How to make conditional lists in Tap Forms 5.

[Mary Alderdice]

Hi there!

I’m in the process of evaluating a number of applications like Tap Forms, and one of the main criterion is the ability to create and use conditional lists.

For instance, in excel, I would create a 2-column, 7-row array like this:

    A           B
01  fruit       vegetables
02  apple       artichoke
03  banana      cucumber
04  cherry      lettuce
05  pear        onion
06  starfruit   tomato
07  watermelon  zucchini

Then, in the field where I want to make the first drop-down list (for the purposes of this example, let’s use cell Z1), I turn on Data Validation, set it to Allow: List, and set the Source: to: A1:A2.

Then, in the field where I want the conditional drop-down list to exist (for the purposes of this example, cell Z2, I turn on Data Validation, set it to Allow: List, and set the Source: to: =INDIRECT(Z1)

So, if I select ‘fruit’ in Z1, the options available to me in Z2 will be apple, banana, cherry, pear, starfruit, and watermelon. If I select ‘vegetable’ in Z1, the options available to me in Z2 will be artichoke, cucumber, lettuce, onion, tomato, and zucchini.

Make sense?

Is this something I can do in Tap Forms 5? (I will be creating / managing the tools I’m looking to create on a Mac, but will be using the tools on iOS devices.)

Best,
Mary

[Brendan]

Hi Mary,

Tap Forms has dropdown lists, which I call Pick Lists in the app, but there’s no concept of cascading Pick Lists at the moment like what you’re asking for.

It’s something that others have asked for in the past though. And it would be a good feature to have.

Thanks,

Brendan

[Mary Alderdice]

Brendan,

Thank you so much for your speedy and honest answer. Conditional / cascading lists would, in fact, be a fantastic addition to the feature set to your app!

I have something of a weird question for you. You may, of course, feel free to completely ignore it, as I acknowledge that it is a strange question. :) Do you know of any product similar to yours (that is, a relational database builder with a user-friendly front-end for field, relationship, and form / view construction) that has support for the aforementioned cascade / conditional pick lists?

(The correct answer, of course, is to simply set up an RDBMS and write a web front-end, but my client is not terribly technically inclined, and wants to buy a COTS solution that they have a chance of learning themselves.)

Thanks again for your time!

Best,
Mary

[Brendan]

Hi Mary,

Well, there’s always FileMaker Pro. That’s definitely going to have what you need. It’s a more expensive, but more powerful database app than Tap Forms.

You could also look into AirTable to see if they offer that. I’m not sure if they do or not.

I have an odd question for you now :)

Are you related to a Pam Alderdice here in Canada?

Thanks,

Brendan

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