Setting up form, list, and table views for a layout

FileMaker Pro provides three different views of each layout: form, list, and table. When you change views, you change the way records display or print.

To specify which views are available in other modes:

  1. In Layout mode, choose the layout you want to work with from the Layout pop-up menu.

  2. Click Layout Setup Layout Setup button in the layout bar.

  3. In the Layout Setup dialog box, click the Views tab, then select one or more views.

    When you select

    This View menu item is enabled in Browse and Find modes

    Form View

    View as Form

    List View

    View as List

    Table View

    View as Table

  4. Click Properties, specify Table View options, then click OK.

    To

    Do this

    Specify table grid settings

    Select Horizontal, Vertical (or both), choose a color for the grid, and a style for the grid lines.

    Specify which layout parts to display

    Select the parts to display: top navigation, header, footer, and bottom navigation.

    These settings matter only if you have defined the parts for the layout, and they're only in effect in Table View.

    Specify whether column headers are displayed and how they behave

    Select Include column headers (which display the field names).

    To allow users to resize column widths by dragging column boundaries in Browse mode or Find mode, also select Resizable columns.

    To allow users to reorder one or more columns by dragging in Browse mode or Find mode, also select Reorderable columns.

    Specify a custom row height (all rows are the same height)

    Select Use custom height, then choose a unit of measure and type a value.

    When this option is cleared, the row height is adjusted to accommodate the largest font size defined for any of the fields on the layout.

    Use the system appearance (macOS)

    Select System appearance to use the system's current theme colors and light or dark appearance, as wells as to use controls that resemble system controls. See Notes.

    Use comfortable formatting (macOS)

    Select Comfortable formatting (when System appearance is selected) to apply enhanced spacing and text rendering for a less crowded look.

    Display alternating row colors (macOS)

    Select Alternating row colors (when System appearance is selected) to display rows with alternating background colors.

    Display row numbers (macOS)

    Select Row numbers (when System appearance is selected) to display the record number in the left margin. The row number matches the number shown in the record navigation controls in the status toolbar. The font size of the row numbers is based on that of the first visible column.

  5. For Default view, choose the view to display whenever you first open the layout.

Notes 

  • If Include column headers is selected, users can right-click the column heading in Browse mode and choose the appropriate command to define fields, hide or delete fields, create a dynamic report, or reset the Table View. See Working with data in Table View.

  • If Include column headers is selected, users can resize columns by right-clicking the column header and choosing Table View > Set Column Width. This shortcut menu command is available even if Resizable columns is cleared in the Table View Properties dialog box.

  • FileMaker Pro uses the tab order to determine the default order of the columns in Table View. You can reorder the columns if Reorderable columns is selected in the Table View Properties dialog box. For information on reordering columns, see Viewing records as a form, list, or table.

  • To display a different name for a field in the column header in Table View, customize the field display name. See Defining advanced field options.

  • For new layouts, by default the current (or active) record in List View is displayed with a different fill from the other records. To indicate the current record with a solid vertical bar along the left side of the record, choose Layouts menu > Layout Setup. In the General tab of the Layout Setup dialog box, select Show current record indicator in List View. To have the current record appear without a different fill, see Changing a layout part.

  • If you select more than one view, users can switch between them. The selection for Default view is the view displayed when users first open the layout. However, in a hosted file, each user has their own default view in a layout. The last view they choose becomes their default view in that layout. Users with layout modification privileges in a hosted file can change to another view and choose to make it the default view for all users. See the Save layout view changes as the default for all users option in Changing schema settings.

  • macOS: The System appearance options:

    • Apply only to the table, not to any of the selected layout parts. However, for summary parts, the system background color does apply, overriding the color set in Layout mode.

    • Take precedence over certain theme and custom styles that are set in Layout mode, using system styles instead. Exceptions include:

      • Colors set via conditional formatting are still applied when conditions are met. Be sure to select conditional formatting colors that work well for both the light and dark system appearance.

      • Styles set for the icon and button components of field objects that use a drop-down calendar or drop-down list are still applied when the Comfortable formatting option is deselected.

    • Take precedence over the grid color selected in the Table View Properties dialog, using the system appearance color instead.

    • Display control styles with an enhanced look (see Setting up a field to display a pop-up menu, checkbox set, or other control).

    • Don't allow you to press Esc to cancel creating a new field (+ in the column heading). The new field must be committed, then deleted if not wanted.

    • Display only the system light appearance in Preview mode.