Lesson 21-- Custom Layouts

Goldenseal small business software includes a simple graphics environment where you can change the appearance of almost anything that you print or see on the screen.

This lesson shows you how to create custom layouts for your reports, printed forms and data entry windows.

Changing Printed Form Layouts

You may need to make adjustments to the check printing form, so it lines up correctly on the checks that you use.

To change a printed form, follow these steps:

Choose Custom Layouts from the Options menu, then choose Printed Forms from the submenu.
Choose Checking Transactions from the Transaction menu.
Choose a form in the Print Form popup menu.
You will see a drawing window that displays the fields that are printed on the form.
Click on any field and drag it to a new location, or use one of the drawing tools in the palette on the left side of the window to add graphics or a new field. HINT: There are more details on using layout tools in the remainder of this Lesson.
To print more than one check on a page, choose Size & Margins from the Options menu, then choose one of the multiple page options in the Page Placement field.
When you are finished, choose Save from the File menu, then close the form editing window.
You might want to try a test print, to make sure your changes have produced what you wanted. HINT: Print on plain paper and hold it up in front of the check blanks, so you don't waste expensive printed forms.

Creating New Printed Forms

To create a new printed form, follow these steps:

Choose Custom Layouts from the Options menu, then choose Printed Forms from the submenu.
Choose Bank Checks from the Transaction menu.
Choose New Layout from the Edit menu.
Type in a name for the new form.
Use the drawing tools to fill in the new form.

HINT: You can create up to 12 different print forms for each class of transaction.

HINT: To save time, use the Select All command to select the fields in a layout that is similar to the one you are creating. Choose Copy from the Edit menu, switch to the new layout, and then choose Paste from the Edit menu.

Selecting Layout Items

To select an item in a layout, click on it. A selected item gets small square 'selection handles' at each corner.

To select multiple items, hold down the Shift key as you click on each field, or drag a 'selection rectangle' around a block of fields.

To select all items in a layout, choose Select All from the Edit menu.

Moving Layout Items

To add some space at the top of the balance sheet report, follow these steps:

Choose Custom Layouts from the Options menu, then choose Reports from the submenu.
Choose Financials from the Area popup at the upper left corner of the window, then choose Balance Sheet from the Report popup.
Choose Select All from the Edit menu.
Click on the center of any item, and drag the mouse down an inch.
Goldenseal will move all selected items to the new location.

HINT: If you don't like the change, choose Undo Move from the Edit menu.

Company Logo

To add your company logo to the balance sheet, follow these steps:

Choose Add Logo from the Format menu. The logo will appear on the screen. NOTE: If you pasted your logo into the Company Info window, it will appear on the screen. Otherwise Goldenseal will use a default logo until you paste in your own logo.
Click on the logo, and drag it to the desired location. HINT: If all items are still selected from the previous move, click on a blank spot first so nothing is selected, then click on the logo and drag it to a new location.
The logo will appear on the report the next time you view or print it.

For more about logos in Special Topics, click here.

Resizing Layout Items

To change the size of a layout item such as the company logo, follow these steps:

Click on the item to select it.
Click on one of the 'selection handles' at the corners.
Keep holding down the mouse button, and drag the handle to a new location.

Changing Page Size and Margins

To change the size of a report or printed form, click on the bottom right corner of the layout, and drag it to a new location.

You can also choose Layout Size & Margins from the Options menu, and set the page size, print orientation and page margins. It also allows you to print more than one record on a page (e.g. for mailing labels).

Changing Text Formats

To move and resize layout text in a report, follow these steps:

Click on the 'Balance Sheet' text block.
Drag it to a new location up and to the right.

To change the appearance of any layout text, follow these steps:

To make the text larger, choose Size from the Text menu, then choose a larger size. You'll also need to click on one of the selection boxes and drag the text field so it is big enough to show all the text.
To change the font, choose Font from the Text menu, and chose a different font.
To change the font style, choose Style from the Text menu.
To change the font color, choose Color from the Text menu and select a different color.

Adding Text

To add new text to a report, follow these steps:

Click on the Text Tool in the tool palette on the left side of the window.
Click on one corner of where you'd like the text to appear, and drag to the opposite corner.
Enter the text that you'd like to show in the text block, then click OK.
The new text will appear at the selected location. You can change its font, size and style, as described on the previous page.

Changing Text

To change the text in an existing text field, double-click on it. You'll see a text edit box where you can change the text.

Simple Graphics

To add a simple graphic item to the report, follow these steps:

Click on the Rectangle Tool in the tool palette on the left side of the window. HINT: When you single-click on a tool, it will be used only once. After that, the selector tool (arrow) is restored. When you double-click on a tool, it stays selected until you select a new tool.
Click in one corner of where you would like a rectangle to appear, and drag to the opposite corner.
To fill a rectangle with a color or pattern, click on the color box or pattern box that is to the right of the paint bucket (beneath the tool palette).
To change the line color, line pattern or line thickness, click on the boxes to the right of the pen (beneath the paint bucket).
To make a copy of a graphic, choose Duplicate from the Edit menu.
In a similar way you can add lines, rounded rectangles and ovals to the layout.

Complex Graphics

The graphics tools in Goldenseal are limited to simple objects (text, lines, rectangles, rounded rectangles and ovals/circles).

For more complex graphics, add items that you have created in another program, or that you get from a clip art collection. Goldenseal can handle most common graphic formats.

