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List Items Property Page

The List Items property page is available for radio button list, list box, and dropdown list controls. This page specifies the list of items that a print operator can choose from to select a value for the control.

In many cases, but depending on the control that you are configuring and the source that you have selected, the default condition is that the item value that is printed on an item is the same as the display text. In most cases, you can optionally specify a different value for the item value or the display text.

The following options are available.

Source: Specifies the source that you want to use for the list of choices.

ClosedEmbedded Data

Use the Embedded Data source to manually enter the items that you want to appear in the list and each item's corresponding value that you want printed to a linked template object when the item is selected at print time. The options that are available vary depending on what kind of data entry control you are configuring.

ClosedDropdown List Control

The options for configuring Embedded Data list items for a dropdown list control vary depending on the dropdown list control type.

ClosedSingle Column Type

The following options are available:

  • Use display text for item value: Specifies that the Item Value value for each selection in the list (the value that appears on your printed items) is the same as the Display Text value. If you click to clear this check box, you can enter a different value to appear on your printed item.

  • Display Text: Each value in the Display Text column specifies a value that is displayed on the control. To enter a new Display Text value for the list, click a blank row, and then enter the value that you want. To edit an existing value, click the cell that contains the value that you want to edit, and then enter the new value.

  • Item Value: Each value in the Item Value column specifies the value that is printed on the template when the print operator selects its corresponding Display Text value at print time. When you want to create or edit the Item Value value separately from its corresponding Display Text value, click to clear the Use display text for item value check box. After the check box is cleared, enter new values or edit existing values by using the same methods that you use for the Display Text values.

You can sort the list items in ascending or descending order based on either the Display Text value or the Item Value value. To do this, click the column header of the column that you want to sort by. The order that is displayed on the property page is the order that is displayed on the data entry form.

Closed Multiple Column Type

The following options are available: 

  • Edit Data: Opens the Embedded Data Table Editor, which you can use to manually create the control's list items. For more information, refer to Using the Embedded Data Table Editor.

  • Fields: Displays the fields and values that were created by using the Embedded Data Table Editor. To modify the fields and values, click Edit Data to open the Embedded Data Table Editor.

When you do not want a specific field to be displayed in the control, use the Columns property page to set that column's Visible property to No.
 

When you want a field's value to appear on your printed items, use the control's Linked Data Source property page to link the field to a data source.

ClosedList Box Control

The options for configuring Embedded Data list items for a list box control vary depending on the list box control type.

Closed Single Column Type

The following options are available:

  • Use display text for item value: Specifies that the Item Value value for each selection in the list (the value that appears on your printed items) is the same as the Display Text value. If you click to clear this check box, you can enter a different value to appear on your printed item.

  • Display Text: Each value in the Display Text column specifies a value that is displayed on the control. To enter a new Display Text value for the list, click a blank row, and then enter the value that you want. To edit an existing value, click the cell that contains the value that you want to edit, and then enter the new value.

  • Item Value: Each value in the Item Value column specifies the value that is printed on the template when the print operator selects its corresponding Display Text value at print time. When you want to create or edit the Item Value value separately from its corresponding Display Text value, click to clear the Use display text for item value check box. After the check box is cleared, enter new values or edit existing values by using the same methods that you use for the Display Text values.

You can sort the list items in ascending or descending order based on either the Display Text value or the Item Value value. To do this, click the column header of the column that you want to sort by. The order that is displayed on the property page is the order that is displayed on the data entry form.

Closed Multiple Columns, Simple Cards, or Custom Cards Type

The following options are available: 

  • Edit Data: Opens the Embedded Data Table Editor, which you can use to manually create the control's list items. For simple and custom cards, each list item represents a single card. For more information, refer to Using the Embedded Data Table Editor.

  • Fields: Displays the fields and values that were created by using the Embedded Data Table Editor. To modify the fields and values, click Edit Data to open the Embedded Data Table Editor.

When you do not want a specific field to be displayed in the control, use the Columns property page to set that column's Visible property to No.
 

When you want a field's value to appear on your printed items, use the control's Linked Data Source property page to link the field to a data source.

