detectable

The detectable property originated with 3270 terminals that allowed selection of fields with a light pen. In programs generated for Java™, a mouse click substitutes for selection with a light pen. If the detectable property is set to YES, the modified data tag for the field is set when the user selects the field. There is little or no practical use for this property in new code.

The initial character in the field content (as specified in the value property or by the program assigning a value to the field) must be a designator character, which indicates what action is taken when the user selects the field. The most common designator characters are as follows:
&
Causes an immediate detect, which means that selecting the field at run time is equivalent to modifying the field and pressing the ENTER key.
?
Causes a delayed detect, which means that selecting the field at run time is equivalent to modifying the field, but that the program receives the form information only when the user presses the ENTER key or clicks a field that is configured for an immediate detect.

To prevent the user from changing the designator character in a variable field, set the protect property to YES or SKIP.

In general, detectable is used for variable fields. If you specify detectable with the immediate detect designator character for a constant field, the program behaves as if the user pressed ENTER as soon as the field displayed.

IBM® 3278 and 3279 terminals support either kind of detect. IBM 3277 terminals support only delayed detect. Review the documentation for the terminals or emulators that you want to support to determine the correct designator characters.

Compatibility

Table 1. Support for detectable property
Data item JSF handler VGUI record Console UI Text Form Java Text Form COBOL Print Form Java Print Form COBOL
Yes No No No Yes* Yes* No No

* See compatibility considerations below.

Table 2. Compatibility considerations for detectable
Platform Issue
Text UI The intensity property for the detectable field must have a value other than invisible.

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