The filter bar (also known as the "FB") is a component that appears in many of the core views of the web app. When filters are applied using the filter bar, they present a subset of the data available. This enables different tasks to be accomplished from the same view. The FB gives a quick visual representation of what filters that are being applied at any one time and they can be changed, saved and reused at a later date.
Note
The Filter Bar (3 min 02)
Almost every view that contains the FB component has a default set of filters applied based on the context of the view. Based on the view, some filters might be removable or editable while others might not.
Click the "Add Filter" icon (shown in Figure 2) to open a panel that lists all the available filters that can be applied in that view. The list of available filters is contextual to the page that is being viewed, and different pages show different sets of filters.
Clicking on a given filter category opens another panel listing the available options. Some filter categories only show a search box instead of seeing options (Account/Contact filters etc.) Entering a search term into the input box should immediately start fetching a list of options, filtered by the term entered. Select one or more of the given options and then click the "Add" button.
Once all the filter categories are added, click button "Apply Filters" to add them to the FB.
Note
If you "Add" a filter and forget to click "Apply Filters" afterward, you will lose your selection.
You can update individual filters by clicking on the relevant filter directly. You can delete individual filters or entire filter categories by clicking on the "x" near the name of the filter (if applicable). You can also update or remove filters by clicking the "+" icon ("Add Filter") and going through each filter category–updating and then reapplying them.
You can save frequently used filter combinations so that they can be reused later on. Click the "Save Filter" icon and enter a name for the filter combination.
Tip
The small blue indicator in the top right of the save filter icon represents a filter combination that has not been saved. Once saved this blue indicator disappears.
Saved filter combinations can quickly be restored by clicking on the "My Filters" drop-down and selecting a saved filter. Delete a saved filter in this panel by clicking the delete button to the right of a saved filter.
Every filter combination results in a unique URL. Therefore it is possible to save the filter combinations using a browser bookmark. Once a bookmark is saved, it can be shared with other schedulers in your organization–this will allow them to access the same set of filters.
To better understand the role of the FB, let's walk through a few scenarios using the job status filters on the scheduling console. All these filters apply to the job list.
Table 22. Examples of filter combinations that can be applied to the job list.
Scenario |
Action |
---|---|
Jobs in a given region. |
Region: Select region. |
Jobs that have been dispatched. |
Job status: Dispatched. |
Jobs that have been allocated but not dispatched. |
Job status: Pending Dispatch. |
Jobs that have not been allocated to any resource. |
Job status: Queued. |
Jobs that are currently in progress. |
Job status: Ready, En Route, On Site, In Progress, Complete. |
It is also possible to have more complicated job list combinations by selecting more than one filter at a time.
Table 23. Example of more complex filter combinations that can be applied to the job list.
Scenario |
Action |
---|---|
Jobs that have been allocated and dispatched to a single resource. |
Job status: Pending Dispatch, Dispatched. Allocated resources: Select resources. |
Jobs of a specific job type with the highest urgency. |
Job urgency: Critical. Job type: Select the job type. |
Jobs with specific job skill tags assigned to a few categories of resources. |
Job tags: Select the job tag. Resource category: Select categories. |
Using different combinations of filters allows you to drill down to view the particular data set. On any given page, the applied filters may only affect a subsection of the view on that page. The examples in the tables above (tables 1 and 2) apply exclusively to the job list–there are other filters that apply to the swimlane or the map.
The FB is contextual to each page, and the list of available and editable filters changes based on the given view. For example, the filters available on the scheduling console are different from those that are available in job details or resources.
Some filter sets are also mandatory and cannot be removed. A good example of this is the region filter. Almost all views currently use a single region filter, and this cannot be removed. There are also instances where filters are set based on the data that they represent. For example, on the job details page, the region filter is set based on the job that it's representing. This means that changing the region of the job will also change the region on the FB.
There are also times where filters are set based on the data they represent. For example, on the job details view, the region filter is set based on the job that it's representing. This means that changing the region of the job will also change the region on the FB.
Most filter sets are obvious and easy enough to understand. However, you can go into the subsection of filter sets listed below for more details on any given filter. It's important to note that this is not an exhaustive list of filters since many filters are context-sensitive.
Region.
Account.
Contact.
Location.
Job type.
Job status—ties into the status panel as well.
Job urgency.
Job tags.
Allocated resources.
Resource type.
Resource category.
Resource tags.
Note
Resource tags currently present results using "OR" logic, i.e., Tag "A" or tag "B," rather than tag "A" and tag "B."
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