Cannot enter data

[Kimberley Hoffman]

Hi Brendan,

I am trying to update some old files from a previous version of TapForms. In the previous one (which probably was imported from Bento) I didn’t have an automatic web-link, it got imported into TapForms 5 as text box. I added the weblink box, but cannot seem to enter anything into the field.
(I recorded my screen, but since you cannot see the cursor being placed nor see me typing, it really doesn’t make sense to upload the recording).

Perhaps I am overlooking something. There are about 200 files to update.

I was also having problems syncing to the iCloud today.

Regards,
Kimberley

[Mike Schwartz]

Kimberley,

Just to clarify: you started out with a Bento database that had a simple text field that you used to hold web links (URLs). Then you imported that into an old version of Tap Forms, where your field was imported into a plain text field in old Tap Forms. (How old was Tap Forms? Even Tap Forms 3 included a “Website” field type.) Now you’re using that form in Tap Forms 5, and you’ve added a new Web Site field to your form, which you can’t seem to edit. Is that all correct?

Gotta ask one silly question: By any chance did you add you new Web Site field to a custom layout, and perhaps forget to turn off Layout mode? If the Layout inspector panel is visible on the right side of your screen, then you’re still in layout editing mode and you won’t be able to enter text. Just a thought.

What is your intended workflow? Were you planning to go to each record and copy/paste the web links from the old text field into the new Web Site field? That might get tedious for 200 records. You should be able to simply change the field type of your text field to be a Web Site field. Those are compatible field types, and your data will be preserved. I just tested it.

Hope that helps,
Mike

[Kimberley Hoffman]

1. Yes. It was (probably) from an original Bento database (not all fields imported the way I’d expected)
2. My previous version of TapForms was TapForms 3
3. I am using TapForms 5
4. I added a new Web Site field to my from which I cannot edit

There are seldom any silly questions. I did have the layout mode turned off (double checked by turning it on and off again)

Thanks for the tip about the export. Right now I am also weeding out dead prospects, those that originally might of been targets, but because of my more defined focus, are getting dropped from my list. Because I have two lists of targets which contain some of the same names (don’t ask why, it is just so, and that is why I started comparing lists), I still have a lot of weeding to do. In that case doing a copy and paste isn’t the worst of the job.

Regards,
Kimberley

[Mike Schwartz]

Kimberley,

You might have read an old version of my post before I edited it minutes later. You don’t have to export/reimport, just change the field type of the existing field to be Web Site.

— Mike

[Kimberley Hoffman]

Hi Mike,

That is what I first tried to do, but got a warning that if I changed the field, it would delete the contents of that particular field.
That is why I created a new field.

Regards,
Kimberley

[Mike Schwartz]

I know, it’s a scary message: “If you change to an incompatible field type, the data in the selected field will be removed for all records. There is no undo for this change.”

The key there is the word “incompatible”. Text fields and web site fields are compatible field types, and your data will be preserved. I tested this twice today by creating a text field, entering a URL, and then converting the field to be a Web Site field. The data I had entered did not get deleted. Also, here is the relevant info from the online documentation:

“If you change a field type from one type to another, you may see a warning message appear. Tap Forms will do its best to convert data from one type to another, but this is not always possible. Be sure you want to do this or the data in the selected field will be removed. For example, you can switch between Text, Note, Website, Email, but you can’t switch between Number and Photo, etc. without the data in the field being removed.”

Go for it! Give yourself some peace of mind by doing a backup from within Tap Forms prior to making the change (always good advice). Or wait from Brendan to confirm the compatibility.

Regards
Mike

[Kimberley Hoffman]

Thanks, Mike. It did work. Even in German.

Regards,
Kimberley

[Brendan]

Yup, changing the field type from Text to Website is the way to go for that.

Sorry for the warning message, but I had to put something up there. At one point I had no warning, but people could lose their data, so it was a must-have. But if you’re ever unsure about something, it’s aways a wise idea to make a backup first before charging on.

Thanks for helping Kimberly out Mike!

Brendan

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