To add graphics to a layout, follow these steps:

Open the graphics program where the graphic was created.
Select the graphic.
Choose Copy from the Edit menu.
Switch to Goldenseal. If the layout is not already open, choose Custom Layouts from the Options menu, and open the desired layout.
Choose Paste from the Edit menu.
Click on the graphic, and drag it to the desired location. If necessary, resize the graphic by clicking on a corner and dragging the corner.

Alignment Commands

When you are creating a layout, you'll often want to have several items lined up with each other. To do so, follow these steps:

Select the items you'd like to align. HINT: You can use the arrow to drag through a rectangle that includes multiple items. You can also hold down the Shift key as you click, to select more than one item at a time.
Choose Align from the Format menu, and from the submenu, choose the way you'd like to align the items.

HINT: If you don't like the results of the alignment, choose Undo from the Edit menu.

Front-to-Back Order

When layout items overlap, the 'front' item hides any item that is behind it. Each new graphic item that you add to the layout starts out in front of all other items.

To change the way graphics overlap each other, follow these steps:

Click on the item to select it.
To put the item behind all other items, choose Move To Back from the Format menu. To move it back by just one place, choose Move Backward from the Format menu.
To put the item in front of all other items, choose Move To Front from the Format menu. To move it forward by just one place, choose Move Forward from the Format menu.

NOTE: The front-and-back order is also used in data entry layouts to determine tab order (see page 132).

Report Controls Display

Choose Report Display from the Options menu to limit the controls that are active on the Report screen. You can control the display of the date range, item range and breakdown popup menus.

HINT: You might want to turn off the controls that are not useful for a report. It may be less confusing for those who use the report.

Adding Data Fields

Goldenseal allows you to change the contents of any data entry window. To change data layouts, choose Custom Layouts from the Options menu, and choose Accounts, Lists or Transactions from the submenu.

To add a field to a data entry layout, follow these steps:

Choose Custom Layouts from the Options menu, then choose Accounts from the submenu.
Click on the Field tool (beneath the rounded rectangle).
Click in the layout at one corner of where you'd like the field to appear, and drag to the opposite corner.
You'll see a list of fields that are not on the layout yet.
Choose a field from the list. Turn on the Create Label checkbox if you'd like the field to have a label on its left side.
Click OK.

Removing Fields

In Account, List and Transaction layouts, most fields are required, but some fields can be removed from the layout if you don't need them.

To remove a field, follow these steps:

Click on the field with the arrow tool.
Choose Clear from the Edit menu.
You'll be asked to confirm the deletion. Click OK.

NOTE: If you remove a field from the layout, the data in that field will still be stored in each record. You just won't see it on the screen.

Custom Fields

You can add a custom field to any account or transaction. A custom field stores an additional 'piece' of data for each record. You can use custom fields exactly the same as standard fields when you enter data, use the Find command, or make reports.

WARNING: Adding a custom field makes a permanent addition to all data records. Once you have added a custom field, you can't remove it.

To add a new custom field to the Customer account, follow these steps:

Choose New Custom Field from the Edit menu.
Enter a name for the field.
Choose the type of data you'd like to store in the field. You can store text, numbers, times, dates, on/off checkboxes, or clairvoyant values.
If you are creating a new clairvoyant field, choose the list or account to display in the field. Then click OK.

Field Information

To see information about any field in a layout, select it, then choose Field Properties from the Format menu.

HINT: You can also double-click on a field to see its properties.

To change the field's location or size, type in new numbers.

HINT: You can be more precise about setting a field's size or location when you type in a number instead of dragging it with the mouse.

To change the 'help text' that appears on the right side of the window when the mouse is in this field, type in different text.

To set the field so it can't be changed, turn off the Editable checkbox. You might want to do that for the record number field.

To set the field so it cannot be blank, turn on the Required Value checkbox.

Date and Number Formats

To change the way dates are displayed, click on any date field and choose Date & Time Format from the Format menu.

HINT: You can show dates in a wide variety of formats. You can also use the System date format from the Date & Time Control Panel.

To change the appearance of numbers and currency values, click on any number or money field, then choose Number Format from the Format menu.

Goldenseal allows you to set the use of currency symbols, thousands dividers and pennies. You can also set the handling for negative numbers, and the coloring of positive andnegative values.

HINT: Goldenseal uses standard currency symbols, thousands dividers and decimal point characters. Set them in the Numbers Control Panel (Macintosh) or the Regional Options Control Panel (Windows).

Field Borders

To change the borders of a data entry field, follow these steps:

Click on the field with the arrow tool.
Choose Borders from the Format menu.
Click on the checkboxes to set the status of the borders on each side.
When you are finished setting the borders, click OK.

To change the border color or pattern, select the field and use the color and pattern palettes next to the pen (below the tool palette on the left side of the screen).

Tab Order

The order in which fields are selected when you press the Tab key is determined by the 'front to back' order.

HINT: In data entry layouts, a small number in the upper right corner shows the tab order for each editable field.

To move a field earlier in the tab order, choose Move Forward or Move To Front from the Format menu. To move it later in the tab order, choose Move Backward or Move to Back.

Background Color

To set the background color for any layout, choose Background Color from the Options menu.

Finishing Up

This lesson has shown you how to use the Custom Layouts command to change the way Goldenseal looks. You might want to take a break now to consider what life would be like if everything had a customizable interface.

Need a different nose? No problem. Just choose Custom Layout from the Options menu, select the Nose tool, then click and drag for a new size and shape. Use the color box to give it any of 256 custom colors.