
«property Dlck» 		get/set boolean Can the icon be modified? Note: Locking does not prevent all changes to an icon; some changes are still possible.
helix icon
modified
«property imod» 		get boolean Has the document been modified since the last save?
name
«property pnam» 		get/set text The name of the icon
helix icon
parent
«property Dfth» 		get collection or relation The icon that contains this icon. For example: a fields parent is the relation it is in.
helix icon
position
«property Dwhr» 		get/set point The relative position of an icon when the collection or relation is in "View by Icon" mode. These are not fixed values, but represent an offset (in pixels) from the current center point of the icons. Minimum/Maximum values are ±32767.
helix icon
primary user
«property Lmbr» 		get user The user icon that is currently active, excluding secondary users. That is, the top level or login user, which is the user that the user name tile returns. Not available in Server.
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item
resizeable
«property Dgbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a resize widget?
helix icon
selection
«property sele» 		get/set list of helix icon The icons selected in the icon. (Currently only supported in collection and relation icons.)
helix icon
session data log
«property Gnam» 		get text Path to the Session Data Log file.
show page boundaries
«property Dpgb» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon show page separation lines? Meaningful only for views.
helix icon
used by
«property Dusd» 		get list of helix icon List of icons that refer to this icon
helix icon
user mode
«property Pusm» 		get/set boolean Is the GUI in user mode (true) or design mode (false). Change this value to change between user mode and design mode. When changing to user mode, this changes the menus to those of the user that is the current user in the GUI, not the user that "logged in" via AppleScript. This can only be changed in RADE; other programs alway report "true".
user name security
«property Pusr» 		get/set boolean Is user name security on?
vertically scrollable
«property Dvsl» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a vertical scroll bar?
helix icon
window type
«property Ddfp» 		get/set window types The type of window used when this icon is opened. Meaningful only for views.
helix icon
zoomable
«property Dzbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a zoom button?
helix icon

Elements

Element
Access
Key Forms
Description
helix icon get by name
by index
by unique ID
 Any of the following
relation get/ make/ delete by name
by index
by unique ID
 A related group of data items and structures.
sequence get/ make/ delete by name
by index
by unique ID
 A series of actions that can be activated with a single command. Sequences can contain user, view, and sequence icons, most menu commands, and some specialized sequence commands.
user get/ make/ delete by name
by index
by unique ID
 A personalized set of menus, with commands, forms (with customizable permissions) and command key equivalents. Users may have passwords to provide data security.

Commands

The collection class responds to the following commands:
Command
Description
close Close a window or icon. (To close the collection, see close collection.) helix icon
open Open a collection if none is open, or open one or more icons in an open collection. helix icon

Superclass

The collection class inherits elements and properties from helix icon.

Where Used

The collection class is used in the following ways:

direct parameter to the save command/event

direct parameter to the close collection command/event

direct parameter to the check structure command/event

element of application class

parent property of the helix icon class/record

Command rectangle

command rectangle (noun), pl command rectangles[synonyms: crec]A rectangle that appears as a button and initiates a sequence when triggered.
«class Hcmr»

Description

Command rectangle creates a clickable button on a view. When clicked, a command rectangle executes one or more sequences. There must be at least one sequence (the command property) in each command rectangle or the entire template is invalid.

The name of the button as it appears on the view is taken from the command label or calculated label property, depending on the value of the use calculated label property.

A button is disabled when there is a calculated label icon whose output is undefined, or when the first command in the primary sequence is invalid in the current environment, e.g. a copy command when no data is selected.

A disabled button is dimmed or made invisible, depending on the value of the hide when disabled property. For a dimmed button, the button name is taken from the first defined value found in these properties, in this order: 1) disabled label, 2) command or calculated label, 3) sequence name.

Only icons that output text are eligible for use as a calculated label.

See this technote for more on button naming.

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
allow print
«property Tnpr» 		get/set boolean The rectangle prints.
styled rectangle
background color
«property Tbci» 		get/set RGB color or color index Color of background of rectangle. Deprecated feature: When getting this property, use "as integer" to get the color index.
styled rectangle
calculated label
«property Rclc» 		get/set abacus or field A text output field or abacus that controls button behavior. If "calculated button label" is true, the output is used as the button's label text. If the icon output is undefined, the button is disabled.
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
command
«property Rcmd» 		get/set sequence The primary sequence for this button.
command label
«property Rdta» 		get/set text or picture The label of the button: picture or text. When "use calculated label" is true, this is ignored. When "use calculated label" is false and this is undefined, the sequence name is used. For a transparent button, set this text to a single space.
conditional sequences
«property Rasg» 		get/set list of conditional sequence item Additional sequences that are run conditionally.
default button
«property Rdcr» 		get/set boolean This button is triggered on any enter event. (Enter key, menu selection, etc.) There can be only one default button on a template; attempting to assign more than one returns an error.
disabled label
«property Runn» 		get/set text Text to use as the name when the button is disabled. If empty, the "command label" or "calculated label" is used.
font
«property Tfnt» 		get/set font style or list of font style run Font style to use, if there is only one, or an ordered list of font style runs
styled rectangle
frame color
«property Toci» 		get/set RGB color or color index Color of frame of rectangle. Deprecated feature: When getting this property, use "as integer" to get the color index.
styled rectangle
framed
«property Tfrm» 		get/set boolean Does the rectangle have a visible frame?
template rectangle
has large picture
«property Rpbs» 		get boolean The rectangle content is a picture larger than 32K. This is a Classic optimization property that may or may not be maintained in macOS.
has local label
«property Rtxt» 		get boolean Deprecated: Classic flag signaling the presence of a local label, as opposed to one derived from the main sequence name.
has picture
«property Rpic» 		get boolean The rectangle content is a picture.
hide disabled button
«property Rund» 		get/set boolean Make the button invisible when the sequence is invalid, or when the "calculated label" output is undefined. False by default, meaning the button is dimmed when disabled.
id
«property ID  » 		get integer ID is unique within each collection
object
justification
[synonyms: alignment]
«property Tjst» 		get/set justification options Text justification direction
styled rectangle
location
«property Tolc» 		get/set rectangle The coordinates that define this rectangle. The four points are returned in {left, top, right, bottom} order. Actual size can be calculated using (right - left) and (bottom - top).
template rectangle
name
«property pnam» 		get text The name of the rectangle. Exactly what is returned varies depending on the rectangle. For data rectangles, it is the name of the field (or abacus if there is no field.) For label rectangles, it is its contents. For subform rectangles, it is the name of the subform template. For command rectangles, it is usually what appears in the button. Other rectangle types return an empty string, but there is always a text value returned.
template rectangle
ordinal
«property Tfld» 		get integer The tab order position of this rectangle on the page. The first rectangle is at 0.
template rectangle
parent
«property Dfth» 		get template rectangle The template rectangle that contains this template rectangle. The parent of a top level rectangle is the page rectangle.
template rectangle
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item
scale picture
«property Tscl» 		get/set boolean The picture should be scaled to fit in the rectangle. Meaningful only if the rectangle holds a picture.
styled rectangle
transparency
«property Rinv» 		get boolean The command label is a single space. Deprecated. macOS ignores this property, calculating transparency regardless of the texts origins.
use calculated label
«property Rdef» 		get/set boolean Whether to use "calculated label" or "command label" for the button name.
visible on first page
«property Tvsf» 		get/set boolean Is the rectangle visible on the first page of a multi-page view?
template rectangle
visible on interior page
«property Tvsi» 		get/set boolean Is the rectangle visible on the interior pages of a multi-page view?
template rectangle
visible on last page
«property Tvsl» 		get/set boolean Is the rectangle visible on the last page of a multi-page view?
template rectangle

Superclass

The command rectangle class inherits elements and properties from styled rectangle.

Constant

constant (noun), pl constantsA value typed directly into a socket in a tile. This object is completely read-only. To use a different constant, make a new constant object.
«class Hcon»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
data type
«property Lvty» 		get data types Interpret the value as this type of data.
id
«property ID  » 		get integer ID is unique within each collection
object
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item
value
«property Next» 		get text The constant value

Superclass

The constant class inherits elements and properties from object.

Data icon

data icon (noun), pl data iconsAn icon that handles data and can be used in a calculation. (That is, a field or abacus.)
«class Hdta»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
background color
«property Tbci» 		get/set RGB color or color index The background color of the window that displays this icon. Meaningful only for view, form query, power query, relation and collection windows. Deprecated feature: When getting this property, use "as integer" to get the color index.
helix icon
backlinks
«property Dbkl» 		get list of helix icon List of some of the icons that refer to this icon. This list is used internally to optimize inter-icon updating, and is not very useful.
helix icon
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
closeable
«property Dcbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a close button?
helix icon
cold form
«property Dnup» 		get/set boolean (Formerly Keep Current) A cold form does not refresh when data changes would cause it to be updated. This property is meaningful only for view icons.
helix icon
comment
«property Fvdt» 		get/set text The comment on the icon
helix icon
custom name
«property Fnam» 		get/set text The custom name of the icon
helix icon
data type
«property Lvty» 		get/set data types Specific type of data this field stores, or this abacus produces. The default data type for a new field is text. For an abacus, the data type is read only.
format
«property Tfmt» 		get/set date format, fixed point format, number format, flag format, text format or missing value Characteristics used to display the data. The type of format must be matched to the 'data type' property.
has status box
«property Dssi» 		get/set boolean Does the view show the status box? (This is a Classic-only feature, and will be removed at some point.
helix icon
horizontally scrollable
«property Dhsl» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a horizontal scroll bar?
helix icon
id
«property ID  » 		get integer ID is unique within each collection
object
invisible
«property Dinv» 		get/set boolean Is the window for this icon invisible?
helix icon
location
«property Tolc» 		get/set rectangle Coordinates of the window that opens when this icon is opened, including the title bar.
helix icon
locked
«property Dlck» 		get/set boolean Can the icon be modified? Note: Locking does not prevent all changes to an icon; some changes are still possible.
helix icon
name
«property pnam» 		get/set text The name of the icon
helix icon
parent
«property Dfth» 		get collection or relation The icon that contains this icon. For example: a fields parent is the relation it is in.
helix icon
position
«property Dwhr» 		get/set point The relative position of an icon when the collection or relation is in "View by Icon" mode. These are not fixed values, but represent an offset (in pixels) from the current center point of the icons. Minimum/Maximum values are ±32767.
helix icon
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item
resizeable
«property Dgbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a resize widget?
helix icon
selection
«property sele» 		get/set list of helix icon The icons selected in the icon. (Currently only supported in collection and relation icons.)
helix icon
show page boundaries
«property Dpgb» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon show page separation lines? Meaningful only for views.
helix icon
used by
«property Dusd» 		get list of helix icon List of icons that refer to this icon
helix icon
vertically scrollable
«property Dvsl» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a vertical scroll bar?
helix icon
window type
«property Ddfp» 		get/set window types The type of window used when this icon is opened. Meaningful only for views.
helix icon
zoomable
«property Dzbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a zoom button?
helix icon

Commands

The data icon class responds to the following commands:
Command
Description
close Close a window or icon. (To close the collection, see close collection.) helix icon
open Open a collection if none is open, or open one or more icons in an open collection. helix icon

Superclass

The data icon class inherits elements and properties from helix icon.

Subclasses

The abacus and field classes inherit the elements and properties of the data icon class.

Where Used

The data icon class is used in the following ways:

permanent items property of the power query class/record

reference items property of the power query class/record

searchable items property of the power query class/record

source data property of the post triplet class/record

source value property of the post parameters class/record

target value property of the post parameters class/record

Data rectangle

data rectangle (noun), pl data rectangles[synonyms: drec]A rectangle that holds a field or abacus icon. (Or one of each.)
«class Hent»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
abacus icon
«property Tcal» 		get/set abacus or null object The abacus that calculates the default value (if a field is present) or the displayed value (if a field is absent). Setting this also sets the format of the rectangle to the format of the abacus.
allow click
«property Tclk» 		get/set boolean Click in rectangle selects it
allow edit
«property Tedt» 		get/set boolean Data may be changed
allow print
«property Tnpr» 		get/set boolean The rectangle prints.
styled rectangle
allow query
«property Tqry» 		get/set boolean field may be queried in quick query or form query.
allow tab
«property Ttab» 		get/set boolean Tab will enter rectangle
background color
«property Tbci» 		get/set RGB color or color index Color of background of rectangle. Deprecated feature: When getting this property, use "as integer" to get the color index.
styled rectangle
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
conditional style
«property Tcdc» 		get/set list of conditional color item List of conditional color choices, in priority order
enable horizontal scrollbar
«property Thsc» 		get/set boolean Include a horizontal scrollbar when necessary to show text. Ignored in macOS due to conflict with word wrap.
enable vertical scrollbar
«property Tvsc» 		get/set boolean Include a vertical scrollbar when necessary to show text.
field icon
«property Tdat» 		get/set field or null object The field icon that holds the data values. Setting this also sets the format of the rectangle to the format of the field icon.
font
«property Tfnt» 		get/set font style or list of font style run Font style to use, if there is only one, or an ordered list of font style runs
styled rectangle
format
«property Tfmt» 		get/set date format, fixed point format, number format, flag format, text format or missing value The characteristics used to display the data. Different properties are required for different data types, so be sure to set the data type before setting the format.
frame color
«property Toci» 		get/set RGB color or color index Color of frame of rectangle. Deprecated feature: When getting this property, use "as integer" to get the color index.
styled rectangle
framed
«property Tfrm» 		get/set boolean Does the rectangle have a visible frame?
template rectangle
id
«property ID  » 		get integer ID is unique within each collection
object
justification
[synonyms: alignment]
«property Tjst» 		get/set justification options Text justification direction
styled rectangle
keep value
«property Tder» 		get/set boolean Use current data value as default value for the next new record
location
«property Tolc» 		get/set rectangle The coordinates that define this rectangle. The four points are returned in {left, top, right, bottom} order. Actual size can be calculated using (right - left) and (bottom - top).
template rectangle
name
«property pnam» 		get text The name of the rectangle. Exactly what is returned varies depending on the rectangle. For data rectangles, it is the name of the field (or abacus if there is no field.) For label rectangles, it is its contents. For subform rectangles, it is the name of the subform template. For command rectangles, it is usually what appears in the button. Other rectangle types return an empty string, but there is always a text value returned.
template rectangle
ordinal
«property Tfld» 		get integer The tab order position of this rectangle on the page. The first rectangle is at 0.
template rectangle
parent
«property Dfth» 		get template rectangle The template rectangle that contains this template rectangle. The parent of a top level rectangle is the page rectangle.
template rectangle
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item
scale picture
«property Tscl» 		get/set boolean The picture should be scaled to fit in the rectangle. Meaningful only if the rectangle holds a picture.
styled rectangle
use custom format
«property Tfov» 		get/set boolean Use the format specified in the rectangle, overriding the format defined for the icon.
visible on first page
«property Tvsf» 		get/set boolean Is the rectangle visible on the first page of a multi-page view?
template rectangle
visible on interior page
«property Tvsi» 		get/set boolean Is the rectangle visible on the interior pages of a multi-page view?
template rectangle
visible on last page
«property Tvsl» 		get/set boolean Is the rectangle visible on the last page of a multi-page view?
template rectangle
word wrap
«property Tcro» 		get/set boolean Wrap words only on return or linefeed. Set to false to wrap text according to the rectangle width.

Superclass

The data rectangle class inherits elements and properties from styled rectangle.

