Did you check the Format setting for that element, Spencer?

Spencer,

Select the State element.

Look at the Property Viewer (NOT the Property Editor).

Go to the Format Tab.

Tell me what it shows for Display Format, including the bit at the end between the square braces.

OK, so it's not your Format setting. SYSTEM will use your system defaults and the sample shows mixed case, so that's fine. Entry Templates don't really do this, so it's most likely programming. I know you checked for something affecting that value, but it may be a more general bit of code that doesn't specify that particular element name.

Are any of your other elements being forced to uppercase? Is ToUpper being called anywhere in your programming?

According to the index, information on entry templates begins on page 144 of the User Guide.

If it's not formatting and it's not programming, then there is magic of some sort happening. Can we see this application?

Send it to support@lantica.com.

Your manuals should have the version number on the cover.

Quote:

That's what I said. Also, I'm sure I don't know what you're talking about.
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The issue that Spencer was running into was caused by having the text element's custom format set to 'Uppercase'. The custom formatting was telling Sesame to capitalize anything that was typed into that element.

To reset the formatting of a text element:

1) Open Sesame Designer
2) Open your DSR file
3) Enter design mode on your form
4) Left click on the 'State' element
5) Left click on the 'Format' tab of the Property Editor
6) Set the 'Display Format' dropdown to 'Custom Format'
7) Set the 'Text Format' dropdown to 'As Entered'
8) Click on the Save button at the top of the Sesame Designer window
9) Select 'Close Design Tab' from the 'Commands Menu'
10) Reconcile your design change

** For more information on Formatting Elements please refer to page 120 of the 2.0 Sesame User Guide.

SpencerWulwick wrote on Oct 15^th, 2009 at 12:48am:

It is in the Property Viewer. It's that setting I asked you to check a couple of posts ago. Display Format. You must have had a different element than State selected when you looked at it or it would have shown you what we saw in the Property Viewer when we looked at it here.

Quote:


I see the Release number on the first page of the pdf User Guide for 2.0. I see the Documentation version and the copyright date (2007) on the second page. I see the Documentation version and the copyright date (2007) on the second page of the pdf Programming Guide for 2.0.  

We'll get your other questions tomorrow. I'm not in the office with Sesame right now.

SpencerWulwick wrote on Oct 15^th, 2009 at 1:49am:


Yes. Display Format shows a sample value as formatted by your settings. See how it's all in caps? If you selected lowercase, it would all be lowercase. Etc.

SpencerWulwick wrote on Oct 15^th, 2009 at 2:05am:


Lorem ipsum is standard sample text. Predates computers, actually. It's text that is commonly used when one doesn't want people distracted by what the sample words mean but still want valid-looking word/letter distribution.
Check out http://www.lipsum.org

The Lorem ipsum is the sample value for text fields. Date fields have a sample date. Number fields have a sample number. Etc.

The stuff in the square braces is the internal format and can be much more complicated than a single number. Date and number formats in particular. So we show the sample data and include the internal format in square braces for our reference in troubleshooting situations.

Ben -

Thanks, much, for helping.   You made it so easy - I decided to just experiment for myself regarding the printing.

I removed the Custom Format, added the toupper programming to the State field, saved and applied the DSR changes to my DB

I then went to the DB, did a mass update (toupper) on the STATE element, ran my export, printed my merge letter and it printed correctly (i.e. all upper case) so that answers my printing question when  using programming instead of custom format.  For all practical purposes, I'll just forget about using custom format in the future and just "do it myself" through programming.

Erika -

Now that you explained the lorum ipsum "stuff", I recall having asked you about it at the training session I had attended "way back when."  I remember telling you then - and I still view it that way - that whenever I see it, I think it must be LATIN and means nothing to me.  Ironically - instead of using sample text that is meaningful (e.g. As fORMatted, UPPER CASE etc. as I illustrated above) the lorum ipsum DISTRACTED me (exactly the opposite of what it is supposed to do) and NEGATED (instead of helping) my getting any value from the display.  With that in mind - and given that I doubt the average person is familiar with lorum ipsum - I would still encourage you to consider changing the illustration - in future revisions.   Just an opinion; perhaps it would be helpful to hear from others in this regard.

Thanks!

Erika -

You're welcome ... and thank you, once again, for all your help.

By the way, it turns out that I did NOT have the latest versions of the user/programming guides (I thought I had downloaded it recently but apparently all I had done was moved the old copy on my computer to a more recent folder).

In any event I downloaded the latest version and was able to do a simple search to get me directly to the entry template information I had been looking for.

It was very nice "being in touch" with you again so this exchange was both helpful in regard to my Sesame needs and, on a personal level, just plain makes me feel good.  I really need to spend a little more time here - and will do just that.   Thanks

- Spencer