The Drop Down List is an object placed on the canvas that provides user a defined list that the form user can click and drop down from a text box to make a selection. The content of the Drop Down List is not able to be modified by the user when using the form.
The difference between the Drop Down List and Drop Down Combo is that when using the drop down list, a selection has to be made from one of the options whereas the Drop Down Combo allows for the user to type in a value to use instead of the provided options.
Add a Drop Down List to a Custom Form
Select Drop Down List from the left objects panel.
Click on the canvas to place it.
Give it a name so the information can be used in the Forms Manager and Custom layer Properties.(no special characters)
Select that drop down object to highlight it. Type in items that will appear in the drop down in the text area of the properties panel.
The text has to be formatted correctly in the text area for the list to work. There should be one selection per row.
Correct Format:
selection 1
selection 2
selection 3
selection 4
Incorrect Format:
Selection1, Selection 2, Selection 3, Selection 4
In order for the the first line to be blank, place
in the first line.
selection 1
selection 2
selection 3
selection 4
Using formulas within a drop down box
In certain situations it may be necessary to use a formula within a drop down list.
One situation would be to change the drop down contents based on another input in the form.
Please read through the Insert Formulas support page to learn more about the basics of writing formulas in the Forms Designer.
In this example my goal is to change the Unit types available to choose in my second drop down (ApplicatorDrop) based on the selection made within the first drop down (CompanyDrop).
My first drop down (CompanyDrop) contains 2 options to choose from:
Dave's Flying Service
Farmerville Coop
The second drop down(ApplicatorDrop) is a little more complex, it needs to start with the string "VisualList:" to let the program know that it is a formula in a drop down list.
=VisualList: if(CompanyDrop=null){''}
elseif{CompanyDrop="Dave's Flying Service") {'Steve\nBrad'} elseif(CompanyDrop="Farmerville Coop"){'Larry\nChuck'}
Note: When using VisualList:, the Hide/Show Commands will not work if used after it. See: Forms Designer - Caveats
Separate the items by placing a \n in front of each item besides the first one in the list. This indicates the system to start a new line.
Now when we publish and generate the form, the second dropdown changes depending on what is selected in the first one.
See Also: