Filter bar

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.

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.

The FB on the scheduling console.

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.

How to add filters to the FB.

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.

How to delete filters from the FB.

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.

How to save filter combinations on the FB.

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.

How saved filter combinations can be restored from my filters.

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.

How to save filter combinations using a browser bookmark.

How to share a filter combination using the browser URL.

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.

It is also possible to have more complicated job list combinations by selecting more than one filter at a time.

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.