Field

field (noun), pl fieldsA field is an icon that holds data
«class Hcol»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
background color
«property Tbci» 		get/set RGB color or color index The background color of the window that displays this icon. Meaningful only for view, form query, power query, relation and collection windows. Deprecated feature: When getting this property, use "as integer" to get the color index.
helix icon
backlinks
«property Dbkl» 		get list of helix icon List of some of the icons that refer to this icon. This list is used internally to optimize inter-icon updating, and is not very useful.
helix icon
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
closeable
«property Dcbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a close button?
helix icon
cold form
«property Dnup» 		get/set boolean (Formerly Keep Current) A cold form does not refresh when data changes would cause it to be updated. This property is meaningful only for view icons.
helix icon
comment
«property Fvdt» 		get/set text The comment on the icon
helix icon
custom name
«property Fnam» 		get/set text The custom name of the icon
helix icon
data type
«property Lvty» 		get/set data types Specific type of data this field stores, or this abacus produces. The default data type for a new field is text. For an abacus, the data type is read only.
data icon
datakey
«property Xsbx» 		get integer Move along. Nothing to see here.
format
«property Tfmt» 		get/set date format, fixed point format, number format, flag format, text format or missing value Characteristics used to display the data. The type of format must be matched to the 'data type' property.
data icon
has status box
«property Dssi» 		get/set boolean Does the view show the status box? (This is a Classic-only feature, and will be removed at some point.
helix icon
horizontally scrollable
«property Dhsl» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a horizontal scroll bar?
helix icon
id
«property ID  » 		get integer ID is unique within each collection
object
ignore words
«property Lstl» 		get/set list of text Words to ignore when building keyword index. [keyword fields only]
inert
«property Ldns» 		get/set boolean Field is not stored in data base
invisible
«property Dinv» 		get/set boolean Is the window for this icon invisible?
helix icon
keep versions
«property Lhrn» 		get/set boolean keep versions [document type only]
keyword
«property Laky» 		get/set boolean keyword field [text type only]
location
«property Tolc» 		get/set rectangle Coordinates of the window that opens when this icon is opened, including the title bar.
helix icon
locked
«property Dlck» 		get/set boolean Can the icon be modified? Note: Locking does not prevent all changes to an icon; some changes are still possible.
helix icon
name
«property pnam» 		get/set text The name of the icon
helix icon
parent
«property Dfth» 		get collection or relation The icon that contains this icon. For example: a fields parent is the relation it is in.
helix icon
position
«property Dwhr» 		get/set point The relative position of an icon when the collection or relation is in "View by Icon" mode. These are not fixed values, but represent an offset (in pixels) from the current center point of the icons. Minimum/Maximum values are ±32767.
helix icon
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item
record count
«property CHrf» 		get integer The number of records in the relation with a value for this field defined
resizeable
«property Dgbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a resize widget?
helix icon
selection
«property sele» 		get/set list of helix icon The icons selected in the icon. (Currently only supported in collection and relation icons.)
helix icon
show page boundaries
«property Dpgb» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon show page separation lines? Meaningful only for views.
helix icon
storage type
«property dstF» 		get/set document storage types Store documents internally, externally, or let the user choose.
tile validation
«property Lnrs» 		get/set tile validation or missing value When this value is set, the validation is created using the built-in validation tiles. The resulting validation is stored in the 'validation calculation' property.
used by
«property Dusd» 		get list of helix icon List of icons that refer to this icon
helix icon
validation calculation
«property Lrsh» 		get/set abacus or missing value The validation criteria, whether from a built-in tile or user-defined abacus. To use an abacus validation, set this property to the validating abacus.
vertically scrollable
«property Dvsl» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a vertical scroll bar?
helix icon
window type
«property Ddfp» 		get/set window types The type of window used when this icon is opened. Meaningful only for views.
helix icon
zoomable
«property Dzbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a zoom button?
helix icon

Commands

The field class responds to the following commands:
Command
Description
close Close a window or icon. (To close the collection, see close collection.) helix icon
commit Commit changes that have been made. Returns an error if a specified icon does not have pending changes. If the icon(s) can not be committed, an error occurs. Examine the 'partial result' property of the error for specific objects that prevented the commit.
open Open a collection if none is open, or open one or more icons in an open collection. helix icon
revert Forget changes that have been made. Returns an error if a specified icon does not have pending changes.

Superclass

The field class inherits elements and properties from data icon.

Where Used

The field class is used in the following ways:

element of relation class

direct parameter to the rebuild command/event

direct parameter to the delete all data command/event

direct parameter to the add command/event

after parameter of the add command/event

calculated label property of the command rectangle class/record

dangler property of the abacus element class/record

display value property of the dynamic popup class/record

field icon property of the data rectangle class/record

host link icon property of the subform linkage class/record

iteration value property of the conditional sequence item class/record

quick query field property of the quick query expression class/record

sorting icon property of the index element class/record

stored value property of the dynamic popup class/record

subform link icon property of the subform linkage class/record

target field property of the post triplet class/record

Form query

form query (noun), pl form queriesA form query selects a subset of the records in a relation using template driven criteria
«class Hfms»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
background color
«property Tbci» 		get/set RGB color or color index The background color of the window that displays this icon. Meaningful only for view, form query, power query, relation and collection windows. Deprecated feature: When getting this property, use "as integer" to get the color index.
helix icon
backlinks
«property Dbkl» 		get list of helix icon List of some of the icons that refer to this icon. This list is used internally to optimize inter-icon updating, and is not very useful.
helix icon
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
closeable
«property Dcbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a close button?
helix icon
cold form
«property Dnup» 		get/set boolean (Formerly Keep Current) A cold form does not refresh when data changes would cause it to be updated. This property is meaningful only for view icons.
helix icon
comment
«property Fvdt» 		get/set text The comment on the icon
helix icon
custom name
«property Fnam» 		get/set text The custom name of the icon
helix icon
expression
«property Cexp» 		get text The entire form query expression in a single line
has status box
«property Dssi» 		get/set boolean Does the view show the status box? (This is a Classic-only feature, and will be removed at some point.
helix icon
horizontally scrollable
«property Dhsl» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a horizontal scroll bar?
helix icon
id
«property ID  » 		get integer ID is unique within each collection
object
invisible
«property Dinv» 		get/set boolean Is the window for this icon invisible?
helix icon
location
«property Tolc» 		get/set rectangle Coordinates of the window that opens when this icon is opened, including the title bar.
helix icon
locked
«property Dlck» 		get/set boolean Can the icon be modified? Note: Locking does not prevent all changes to an icon; some changes are still possible.
helix icon
name
«property pnam» 		get/set text The name of the icon
helix icon
parent
«property Dfth» 		get collection or relation The icon that contains this icon. For example: a fields parent is the relation it is in.
helix icon
position
«property Dwhr» 		get/set point The relative position of an icon when the collection or relation is in "View by Icon" mode. These are not fixed values, but represent an offset (in pixels) from the current center point of the icons. Minimum/Maximum values are ±32767.
helix icon
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item
resizeable
«property Dgbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a resize widget?
helix icon
search template
«property Sfme» 		get/set template The template to use for the query
selection
«property sele» 		get/set list of helix icon The icons selected in the icon. (Currently only supported in collection and relation icons.)
helix icon
show page boundaries
«property Dpgb» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon show page separation lines? Meaningful only for views.
helix icon
used by
«property Dusd» 		get list of helix icon List of icons that refer to this icon
helix icon
vertically scrollable
«property Dvsl» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a vertical scroll bar?
helix icon
window type
«property Ddfp» 		get/set window types The type of window used when this icon is opened. Meaningful only for views.
helix icon
zoomable
«property Dzbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a zoom button?
helix icon

Commands

The form query class responds to the following commands:
Command
Description
close Close a window or icon. (To close the collection, see close collection.) helix icon
open Open a collection if none is open, or open one or more icons in an open collection. helix icon

Superclass

The form query class inherits elements and properties from helix icon.

Where Used

The form query class is used in the following ways:

element of relation class

source query property of the dynamic popup class/record

subform query property of the subform linkage class/record

view query property of the view class/record

Group rectangle

group rectangle (noun), pl group rectangles[synonyms: grec]A rectangle that defines an area of the template. As page rectangle, it determines the size of the template. Within a template, useful to control tab order: rectangles within a group are all visited before the rectangle is exited.
«class Hlim»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
frame color
«property Toci» 		get/set RGB color or color index Color of frame of rectangle.
frame width
«property Mwid» 		get/set integer Width of frame
framed
«property Tfrm» 		get/set boolean Does the rectangle have a visible frame?
template rectangle
id
«property ID  » 		get integer ID is unique within each collection
object
location
«property Tolc» 		get/set rectangle The coordinates that define this rectangle. The four points are returned in {left, top, right, bottom} order. Actual size can be calculated using (right - left) and (bottom - top).
template rectangle
name
«property pnam» 		get text The name of the rectangle. Exactly what is returned varies depending on the rectangle. For data rectangles, it is the name of the field (or abacus if there is no field.) For label rectangles, it is its contents. For subform rectangles, it is the name of the subform template. For command rectangles, it is usually what appears in the button. Other rectangle types return an empty string, but there is always a text value returned.
template rectangle
ordinal
«property Tfld» 		get integer The tab order position of this rectangle on the page. The first rectangle is at 0.
template rectangle
parent
«property Dfth» 		get template rectangle The template rectangle that contains this template rectangle. The parent of a top level rectangle is the page rectangle.
template rectangle
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item
visible on first page
«property Tvsf» 		get/set boolean Is the rectangle visible on the first page of a multi-page view?
template rectangle
visible on interior page
«property Tvsi» 		get/set boolean Is the rectangle visible on the interior pages of a multi-page view?
template rectangle
visible on last page
«property Tvsl» 		get/set boolean Is the rectangle visible on the last page of a multi-page view?
template rectangle

Elements

Element
Access
Key Forms
Description
template rectangle get/ make/ delete by index
by unique ID
 All rectangles contained within the borders of this rectangle.

Superclass

The group rectangle class inherits elements and properties from template rectangle.

Subclasses

The repeat rectangle class inherits the elements and properties of the group rectangle class.

Where Used

The group rectangle class is used in the following ways:

page rectangle property of the template class/record

Helix icon

helix icon (noun), pl helix iconsIcons are the elements of a Helix collection that are nameable and appear in the collection or relation window.
«class Hicn»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
background color
«property Tbci» 		get/set RGB color or color index The background color of the window that displays this icon. Meaningful only for view, form query, power query, relation and collection windows. Deprecated feature: When getting this property, use "as integer" to get the color index.
backlinks
«property Dbkl» 		get list of helix icon List of some of the icons that refer to this icon. This list is used internally to optimize inter-icon updating, and is not very useful.
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
closeable
«property Dcbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a close button?
cold form
«property Dnup» 		get/set boolean (Formerly Keep Current) A cold form does not refresh when data changes would cause it to be updated. This property is meaningful only for view icons.
comment
«property Fvdt» 		get/set text The comment on the icon
custom name
«property Fnam» 		get/set text The custom name of the icon
has status box
«property Dssi» 		get/set boolean Does the view show the status box? (This is a Classic-only feature, and will be removed at some point.
horizontally scrollable
«property Dhsl» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a horizontal scroll bar?
id
«property ID  » 		get integer ID is unique within each collection
object
invisible
«property Dinv» 		get/set boolean Is the window for this icon invisible?
location
«property Tolc» 		get/set rectangle Coordinates of the window that opens when this icon is opened, including the title bar.
locked
«property Dlck» 		get/set boolean Can the icon be modified? Note: Locking does not prevent all changes to an icon; some changes are still possible.
name
«property pnam» 		get/set text The name of the icon
parent
«property Dfth» 		get collection or relation The icon that contains this icon. For example: a fields parent is the relation it is in.
position
«property Dwhr» 		get/set point The relative position of an icon when the collection or relation is in "View by Icon" mode. These are not fixed values, but represent an offset (in pixels) from the current center point of the icons. Minimum/Maximum values are ±32767.
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item
resizeable
«property Dgbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a resize widget?
selection
«property sele» 		get/set list of helix icon The icons selected in the icon. (Currently only supported in collection and relation icons.)
show page boundaries
«property Dpgb» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon show page separation lines? Meaningful only for views.
used by
«property Dusd» 		get list of helix icon List of icons that refer to this icon
vertically scrollable
«property Dvsl» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a vertical scroll bar?
window type
«property Ddfp» 		get/set window types The type of window used when this icon is opened. Meaningful only for views.
zoomable
«property Dzbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a zoom button?

Commands

The helix icon class responds to the following commands:
Command
Description
close Close a window or icon. (To close the collection, see close collection.)
open Open a collection if none is open, or open one or more icons in an open collection.

Superclass

The helix icon class inherits elements and properties from object.

Subclasses

The collection, data icon, form query, index, post, power query, relation, sequence, template, user, and view classes inherit the elements and properties of the helix icon class.

Where Used

The helix icon class is used in the following ways:

element of relation class

direct parameter to the open command/event

direct parameter to the duplicate command/event

result of commit all command

result of revert command

direct parameter to the revert command/event

result of revert all command

result of commit command

direct parameter to the commit command/event

direct parameter to the close command/event

element of collection class

backlinks property of the helix icon class/record

selection property of the application class/record

selection property of the helix icon class/record

selection property of the window class/record

used by property of the helix icon class/record

Index

index (noun), pl indexesAn index defines an ordering of the data
«class pidx»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
background color
«property Tbci» 		get/set RGB color or color index The background color of the window that displays this icon. Meaningful only for view, form query, power query, relation and collection windows. Deprecated feature: When getting this property, use "as integer" to get the color index.
helix icon
backlinks
«property Dbkl» 		get list of helix icon List of some of the icons that refer to this icon. This list is used internally to optimize inter-icon updating, and is not very useful.
helix icon
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
closeable
«property Dcbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a close button?
helix icon
cold form
«property Dnup» 		get/set boolean (Formerly Keep Current) A cold form does not refresh when data changes would cause it to be updated. This property is meaningful only for view icons.
helix icon
comment
«property Fvdt» 		get/set text The comment on the icon
helix icon
custom name
«property Fnam» 		get/set text The custom name of the icon
helix icon
has status box
«property Dssi» 		get/set boolean Does the view show the status box? (This is a Classic-only feature, and will be removed at some point.
helix icon
horizontally scrollable
«property Dhsl» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a horizontal scroll bar?
helix icon
id
«property ID  » 		get integer ID is unique within each collection
object
index ID
«property Xinx» 		get integer The internal index ID. Index IDs are assigned sequentially as indexes are created, starting with Index ID 2. (Index ID 1 is the master index for the relation.)
invisible
«property Dinv» 		get/set boolean Is the window for this icon invisible?
helix icon
is valid
«property Xval» 		get boolean The index is currently valid, i.e: does not need to be rebuilt.
location
«property Tolc» 		get/set rectangle Coordinates of the window that opens when this icon is opened, including the title bar.
helix icon
locked
«property Dlck» 		get/set boolean Can the icon be modified? Note: Locking does not prevent all changes to an icon; some changes are still possible.
helix icon
name
«property pnam» 		get/set text The name of the icon
helix icon
parent
«property Dfth» 		get collection or relation The icon that contains this icon. For example: a fields parent is the relation it is in.
helix icon
position
«property Dwhr» 		get/set point The relative position of an icon when the collection or relation is in "View by Icon" mode. These are not fixed values, but represent an offset (in pixels) from the current center point of the icons. Minimum/Maximum values are ±32767.
helix icon
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item
resizeable
«property Dgbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a resize widget?
helix icon
selection
«property sele» 		get/set list of helix icon The icons selected in the icon. (Currently only supported in collection and relation icons.)
helix icon
show page boundaries
«property Dpgb» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon show page separation lines? Meaningful only for views.
helix icon
used by
«property Dusd» 		get list of helix icon List of icons that refer to this icon
helix icon
vertically scrollable
«property Dvsl» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a vertical scroll bar?
helix icon
window type
«property Ddfp» 		get/set window types The type of window used when this icon is opened. Meaningful only for views.
helix icon
zoomable
«property Dzbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a zoom button?
helix icon

Elements

Element
Access
Key Forms
Description
index element get/ make/ delete by index
 Each key is an index element. The first is the most significant key. If two records have the same value for the first key, ties are broken by the second key, etc. A new key may be added with the "add" command; a key may be removed with the "remove" command.

Commands

The index class responds to the following commands:
Command
Description
close Close a window or icon. (To close the collection, see close collection.) helix icon
open Open a collection if none is open, or open one or more icons in an open collection. helix icon

Superclass

The index class inherits elements and properties from helix icon.

Where Used

The index class is used in the following ways:

element of relation class

direct parameter to the rebuild command/event

current index property of the dynamic popup class/record

default index property of the view class/record

order index property of the subform linkage class/record

order index property of the view class/record

selectable indexes property of the view class/record

Index element

index element (noun), pl index elementsAn element in an index definition.
«class Hord»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
order
«property Hdir» 		get/set directions The direction to sort
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item
sorting icon
«property Hsic» 		get/set abacus or field The values that are sorted

Superclass

The index element class inherits elements and properties from item.

Where Used

The index element class is used in the following ways:

result of remove command

direct parameter to the remove command/event

result of add command

direct parameter to the add command/event

element of index class

Item

item (noun), pl itemsThe root superclass. Every object has these properties
«class citm»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.

Subclasses

The abacus element, application, index element, menu item, object, permissions element, post parameters, post triplet, retrieved data record, and window classes inherit the elements and properties of the item class.