ClosedRadio Button List Control

The following options are available:

  • Use display text for item value: Specifies that the Item Value value for each selection in the list (the value that appears on your printed items) is the same as the Display Text value. If you click to clear this check box, you can enter a different value to appear on your printed item.

  • Display Text: Each value in the Display Text column specifies a value that is displayed on the control. To enter a new Display Text value for the list, click a blank row, and then enter the value that you want. To edit an existing value, click the cell that contains the value that you want to edit, and then enter the new value.

  • Item Value: Each value in the Item Value column specifies the value that is printed on the template when the print operator selects its corresponding Display Text value at print time. When you want to create or edit the Item Value value separately from its corresponding Display Text value, click to clear the Use display text for item value check box. After the check box is cleared, enter new values or edit existing values by using the same methods that you use for the Display Text values.

You can sort the list items in ascending or descending order based on either the Display Text value or the Item Value value. To do this, click the column header of the column that you want to sort by. The order that is displayed on the property page is the order that is displayed on the data entry form.

ClosedDatabase

The Database source populates the list items from a connected database, such as a text file, Microsoft Excel spreadsheet, or other data file. After you connect to a database by using the Database Setup dialog, BarTender populates the list with the values in the specified database field.

The database connection for the list items is completely independent of the database connection that populates data on your template. Even if you have already connected to a database in your document, you need to rerun the Database Setup wizard to connect to a new database (or to the same one).

The options that are available vary depending on what kind of data entry control you are configuring.

ClosedDropdown List Control

The options for configuring Database list items for a dropdown list control vary depending on the dropdown list control type.

ClosedSingle Column Type

The following options are available:

  • Database Setup: Opens the Database Setup dialog, where you can connect to the database that you want to use to populate the list items.

  • Use display text for item value: Specifies that the Item Value value for each selection in the list (the value that appears on your printed items) is the same as the Display Text value. If you click to clear this check box, you can specify that the Item Value values are populated by a different field from the database, so that a different value is printed on your item.

  • Display Text Field: Specifies the database field that populates the Display Text values.

  • Item Value Field: Specifies the database field that populates the Item Value values. Available when Use display text for item value is not selected.

  • Sort items: Sorts the list items in ascending order based on the Display Text values. The order that is displayed on the property page is the order that is displayed on the data entry form.

Closed Multiple Column Type

The following options are available: 

  • Database Setup: Opens the Database Setup dialog, where you can connect to the database that you want to use to populate the list items.

  • Fields: Provides a read-only view of the database fields.

You can sort the list items in ascending or descending order, based on any one of the database fields. To do this, click the column header of the database field that you want to sort by. The order that is displayed on the property page is the order that is displayed on the data entry form.

When you do not want a specific field to be displayed in the control, use the Columns property page to set that column's Visible property to No.
 

When you want a field's value to appear on your printed items, use the control's Linked Data Source property page to link the field to a data source.

ClosedList Box Control

The options for configuring Database list items for a list box control vary depending on the list box control type.

Closed Single Column Type

The following options are available:

  • Database Setup: Opens the Database Setup dialog, where you can connect to the database that you want to use to populate the list items.

  • Use display text for item value: Specifies that the Item Value value for each selection in the list (the value that appears on your printed items) is the same as the Display Text value. If you click to clear this check box, you can specify that the Item Value values are populated by a different field from the database, so that a different value is printed on your item.

  • Display Text Field: Specifies the database field that populates the Display Text values.

  • Item Value Field: Specifies the database field that populates the Item Value values. Available when Use display text for item value is not selected.

  • Sort items: Sorts the list items in ascending order based on the Display Text values. The order that is displayed on the property page is the order that is displayed on the data entry form.

Closed Multiple Columns, Simple Cards, or Custom Cards Type

The following options are available:

  • Database Setup: Opens the Database Setup dialog, where you can connect to the database that you want to use to populate the list items. For simple and custom cards, each list item represents a single card.

  • Fields: Provides a read-only view of the database fields.

