List Values (Data Field/Data Column Property)

"List Values" are a collection of properties that alter how users interact with variables Data Field input boxes (and view_column Data Column cell input boxes) in a Data Viewer. Enabling List Values will give users a list of values to pick from a dropdown selection.

Example List Values selection list

The items in the selection list can be generated in one of three ways (or a combination of the three):

• A local list
• A referenced Lexicon
• A list generated by a lookup (such as a Database Lookup or an XML Lookup)

The selection list can be "permissive" or "restrictive".

• Permissive lists are the default behavior.
  • Permissive lists lets users type in values that are not present in the selection list.
  • Permissive lists will accept values collected by the Data Field's Value Extractor that are not present in the selection list.
• Restrictive lists are enabled by enabling the "Restrict to List" property.
  • Restrictive lists prevent users from typing anything in the input box. They can only select an item from the selection list.
  • Restrictive lists will ignore values returned by the Data Field's Value Extractor if it is not present in the selection list.

Other features

Restrict to List

While technically not a "List Values" setting, the "Restrict to List" property is only used in conjunction with List Values. Enabling "Restrict to List" will only allow values from the selection list to be selected (whether a local list, referenced Lexicon or list populated by a lookup).