Label rectangle

label rectangle (noun), pl label rectangles[synonyms: lrec]A rectangle containing text or a picture.
«class Htxt»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
allow print
«property Tnpr» 		get/set boolean The rectangle prints.
styled rectangle
background
«property Tbnd» 		get/set boolean A rectangle that is behind all of the data rectangles.
background color
«property Tbci» 		get/set RGB color or color index Color of background of rectangle. Deprecated feature: When getting this property, use "as integer" to get the color index.
styled rectangle
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
content
«property Tdta» 		get/set picture or text The label (text or picture) being displayed.
font
«property Tfnt» 		get/set font style or list of font style run Font style to use, if there is only one, or an ordered list of font style runs
styled rectangle
frame color
«property Toci» 		get/set RGB color or color index Color of frame of rectangle. Deprecated feature: When getting this property, use "as integer" to get the color index.
styled rectangle
framed
«property Tfrm» 		get/set boolean Does the rectangle have a visible frame?
template rectangle
has large picture
«property Rpbs» 		get boolean The rectangle content is a picture larger than 32K. This is a Classic optimization property that may or may not be maintained in macOS.
has picture
«property Rpic» 		get boolean The rectangle content is a picture.
id
«property ID  » 		get integer ID is unique within each collection
object
justification
[synonyms: alignment]
«property Tjst» 		get/set justification options Text justification direction
styled rectangle
location
«property Tolc» 		get/set rectangle The coordinates that define this rectangle. The four points are returned in {left, top, right, bottom} order. Actual size can be calculated using (right - left) and (bottom - top).
template rectangle
name
«property pnam» 		get text The name of the rectangle. Exactly what is returned varies depending on the rectangle. For data rectangles, it is the name of the field (or abacus if there is no field.) For label rectangles, it is its contents. For subform rectangles, it is the name of the subform template. For command rectangles, it is usually what appears in the button. Other rectangle types return an empty string, but there is always a text value returned.
template rectangle
ordinal
«property Tfld» 		get integer The tab order position of this rectangle on the page. The first rectangle is at 0.
template rectangle
page numbering
«property Tpgn» 		get/set boolean Display instances of P# as the page number.
parent
«property Dfth» 		get template rectangle The template rectangle that contains this template rectangle. The parent of a top level rectangle is the page rectangle.
template rectangle
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item
scale picture
«property Tscl» 		get/set boolean The picture should be scaled to fit in the rectangle. Meaningful only if the rectangle holds a picture.
styled rectangle
visible on first page
«property Tvsf» 		get/set boolean Is the rectangle visible on the first page of a multi-page view?
template rectangle
visible on interior page
«property Tvsi» 		get/set boolean Is the rectangle visible on the interior pages of a multi-page view?
template rectangle
visible on last page
«property Tvsl» 		get/set boolean Is the rectangle visible on the last page of a multi-page view?
template rectangle

Superclass

The label rectangle class inherits elements and properties from styled rectangle.

Menu item

menu item (noun), pl menu itemsA single menu item that appears in the user menu it is part of. Each menu item has a 'command' property; the presence of other properties is determined by the specific 'user menu command' stored in the 'command' property.
«class Mite»

Description

A menu item is an item that appears on the user menu it is part of. (For example: Undo is a menu item found in the Edit user menu.) Each menu item contains at the very least a command property, which is always one of the commands listed in the user menu commands enumeration. All user menu commands (with three exceptions, noted below) end with the word command to differentiate between them and the actual commands, some of which may be executed directly in AppleScript.

A menu item can also have a key binding (also known as a command key equivalent), enabling the user to activate that menu item by pressing keys on the keyboard. When defining a key binding, both the modifier keys and key properties must be defined. Defining one without the other is illegal and results in an AppleScript runtime error.

The three exceptional user menu commands are: invoke icon, menu, and separator. These three user menu commands provide special capabilities and may require or prohibit additional properties to create a valid menu item:

  • invoke icon: When the command property contains the invoke icon command, the icon property must also contain one of the valid menu item icons: view, sequence or user. The hierarchical menu property must not be defined, and the key binding properties (see above) are optional. When a view is stored in the icon property, three additional properties: location, open window and permissions, may also be defined. (Including any of these three properties with any other command or icon type is illegal and results in an AppleScript runtime error.)
  • menu: When the command property contains the menu command, the hierarchical menu property is a read only property of that item. A hierarchical menu is a user menu inserted within a menu item, instead of in the menu bar. When creating a hierarchical menu, you first add menu items to (code: add {command:menu, name:"name"}) (and remove menu items from) the menu item.
  • separator: When the command property contains the separator command, a standard Macintosh menu item separator is inserted in the menu. Separators are provided for organizational or decorative purposes, and serve no other function. Separators have no additional properties, and specifying any of them for a separator is illegal and results in an AppleScript runtime error.

When working with existing menu items, always test the command property before assuming the presence of other properties. Determining which user menu command is present will identify which additional properties may be present and which are prohibited. For example, attempting to get the icon property of a separator results in an AppleScript runtime error, because no icon property exists for a separator menu item.

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
command
«property Rcmd» 		get/set user menu commands The command to execute. May be 'invoke icon', 'menu', 'separator', or any command permitted on user menus.
hierarchical menu
«property mnuH» 		get user menu A menu inserted into another menu. To create a new hierarchical menu, 'tell' a user menu to 'add' a menu item containing a 'menu' command.
icon
«property Icon» 		get/set view, user or sequence The icon (view, sequence or user) to invoke. Menu items containing an icon may optionally include a keyboard shortcut (key + key modifiers properties) and, for views, the location, permissions, and open window properties.
key
«property Ckey» 		get/set text or integer The keyboard shortcut key. A single character as text type. To assign a function key (Fkey) specify a value between 1 and 16 as integer type. When specifing a non-function key, the modifier keys property must also be defined. Not all combinations are supported at this time; incompatible combinations return an error.
location
«property Tolc» 		get/set rectangle Coordinates of the window that opens when this icon is opened, including the title bar. Only present when the 'icon' property contains a view.
modifier keys
«property cmdP» 		get/set key modifiers Modifier keys for the keyboard shortcut. When specified, the key property must also be defined.
open window
«property opnW» 		get/set boolean Window is initially open when user logs in. Only present when the 'icon' property contains a view.
permissions
«property Hvmp» 		get/set allowed operations or list of allowed operations Operations allowed on the view. Only present when the 'icon' property contains a view. 'all' means all permissions are enabled; 'none' means all permissions are disabled.
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item

Superclass

The menu item class inherits elements and properties from item.

Where Used

The menu item class is used in the following ways:

element of user menu class

direct parameter to the remove command/event

direct parameter to the add command/event

See Also

permissions elements set permissions for

Null object

null object (noun), pl null objectsA space-holder indicating that there is no object for this purpose. In many cases, supplying a null object is equivalent to not supplying any object.
«class Hnil»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
id
«property ID  » 		get integer ID is unique within each collection
object
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item

Superclass

The null object class inherits elements and properties from object.

Where Used

The null object class is used in the following ways:

abacus icon property of the data rectangle class/record

default index property of the view class/record

field icon property of the data rectangle class/record

order index property of the view class/record

subform query property of the subform linkage class/record

view query property of the view class/record

Object

object (noun), pl objectsAn object in the collection
«class cobj»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
id
«property ID  » 		get integer ID is unique within each collection
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item

Superclass

The object class inherits elements and properties from item.

Subclasses

The constant, helix icon, null object, step, subform linkage, template rectangle, tile, and user menu classes inherit the elements and properties of the object class.

Where Used

The object class is used in the following ways:

result of delete command

direct parameter to the delete command/event

element of tile class

element of styled tile class

icon property of the window class/record

partial result property of the error record class/record

Permissions element

permissions element (noun)View permissions for a user. Each element is for a single view.
«class Hprm»

Description

Permissions are separate from menu items because it is necessary to set permissions for views that are not present directly on the user menus, as is the case with views that are opened via sequences.

When a view is found on the user’s menu, the permissions can be found and modified by examining the properties of that menu item. However, there is a much simpler way:

tell user "User"
  set permissions elements to {icon: aView, permissions: {add record, replace record} } end tell

Using this syntax, Helix handles the permissions regardless of where they are stored for that view, and it is not necessary to retrieve the list of existing permissions elements in order to add or remove an entry for a specific view; only the view specified by the icon property is changed.

For a view where the user has no permissions restrictions (i.e: permissions = all) there is no entry in the permissions element list, so setting the permissions for a view to all deletes that view from the list, if it exists.

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
icon
«property Icon» 		get/set view The related icon
permissions
«property Hvmp» 		get/set allowed operations or list of allowed operations Operations allowed on the window
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item

Superclass

The permissions element class inherits elements and properties from item.

Where Used

The permissions element class is used in the following ways:

element of user class

See Also

menu item permissions set permissions for

Post

post (noun), pl postsA post icon controls the automatic movement of data within a collection. Posts are attached to views, with triggers for these events: enter, replace, delete, import, export, post, print; Apple event store and retrieve.
«class Hpst»

Description

The post icon lets application designers set up forms in which certain form operations make modifications to data not viewed on the screen. For example, a window that generates an invoice can automatically subtract the quantity of each item sold from the appropriate inventory records through the use of posting.

All data manipulation in Helix RADE is ultimately form-based. Ordinarily, when you put data onto a form and store it, Helix creates a record in the relation where the entry form resides. Posting, however, lets records other than the one being manipulated on the screen by a user be changed or created at the same time. The records affected by the post may be in the same relation, or in any other relation in the collection.

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
auto open view
«property Pfrm» 		get/set view From the relation to which data is being posted, a view that opens during the posting process to facilitate manual input. The specified view opens only if the post parameters fail to locate a record containing a matching target value. Valid only in Options 2, 3 and 4 posts.
background color
«property Tbci» 		get/set RGB color or color index The background color of the window that displays this icon. Meaningful only for view, form query, power query, relation and collection windows. Deprecated feature: When getting this property, use "as integer" to get the color index.
helix icon
backlinks
«property Dbkl» 		get list of helix icon List of some of the icons that refer to this icon. This list is used internally to optimize inter-icon updating, and is not very useful.
helix icon
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
closeable
«property Dcbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a close button?
helix icon
cold form
«property Dnup» 		get/set boolean (Formerly Keep Current) A cold form does not refresh when data changes would cause it to be updated. This property is meaningful only for view icons.
helix icon
comment
«property Fvdt» 		get/set text The comment on the icon
helix icon
configuration
«property Ttrg» 		get/set post parameters The option (0-4), source and target icons, and post first/every setting.
custom name
«property Fnam» 		get/set text The custom name of the icon
helix icon
has status box
«property Dssi» 		get/set boolean Does the view show the status box? (This is a Classic-only feature, and will be removed at some point.
helix icon
horizontally scrollable
«property Dhsl» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a horizontal scroll bar?
helix icon
id
«property ID  » 		get integer ID is unique within each collection
object
invisible
«property Dinv» 		get/set boolean Is the window for this icon invisible?
helix icon
location
«property Tolc» 		get/set rectangle Coordinates of the window that opens when this icon is opened, including the title bar.
helix icon
locked
«property Dlck» 		get/set boolean Can the icon be modified? Note: Locking does not prevent all changes to an icon; some changes are still possible.
helix icon
name
«property pnam» 		get/set text The name of the icon
helix icon
parent
«property Dfth» 		get collection or relation The icon that contains this icon. For example: a fields parent is the relation it is in.
helix icon
position
«property Dwhr» 		get/set point The relative position of an icon when the collection or relation is in "View by Icon" mode. These are not fixed values, but represent an offset (in pixels) from the current center point of the icons. Minimum/Maximum values are ±32767.
helix icon
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item
resizeable
«property Dgbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a resize widget?
helix icon
selection
«property sele» 		get/set list of helix icon The icons selected in the icon. (Currently only supported in collection and relation icons.)
helix icon
show page boundaries
«property Dpgb» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon show page separation lines? Meaningful only for views.
helix icon
used by
«property Dusd» 		get list of helix icon List of icons that refer to this icon
helix icon
vertically scrollable
«property Dvsl» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a vertical scroll bar?
helix icon
window type
«property Ddfp» 		get/set window types The type of window used when this icon is opened. Meaningful only for views.
helix icon
zoomable
«property Dzbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a zoom button?
helix icon

Elements

Element
Access
Key Forms
Description
post triplet get/ make/ delete by index
 A three-part entity comprised of source data, operator and target field.

Commands

The post class responds to the following commands:
Command
Description
close Close a window or icon. (To close the collection, see close collection.) helix icon
open Open a collection if none is open, or open one or more icons in an open collection. helix icon

Superclass

The post class inherits elements and properties from helix icon.

Where Used

The post class is used in the following ways:

element of relation class

direct parameter to the remove command/event

direct parameter to the add command/event

demand posts property of the view class/record

edit posts property of the view class/record

export posts property of the view class/record

print posts property of the view class/record

Post parameters

post parameters (noun)The post parameters specify the source and target icons, as well as the Option (0-4) and the Post First/Post Every settings.
«class Tclc»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
post every
«property Tall» 		get/set boolean If true, post to every record that matches. If false, only post to the first record found that matches.
post option
«property Topt» 		get/set integer 0 to 4. For Option 0, other properties are ignored. For Option 1, all other properties must be defined. For Options 2-4, the target relation is required; other parameters are optional.
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item
source value
«property Tkyf» 		get/set data icon The abacus or field in the source relation to match to find records
target relation
«property Tsbx» 		get/set relation The target relation
target value
«property Tkyt» 		get/set data icon The abacus or field in the target relation to match to find records

Superclass

The post parameters class inherits elements and properties from item.

Where Used

The post parameters class is used in the following ways:

configuration property of the post class/record

Post triplet

post triplet (noun), pl post tripletsA three-part entity comprised of source data, operator and target field that determines the operation to be performed on the target field.
«class Tasg»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
post operator
«property Topr» 		get/set post operators The method by which source data will be posted into the target field
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item
source data
«property Tdtf» 		get/set data icon The field or abacus data to be posted
target field
«property Tdtt» 		get/set field The field into which the source data will post

Superclass

The post triplet class inherits elements and properties from item.

Where Used

The post triplet class is used in the following ways:

element of post class

Power query

power query (noun), pl power queriesA power query selects a subset of the records in a relation with arbitrary criteria
«class Hpqy»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
background color
«property Tbci» 		get/set RGB color or color index The background color of the window that displays this icon. Meaningful only for view, form query, power query, relation and collection windows. Deprecated feature: When getting this property, use "as integer" to get the color index.
helix icon
backlinks
«property Dbkl» 		get list of helix icon List of some of the icons that refer to this icon. This list is used internally to optimize inter-icon updating, and is not very useful.
helix icon
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
closeable
«property Dcbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a close button?
helix icon
cold form
«property Dnup» 		get/set boolean (Formerly Keep Current) A cold form does not refresh when data changes would cause it to be updated. This property is meaningful only for view icons.
helix icon
comment
«property Fvdt» 		get/set text The comment on the icon
helix icon
custom name
«property Fnam» 		get/set text The custom name of the icon
helix icon
expression
«property Cexp» 		get text The entire abacus expression in a single line
has status box
«property Dssi» 		get/set boolean Does the view show the status box? (This is a Classic-only feature, and will be removed at some point.
helix icon
horizontally scrollable
«property Dhsl» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a horizontal scroll bar?
helix icon
id
«property ID  » 		get integer ID is unique within each collection
object
invisible
«property Dinv» 		get/set boolean Is the window for this icon invisible?
helix icon
location
«property Tolc» 		get/set rectangle Coordinates of the window that opens when this icon is opened, including the title bar.
helix icon
locked
«property Dlck» 		get/set boolean Can the icon be modified? Note: Locking does not prevent all changes to an icon; some changes are still possible.
helix icon
name
«property pnam» 		get/set text The name of the icon
helix icon
parent
«property Dfth» 		get collection or relation The icon that contains this icon. For example: a fields parent is the relation it is in.
helix icon
permanent items
«property Yobq» 		get/set list of data icon Icons that are always part of a power query and cannot be removed by the user. These icons must be of type flag.
position
«property Dwhr» 		get/set point The relative position of an icon when the collection or relation is in "View by Icon" mode. These are not fixed values, but represent an offset (in pixels) from the current center point of the icons. Minimum/Maximum values are ±32767.
helix icon
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item
reference items
«property Yob2» 		get/set list of data icon Icons that may be incorporated into a power query as the right-hand side of a query term.
resizeable
«property Dgbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a resize widget?
helix icon
searchable items
«property Yob1» 		get/set list of data icon Icons that may be incorporated into a power query as the left-hand side of a query term.
selection
«property sele» 		get/set list of helix icon The icons selected in the icon. (Currently only supported in collection and relation icons.)
helix icon
show page boundaries
«property Dpgb» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon show page separation lines? Meaningful only for views.
helix icon
used by
«property Dusd» 		get list of helix icon List of icons that refer to this icon
helix icon
vertically scrollable
«property Dvsl» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a vertical scroll bar?
helix icon
window type
«property Ddfp» 		get/set window types The type of window used when this icon is opened. Meaningful only for views.
helix icon
zoomable
«property Dzbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a zoom button?
helix icon

Commands

The power query class responds to the following commands:
Command
Description
close Close a window or icon. (To close the collection, see close collection.) helix icon
open Open a collection if none is open, or open one or more icons in an open collection. helix icon

Superclass

The power query class inherits elements and properties from helix icon.