You can sort the list items in ascending or descending order, based on any one of the database fields. To do this, click the column header of the database field that you want to sort by. The order that is displayed on the property page is the order that is displayed on the data entry form.

When you do not want a specific field to be displayed in the control, use the Columns property page to set that column's Visible property to No.
 

When you want a field's value to appear on your printed items, use the control's Linked Data Source property page to link the field to a data source.

ClosedRadio Button List Control

The following options are available:

  • Database Setup: Opens the Database Setup dialog, where you can connect to the database that you want to use to populate the list items.

  • Use display text for item value: Specifies that the Item Value value for each selection in the list (the value that appears on your printed items) is the same as the Display Text value. If you click to clear this check box, you can specify that the Item Value values are populated by a different field from the database, so that a different value is printed on your item.

  • Display Text Field: Specifies the database field that populates the Display Text values.

  • Item Value Field: Specifies the database field that populates the Item Value values. Available when Use display text for item value is not selected.

  • Sort items: Sorts the list items in ascending order based on the Display Text values. The order that is displayed on the property page is the order that is displayed on the data entry form.

ClosedExternal File

This source option is available for radio button list controls and for dropdown list and list box controls whose type is Single Column.

The External File source populates the list items from a file that is located on your computer. BarTender interprets the selected file as tab-delimited. If a line in the file contains no tab, the entire line is used to populate both the Display Text value and its corresponding Item Value value. If a line in the file contains two separate values that are separated by a tab character, the first value populates the Display Text value, and the second value populates the Item Value value.

The following options are available when you select External File as the source:

ClosedFile Names in Folder

This source option is available for radio button list controls and for dropdown list controls and list box controls whose type is Single Column.

The File Names in Folder source populates the list items with file names from a specified folder on your computer or network.

The following options are available:

ClosedFiles in Folder

This option is available for dropdown list controls whose type is Multiple Columns and list box controls whose type is Multiple Columns, Simple Cards, or Custom Cards.

The Files in Folder source populates the list items with file information from a specified folder on your computer or network.

The following options are available:

ClosedVisual Basic Script

Use the Visual Basic Script source to write a custom Visual Basic Script (VBScript) to populate the list items. Use a carriage return (vbCr) to separate multiple list items.

The options that are available vary depending on what kind of data entry control you are configuring.

ClosedDropdown List Control

The options for configuring Visual Basic list items for a dropdown list control vary depending on the dropdown list control type.

ClosedSingle Column Type

The following options are available:

  • Edit Script: Opens the Visual Basic Script Editor so that you can write and modify your script.

  • Sort items: Sorts the lists in ascending order based on the values that are included for the Display Text list. The order that is displayed on the property page is the order that is displayed on the data entry form.

ClosedMultiple Columns Type

The following options are available:

  • Edit Script: Opens the Visual Basic Script Editor so that you can write and modify your script.

  • Fields: Provides a read-only view of the database fields.

ClosedList Box Control

The options for configuring Visual Basic list items for a list box control vary depending on the list box control type.

ClosedSingle Column Type

The following options are available:

  • Edit Script: Opens the Visual Basic Script Editor so that you can write and modify your script.

  • Sort items: Sorts the lists in ascending order based on the values that are included for the Display Text list. The order that is displayed on the property page is the order that is displayed on the data entry form.

ClosedMultiple Columns, Simple Cards, or Custom Cards Type

The following options are available:

  • Edit Script: Opens the Visual Basic Script Editor so that you can write and modify your script.

  • Fields: Provides a read-only view of the database fields.

ClosedRadio Button List Control

The following options are available:

  • Edit Script: Opens the Visual Basic Script Editor so that you can write and modify your script.

  • Sort items: Sorts the lists in ascending order based on the values that are included for the Display Text list. The order that is displayed on the property page is the order that is displayed on the data entry form.

ClosedExample of how to use VBScript with a single-column control

When you write your script, use a carriage return (vbCr) to separate each Display Text and Item Value pair in the list from the next. Use a tab character (vbTab) to separate the Display Text and Item Value within each pair.

