Aug 1, 2011

Identifying Flex Fields


Identifying Flexfields
A flexfield is a field made up of sub-fields, or segments. A flexfield appears on your form as a pop-up window that contains a prompt for each segment. Each segment has a name and a set of valid values. There are two types of flexfields: key flexfields and descriptive flexfields.
When your organization initially installs Oracle Applications, you and your organization’s implementation team customize the key flexfields to incorporate code segments that are meaningful to your business. You decide what each segment means, what values each segment can have, and what the segment values mean. Your organization can define rules to specify which segment values can be combined to make a valid complete code (also called a combination). You can also define relationships among the segments. The result is that you and your organization can use the codes you want rather than changing your codes to meet Oracle Applications’ requirements.

The Basic Business Needs for Flexfields
With Oracle Applications flexfields you can satisfy the following business needs:
Using “intelligent” fields—fields comprising one or more segments, where each segment has both a value and a meaning
Relying upon your application to validate the values or the combination of values that you enter in intelligent fields
Changing the structure of an intelligent field depending on data in your application
Capturing additional information that is not provided by existing fields
Customizing data fields to meet your business needs without programming

Using Key
Flexfields in Oracle Applications

Querying intelligent fields for specific information.
A key flexfield is a field made up of segments, each of which has both a value and a meaning. You can think of a key flexfield as an “intelligent” field that your business can use to store information represented as codes.
Most organizations use codes to identify general ledger accounts, part numbers, and other business entities. Each segment in the code represents a characteristic of the entity. A combination of segment values, also known as a key flexfield code combination, uniquely describes a business entity stored in a key flexfield. When you change the value of one or more segments in a key flexfield, you change the combination of segment values.
Your organization decides the following information for each key flexfield: (1) how many segments an entity has, (2) what each segment means, (3) what values each segment can have, and (4) what each segment value means. Your organization can also define rules that govern which combination of segment values are valid (cross-validation rules) dependencies among the segments.

Using Descriptive
Flexfields in Oracle Applications
A key flexfield looks like any other field in a block. You can simply type the segment values you want into a key flexfield and separate each segment with a character called a segment separator. Alternatively, you can open a flexfield window for a key flexfield to display a separate field for each of its segments.
A descriptive flexfield gives you room to expand your forms, because Oracle Applications cannot predict all the possible information you may want to track. Your organization can use descriptive flexfields to capture additional information that is important and unique to your business.
A descriptive flexfield appears in a block as a two-character, unnamed field enclosed in brackets. If you are viewing data in a table format, the descriptive flexfield will appear at the top of the column as an unnamed field enclosed in brackets.
A descriptive flexfield window is displayed when you move the cursor into a customized descriptive flexfield. Your organization’s implementation team can customize a descriptive flexfield to include as many additional fields as your organization needs. These fields, also called segments, appear in the descriptive flexfield window.


How Key Flexfields Appear on Forms
A key flexfield can have multiple parts to it, and when they are displayed on a form they appear as one long series of numbers or letters, separated by periods. The periods separate each segment of the flexfield.
Examining the Expanded Key Flexfield
You can display the full flexfield with field names by clicking on the flexfield’s LOV icon. The slide displays an accounting flexfield with 5 segments. The Company segment has the value 01, the Department segment’s value is 110, and so on. By clicking on the Combinations button you can see valid combination of the segments.
How Descriptive Flexfields Appear on Forms  
A descriptive flexfield appears on a form as a single-character, unnamed field enclosed in brackets. Just like in a key flexfield, a pop-up window appears when you move your cursor into a customized descriptive flexfield. And like a key flexfield, the pop-up window has as many fields as your organization needs.
You can display the full flexfield with field names by clicking on the flexfield’s LOV icon. 
Searching for Data Using Flexfield Criteria
You can enter search criteria in a flexfield when you use query-by-example. By entering search criteria in a flexfield, you can retrieve records of data that satisfy criteria in the individual segments of your key or descriptive flexfields. For example, suppose you want to search for all Accounting Flexfield combinations in the Accounting Flexfields Combinations window that contain the segment value "01" in the first segment. With query-by-example, you can enter this criteria in the Accounting Flexfield to accomplish this task.
When you enter search criteria for a flexfield segment, you can use wildcard characters or any of the query operators as part of the search phrase.
If your flexfield segment has a list available, you can choose the List icon within the flexfield window to select a value from the list for your search criteria. Note that if you enter a value for a segment, your application automatically enters the default value for any other segments that depend on the value you enter. If you do not want a default value as part of your search criteria, you can clear the field, or you can enter another value in that field.

How to Enter Search Criteria in a Key Flexfield
1.  (M) View > Query by Example > Enter.
In addition to entering search criteria in any of the fields of the block, you can bring up a key flexfield window and enter search criteria.
 2. (M) Edit > Edit Field... and enter criteria.
When you are done, choose OK to close the flexfield window.
3. (M) View > Query by Example > Run to perform the search.
Note: If you prefer, you can also enter your concatenated segment search criteria directly into a key flexfield display when your block is in Enter Query mode. The concatenated search criteria must include the appropriate segment separator character.
How to Enter Search Criteria in a Descriptive Flexfield
To enter search criteria in a customized descriptive flexfield when your current block is in Enter Query mode, simply navigate to the descriptive flexfield to automatically display the descriptive flexfield window. When you are done entering search criteria in any or all of the descriptive flexfield segments, choose OK to close the descriptive flexfield window and then choose Run from the View, Query by Example menu to perform the search.
Attention: If you set the user profile option Flexfields:Open Descr Window to `No', you must choose Edit Field... from the Edit menu to open the descriptive flexfield window.

Practice Solution
Assets
(N) Inquiry > Financial Information, and click the Find button.
When you locate a flexfield, click in it and it expands. Verify that your screen resembles the following screen.
Click Cancel after you have viewed the flexfield.
General Ledger
(M) File > Switch Responsibility
(N) Setup > Accounts > Combinations
(M) View > Query By Example > Enter
Place your cursor in the Account field and go into Edit mode. (M) Edit > Edit Field
When the Operations Accounting Flex window appears, select your criteria for the query from the LOV. Put your cursor in the Company field and select 01 from the list. Then put your cursor in the Department field and select 410 from the list and click OK.
Click OK in the Operations Accounting Flex window.
Run the query, (M) View > Query By Example > Run.

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