Where Used

The power query class is used in the following ways:

element of relation class

subform query property of the subform linkage class/record

view query property of the view class/record

Relation

relation (noun), pl relations[synonyms: rel]A relation is an icon in a Helix collection that holds all of the information about a single table in the database. The elements in a Helix relation are field, abacus, template, view, form query, power query, index, and post.
«class Hsbx»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
background color
«property Tbci» 		get/set RGB color or color index The background color of the window that displays this icon. Meaningful only for view, form query, power query, relation and collection windows. Deprecated feature: When getting this property, use "as integer" to get the color index.
helix icon
backlinks
«property Dbkl» 		get list of helix icon List of some of the icons that refer to this icon. This list is used internally to optimize inter-icon updating, and is not very useful.
helix icon
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
closeable
«property Dcbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a close button?
helix icon
cold form
«property Dnup» 		get/set boolean (Formerly Keep Current) A cold form does not refresh when data changes would cause it to be updated. This property is meaningful only for view icons.
helix icon
columns
«property Pseq» 		get/set list of icon list columns A list of four column names, indicating the order of the columns (after the icon column)
comment
«property Fvdt» 		get/set text The comment on the icon
helix icon
custom name
«property Fnam» 		get/set text The custom name of the icon
helix icon
datakey
«property Xsbx» 		get integer Move along. Nothing to see here.
display mode
«property Pmod» 		get/set display modes The display mode
dividers
«property Pdvx» 		get/set list of integer Four integers in ascending order, indicating the left edge (in pixels) of the four named columns in the window.
has status box
«property Dssi» 		get/set boolean Does the view show the status box? (This is a Classic-only feature, and will be removed at some point.
helix icon
horizontally scrollable
«property Dhsl» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a horizontal scroll bar?
helix icon
id
«property ID  » 		get integer ID is unique within each collection
object
invisible
«property Dinv» 		get/set boolean Is the window for this icon invisible?
helix icon
location
«property Tolc» 		get/set rectangle Coordinates of the window that opens when this icon is opened, including the title bar.
helix icon
locked
«property Dlck» 		get/set boolean Can the icon be modified? Note: Locking does not prevent all changes to an icon; some changes are still possible.
helix icon
name
«property pnam» 		get/set text The name of the icon
helix icon
parent
«property Dfth» 		get collection or relation The icon that contains this icon. For example: a fields parent is the relation it is in.
helix icon
position
«property Dwhr» 		get/set point The relative position of an icon when the collection or relation is in "View by Icon" mode. These are not fixed values, but represent an offset (in pixels) from the current center point of the icons. Minimum/Maximum values are ±32767.
helix icon
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item
record count
«property CHrf» 		get integer The number of records in the relation
resizeable
«property Dgbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a resize widget?
helix icon
selection
«property sele» 		get/set list of helix icon The icons selected in the icon. (Currently only supported in collection and relation icons.)
helix icon
show page boundaries
«property Dpgb» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon show page separation lines? Meaningful only for views.
helix icon
used by
«property Dusd» 		get list of helix icon List of icons that refer to this icon
helix icon
vertically scrollable
«property Dvsl» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a vertical scroll bar?
helix icon
window type
«property Ddfp» 		get/set window types The type of window used when this icon is opened. Meaningful only for views.
helix icon
zoomable
«property Dzbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a zoom button?
helix icon

Elements

Element
Access
Key Forms
Description
abacus get/ make/ delete by name
by index
by unique ID
 A calculation to be performed on data. An abacus defines a calculation using tiles, fields, literal values (constants) and other abaci.
field get/ make/ delete by name
by index
by unique ID
 A column of data in a relation. Fields can be of various data types and storage capabilities (inert or normal), and can be formatted and validated to ensure consistent data entry.
form query get/ make/ delete by name
by index
by unique ID
 Defines a query to restrict the data contained within a relation to a subset for display or calculation. Uses a template to provide the interface to the queriable items. Queries are joined using <i>and</i> logic.
helix icon get by name
by index
by unique ID
 Includes all of the others
index get/ make/ delete by name
by index
by unique ID
 An index defines an order for the data (field or abacus) within a relation. Data searches (queries, lookup tiles, summarization tiles) can be made significantly faster by indexing the data. Attach to a view to control the order records are displayed.
post get/ make/ delete by name
by index
by unique ID
 Automatic data manipulation. A post can automatically change, enter, replace and delete data in the same or a different relation as the result of actions taken on a view.
power query get/ make/ delete by name
by index
by unique ID
 Defines a query to restrict the data contained within a relation to a subset for display or calculation. Uses a defined list of icons to provide the interface to the queriable items. Queries can be joined using <i>and</i>, <i>or</i> and <i>not</i> logic.
template get/ make/ delete by name
by index
by unique ID
 A "blueprint" used by a view or form query to specify the look and function of the form. Add template rectangles of various types to create a layout for the form.
view get/ make/ delete by name
by index
by unique ID
 A form for accessing the data within a relation. From a view, data can be added, modified, deleted, printed, posted, imported, exported and more.

Commands

The relation class responds to the following commands:
Command
Description
close Close a window or icon. (To close the collection, see close collection.) helix icon
open Open a collection if none is open, or open one or more icons in an open collection. helix icon

Superclass

The relation class inherits elements and properties from helix icon.

Where Used

The relation class is used in the following ways:

direct parameter to the delete all data command/event

element of collection class

dangler property of the abacus element class/record

host relation property of the subform linkage class/record

parent property of the helix icon class/record

source relation property of the dynamic popup class/record

target relation property of the post parameters class/record

Repeat rectangle

repeat rectangle (noun), pl repeat rectangles[synonyms: rrec]A rectangle that encloses rectangles to be presented as a list of records. A template with a repeat rectangle may be used as a list or a subform. There can be only one repeat rectangle on a template.
«class Hitr»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
autoclose linked form
«property Mcof» 		get/set boolean Automatically close the entry form that is opened by double-clicking this rectangle when the record is edited.
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
frame color
«property Toci» 		get/set RGB color or color index Color of frame of rectangle.
group rectangle
frame width
«property Mwid» 		get/set integer Width of frame
group rectangle
framed
«property Tfrm» 		get/set boolean Does the rectangle have a visible frame?
template rectangle
id
«property ID  » 		get integer ID is unique within each collection
object
linked entry form
«property Mfrm» 		get/set view Entry view to open when a row is double-clicked
location
«property Tolc» 		get/set rectangle The coordinates that define this rectangle. The four points are returned in {left, top, right, bottom} order. Actual size can be calculated using (right - left) and (bottom - top).
template rectangle
name
«property pnam» 		get text The name of the rectangle. Exactly what is returned varies depending on the rectangle. For data rectangles, it is the name of the field (or abacus if there is no field.) For label rectangles, it is its contents. For subform rectangles, it is the name of the subform template. For command rectangles, it is usually what appears in the button. Other rectangle types return an empty string, but there is always a text value returned.
template rectangle
ordinal
«property Tfld» 		get integer The tab order position of this rectangle on the page. The first rectangle is at 0.
template rectangle
parent
«property Dfth» 		get template rectangle The template rectangle that contains this template rectangle. The parent of a top level rectangle is the page rectangle.
template rectangle
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item
repeat direction
«property Miro» 		get/set repeat direction options The list travel. Supports vertical and horizontal repeating, with the option of creating columns when the repeat rectangle is narrow enough to fit multiples within the template.
selectable
«property Mnus» 		get/set boolean Allow the user to select from this list
visible on first page
«property Tvsf» 		get/set boolean Is the rectangle visible on the first page of a multi-page view?
template rectangle
visible on interior page
«property Tvsi» 		get/set boolean Is the rectangle visible on the interior pages of a multi-page view?
template rectangle
visible on last page
«property Tvsl» 		get/set boolean Is the rectangle visible on the last page of a multi-page view?
template rectangle

Elements

Element
Access
Key Forms
Description
template rectangle get/ make/ delete by index
by unique ID
 All rectangles contained within the borders of this rectangle.
group rectangle

Superclass

The repeat rectangle class inherits elements and properties from group rectangle.

RGB color

RGB color (noun), pl RGB colorsA list of three unsigned integers 0 - 65535, representing the intensity of the three color components: Red, Green, Blue. {0, 0, 0} is black, while {65535, 65535, 65535} is white.
«class cRGB»

Where Used

The RGB color class is used in the following ways:

direct parameter to the get index for color command/event

result of get color index command

background color property of the conditional color item class/record

background color property of the helix icon class/record

background color property of the styled rectangle class/record

color property of the conditional color item class/record

color parameter of the set color index command/event

color property of the styled tile class/record

color property of the font style run class/record

frame color property of the conditional color item class/record

frame color property of the group rectangle class/record

frame color property of the styled rectangle class/record

Sequence

sequence (noun), pl sequences[synonyms: seq]A sequence is a series of steps that are executed in specific order. Steps can open views, switch users, run other sequences (aka: nested sequences), or invoke a subset of the commands (see: sequence commands) available in the Helix menus.
«class Hseq»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
background color
«property Tbci» 		get/set RGB color or color index The background color of the window that displays this icon. Meaningful only for view, form query, power query, relation and collection windows. Deprecated feature: When getting this property, use "as integer" to get the color index.
helix icon
backlinks
«property Dbkl» 		get list of helix icon List of some of the icons that refer to this icon. This list is used internally to optimize inter-icon updating, and is not very useful.
helix icon
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
closeable
«property Dcbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a close button?
helix icon
cold form
«property Dnup» 		get/set boolean (Formerly Keep Current) A cold form does not refresh when data changes would cause it to be updated. This property is meaningful only for view icons.
helix icon
comment
«property Fvdt» 		get/set text The comment on the icon
helix icon
custom name
«property Fnam» 		get/set text The custom name of the icon
helix icon
display message
«property Qopy» 		get/set boolean When an error occurs, automatically open the dialog and display the error message.
has status box
«property Dssi» 		get/set boolean Does the view show the status box? (This is a Classic-only feature, and will be removed at some point.
helix icon
horizontally scrollable
«property Dhsl» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a horizontal scroll bar?
helix icon
id
«property ID  » 		get integer ID is unique within each collection
object
invisible
«property Dinv» 		get/set boolean Is the window for this icon invisible?
helix icon
location
«property Tolc» 		get/set rectangle Coordinates of the window that opens when this icon is opened, including the title bar.
helix icon
locked
«property Dlck» 		get/set boolean Can the icon be modified? Note: Locking does not prevent all changes to an icon; some changes are still possible.
helix icon
message
«property msgV» 		get/set text When a custom message is displayed, this text is shown.
message option
«property Qmtp» 		get/set sequence message options When an error occurs, an error message (that can be seen by choosing the Why? menu item of the Help menu) is generated. A sequence can display the standard message, replace it with a custom message, or suppress the message entirely.
name
«property pnam» 		get/set text The name of the icon
helix icon
parent
«property Dfth» 		get collection or relation The icon that contains this icon. For example: a fields parent is the relation it is in.
helix icon
position
«property Dwhr» 		get/set point The relative position of an icon when the collection or relation is in "View by Icon" mode. These are not fixed values, but represent an offset (in pixels) from the current center point of the icons. Minimum/Maximum values are ±32767.
helix icon
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item
resizeable
«property Dgbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a resize widget?
helix icon
selection
«property sele» 		get/set list of helix icon The icons selected in the icon. (Currently only supported in collection and relation icons.)
helix icon
show dialogs
«property Qshd» 		get/set show dialogs options For commands that normally display a dialog (e.g: Print, Import), a sequence can be set to display the dialog always, never, or only when the option key is held down during the sequence. When a sequence does not display dialogs, it relies on previously stored information to supply the needed input. (e.g: pages to print, file to import)
show page boundaries
«property Dpgb» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon show page separation lines? Meaningful only for views.
helix icon
used by
«property Dusd» 		get list of helix icon List of icons that refer to this icon
helix icon
vertically scrollable
«property Dvsl» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a vertical scroll bar?
helix icon
window type
«property Ddfp» 		get/set window types The type of window used when this icon is opened. Meaningful only for views.
helix icon
zoomable
«property Dzbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a zoom button?
helix icon

Elements

Element
Access
Key Forms
Description
step get/ make/ delete by index
by unique ID
 A sequential list of view icons, user icons, sequence icons, and sequence commands that are invoked in order.

Commands

The sequence class responds to the following commands:
Command
Description
close Close a window or icon. (To close the collection, see close collection.)
close Close a window or icon. (To close the collection, see close collection.) helix icon
open Open a collection if none is open, or open one or more icons in an open collection. helix icon

Superclass

The sequence class inherits elements and properties from helix icon.

Where Used

The sequence class is used in the following ways:

direct parameter to the run command/event

element of collection class

command property of the command rectangle class/record

icon property of the menu item class/record

iteration command property of the conditional sequence item class/record

Step

step (noun), pl stepsThis is an element in a sequence. It can be either a view icon, user icon, sequence icon, or a command that is allowed in a sequence.
«class Qitm»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
id
«property ID  » 		get integer ID is unique within each collection
object
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item

Superclass

The step class inherits elements and properties from object.

Where Used

The step class is used in the following ways:

element of sequence class

Styled rectangle

styled rectangle (noun), pl styled rectangles[synonyms: strec]A template rectangle with style attributes.
«class Hsrt»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
allow print
«property Tnpr» 		get/set boolean The rectangle prints.
background color
«property Tbci» 		get/set RGB color or color index Color of background of rectangle. Deprecated feature: When getting this property, use "as integer" to get the color index.
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
font
«property Tfnt» 		get/set font style or list of font style run Font style to use, if there is only one, or an ordered list of font style runs
frame color
«property Toci» 		get/set RGB color or color index Color of frame of rectangle. Deprecated feature: When getting this property, use "as integer" to get the color index.
framed
«property Tfrm» 		get/set boolean Does the rectangle have a visible frame?
template rectangle
id
«property ID  » 		get integer ID is unique within each collection
object
justification
[synonyms: alignment]
«property Tjst» 		get/set justification options Text justification direction
location
«property Tolc» 		get/set rectangle The coordinates that define this rectangle. The four points are returned in {left, top, right, bottom} order. Actual size can be calculated using (right - left) and (bottom - top).
template rectangle
name
«property pnam» 		get text The name of the rectangle. Exactly what is returned varies depending on the rectangle. For data rectangles, it is the name of the field (or abacus if there is no field.) For label rectangles, it is its contents. For subform rectangles, it is the name of the subform template. For command rectangles, it is usually what appears in the button. Other rectangle types return an empty string, but there is always a text value returned.
template rectangle
ordinal
«property Tfld» 		get integer The tab order position of this rectangle on the page. The first rectangle is at 0.
template rectangle
parent
«property Dfth» 		get template rectangle The template rectangle that contains this template rectangle. The parent of a top level rectangle is the page rectangle.
template rectangle
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item
scale picture
«property Tscl» 		get/set boolean The picture should be scaled to fit in the rectangle. Meaningful only if the rectangle holds a picture.
visible on first page
«property Tvsf» 		get/set boolean Is the rectangle visible on the first page of a multi-page view?
template rectangle
visible on interior page
«property Tvsi» 		get/set boolean Is the rectangle visible on the interior pages of a multi-page view?
template rectangle
visible on last page
«property Tvsl» 		get/set boolean Is the rectangle visible on the last page of a multi-page view?
template rectangle

Superclass

The styled rectangle class inherits elements and properties from template rectangle.

Subclasses

The command rectangle, data rectangle, and label rectangle classes inherit the elements and properties of the styled rectangle class.

Styled tile

styled tile (noun), pl styled tilesA tile with style information
«class Hcsi»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
color
«property colr» 		get/set RGB color The text color
font
«property Tfnt» 		get/set font style The font family, size, and style output of the tile
hole positions
«property Ihpo» 		get list of point An array holding the location of the upper left corner of each tile socket, relative to the upper left corner ("location") of the tile.
tile
id
«property ID  » 		get integer ID is unique within each collection
object
jog height
«property Ijog» 		get/set integer The y coordinate of the horizontal segment of the arrow
tile
location
«property Tolc» 		get/set point Upper left corner of tile
tile
operator
«property Iopr» 		get abacus operators The tile name. For a string representation of this, get (operator as text)
tile
parent
«property Dfth» 		get abacus The abacus this tile is in.
tile
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item
tile size
«property Isiz» 		get point The width and height of the tile
tile

Elements

Element
Access
Key Forms
Description
object get/ make/ delete by index
 The operands. May be abacus, field, constant, or tile. Occasionally template or relation.
tile

Superclass

The styled tile class inherits elements and properties from tile.

