This is not intended as an alternative to the Windows user guide. In fact,
it is highly recommended that anyone intending to use Panacea first obtain a
firm grounding in how to use Windows. There are many ways to go about
this, but the easiest is probably to click on "Start" then "Help and Support".
This takes you to the Windows Help and is a valuable resource for new users.
The following highlights some of the Windows basics that you will need to know
when using Panacea.
Controls are simply items on your screen which are used by Panacea to display
information or to allow you to change or capture data.
|
ComboBox |
Used to select an item from a list. When you click on a ComboBox it will
"drop down" a list of items. Click on an item to select it. Using
the up and down arrow keys will scroll through items in the list. Pressing
Alt and the down arrow will also "drop down" the list. |
or
|
DatePicker |
These are used to enter a date. If there is a check box on the left then
the field is not compulsory. If you leave the control "unchecked" then you
are leaving the value as "unspecified". A typical example of this is the
person's date of birth, which may be left out if you do not have it.
On the right you will see either up and down arrows or a calendar "drop down"
button. To use the up and down arrows, first click on the day, month or
year. After that, if you click up or down the value will be changed
accordingly. If the Date Picker has a calendar "drop down" button, then
clicking on it displays a calendar. You can then click on the desired date
to select it.
The fastest way to capture a date in a Date Picker is to type in
the value. When you want to move from days to months, or months to years
you can press the right arrow key on the keyboard. |
or
|
TimePicker |
These are used to enter a time (in 24 hour format). If there is a check
box on the left then the field is not compulsory. If you leave the control
"unchecked" then you are leaving the value as "unspecified". A typical example
of this is the start time of an invoice, which may be left out.
On the right you will see up and down arrows. To use the up and down arrows, first click on the
hours or
minutes. After that, if you click up or down the value will be changed
accordingly. You can also just type in the value. To move from hours
to minutes press the right arrow key. |
|
DateTimePicker |
These are a combination of the Date Picker and the Time
Picker
(see above). Both the date and time can be entered. |
|
Link Label |
Text that is underlined has similar behaviour to a button. When you click
it an action will be carried out. The example on the left is displayed on
the "Medic" tab of a person. Clicking the control takes you to the "Search
BHF" website. |
|
Tab Control |
Tab Controls are used when a lot of items need to be displayed in a limited
space. They consist of "Tab pages" which are like separate windows, one of
which is in front of the others. Clicking on a tab page (e.g. on
"Telephones" or "Addresses" in the example) brings that tab page to the front. |
or
|
Checkbox |
Used to indicate if something is true or false.
The little box can contain a check (sometimes called a tick).
When the box contains a check then the item is true, otherwise it
is false. The little box can be either on the right or the
left. |
|
Radio Buttons |
Radio buttons allow you to choose one item from a list of available items.
In the example on the left you can select Code or
Description by clicking on one of them. |
|
Treeview |
A treeview displays items in a hierarchical "tree" structure. Each item
can have subitems. The relationships between items are shown with
lines, with subitems indented slightly. When a particular item has
subitems which are not visible, this will be indicated with a small box
with a "+" in it (
). Click on the
to display the subitems. Once the subitems have been displayed this will be
indicated with a "-" (
). To hide the subitems click on the
.
Some treeviews also have a check box (
) next to each item to indicate if the item is "selected". |