In the following example, you are selling three products: an orange that costs $0.50, a banana that costs $0.65, and a muffin that costs $1.00. You want the data entry form to display the three products in a list. On the printed items, you want to print only the price.

To populate the list, make sure that OnFillList is selected in the Script pane of the Script Editor, and then enter the following VBScript in the Editor pane:

Value = "Orange" + vbTab + "0.50" + vbCr + "Banana" + vbTab + "0.65" + vbCr + "Muffin" + vbTab + "1.00"

When you do this, the list control is populated as follows.

Display Text

Item Value

Orange

0.50

Banana

0.65

Muffin

1.00

At print time, the values in the Display Text column are displayed in the control, and the corresponding values in the Item Value column are printed on your items. For example, when the print operator selects "Banana," the value that is printed on the item is "0.65."

If you want the Display Text and Item Value to be the same, you can enter the same value for each pair, as follows: 

Value = "Orange" + vbTab + "Orange" + vbCr + "Banana" + vbTab + "Banana" + vbCr + "Muffin" + vbTab + "Muffin"

Alternatively, you can leave out the Item Value definition, as follows:

Value = "Orange" + vbCr + "Banana" + vbCr + "Muffin"

When you use either of these scripts, the list control is populated as follows.

Display Text

Item Value

Orange

Orange

Banana

Banana

Muffin

Muffin

ClosedExample of how to use VBScript with a multiple-column control

When you use VBScript to populate a control that has multiple columns, you can configure your data entry form to display all the columns. You can then configure your template to print a value from one or more of those columns.

In the following example, you are selling three products: an orange from the produce department that costs $0.50, a banana from the produce department that costs $0.65, and a muffin from the bakery department that costs $1.00. You want the data entry form to display these three products in a multiple-column list whose column headers are "Item," "Department," and "Price." On the printed items, you want to print only the price.

When you write the script for the column headers, use a tab character (vbTab) to separate the columns. To populate the headers, make sure that OnGetList is selected in the Script pane of the Script Editor, and then enter the following VBScript in the Editor pane:

Value = "Item" + vbTab + "Department" + vbTab + "Price"

When you write the script for the list items, use a tab character (vbTab) to separate the column items, and use a carriage return (vbCr) to separate each item in the list from the next. To populate the list, make sure that OnFillList is selected in theScript pane of the Script Editor, and then enter the following VBScript in the Editor pane:

Value = "Orange" + vbTab + "Produce" + vbTab + "0.50" + vbCr + "Banana" + vbTab + "Produce" + vbTab + "0.65" + vbCr + "Muffin" + vbTab + "Bakery" + vbTab + "1.00"

When you do this, the list control is populated as follows.

Item

Department

Price

Orange

Produce

0.50

Banana

Produce

0.65

Muffin

Bakery

1.00

You can then add one or more text objects to your template and then link them to the columns whose values you want to be printed. In this example, you would use the Linked Data Source property page to link the Price value to a text object on the template.

ClosedPrinters

Use the Printers source to populate the list items with information about the available printers.

The options that are available vary depending on what kind of data entry control you are configuring.

ClosedDropdown List Control

The options for configuring Printers list items for a dropdown list control vary depending on the dropdown list control type.

ClosedSingle Column Type

The following option is available:

  • Sort items: Sorts the lists in ascending order based on the values that are included for the Display Text list. The order that is displayed on the property page is the order that is displayed on the data entry form.

Closed Multiple Column Type

The following option is available: 

  • Fields: Specifies column headers that correspond to the printer metadata (such as name, port, location, and server name). To add or delete column headers, click to view a list of available options, and then click to select or clear the check box for the options that you want.

When you do not want a specific field to be displayed in the control, use the Columns property page to set that column's Visible property to No.
 

When you want a field's value to appear on your printed items, use the control's Linked Data Source property page to link the field to a data source.

ClosedList Box Control

The options for configuring Printers list items for a list box control vary depending on the list box control type.

Closed Single Column Type

The following option is available:

  • Sort items: Sorts the lists in ascending order based on the values that are included for the Display Text list. The order that is displayed on the property page is the order that is displayed on the data entry form.