Subform linkage

subform linkage (noun), pl subform linkagesinformation required to link a subform to its host form
«class Hsfm»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
deletes records
«property Fndl» 		get/set boolean Records shown on the subform are deleted when a delete is done on the host view
host link icon
«property Mkyf» 		get/set field or abacus The icon in the host relation with the value to match
host relation
«property Msbx» 		get relation The host relation, where the host linking icon comes from
id
«property ID  » 		get integer ID is unique within each collection
object
order index
«property Lidx» 		get/set index The linking index
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item
subform link
«property Msfm» 		get list of subform linkage Links for embedded subforms
subform link icon
«property Mkyt» 		get field or abacus The first icon in the index. Also the icon in the target relation with the matching value
subform query
«property Mfms» 		get/set abacus, form query, power query or null object To select a subset of linked records
subform rectangle
«property Msbf» 		get subform rectangle The corresponding rectangle on a template
subform template
«property Ffme» 		get template The template it displays

Superclass

The subform linkage class inherits elements and properties from object.

Where Used

The subform linkage class is used in the following ways:

subform link property of the view class/record

subform link property of the subform linkage class/record

Subform rectangle

subform rectangle (noun), pl subform rectangles[synonyms: sfrec]A template rectangle that holds a subform
«class Hsbf»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
framed
«property Tfrm» 		get/set boolean Does the rectangle have a visible frame?
template rectangle
id
«property ID  » 		get integer ID is unique within each collection
object
location
«property Tolc» 		get/set rectangle The coordinates that define this rectangle. The four points are returned in {left, top, right, bottom} order. Actual size can be calculated using (right - left) and (bottom - top).
template rectangle
name
«property pnam» 		get text The name of the rectangle. Exactly what is returned varies depending on the rectangle. For data rectangles, it is the name of the field (or abacus if there is no field.) For label rectangles, it is its contents. For subform rectangles, it is the name of the subform template. For command rectangles, it is usually what appears in the button. Other rectangle types return an empty string, but there is always a text value returned.
template rectangle
ordinal
«property Tfld» 		get integer The tab order position of this rectangle on the page. The first rectangle is at 0.
template rectangle
parent
«property Dfth» 		get template rectangle The template rectangle that contains this template rectangle. The parent of a top level rectangle is the page rectangle.
template rectangle
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item
subform template
«property Ffme» 		get/set template The template used for this subform
visible on first page
«property Tvsf» 		get/set boolean Is the rectangle visible on the first page of a multi-page view?
template rectangle
visible on interior page
«property Tvsi» 		get/set boolean Is the rectangle visible on the interior pages of a multi-page view?
template rectangle
visible on last page
«property Tvsl» 		get/set boolean Is the rectangle visible on the last page of a multi-page view?
template rectangle

Superclass

The subform rectangle class inherits elements and properties from template rectangle.

Where Used

The subform rectangle class is used in the following ways:

subform rectangle property of the subform linkage class/record

Template

template (noun), pl templates[synonyms: tem]A template defines the layout of a form
«class Hfme»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
align to grid
«property Egrd» 		get/set boolean When moving rectangles via the GUI, keep rectangles aligned to the grid, which is shown as graph paper.
background color
«property Tbci» 		get/set RGB color or color index The background color of the window that displays this icon. Meaningful only for view, form query, power query, relation and collection windows. Deprecated feature: When getting this property, use "as integer" to get the color index.
helix icon
backlinks
«property Dbkl» 		get list of helix icon List of some of the icons that refer to this icon. This list is used internally to optimize inter-icon updating, and is not very useful.
helix icon
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
closeable
«property Dcbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a close button?
helix icon
cold form
«property Dnup» 		get/set boolean (Formerly Keep Current) A cold form does not refresh when data changes would cause it to be updated. This property is meaningful only for view icons.
helix icon
comment
«property Fvdt» 		get/set text The comment on the icon
helix icon
custom name
«property Fnam» 		get/set text The custom name of the icon
helix icon
graph paper
«property Egph» 		get/set boolean Show graph paper lines, based on the horizontal and vertical spacing settings.
has default button
«property Edcr» 		get boolean There is a default button on this template
has document
«property Emdf» 		get boolean There is a document rectangle on this template
has repeat
«property Erpt» 		get boolean This template has a repeat rectangle on it. It can be used as a list form or as a subform.
has status box
«property Dssi» 		get/set boolean Does the view show the status box? (This is a Classic-only feature, and will be removed at some point.
helix icon
horizontal spacing
«property Ehgs» 		get/set integer Number of pixels between horizontal lines when the graph paper is visible
horizontally scrollable
«property Dhsl» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a horizontal scroll bar?
helix icon
id
«property ID  » 		get integer ID is unique within each collection
object
includes document
«property Eadf» 		get boolean There is a document rectangle on this template or on a subform
invisible
«property Dinv» 		get/set boolean Is the window for this icon invisible?
helix icon
location
«property Tolc» 		get/set rectangle Coordinates of the window that opens when this icon is opened, including the title bar.
helix icon
locked
«property Dlck» 		get/set boolean Can the icon be modified? Note: Locking does not prevent all changes to an icon; some changes are still possible.
helix icon
name
«property pnam» 		get/set text The name of the icon
helix icon
page rectangle
[synonyms: prec]
«property Epgs» 		get group rectangle The container for the rectangles on the template. The 'location' property of this rectangle determines the size of the displayed page.
parent
«property Dfth» 		get collection or relation The icon that contains this icon. For example: a fields parent is the relation it is in.
helix icon
position
«property Dwhr» 		get/set point The relative position of an icon when the collection or relation is in "View by Icon" mode. These are not fixed values, but represent an offset (in pixels) from the current center point of the icons. Minimum/Maximum values are ±32767.
helix icon
preview
«property Epre» 		get/set boolean Preview
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item
quick form
«property Eqfm» 		get boolean The contents of this template were created with the Quick Entry or Quick List command
repeat profile
«property Eiti» 		get list of integer For a template that has a repeat rectangle, the calculated number of records that can appear on a single page. Returns four values representing the number of records that appear horizontally (columns) and vertically (rows), followed by the width and height of each repeat iteration. Meaningless on an entry view.
resizeable
«property Dgbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a resize widget?
helix icon
ruler
«property Erul» 		get/set boolean Show ruler
selection
«property sele» 		get/set list of helix icon The icons selected in the icon. (Currently only supported in collection and relation icons.)
helix icon
show page boundaries
«property Dpgb» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon show page separation lines? Meaningful only for views.
helix icon
subform count
«property Esfc» 		get integer Number of subforms directly on this template
subform templates
«property Esub» 		get list of template A list of templates that are placed directly on this template. Nested templates are found inside the directly references templates.
used by
«property Dusd» 		get list of helix icon List of icons that refer to this icon
helix icon
vertical spacing
«property Evgs» 		get/set integer Number of pixels between vertical lines when the graph paper is visible
vertically scrollable
«property Dvsl» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a vertical scroll bar?
helix icon
window type
«property Ddfp» 		get/set window types The type of window used when this icon is opened. Meaningful only for views.
helix icon
zoomable
«property Dzbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a zoom button?
helix icon

Commands

The template class responds to the following commands:
Command
Description
close Close a window or icon. (To close the collection, see close collection.)
close Close a window or icon. (To close the collection, see close collection.) helix icon
commit Commit changes that have been made. Returns an error if a specified icon does not have pending changes. If the icon(s) can not be committed, an error occurs. Examine the 'partial result' property of the error for specific objects that prevented the commit.
open Open a collection if none is open, or open one or more icons in an open collection. helix icon
revert Forget changes that have been made. Returns an error if a specified icon does not have pending changes.

Superclass

The template class inherits elements and properties from helix icon.

Where Used

The template class is used in the following ways:

element of relation class

direct parameter to the check rectangle overlap command/event

dangler property of the abacus element class/record

search template property of the form query class/record

subform template property of the subform linkage class/record

subform template property of the subform rectangle class/record

subform templates property of the template class/record

view template property of the view class/record

See Also

check rectangle overlap normalize template

Template rectangle

template rectangle (noun), pl template rectangles[synonyms: trec]Superclass for the various types of rectangles that can appear on a template.
«class Hrct»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
framed
«property Tfrm» 		get/set boolean Does the rectangle have a visible frame?
id
«property ID  » 		get integer ID is unique within each collection
object
location
«property Tolc» 		get/set rectangle The coordinates that define this rectangle. The four points are returned in {left, top, right, bottom} order. Actual size can be calculated using (right - left) and (bottom - top).
name
«property pnam» 		get text The name of the rectangle. Exactly what is returned varies depending on the rectangle. For data rectangles, it is the name of the field (or abacus if there is no field.) For label rectangles, it is its contents. For subform rectangles, it is the name of the subform template. For command rectangles, it is usually what appears in the button. Other rectangle types return an empty string, but there is always a text value returned.
ordinal
«property Tfld» 		get integer The tab order position of this rectangle on the page. The first rectangle is at 0.
parent
«property Dfth» 		get template rectangle The template rectangle that contains this template rectangle. The parent of a top level rectangle is the page rectangle.
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item
visible on first page
«property Tvsf» 		get/set boolean Is the rectangle visible on the first page of a multi-page view?
visible on interior page
«property Tvsi» 		get/set boolean Is the rectangle visible on the interior pages of a multi-page view?
visible on last page
«property Tvsl» 		get/set boolean Is the rectangle visible on the last page of a multi-page view?

Superclass

The template rectangle class inherits elements and properties from object.

Subclasses

The group rectangle, styled rectangle, and subform rectangle classes inherit the elements and properties of the template rectangle class.

Where Used

The template rectangle class is used in the following ways:

direct parameter to the move command/event

element of group rectangle class

element of repeat rectangle class

after parameter of the move command/event

at parameter of the make command/event

parent property of the template rectangle class/record

Tile

tile (noun), pl tilesA calculation tile
«class Hcli»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
hole positions
«property Ihpo» 		get list of point An array holding the location of the upper left corner of each tile socket, relative to the upper left corner ("location") of the tile.
id
«property ID  » 		get integer ID is unique within each collection
object
jog height
«property Ijog» 		get/set integer The y coordinate of the horizontal segment of the arrow
location
«property Tolc» 		get/set point Upper left corner of tile
operator
«property Iopr» 		get abacus operators The tile name. For a string representation of this, get (operator as text)
parent
«property Dfth» 		get abacus The abacus this tile is in.
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item
tile size
«property Isiz» 		get point The width and height of the tile

Elements

Element
Access
Key Forms
Description
object get/ make/ delete by index
 The operands. May be abacus, field, constant, or tile. Occasionally template or relation.

Superclass

The tile class inherits elements and properties from object.

Subclasses

The styled tile class inherits the elements and properties of the tile class.

Where Used

The tile class is used in the following ways:

dangler property of the abacus element class/record

User

user (noun), pl usersA user is an icon that defines a set of menus on the menu bar and access permissions for each view.
«class Hmbr»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
background color
«property Tbci» 		get/set RGB color or color index The background color of the window that displays this icon. Meaningful only for view, form query, power query, relation and collection windows. Deprecated feature: When getting this property, use "as integer" to get the color index.
helix icon
backlinks
«property Dbkl» 		get list of helix icon List of some of the icons that refer to this icon. This list is used internally to optimize inter-icon updating, and is not very useful.
helix icon
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
closeable
«property Dcbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a close button?
helix icon
cold form
«property Dnup» 		get/set boolean (Formerly Keep Current) A cold form does not refresh when data changes would cause it to be updated. This property is meaningful only for view icons.
helix icon
comment
«property Fvdt» 		get/set text The comment on the icon
helix icon
custom name
«property Fnam» 		get/set text The custom name of the icon
helix icon
design mode available
«property Rfma» 		get boolean This user has the Design Mode command on a menu.
has password
«property Rpwd» 		get boolean This user has a password
has status box
«property Dssi» 		get/set boolean Does the view show the status box? (This is a Classic-only feature, and will be removed at some point.
helix icon
horizontally scrollable
«property Dhsl» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a horizontal scroll bar?
helix icon
id
«property ID  » 		get integer ID is unique within each collection
object
invisible
«property Dinv» 		get/set boolean Is the window for this icon invisible?
helix icon
location
«property Tolc» 		get/set rectangle Coordinates of the window that opens when this icon is opened, including the title bar.
helix icon
locked
«property Dlck» 		get/set boolean Can the icon be modified? Note: Locking does not prevent all changes to an icon; some changes are still possible.
helix icon
logon limit
«property Rcnt» 		get/set integer The number of logons allowed
name
«property pnam» 		get/set text The name of the icon
helix icon
parent
«property Dfth» 		get collection or relation The icon that contains this icon. For example: a fields parent is the relation it is in.
helix icon
password
«property pwdH» 		set text The user's password
position
«property Dwhr» 		get/set point The relative position of an icon when the collection or relation is in "View by Icon" mode. These are not fixed values, but represent an offset (in pixels) from the current center point of the icons. Minimum/Maximum values are ±32767.
helix icon
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item
resizeable
«property Dgbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a resize widget?
helix icon
selection
«property sele» 		get/set list of helix icon The icons selected in the icon. (Currently only supported in collection and relation icons.)
helix icon
show page boundaries
«property Dpgb» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon show page separation lines? Meaningful only for views.
helix icon
used by
«property Dusd» 		get list of helix icon List of icons that refer to this icon
helix icon
user mode
«property Pusm» 		get/set boolean This user opens in User Mode at next login.
user type
«property Rtyp» 		get/set user types The type of user
vertically scrollable
«property Dvsl» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a vertical scroll bar?
helix icon
window type
«property Ddfp» 		get/set window types The type of window used when this icon is opened. Meaningful only for views.
helix icon
zoomable
«property Dzbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a zoom button?
helix icon

Elements

Element
Access
Key Forms
Description
permissions element get by index
 These are permissions for icons that may open that do not appear on any menus.
user menu get/ make/ delete by name
by index
by unique ID
 The menus that appear in the user's menu bar. Hierarchical menus are not included in this list.

Commands

The user class responds to the following commands:
Command
Description
close Close a window or icon. (To close the collection, see close collection.) helix icon
open Open a collection if none is open, or open one or more icons in an open collection. helix icon

Superclass

The user class inherits elements and properties from helix icon.

Where Used

The user class is used in the following ways:

element of collection class

active user property of the collection class/record

icon property of the menu item class/record

primary user property of the collection class/record

User menu

user menu (noun), pl user menusA single menu appearing in the users menu bar, or as a hierarchical menu.
«class Hmnu»

Description

A user menu is a single menu that appears in the user’s menu bar, or as a hierarchical menu within another user menu.

To add a user menu, you must first tell the user icon to make new user menu with properties {name: "menu name"} at x, where x is the ordinal of the position where the new menu should appear. If the user has hierarchical menus, the ordinal may not correspond to the visual position within the menu bar. Check the existing user menus by name to determine where to insert the new user menu.

After the new user menu has been created, you can then tell the new menu (be sure to capture the reply of the make command in a variable) to add menu items.

Removing an existing user menu or menu item is done by ‘deleting’ a user menu or ‘removing’ a menu item.

Editing an existing menu item is done by direct manipulation of the properties, or by reading the menu item record into a variable, modifying the properties of the record, and writing the updated record back into the menu item. When editing an existing menu item, be sure to test for the existence of a specific property before attempting to change it: Adding a property that already exists does nothing; Changing a property that does not exist results in an error.

Do not forget to commit changes to the user icon when you are done editing any of its internal objects.

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
id
«property ID  » 		get integer ID is unique within each collection
object
name
«property pnam» 		get/set text Menu name. Appears in the menu bar or as the name of the hierarchical menu.
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item

Elements

Element
Access
Key Forms
Description
menu item get/ make/ delete by index
 An item appearing in a user menu. Can be a view, sequence, user, separator, or a hierarchical menu. Views, sequences and users can have optional command key equivalents. Use the 'add' and 'remove' commands to add/remove menu items.

Superclass

The user menu class inherits elements and properties from object.

