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Adding a Data Source to an Object

Depending on the type of object that you are working with, you can use one of several methods to add a data source to an object.

You can create a more complex value for an object to print by adding more data sources to the object. When you do this, you create a concatenated value where the different data sources are combined to create the single value that you want the object to print. For more information about how to concatenate data sources for an object, refer to Concatenating Data Sources.

Text Objects

For text objects, you can add a data source by using the Object Properties dialog, the Data Edit tool, or the drag-and-drop method.

ClosedTo add a data source by using the Object Properties dialog

  1. Open the Object Properties dialog. To do this, double-click the object. Alternatively, click Properties on the object's context menu.

  2. In the navigation pane, click either the Data Sources node or an existing data source for the object.

  3. On the data sources toolbar, click to start the New Data Source wizard, which you can use to select the new data source that you want.

  4. After you complete the wizard, click the new data source in the navigation pane, and then click either or on the data sources toolbar as needed to move the data source up or down in the list of data sources. The order that the data sources are listed in determines the order in which they are concatenated for the object value.

  5. Configure additional properties for the new data source by using the tabs of the Data Sources property page.

ClosedTo add a data source by using the Data Edit tool

  1. Turn on the Data Edit tool by pointing to a data source within the object. When the pointer turns into a , the Data Edit tool is turned on.

  2. Click within the object to turn on the on-screen editing functionality.

  3. Click the secondary mouse button at the location where you want to add a data source, either before or after a discrete data source or within the contents of an Embedded Data data source.

    When you click within the text object, any data sources that are not Embedded Data data sources are identified as a discrete field within the object.

  4. On the context menu, click New Data Source to start the New Data Source wizard, which you can use to select the new data source that you want.

  5. After you complete the wizard, the new data source is added to the object.

  6. Configure additional properties for the new data source by using the tabs of the Data Sources property page.

ClosedTo add a data source by using the drag-and-drop method

  1. In the Toolbox, click the Data Sources tab to show the Data Sources pane.

  2. Drag the data source that you want from the Data Sources pane to the object, and then point to the location within the object where you want to add it. Release the mouse button when the "insert" bracket appears in the location where you want to add the data source. The insert bracket is illustrated in the following image.

    When you drag the data source to the object, any other data sources that are contained in the object that are not Embedded Data data sources are identified as discrete fields within the object. (For example, the Date data source [10:18 PM] in the previous image is a discrete field.) When you release the mouse button while pointing to the discrete data source, the discrete data source is replaced with the new data source.

  3. Depending on the new data source that you drag from the Data Sources pane, a dialog or property page might open. Use this dialog or property page to configure the properties for your new data source.

    For more information about specific data source types, refer to Available Data Sources to find the documentation for the data source that you want.

Barcode and Encoder Objects

For a barcode or encoder object, you can add a data source by using the Object Properties dialog, the Data Edit tool and the corresponding Data Edit dialog, or the drag-and-drop method.

ClosedTo add a data source by using the Object Properties dialog

  1. Open the Object Properties dialog. To do this, double-click the object. Alternatively, click Properties on the object's context menu.

  2. In the navigation pane, click either the Data Sources node or an existing data source for the object.

  3. On the data sources toolbar, click to start the New Data Source wizard, which you can use to select the new data source that you want.

  4. After you complete the wizard, click the new data source in the navigation pane, and then click either or on the data sources toolbar as needed to move the data source up or down in the list of data sources. The order that the data sources are listed in determines the order in which they are concatenated for the object value.

  5. Configure additional properties for the new data source by using the tabs of the Data Sources property page.

ClosedTo add a data source by using the Data Edit dialog

  1. Turn on the Data Edit tool. To do this, clickon the object toolbar.

  2. Click the barcode or encoder object that you want to add a data source to. The Data Edit dialog opens.

  3. Click Data Source to open the object's Object Properties dialog.

  4. In the navigation pane, click either the Data Sources node or an existing data source for the object.

  5. On the data sources toolbar, click to start the New Data Source wizard, which you can use to select the new data source that you want.

  6. After you complete the wizard, click the new data source in the navigation pane, and then click either or on the data sources toolbar as needed to move the data source up or down in the list of data sources. The order that the data sources are listed in determines the order in which they are concatenated for the object value.

  7. Configure additional properties for the new data source by using the tabs of the Data Sources property page.

  8. Click Close.

  9. Turn off the Data Edit tool. To do this, click on the object toolbar.

ClosedTo add a data source by using the drag-and-drop method

  1. In the Toolbox, click the Data Sources tab to show the Data Sources pane.

  2. Drag the data source that you want from the Data Sources pane to the object that you want to add the data source to.

  3. Depending on the new data source that you drag from the Data Sources pane, a dialog or property page might open. Use this dialog or property page to configure the properties for your new data source.

    For more information about specific data source types, refer to Available Data Sources to find the documentation for the data source that you want.

When you use the drag-and-drop method to replace an existing data source, you replace all data sources for the object. If the object contains additional data sources that you do not want to replace, use the Object Properties dialog to replace the data source.

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