Properties and Property Sheets
A Property is metadata or data that is related to a Contenta Object but is separate from the contents of the Object, and is stored separately.
For example, the name of an Object or the date an Object was last modified are Properties, also called metadata. You can view some of an Object’s Properties by displaying the Object’s Property Sheet in the Contenta Explorer. However, some Properties may not be displayed in the Property Sheet. You can control which Properties are displayed and which are hidden in the Property Sheet using pcmadmin.
See:
- Understanding Property Sheets for an explanation of Property Sheets.
- Accessing the Fields For Property Sheet Window for steps to display and/or modify the Property Sheet.
Note that a Property Sheet is a table in the Contenta database. The data in an Object’s Property Sheet is stored in the table. For example, the data in the Name field in an Object’s Property Sheet is stored in the Name table in the database, while the Access Level values are stored in the Access Level table in the database.
While the Access Level values, those in the Property Sheet’s pull-down list, are stored in the Access Level table, the Access Level assigned to an Object is stored in the Access Level row in the table associated with the Object.
More about the tables and Property data storage is discussed in Understanding Property Sheets.
The fields in a Property Sheet have their own characteristics. For example, Property Sheet fields can be:
- required/optional
- editable/not editable
- displayed/invisible
- populated by the system/populated by the user/selected from a list
- dynamically updated by customized programs or APIs
Properties that are required are automatically defined in an Object’s Property Sheet when you create the Contenta database. For example, every Object must have a Name so the Name field is included in every Objects’ Property Sheet.
All Contenta Objects have Properties and the same Properties are defined for each Object that is of the same Object Type. For example, all CompoundAscii Objects have the same Properties but they are different from Document Objects which have their own set of Properties.
Some Property Sheet fields are automatically populated. Automatic population of a Property Sheet field occurs when a default value is defined for the field. A default value makes Object creation easier since you do not have to manually populate the fields if the default is the value you desire. Default values can also be used to ensure that the value is accurate and consistent for all Objects of the same Type.
You define or modify a Property Sheet default value in pcmadmin—see Defining Property Sheet Fields Default Values.
- Specifying that the field not modifiable. In this case, no user can modify the value in the Contenta Explorer interface—see Is Field Modifiable?
- Defining the user Role permissions for Property Sheet modification. That is, remove the "modify Property Sheet permission" for a User Role. The permission to modify the Property Sheet applies to all Property Sheet fields for a specified Object—see Modifying a Role/Tool Box.