Where Used

The user menu class is used in the following ways:

element of user class

hierarchical menu property of the menu item class/record

View

view (noun), pl viewsA view icon allows data entry and display
«class Hfrm»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
abacus query lock
«property Mlqy» 		get/set boolean Do not allow User Mode to change the "Also Use" option when a quick query is open
active quick query
«property Mqqy» 		get boolean Whether or not the quick query panel is displayed when the view opens
background color
«property Tbci» 		get/set RGB color or color index The background color of the window that displays this icon. Meaningful only for view, form query, power query, relation and collection windows. Deprecated feature: When getting this property, use "as integer" to get the color index.
helix icon
backlinks
«property Dbkl» 		get list of helix icon List of some of the icons that refer to this icon. This list is used internally to optimize inter-icon updating, and is not very useful.
helix icon
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
closeable
«property Dcbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a close button?
helix icon
cold form
«property Dnup» 		get/set boolean (Formerly Keep Current) A cold form does not refresh when data changes would cause it to be updated. This property is meaningful only for view icons.
helix icon
combined query expression
«property Mqex» 		get text The form query, power query, or abacus query combined with the quick query, giving the query actually being used for the search.
comment
«property Fvdt» 		get/set text The comment on the icon
helix icon
custom name
«property Fnam» 		get/set text The custom name of the icon
helix icon
default index
«property Mdix» 		get/set index or null object The default index
default values highlighted
«property Mdef» 		get/set boolean Are rectangles with default values drawn with a distinctive background?
delete host record
«property Mndl» 		get/set boolean On a view containing a subform, delete the host record when a delete is done
demand posts
«property Mpst» 		get/set list of post Posting icons used with the "Post All", "Find and Post All", and "Post Selections" commands
edit posts
«property Mpdt» 		get/set list of post Posting icons used when adding, replacing, or deleting data
existing documents
«property Mopt» 		get/set existing document handling What to do if a document being exported already exists at the specified location
export file path
«property Mdfp» 		get/set text The complete path to be used when exporting a text file, in HFS style.
export posts
«property Mpdp» 		get/set list of post Posting icons used when exporting data
field delimiter
«property Mac2» 		get/set text or missing value The ASCII character to use as the field delimiter
has status box
«property Dssi» 		get/set boolean Does the view show the status box? (This is a Classic-only feature, and will be removed at some point.
helix icon
horizontally scrollable
«property Dhsl» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a horizontal scroll bar?
helix icon
id
«property ID  » 		get integer ID is unique within each collection
object
import file path
«property Mlfp» 		get/set text The complete path to be used when importing a text file, in HFS style.
include icon names
«property Mfnl» 		get/set boolean Export the name of the icon in each data rectangle as the first line of the export file
include outer data
«property Miof» 		get/set boolean Export data in rectangles outside the repeat rectangle?
invalid fields highlighted
«property Minv» 		get/set boolean Are rectangles with invalid values drawn with a distinctive background?
invisible
«property Dinv» 		get/set boolean Is the window for this icon invisible?
helix icon
location
«property Tolc» 		get/set rectangle Coordinates of the window that opens when this icon is opened, including the title bar.
helix icon
locked
«property Dlck» 		get/set boolean Can the icon be modified? Note: Locking does not prevent all changes to an icon; some changes are still possible.
helix icon
moving forward
«property Mbkw» 		get/set boolean Was the last find (and therefore the next automatic find) in the forward direction?
name
«property pnam» 		get/set text The name of the icon
helix icon
notify on change
«property Mnoc» 		get/set boolean Is there a signal when a change to this view occurs?
on import error
«property Merh» 		get/set import error handling What to do when an error occurs during import
order index
«property Lidx» 		get/set index or null object The index to use to specify the order of the records displayed.
parent
«property Dfth» 		get collection or relation The icon that contains this icon. For example: a fields parent is the relation it is in.
helix icon
position
«property Dwhr» 		get/set point The relative position of an icon when the collection or relation is in "View by Icon" mode. These are not fixed values, but represent an offset (in pixels) from the current center point of the icons. Minimum/Maximum values are ±32767.
helix icon
print posts
«property Mppt» 		get/set list of post Posting icons used when printing
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item
quick query
«property Mqqv» 		get/set quick query expression The quick query expression.
quick query lock
«property Mfqq» 		get/set boolean Do not allow User Mode to change the status of the quick query
record delimiter
«property Mac3» 		get/set text or missing value The ASCII character to use as the record delimiter
resizeable
«property Dgbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a resize widget?
helix icon
selectable indexes
«property Mixl» 		get/set list of index Indexes available in the Sort Order popup.
selection
«property sele» 		get/set list of helix icon The icons selected in the icon. (Currently only supported in collection and relation icons.)
helix icon
show page boundaries
«property Dpgb» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon show page separation lines? Meaningful only for views.
helix icon
showing record
«property Mclr» 		get boolean Is a record visible on the open form?
start character
«property Mac1» 		get/set text or missing value The ASCII character to use as the start character.
starting page number
«property Mpgn» 		get/set integer The starting page number used for page numbering. Used in conjunction with the 'has page number' property of the label rectangle
strip field delimiters
«property Mxep» 		get/set boolean Remove any field delimiter characters found in the data
strip record delimiters
«property Mxtm» 		get/set boolean Remove any record delimiter characters found in the data
strip return characters
«property Mxcr» 		get/set boolean Remove any carriage return (ASCII 13) characters found in the data
subform link
«property Msfm» 		get list of subform linkage Links for embedded subforms
use specified document path
«property Mpth» 		get/set boolean When true, documents are exported to the location specified in the stored path. When false, documents are exported to the location of the control (export) file
used by
«property Dusd» 		get list of helix icon List of icons that refer to this icon
helix icon
vertically scrollable
«property Dvsl» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a vertical scroll bar?
helix icon
view mode
«property Mslm» 		get/set view mode options The visible aspect (form mode or setup mode) of the view
view query
«property Mqry» 		get/set abacus, form query, power query or null object The abacus, form, or power query to use to select records to view.
view template
«property Mfme» 		get/set template The template to use to define the form.
window type
«property Ddfp» 		get/set window types The type of window used when this icon is opened. Meaningful only for views.
helix icon
zoomable
«property Dzbx» 		get/set boolean Does the window for this icon have a zoom button?
helix icon

Commands

The view class responds to the following commands:
Command
Description
close Close a window or icon. (To close the collection, see close collection.) helix icon
open Open a collection if none is open, or open one or more icons in an open collection. helix icon

Superclass

The view class inherits elements and properties from helix icon.

Where Used

The view class is used in the following ways:

element of relation class

direct parameter to the set permissions for command/event

auto open view property of the post class/record

icon property of the permissions element class/record

icon property of the menu item class/record

linked entry form property of the repeat rectangle class/record

Window

window (noun), pl windowsA window.
«class cwin»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
class
«property pcls» 		get type class The class of the object
item
icon
«property Icon» 		get object The helix icon associated with the window.
id
«property ID  » 		get integer The unique identifier of the window. This is not equivalent to the index order.
name
«property pnam» 		get text The full title of the window.
properties
«property pALL» 		get record A record with all the properties of the item.
item
selection
«property sele» 		get/set list of helix icon The icons selected in a window (collection and relation windows only.) If the window does not support icon selection, missing value is returned.

Commands

The window class responds to the following commands:
Command
Description
close Close a window or icon. (To close the collection, see close collection.)

Superclass

The window class inherits elements and properties from item.

Where Used

The window class is used in the following ways:

result of open command

direct parameter to the close command/event

element of application class

Enumerations

Abacus operators

abacus operators (enumeration)Abacus tiles
«class oprA»

Constants

Constant
Description
absolute value tile
«constant absO» 		Absolute value [Abs o]
add tile
«constant addO» 		Addition [o + o]
and tile
«constant andO» 		Both true [o And o]
annuity rate tile
«constant anyO» 		Annuity rate [Annuity rate o o times]
arc tangent tile
«constant atnO» 		Arc tangent [Atan o]
average for tile
«constant av4O» 		Average for [Average o for o]
average tile
«constant avgO» 		Average [Average o]
change modification date tile
«constant cmdO» 		Change modification date [Change o mod. date to o]
change name tile
«constant cnmO» 		Change name [Change o name to o]
change path tile
«constant cptO» 		Change path [Change o path to o]
change type tile
«constant ctpO» 		Change type [Change o type to o]
compound interest tile
«constant cmpO» 		Compound interest [Compound rate o o times]
contains tile
«constant ctnO» 		contains [o contains o]
cosine tile
«constant cosO» 		Cosine [Cos o]
count for tile
«constant ct4O» 		Count for [Count for o]
count tile
«constant cntO» 		Count [Count]
date tile
«constant dteO» 		Convert to date [Date o]
date time tile
«constant dtmO» 		Make date-time [Date o Time o]
day of month tile
«constant dayO» 		Day of month (1 - 31) [Day o]
day of week tile
«constant dowO» 		Day of the week (sunday = 0) [Day of Week o]
defined tile
«constant defO» 		Defined [Defined o]
delta days tile
«constant ddyO» 		Change in days [o ∆ days o]
delta hours tile
«constant dhrO» 		Change in hours [o ∆ hours o]
delta minutes tile
«constant dmnO» 		Change in minutes [o ∆ minutes o]
delta seconds tile
«constant dscO» 		Change in seconds [o ∆ seconds o]
delta weeks tile
«constant dwkO» 		Change in weeks [o ∆ weeks o]
delta years tile
«constant dyrO» 		Change in years [o ∆ years o]
display tile
«constant nopO» 		Display [o]
divide tile
«constant divO» 		Division [o / o]
document creation date time tile
«constant dcdO» 		Document creation date [Doc. Create Date o]
document modification date tile
«constant dmdO» 		Document modification date [Doc. Modify Date o]
document name tile
«constant dnmO» 		Document name [Doc. Name o]
document path tile
«constant dptO» 		Document path [Doc. Path o]
document size tile
«constant dszO» 		Document size [Doc. Size o]
document storage tile
«constant dstO» 		Document storage [Doc. Storage o]
document type tile
«constant dtpO» 		Document type [Doc. Type o]
ends with tile
«constant endO» 		Ends with [o ends with o]
equals tile
«constant eqlO» 		Equals [o = o]
fixed point tile
«constant fixO» 		Convert to fixed point [Fixed Point o]
flag tile
«constant flgO» 		Convert to flag [Flag o]
followed by tile
«constant fbyO» 		Concatenate text [o followed by o], undefined if either operand is undefined
followed/or tile
«constant forO» 		Concatenate text [o followed/or o], use other operand if either operand is undefined
form average for tile
«constant fa4O» 		Queried average for tile [Form Average o for o]
form average tile
«constant favO» 		Queried average [Form Average o]
form count for tile
«constant fc4O» 		Queried count for [Form Count for o]
form count tile
«constant fctO» 		Queried count [Form Count]
form maximum for tile
«constant fx4O» 		Queried maximum for [Form Max o for o]
form maximum tile
«constant fmxO» 		Queried maximum [Form Max o]
form minimum for tile
«constant fm4O» 		Queried minimum for [Form Min o for o]
form minimum tile
«constant fmnO» 		Queried minimum [Form Min o]
form previous tile
«constant fpvO» 		Previous, using form index and query [Form Previous o]
form time tile
«constant ftmO» 		Form time [Form Time]
form total for tile
«constant ft4O» 		Queried total for [Form Total o for o]
form total tile
«constant fttO» 		Queried total [Form Total o]
fraction tile
«constant frtO» 		Decimal [Fraction o]
greater than or equal tile
«constant ge O» 		Greater than or equal [o o]
greater than tile
«constant gt O» 		Greater than [o > o]
hour minute second tile
«constant hmsO» 		Make time [Hour o Minute o Second o]
hour tile
«constant hurO» 		Hour [Hour o]
if then else tile
«constant iteO» 		Conditional tile [If o Then o Else o]
integer part tile
«constant intO» 		Truncate [Integer o]
keyword equals tile
«constant keqO» 		Keyword equals [o word = o]
keyword starts with tile
«constant kswO» 		Keyword starts with [o word starts with o]
larger tile
«constant lgrO» 		Larger [Larger of o o]
length tile
«constant lenO» 		Text length [Length o]
less than less than or equals tile
«constant ltO» 		lt le. [o < o o]
less than less than tile
«constant lt<O» 		lt lt. [o < o < o]
less than or equals less than or equals tile
«constant leO» 		le le. [o o o]
less than or equals less than tile
«constant le<O» 		le lt. [o o < ]
less than or equals tile
«constant le O» 		less than or equals [o o]
less than tile
«constant lt O» 		less than [o < o]
locate text tile
«constant lk8O» 		Locate [Locate o starting at o in o]
log tile
«constant logO» 		Decimal logarithm [Log o]
lookup summary tile
«constant lksO» 		Lookup summary [Lookup o Summary in o]
lookup tile
«constant lupO» 		Relational lookup [Lookup o for o = o in o]
lower case tile
«constant lwrO» 		Convert to lower case [Lower Case o]
maximum for tile
«constant mx4O» 		Maximum for [Max o for o]
maximum tile
«constant maxO» 		Maximum [Max o]
minimum for tile
«constant mn4O» 		Minimum for [Min o for o]
minute tile
«constant minO» 		Minute [Minute o]
mixed case tile
«constant mxtO» 		Convert to mixed case [Mixed Case o]
month day year tile
«constant mdyO» 		Make date [Month o Day o Year o]
month tile
«constant monO» 		Month [Month o]
multiply tile
«constant mulO» 		Multiplication [o * o]
natural log tile
«constant ln O» 		Natural logarithm [Ln o]
negation tile
«constant un-O» 		Unary minus [- o]
new line tile
«constant crlO» 		New line [New Line]
not equals tile
«constant neqO» 		Not equal to [o o]
not tile
«constant notO» 		Complement [Not o]
number tile
«constant numO» 		Convert to number [Number o]
or tile
«constant or O» 		Either true [o Or o]
picture tile
«constant pctO» 		Convert to picture [Picture o]
post time tile
«constant ptmO» 		Post time [Post Time]
previous for tile
«constant pr4O» 		Queried previous [Previous o for o]
previous tile
«constant prvO» 		Previous [Previous o]
raise to power tile
«constant powO» 		Raise to power [o to power o]
round tile
«constant rndO» 		Round [Round o]
round to nearest tile
«constant rn2O» 		Round to nearest [Round o to nearest o]
second tile
«constant secO» 		Second [Second o]
sine tile
«constant sinO» 		Sine [Sin o]
smaller tile
«constant smrO» 		Smaller [Smaller of o o]
square root tile
«constant sqrO» 		Square root [√ o]
starts with tile
«constant stwO» 		Starts with [o starts with o]
styled text tile
«constant sttO» 		Convert to styled text [Styled Text o]
sub average for tile
«constant sa4O» 		Relational average [Sub-Average o for o = o in o]
sub count for tile
«constant sc4O» 		Relational count [Sub-Count for o = o in o]
sub maximum tile
«constant sx4O» 		Relational maximum [Sub-Max o for o = o in o]
sub minimum tile
«constant sm4O» 		Relational minimum [Sub-Min o for o = o in o]
sub total for tile
«constant st4O» 		Relational total [Sub-Total o for o = o in o]
subtract tile
«constant mnsO» 		Subtraction [o - o]
tangent tile
«constant tanO» 		Tangent [Tan o]
text extraction tile
«constant xttO» 		Extract [Extract o through o from o]
text tile
«constant txtO» 		Convert to text [Text o]
today tile
«constant tdyO» 		Today's date [Today]
total for tile
«constant tt4O» 		Total for [Total o for o]
total tile
«constant totO» 		Total [Total o]
undefined becomes tile
«constant udbO» 		Value if undefined [Undefined o becomes o]
undefined tile
«constant undO» 		Undefined [Undefined o]
unique tile
«constant unqO» 		Unique [Unique o]
upper case tile
«constant uprO» 		Convert to upper case [Upper Case o]
use from tile
«constant ufrO» 		Get value [Use o from o]
user name tile
«constant usrO» 		User Name [UserName]
year tile
«constant yerO» 		Year [Year o]

Where Used

The abacus operators enumeration is used in the following ways:

operator property of the tile class/record

Allowed operations

allowed operations (enumeration)Operations allowed in a view. When Helix returns allowed operations, it returns either 'all', 'none', or a list of operations. Helix accepts either 'all', 'none', a single operation, or a list of these operations not including 'all' or 'none'.
«class Hvmp»

Constants

Constant
Description
add record
«constant Vadd»
all
«constant allH»
delete record
«constant Vdel»
export record
«constant Vdmp»
find record
«constant Vfnd»
import record
«constant Vlod»
none
«constant none»
print record
«constant Vprt»
replace record
«constant Vrpl»

Where Used

The allowed operations enumeration is used in the following ways:

permissions property of the menu item class/record

permissions property of the permissions element class/record

to parameter of the set permissions for command/event

Case options

case options (enumeration)Case option for formats
«class cseF»

Constants

Constant
Description
lower case
«constant lwrF» 		Display the values using all lower case character.
mixed case
«constant mixF» 		Display the values using mixed case. For a custom label, mixed case means exactly as defined by the custom labels list.
upper case
«constant uprF» 		Display the values using all caps.

Where Used

The case options enumeration is used in the following ways:

case property of the flag format class/record

Data types

data types (enumeration)A classification that defines the specific type of input that a field accepts.
«class Hdtp»

Description

In Helix, information is stored in fields which are found within relations. Fields are classified by data type: a storage format that is limited to a specific type or range of values. Specifying a data type is done to enforce appropriate user input as well as to facilitate specific operations, such as mathematical operations on number type data.