Closed Multiple Columns, Simple Cards, or Custom Cards Type

The following option is available: 

  • Fields: Specifies column headers that correspond to the printer metadata (such as name, port, location, and server name). To add or delete column headers, click to view a list of available options, and then click to select or clear the check box for the options that you want.

When you do not want a specific field to be displayed in the control, use the Columns property page to set that column's Visible property to No.
 

When you want a field's value to appear on your printed items, use the control's Linked Data Source property page to link the field to a data source.

ClosedRadio Button List Control

The following option is available: 

  • Sort items: Sorts the lists in ascending order based on the values that are included for the Display Text list. The order that is displayed on the property page is the order that is displayed on the data entry form.

ClosedQuery Prompt Values

When you have a query prompt that is linked to the data entry control, the Query Prompt Values source populates the list items based on the records that match the query prompt. You can configure a query prompt in the Filter view of the Database Setup dialog.

The Query Prompt Values source is available only after you have created a query prompt and linked it to the control. For more information about how to create a query prompt and link it to a data entry form control, refer to Adding a Query Prompt to the Form.

The options that are available vary depending on what kind of data entry control you are configuring.

ClosedDropdown List Control

The options for configuring Query Prompt Values list items for a dropdown list control vary depending on the dropdown list control type.

ClosedSingle Column Type

The following option is available:

  • Sort items: Sorts the lists in ascending order based on the values that are included for the Display Text list. The order that is displayed on the property page is the order that is displayed on the data entry form.

When there are one or more additional controls on the form that are also linked to a query prompt, the following option is available:

  • Depends On: Specifies that the items that are available at print time depend on the selected value of another query prompt-dependent control on the form.

Closed Multiple Column Type

The following option is available: 

  • Fields: Specifies column headers that correspond to the file metadata. To add or delete column headers, click to view a list of available options, and then click to select or clear the check box for the options that you want.

When you do not want a specific field to be displayed in the control, use the Columns property page to set that column's Visible property to No.
 

When you want a field's value to appear on your printed items, use the control's Linked Data Source property page to link the field to a data source.

ClosedList Box Control

The options for configuring Query Prompt Values list items for a list box control vary depending on the list box control type.

Closed Single Column Type

The following option is available:

  • Sort items: Sorts the lists in ascending order based on the values that are included for the Display Text list. The order that is displayed on the property page is the order that is displayed on the data entry form.

When there are one or more additional controls on the form that are also linked to a query prompt, the following option is available:

  • Depends On: Specifies that the items that are available at print time depend on the selected value of another query prompt-dependent control on the form.

Closed Multiple Columns, Simple Cards, or Custom Cards Type

The following option is available: 

  • Fields: Specifies column headers that correspond to the file metadata. To add or delete column headers, click to view a list of available options, and then click to select or clear the check box for the options that you want.

When you do not want a specific field to be displayed in the control, use the Columns property page to set that column's Visible property to No.
 

When you want a field's value to appear on your printed items, use the control's Linked Data Source property page to link the field to a data source.

ClosedRadio Button List Control

The following option is available:

  • Sort items: Sorts the lists in ascending order based on the values that are included for the Display Text list. The order that is displayed on the property page is the order that is displayed on the data entry form.

When there are one or more additional controls on the form that are also linked to a query prompt, the following option is available:

  • Depends On: Specifies that the items that are available at print time depend on the selected value of another query prompt-dependent control on the form.

ClosedLanguages

This source option is available for radio button list controls and for dropdown list and list box controls whose type is Single Column. To make this option available, select Language for the data source on the control's Linked Data Source property page.

The Languages source populates the list items from the languages that are defined in the associated phrase library or libraries and that are configured to be selected at print time in the BarTender Document Options dialog.

For example, if the phrase library that your document is connected to includes phrases in English, Japanese, and German, and if those languages are configured to be selected at print time, those languages appear in the list. At print time, the print operator can use the list to select which of these languages to print the connected phrase library terms in.

The values in the Display Text and Item Value columns correspond to the values that are contained in the phrase library and are read-only.

The following option is available: 

Supported Controls

This property page is available for the following controls: