5.1  Viewing records in spreadsheet mode

You can view any list of records in "spreadsheet mode" - just press the "Table View" button in the scrollbar.

Click the 'Table View' button to view any list in spreadsheet mode

Spreadsheet mode. The 'List View' button switches back to simple list mode

The editing in this mode is similar, but not identical to spreadsheets. Some differences:

• - Rows for records and fields which actually exist are shown with a white background; where there isn't yet any data, it is shown with a grey background.
• - The column headers show the field names. In a spreadsheet they typically show the labels "A B C" etc. In Catalyzer you can rename a field by double-clicking on a column header.
• - In a spreadsheet you are free to put any information anywhere. A Catalyzer table is more structured; a single table can only contain rows of a single Class.

A number of features are the same as with spreadsheets:

• - You can just type a value into any square.
• - You can highlight an area and copy / paste.
• - You can scroll down / right to infinity.
• - You can have multiple "worksheets" in a list. In Catalyzer, you use a different "worksheet" for each different class of record (e.g. "Image", "Paper"). Remember, a class of record corresponds to a particular set of column headers / field names.

Creating a new table from scratch

This section describes how to create a new table in Catalyzer. It will be used to hold 'Sample' records, and have the column headers 'name', 'location', 'date', 'desc'.

Start with an empty catalog File : New Right-click on the root folder (ctrl-click on Mac), Add Using Class : New Class... Click on the 'New Folder' checkbox. For 'Folder class' pick 'New Class', for the new class name type 'Sample'. You should see a new folder in the catalog called 'Sample List'. Add a sample to the list Add Using Class : Sample. Switch to table mode (the Table View button on the bottom right). Add a Sample record to the folder (Add Using Class : Sample). Now you can treat the table of samples similarly to a spreadsheet: type values into any empty cell, double-click on column headers to rename them, and copy/paste between areas of the cell.

Click the Table View button to switch into table mode

The Add Item button adds new rows to the table

You can enter values for the cells in similar manner to a spreadsheet. Double-click on the column headers to rename the columns.

Adding records in table mode

To add a record to a list, simply start typing in an empty cell, as you would in a spreadsheet to add a new row.

There is also the standard menu available from the ">>" icon, which lets you add a record of a given class, or of a new class.

Catalyzer equivalent of "Add Worksheet"

There are two ways to add a new 'Worksheet' table. You can add a new Folder to the catalog, and edit it as a table. Or you can add records of a different class to a single list; the different classes will be displayed in different tables. The equivalent to "Add worksheet" in a spreadsheet is to add a Folder (using right-click/ctrl-click on the "+" button, or left-click on the ">>" menu button.

Renaming column headers

You can rename a column header by double-clicking on the header.

Setting the type of a field

Right-click (ctrl-click on Mac) on the header, and select the "Attributes". A new window will appear which lets you set the name, type and help text of the field.

The "(any)" tab

If your list contains different types / classes of record, there will be one tab for each class (e.g. "Image", "Experiment"), and an extra tab called "(any)". This lists the names and classes of all records in the list - but you can't edit field values in this mode. Editing only works when you're only viewing records of a single class (click on a tab, e.g. "Image", or use the right-click/ctrl-click menu option: Show class :.

Full size table mode

The "<>" button at the bottom right of a list expands a list into "full window" mode. (The "><" button toggles back again). This gives you maximum screen space for editing a table of information.

Expanded table view