For an abacus, the data type signifies its output, which is determined by the types of tiles used as well as the source data type.

Helix uses strict (or strong) data typing, meaning that data is never implicitly changed (coerced) from one type to another. To coerce data of one type into another, use the appropriate data type tile.

The default data type for a newly created field is text type.

Constants

Constant
Description
date time type
«constant dteT» 		date and/or time
document type
«constant docT» 		document
fixed point type
«constant fixT» 		fixed range integer or decimal number
flag type
«constant flgT» 		True or False/On or Off
number type
«constant numT» 		floating point number
picture type
«constant picT» 		picture
styled text type
«constant styT» 		text with colors and styles that change within the text
text type
«constant txtT» 		characters

Where Used

The data types enumeration is used in the following ways:

data type property of the data icon class/record

data type property of the constant class/record

Date styles

date styles (enumeration)How to present a date
«class styD»

Constants

Constant
Description
long form
«constant lngD» 		Long form: December 31, 1999
omit
«constant omtT» 		No date
short form
«constant srtD» 		Short form: Dec 31, 1999
with dashes
«constant dshD» 		With dashes: 12-31-99
with slashes
«constant slhD» 		With slashes: 12/31/99

Where Used

The date styles enumeration is used in the following ways:

date style property of the date format class/record

Directions

directions (enumeration)The direction to sort
«class Hsdr»

Constants

Constant
Description
ascending
«constant Hasc» 		Values go up
descending
«constant Hdsc» 		Values go down

Where Used

The directions enumeration is used in the following ways:

order property of the index element class/record

Disabled button options

disabled button options (enumeration)Disabled button options
«class Tdab»

Constants

Constant
Description
dim button with disabled name
«constant didO» 		Dim button and display disabled button name
hide button
«constant hidO»

Display modes

display modes (enumeration)The various modes in which a collection or relation window can be displayed.
«class Hmod»

Constants

Constant
Description
icon view
«constant GvBi»
list by comment
«constant GvBc»
list by custom name
«constant GvBN»
list by kind
«constant GvBk»
list by name
«constant GvBn»

Where Used

The display modes enumeration is used in the following ways:

display mode property of the collection class/record

display mode property of the relation class/record

Document storage types

document storage types (enumeration)Document storage types
«class dcsF»

Constants

Constant
Description
default internal storage
«constant ddnF» 		internal storage, but may be changed by user
external storage
«constant dexF»
internal storage
«constant dinF»

Where Used

The document storage types enumeration is used in the following ways:

storage type property of the field class/record

Existing document handling

existing document handling (enumeration)What to do if a document being exported already exists at the specified location
«class Mopn»

Constants

Constant
Description
ask
«constant ask » 		Ask the user
replace
«constant Orpl» 		Replace existing document
skip
«constant Oskp» 		Continue without changing the disk file
stop
«constant Ostp» 		Stop processing

Where Used

The existing document handling enumeration is used in the following ways:

existing documents property of the view class/record

Flag display styles

flag display styles (enumeration)How to present a flag. Flags can be plain text, with the format controlled by the 'labels' (and 'custom labels') property, or as a control, with the format controlled by the 'style' property.
«class styF»

Constants

Constant
Description
checkbox
«constant Fchk» 		Display as a single checkbox
dynamic popup
«constant Fdpp» 		Display as dynamic popup
radio buttons
«constant Frdo» 		Display as radio buttons
static popup
«constant Fspp» 		Display as static popup
text box
«constant Ftxt» 		Display as text

Where Used

The flag display styles enumeration is used in the following ways:

style property of the flag format class/record

Flag value labels

flag value labels (enumeration)Names for flag values
«class flgF»

Constants

Constant
Description
onezero
«constant 10 F» 		1/0
other
«constant othF» 		Use custom values for true, false and (optionally) undefined. Values are defined in the 'custom labels' property.
tf
«constant tf F» 		t/f
truefalse
«constant trfF» 		true/false
yesno
«constant ysnF» 		yes/no
yn
«constant yn F» 		y/n

Where Used

The flag value labels enumeration is used in the following ways:

labels property of the flag format class/record

Icon list columns

icon list columns (enumeration)The properties of icons displayed in the collection and relation windows
«class iclC»

Constants

Constant
Description
comments
«constant Icom» 		The comments on the icon
custom name
«constant IcNm» 		The custom name of the icon
icon name
«constant IrNm» 		The actual name of the icon
summary
«constant IcSm» 		A summary of the contents of the icon

Where Used

The icon list columns enumeration is used in the following ways:

columns property of the collection class/record

columns property of the relation class/record

Import error handling

import error handling (enumeration)What to about a data error while importing
«class Mipe»

Constants

Constant
Description
skip field
«constant Oskf»
skip record
«constant Oskr»
stop
«constant Ostp» 		Stop processing

Where Used

The import error handling enumeration is used in the following ways:

on import error property of the view class/record

Justification options

justification options (enumeration)Text justification
«class Hjst»

Constants

Constant
Description
center justified
«constant ctrJ»
left justified
«constant lftJ»
right justified
«constant rgtJ»

Where Used

The justification options enumeration is used in the following ways:

justification property of the styled rectangle class/record

Key modifiers

key modifiers (enumeration)Modifier key combinations for a menu item command.
«class cmdM»

Constants

Constant
Description
command key
«constant Rcmk» 		command-. Key may be any single printable character.
command option
«constant Rcop» 		command-option-. Key must be between 'A' and 'Z'.
command option shift
«constant Rcos» 		command-option-shift-. Key must be between 'A' and 'Z'.
command shift
«constant Rcsh» 		command-shift-. Key must be between 'A' and 'Z'.
function key
«constant Rfcn» 		Function key. Key must be a number between 1 and 16.

Where Used

The key modifiers enumeration is used in the following ways:

modifier keys property of the menu item class/record

Number of button options

number of button options (enumeration)number of radio buttons to use
«class numB»

Constants

Constant
Description
three buttons
«constant thrB» 		True, False, and Undefined
two buttons
«constant twoB» 		True and False only

Where Used

The number of button options enumeration is used in the following ways:

number of buttons property of the flag format class/record

Orientation options

orientation options (enumeration)Which direction?
«class ornT»

Constants

Constant
Description
horizontal
«constant hrzF»
vertical
«constant vrtF»

Where Used

The orientation options enumeration is used in the following ways:

orientation property of the flag format class/record

Post operators

post operators (enumeration)The operations that may be performed by posting
«class Topr»

Constants

Constant
Description
add value
«constant TOad» 		Add the source data to the target field
decrement value
«constant TOdc» 		Decrement the target field by the source data
increment value
«constant TOin» 		Increment the target field by the source data
insert always
«constant TOia» 		Insert source data in target field when a record is created or modified
insert on create
«constant TOic» 		Insert source data in target field only when a record is modified
subtract value
«constant TOsb» 		Subtract the source data from the target field

Where Used

The post operators enumeration is used in the following ways:

post operator property of the post triplet class/record

Quick query operators

quick query operators (enumeration)Operators valid in a quick query
«class oprQ»

Constants

Constant
Description
contains tile
«constant ctnO» 		contains [o contains o]
equals tile
«constant eqlO» 		Equals [o = o]
greater than or equal tile
«constant ge O» 		Greater than or equal [o o]
greater than tile
«constant gt O» 		Greater than [o > o]
is found within tile
«constant Octn» 		is found within [o contains o] reversed
less than or equals tile
«constant le O» 		less than or equals [o o]
less than tile
«constant lt O» 		less than [o < o]
not equals tile
«constant neqO» 		Not equal to [o o]
starts with tile
«constant stwO» 		Starts with [o starts with o]

Where Used

The quick query operators enumeration is used in the following ways:

quick query operator property of the quick query expression class/record

Repeat direction options

repeat direction options (enumeration)The order of the directions for repeat rectangles to repeat.
«class rptD»

Constants

Constant
Description
across
«constant acrR»
across then down
«constant atdR»
down
«constant dwnR»
down then across
«constant dtaR»

Where Used

The repeat direction options enumeration is used in the following ways:

repeat direction property of the repeat rectangle class/record

Sequence commands

sequence commands (enumeration)Commands that can be put into a sequence
«class Scmd»

Constants

Constant
Description
beep command
«constant UHbp» 		Beep
clear command
«constant UEcl» 		Clear
clear form command
«constant UScf» 		Clear Form
clear selections command
«constant UEcs» 		Clear Selections
client info command
«constant UFci» 		Client Info...
close all command
«constant UIca» 		Close All
close command
«constant UIcl» 		Close
copy command
«constant UEcp» 		Copy
copy from volume command
«constant UDcf» 		Copy From Volume
copy paste record options command
«constant UEco» 		Copy/Paste Record Options...
copy record command
«constant UEcr» 		Copy Record | Copy All Records
copy selected records command
«constant UEcd» 		Copy Selected Records
copy to volume command
«constant UDcv» 		Copy to Volume...
cut command
«constant UEct» 		Cut
delete all command
«constant USda» 		Delete All
delete all originals command
«constant UDda» 		Delete All Originals
delete command
«constant USdc» 		Delete
delete original command
«constant UDdo» 		Delete Original
delete selection command
«constant USds» 		Delete Selection
draw screen command
«constant UHds» 		Draw Screen
enter command
«constant USen» 		Enter | Replace
enter override command
«constant UHeo» 		Enter Override
export command
«constant UFdd» 		Export All...
export form command
«constant UHdf» 		Export Form...
export ordered command
«constant UFdo» 		Export Ordered
export selected command
«constant UFds» 		Export Selected
find and print all command
«constant UFpa» 		Find and Print All...
find and update all command
«constant UDfu» 		Find and Update All
find first command
«constant USff» 		Find First
find last command
«constant USfl» 		Find Last
find next command
«constant USfn» 		Find Next
find previous command
«constant USfp» 		Find Previous
home command
«constant UHhm» 		Home
import command
«constant UFld» 		Import
keypress enter command
«constant UHke» 		Keypress: Enter
move into collection command
«constant UDmt» 		Move Into Collection
null command
«constant UHnl» 		Null
open command
«constant UIop» 		Open
open copy command
«constant UDoc» 		Open Copy
open original command
«constant UDoo» 		Open Original
open query command
«constant USoq» 		Open Query
page setup command
«constant UFps» 		Page Setup...
paste command
«constant UEps» 		Paste
paste record command
«constant UEpr» 		Paste Record | Paste All Records
pause command
«constant UHps» 		Pause
post all command
«constant USpa» 		Post All | Find and Post All
post selections command
«constant USps» 		Post Selections | Find and Post Selections
print document command
«constant UDpd» 		Print Document
print form command
«constant UFpf» 		Print Form...
quick query command
«constant USqq» 		Quick Query
refresh command
«constant UHrf» 		Refresh
revert command
«constant USrs» 		Revert
save and clear cache command
«constant UHcc» 		Save and Clear Caches DEPRECATED
save command
«constant UFsv» 		Save
select all command
«constant UEsa» 		Select All
select all records command
«constant UEsr» 		Select all Records
server info command
«constant UFsi» 		Server Info...
show clipboard command
«constant UEsc» 		Show Clipboard
show fonts command
«constant UFfn» 		Show Fonts...
sort order command
«constant UHix» 		Sort Order...
starting page number command
«constant UOpn» 		Starting Page #...
static enter command
«constant UHse» 		Static Enter
static enter override command
«constant UHso» 		Static Enter Override
tab field command
«constant UHtb» 		Tab Field
time stamp command
«constant UEts» 		Time Stamp
top menu command
«constant UHtm» 		Top Menu
transfer original command
«constant UDxo» 		Transfer Original
update all command
«constant UDua» 		Update All
update document command
«constant UDud» 		Update Document
user command
«constant UOur» 		User...
user name security command
«constant UOus» 		User Name Security...
work on copy command
«constant UDwc» 		Work on Copy...
work on original command
«constant UDwo» 		Work on Original

Sequence message options

sequence message options (enumeration)When an error occurs in a sequence, an error message (that can be seen by choosing the Why? menu item of the Help menu) is generated. The options are to display the standard message, a custom message, or no message at all.
«class SqEo»

Constants

Constant
Description
custom
«constant SeCu» 		Display the custom error message
none
«constant none» 		Do not display an error
standard
«constant lwst» 		Display the error and where it occurred

Where Used

The sequence message options enumeration is used in the following ways:

message option property of the sequence class/record

Show dialogs options

show dialogs options (enumeration)show dialogs while a sequence is running
«class shwD»

Constants

Constant
Description
always
«constant SdAl» 		Always show dialogs
never
«constant SdNv» 		Never show dialogs
optionally
«constant SdOp» 		Show dialogs if the option key is down

Where Used

The show dialogs options enumeration is used in the following ways:

show dialogs property of the sequence class/record

Time styles

time styles (enumeration)How to present a time
«class styT»

Constants

Constant
Description
military format
«constant milT» 		Military format: 13:50:25
omit
«constant omtT» 		No time component
short format
«constant srtT» 		Short form: 1:50 PM

Where Used

The time styles enumeration is used in the following ways:

time style property of the date format class/record

User menu commands

user menu commands (enumeration)Menu items that can be put on a user menu.
«class Ucmd»

Constants

Constant
Description
about helix command
«constant UAab» 		About Helix
autosave command
«constant UOas» 		AutoSave...
bold command
«constant UTbd» 		Bold DEPRECATED. This menu item is always disabled in macOS.
check for updates command
«constant UAcu» 		Check For Updates
clear command
«constant UEcl» 		Clear
clear form command
«constant UScf» 		Clear Form
clear selections command
«constant UEcs» 		Clear Selections
client info command
«constant UFci» 		Client Info...
close all command
«constant UIca» 		Close All
close collection command
«constant UFcc» 		Close Collection
close command
«constant UIcl» 		Close
collection password command
«constant UOcp» 		Collection Password...
colors command
«constant UTco» 		Colors DEPRECATED. Eight color swatches. Not shown in macOS.
copy command
«constant UEcp» 		Copy
copy from volume command
«constant UDcf» 		Copy From Volume
copy paste record options command
«constant UEco» 		Copy/Paste Record Options...
copy record command
«constant UEcr» 		Copy Record | Copy All Records
copy selected records command
«constant UEcd» 		Copy Selected Records
copy to volume command
«constant UDcv» 		Copy to Volume...
custom help command
«constant UAcs» 		Custom Help
custom paper command
«constant UOcu» 		Custom Paper DEPRECATED. This menu item is always disabled in macOS.
custom size command
«constant UTcs» 		Custom Size... DEPRECATED. This menu item is always disabled in macOS.
cut command
«constant UEct» 		Cut
delete all command
«constant USda» 		Delete All
delete all originals command
«constant UDda» 		Delete All Originals
delete command
«constant USdc» 		Delete
delete original command
«constant UDdo» 		Delete Original
delete selection command
«constant USds» 		Delete Selection
design mode command
«constant UOmd» 		Design Mode
desk accessories
«constant mnDA» 		DEPRECATED. Do not use.
edit users command
«constant UHeu» 		Edit Username List...
eighteen point command
«constant UT18» 		18 Point DEPRECATED. This menu item is always disabled in macOS.
enter command
«constant USen» 		Enter | Replace
enter override command
«constant UHeo» 		Enter Override
export command
«constant UFdd» 		Export All...
export form command
«constant UHdf» 		Export Form...
export ordered command
«constant UFdo» 		Export Ordered
export selected command
«constant UFds» 		Export Selected
find and print all command
«constant UFpa» 		Find and Print All...
find and update all command
«constant UDfu» 		Find and Update All
find first command
«constant USff» 		Find First
find last command
«constant USfl» 		Find Last
find next command
«constant USfn» 		Find Next
find previous command
«constant USfp» 		Find Previous
fourteen point command
«constant UT14» 		14 Point DEPRECATED. This menu item is always disabled in macOS.
help command
«constant UAhp» 		Helix Help DEPRECATED. This menu item is always inserted in the Help menu in macOS.
import command
«constant UFld» 		Import
invoke icon
«constant mnII» 		A menu item that opens a view, runs a sequence, or switches to another user. The 'icon' property of the menu item contains the view, sequence, or user icon that is invoked.
italic command
«constant UTit» 		Italic DEPRECATED. This menu item is always disabled in macOS.
menu
«constant menH» 		A placeholder for a hierarchical menu. When you 'add' a menu to a menu, a hierarchical menu is created and is accessed via the 'hierarchical menu' property.
move into collection command
«constant UDmt» 		Move Into Collection
nine point command
«constant UT9 » 		9 Point DEPRECATED. This menu item is always disabled in macOS.
open command
«constant UIop» 		Open
open copy command
«constant UDoc» 		Open Copy
open original command
«constant UDoo» 		Open Original
open query command
«constant USoq» 		Open Query
outline command
«constant UTot» 		Outline DEPRECATED. This menu item is always disabled in macOS.
page setup command
«constant UFps» 		Page Setup...
paste command
«constant UEps» 		Paste
paste record command
«constant UEpr» 		Paste Record | Paste All Records
plain command
«constant UTpl» 		Plain DEPRECATED. This menu item is always disabled in macOS.
post all command
«constant USpa» 		Post All | Find and Post All
post selections command
«constant USps» 		Post Selections | Find and Post Selections
preferences command
«constant UOpr» 		Preferences...
print document command
«constant UDpd» 		Print Document
print form command
«constant UFpf» 		Print Form...
quick query command
«constant USqq» 		Quick Query
quit command
«constant UFqt» 		Quit
refresh command
«constant UHrf» 		Refresh
revert command
«constant USrs» 		Revert
revert to saved command
«constant UFrs» 		Revert to Saved...
save and log command
«constant UFsl» 		Save and Log...
save as command
«constant UFsa» 		Save As...
save command
«constant UFsv» 		Save
select all command
«constant UEsa» 		Select All
select all records command
«constant UEsr» 		Select all Records
separator
«constant Usep» 		A separator line
server info command
«constant UFsi» 		Server Info...
shadow command
«constant UTsh» 		Shadow DEPRECATED. This menu item is always disabled in macOS.
show clipboard command
«constant UEsc» 		Show Clipboard
show fonts command
«constant UFfn» 		Show Fonts...
sort order command
«constant UHix» 		Sort Order...
starting page number command
«constant UOpn» 		Starting Page #...
static enter command
«constant UHse» 		Static Enter
static enter override command
«constant UHso» 		Static Enter Override
ten point command
«constant UT10» 		10 Point DEPRECATED. This menu item is always disabled in macOS.
time stamp command
«constant UEts» 		Time Stamp
top menu command
«constant UHtm» 		Top Menu
transfer original command
«constant UDxo» 		Transfer Original
twelve point command
«constant UT12» 		12 Point DEPRECATED. This menu item is always disabled in macOS.
twentyfour point command
«constant UT24» 		24 Point DEPRECATED. This menu item is always disabled in macOS.
underline command
«constant UTul» 		Underline DEPRECATED. This menu item is always disabled in macOS.
undo command
«constant UEud» 		Undo
update all command
«constant UDua» 		Update All
update document command
«constant UDud» 		Update Document
user command
«constant UOur» 		User...
user name security command
«constant UOus» 		User Name Security...
user password command
«constant UOup» 		User Password...
why command
«constant UAwy» 		Why?
window command
«constant UWwn» 		Windows DEPRECATED. The Window command is given its own user menu in macOS.
work on copy command
«constant UDwc» 		Work on Copy...
work on original command
«constant UDwo» 		Work on Original

Where Used

The user menu commands enumeration is used in the following ways:

command property of the menu item class/record

User types

user types (enumeration)Legal user types. The primary user is the standard user type; a secondary user is what the Classic GUI calls a submenu user.
«class uTyp»

Constants

Constant
Description
administrator
«constant Uadm» 		A primary user in all respects, except that it does not appear in the Edit Usernames dialog, limiting the end users ability to edit the user.
primary
«constant Uusr» 		A standard user. May be used to log in. May be edited (and duplicated) in the Edit Usernames dialog.
prototype
«constant Upty» 		A user that can not be used to log in. A prototype may be duplicated via the Edit Usernames dialog, the duplicate becoming a primary user. You can not assign a password to a prototype user.
secondary
«constant Usub» 		A secondary user, used to provide an alternative menu bar and permissions set without changing the primary user. Can not be used to log in; access is only through menu choices and sequences.

Where Used

The user types enumeration is used in the following ways:

user type property of the user class/record

Validation operators

validation operators (enumeration)Tiles that are allowed for build-in (simple) validations.
«class oprV»

Constants

Constant
Description
contains tile
«constant ctnO» 		Field contains the value entered in the primary constant. [(field) contains o]
defined tile
«constant defO» 		Field is defined [Defined (field)]
ends with tile
«constant endO» 		Field ends with the value entered in the primary constant. [(field) ends with o]
equals tile
«constant eqlO» 		Field equals the primary constant. [(field) = o]
greater than or equal tile
«constant ge O» 		Field is greater than or equal to the primary constant. [(field) o]
greater than tile
«constant gt O» 		Field is greater than the primary constant. [(field) > o]
less than less than or equals tile
«constant ltO» 		Field is greater than the primary constant and less than or equal to the secondary constant. [o < (field) o]
less than less than tile
«constant lt<O» 		Field is greater than the primary constant and less than the secondary constant. [o < (field) < o]
less than or equals less than or equals tile
«constant leO» 		Field is greater than or equal to the primary constant and less than or equal to the secondary constant. [o (field) o]
less than or equals less than tile
«constant le<O» 		Field is greater than or equal to the primary constant and less than the secondary constant. [o (field) < o]
less than or equals tile
«constant le O» 		Field is less than or equal to the primary constant. [(field) o]
less than tile
«constant lt O» 		Field is less than the primary constant. [(field) < o]
not equals tile
«constant neqO» 		Field does not equal the primary constant. [(field) o]
starts with tile
«constant stwO» 		Field starts with the value entered in the primary constant. [(field) starts with o]
undefined tile
«constant undO» 		Field is undefined [Undefined (field)]
unique tile
«constant unqO» 		Field is unique [Unique (field)]

Where Used

The validation operators enumeration is used in the following ways:

validation operation property of the tile validation class/record

View mode options

view mode options (enumeration)The mode of the view window
«class Mslm»

Constants

Constant
Description
form mode
«constant frmM» 		Showing the form
posting setup mode
«constant pstM» 		Showing the posting setup options. DEPRECATED
setup mode
«constant setM» 		Showing the setup options

Where Used

The view mode options enumeration is used in the following ways:

view mode property of the view class/record

Window types

window types (enumeration)The type of a window
«class Hwnd»

Constants

Constant
Description
Document Window
«constant HdoW» 		A document window (includes a title bar)
Plain Window
«constant HplW» 		A plain window (without a title bar)

Where Used

The window types enumeration is used in the following ways:

window type property of the helix icon class/record

Records

Autosave parameters

autosave parameters (record)Auto-save parameters
«class asvP»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
autosave idle delay
«property Paid» 		get/set integer Number of seconds to wait for inactivity before saving, after the autosave interval has elapsed.
autosave interval
«property Past» 		get/set integer Number of seconds between AutoSaves.
autosave start time
«property Pasb» 		get/set integer What time of day (in seconds after midnight) does AutoSave begin?
enabled
«property Pase» 		get/set boolean Is AutoSave enabled?

Where Used

The autosave parameters record is used in the following ways:

autosave property of the collection class/record

Conditional color item

conditional color item (record)A combination of a calculation, color, and font
«class Hcci»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
background color
«property Tbci» 		get/set RGB color The background color, if this condition is true
calculation
«property Turl» 		get/set abacus The conditional calculation
color
«property colr» 		get/set RGB color The text color, if this condition is true
font
«property Tfnt» 		get/set font style The font name, size, and attributes, if this condition is true
frame color
«property Toci» 		get/set RGB color The frame color, if this condition is true

Where Used

The conditional color item record is used in the following ways:

conditional style property of the data rectangle class/record

Conditional sequence item

conditional sequence item (record)A conditional sequence pair, consisting of a data icon (field or abacus) that supplies the number of times a sequence should run, and the sequence to run.
«class ccdI»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
iteration command
«property Rseq» 		get/set sequence The conditional sequence to execute
iteration value
«property Ritr» 		get/set field or abacus The number or fixed point data icon that determines the number of times to execute the sequence

Where Used

The conditional sequence item record is used in the following ways:

conditional sequences property of the command rectangle class/record

Date format

date format (record)Date format parameters
«class dteF»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
date style
«property dstD» 		get/set date styles style to present date, if any
include seconds
«property secD» 		get/set boolean Include seconds in the time part
leading zero
«property ledD» 		get/set boolean date and time are written with leading zeros to insure that each field has two digits
popup
«property Mpop» 		get/set static popup or dynamic popup Popup information. Optional.
time style
«property tstD» 		get/set time styles style to present time, if any

Where Used

The date format record is used in the following ways:

format property of the data rectangle class/record

format property of the data icon class/record

Dynamic popup

dynamic popup (record)Dynamic popup
«class dynF»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
allow typing
«property Mtto» 		get/set boolean Also allow the user to type into the field. (i.e: a Combo Box)
allow variable width
«property Mdfx» 		get/set boolean Allow menu to expand to show long entries.
current index
«property Lidx» 		get/set index or missing value The index currently being used to sort the popup. This property can be set by choosing a sort order from the toolbar on a list in macOS. When specifying a view, this property is optional. When omitted, records are displayed in entry order, or in the order dictated by the index used to satisfy an attached query. This specification may change in the future.
display value
«property Ltxt» 		get/set abacus or field Value to be displayed. Must be in the source relation. Must be renderable as text.
source query
«property Lqry» 		get/set abacus, form query or missing value Flag abacus or query to select the values to be displayed in the popup. Must be in relation. Optional. If omitted, all values in the relation are used.
source relation
«property Lsbx» 		get/set relation The relation to use to obtain values
stored value
«property Lval» 		get/set abacus, field or missing value Value to be stored. Must be in relation. Must be renderable as text. Must be the same type as the field where the value will be stored. Optional. If omitted, the display value is used.

Where Used

The dynamic popup record is used in the following ways:

popup property of the flag format class/record

popup property of the text format class/record

popup property of the fixed point format class/record

popup property of the number format class/record

popup property of the date format class/record

Error record

error record (record)Error Record
«class HOvR»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
error message
«property errs» 		get/set text The error message
number
«property errn» 		get/set integer The number of the error
partial result
«property ptlr» 		get/set list of object More information about the error. Often object or objects involved in the error.

Where Used

The error record record is used in the following ways:

result of check rectangle overlap command

Fixed point format

fixed point format (record)fixed point format parameters
«class finF»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
commas
«property cmaN» 		get/set boolean Number has commas every three digits
currency mark
«property curN» 		get/set boolean Number has currency mark. The format for the currency mark is specified by the International Localization data.
decimal places
«property decN» 		get/set number Number of digits displayed after the decimal point. Maximum 2.
popup
«property Mpop» 		get/set static popup or dynamic popup Popup information. Optional.

Where Used

The fixed point format record is used in the following ways:

format property of the data rectangle class/record

format property of the data icon class/record

Flag format

flag format (record)Flag format parameters
«class flgF»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
case
«property cseF» 		get/set case options Case
custom labels
«property Lstr» 		get/set list of text Two or three text strings, defining alternate values for true, false, and (optionally) undefined. A text field can display the true and false values; a checkbox can display the true value; a radio button can display all three values.
hide labels
«property Mhcl» 		get/set boolean Hide labels
labels
«property labF» 		get/set flag value labels labels
number of buttons
«property numB» 		get/set number of button options Number of radio buttons to use. Radio buttons only.
orientation
«property ortF» 		get/set orientation options Direction to stack elements. Radio buttons and checkboxes only.
popup
«property Mpop» 		get/set static popup or dynamic popup Popup information. Optional.
require custom labels
«property Mctm» 		get/set boolean When data is being entered by a user, only accept data that conforms to the custom labels, ignoring the standard values.
style
«property styF» 		get/set flag display styles How to present value

Where Used

The flag format record is used in the following ways:

format property of the data rectangle class/record

format property of the data icon class/record

Font style

font style (record)Font style information, does not include color data
«class Hfni»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
bold face
«property Tbld» 		get/set boolean Bold font face (Optional)
font name
«property Tftn» 		get/set text The name of the font family
font size
«property Tsze» 		get/set number Point size for the font
italic face
«property Tita» 		get/set boolean Italics font face (Optional)
outline face
«property Tout» 		get/set boolean Outline font face DEPRECATED (Optional)
shadow face
«property Tshd» 		get/set boolean Shadow font face DEPRECATED (Optional)
underline face
«property Tund» 		get/set boolean Underline font face DEPRECATED (Optional)

Where Used

The font style record is used in the following ways:

font property of the font style run class/record

font property of the conditional color item class/record

font property of the styled tile class/record

font property of the styled rectangle class/record

Font style run

font style run (record)The font style and color information for a section of styled text
«class Hfcr»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
color
«property colr» 		get/set RGB color The color of this section of text
font
«property Tfnt» 		get/set font style The font name, size, and attributes of this section of text
start character index
«property Hstt» 		get/set integer The index of the first character of the run, starting at 0. All runs must be in order, and each run ends at the start of the next run. The last run ends at the end of the string.

Where Used

The font style run record is used in the following ways:

font property of the styled rectangle class/record

Number format

number format (record)Numeric format parameters
«class numF»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
commas
«property cmaN» 		get/set boolean Number has commas every three digits
currency mark
«property curN» 		get/set boolean Number has currency mark. The format for the currency mark is specified by the International Localization data.
decimal places
«property decN» 		get/set number Number of digits after the decimal point
percent sign
«property pctN» 		get/set boolean Number is a percentage
popup
«property Mpop» 		get/set static popup or dynamic popup Popup information. Optional.
scientific notation
«property sciN» 		get/set boolean Number is in scientific notation (n.nnn+nnn)

Where Used

The number format record is used in the following ways:

format property of the data rectangle class/record

format property of the data icon class/record

Quick query expression

quick query expression (record)The quick query expression.
«class Hqqy»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
also use query
«property Mqcq» 		get/set boolean If the view query should also restrict the records found. Optional. If omitted, it defaults to true.
quick query field
«property Mqfd» 		get/set field The field in the quick query popup
quick query operator
«property Mqfc» 		get/set quick query operators Operator to use for the test
quick query value
«property Mqvl» 		get/set boolean, number, date or text The value in the quick query search field

Where Used

The quick query expression record is used in the following ways:

quick query property of the view class/record

Static popup

static popup (record)Static popup
«class sttF»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
allow typing
«property Mtto» 		get/set boolean Also allow the user to type into the field. (i.e: a Combo Box)
allow variable width
«property Mdfx» 		get/set boolean Allow menu to expand to show long entries.
values
«property Mval» 		get/set list of text Default values to display in the popup menu.

Where Used

The static popup record is used in the following ways:

popup property of the flag format class/record

popup property of the text format class/record

popup property of the fixed point format class/record

popup property of the number format class/record

popup property of the date format class/record

Structure check result

structure check result (record)List of data errors (correctable and not) found during structure check
«class SCrp»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
diagnostic data
«property SCvl» 		get integer Diagnostic data.
error code
«property SCec» 		get integer The type of error found
found id
«property SCfi» 		get integer For damage, the id of the object found at the point of damage.
found type
«property SCft» 		get integer For damage, the type of object found at the point of damage.
id
«property ID  » 		get integer The id of the object where the error was detected.
type
«property type» 		get integer The type of object where the error was detected.

Where Used

The structure check result record is used in the following ways:

result of check structure command

Text format

text format (record)Format (Graphic User Interace control type) to use for displaying text datatype. Default is a plain text field.
«class txtF»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
popup
«property Mpop» 		get/set static popup or dynamic popup Optional property to display field as a popup menu.

Where Used

The text format record is used in the following ways:

format property of the data rectangle class/record

format property of the data icon class/record

Tile validation

tile validation (record)
«class Lnrs»

Properties

Property
Access
Type
Description
message
«property msgV» 		get/set text message to display for failure
primary constant
«property lhsV» 		get/set text value for left hand side
secondary constant
«property rhsV» 		get/set text value for right hand side
validation operation
«property oprV» 		get/set validation operators test to use with field and constant

Where Used

The tile validation record is used in the following ways:

tile validation property of the field class/record

Types

Color index

color index (type)DEPRECATED. The index of the color in the color table. (0 is white, 1 is black, 2-255 are user defined.)
«class colX»

Where Used

The color index type is used in the following ways:

result of get index for color command

direct parameter to the set color index command/event

direct parameter to the get color index command/event

background color property of the helix icon class/record

background color property of the styled rectangle class/record

frame color property of the group rectangle class/record

frame color property of the styled rectangle class/record

Picture

picture (type)
«class pctV»

Where Used

The picture type is used in the following ways:

command label property of the command rectangle class/record

content property of the label rectangle class/record

Rectangle

rectangle (type)A list of four numbers, representing the left, top, right and bottom coordinates [ltrb] of a rectangle within a page.
«class qdrt»

Where Used

The rectangle type is used in the following ways:

location property of the helix icon class/record

location property of the template rectangle class/record

location property of the menu item class/record