Developer tab

Every entity with an automation interface has an optional Developer tab which can be shown to reveal the automation fields available in ActivityHD with their names and values and with the XML syntax for exporting and importing entity records.

The Automation subtab shows field names and values:

The Export (XML) subtab shows the XML syntax for exporting the selected entity record.

The Import subtab allows you to select a file for import and shows the XML syntax for importing entity records.

The information in these tabs is useful in the creation of bots and development of other forms of automation.

Tip

You can move off the Developer tab and make changes to the entity record, then return to the Developer tab to see the tab updated with the changes you made!

To gain access to the Developer tabs, you must first have Developer Tools enabled.

ClosedEnable Developer Tools

Developer Tools are enabled on a per user basis by adding a value to the registry.

  1. Open the Registry Editor on your computer.

  2. In the left pane, navigate to \HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\AccountingWare\Activity.

  3. Right-click the Activity folder and select New > DWORD (32-bit) Value from the context menu. A default item is added in the right pane, ready for you to assign the new key a name.

  4. Name the new key "DeveloperTools" (no spaces).

  5. Double-click the new item to open its edit dialog.

  6. In the Value data field, change "0" to "1". This enables Developer Tools.
  7. Click OK.
  8. Close the Registry Editor.

After Developer Tools are enabled, new options appear in the Tools menu of every ActivityHD entity which has an automation interface. If Developer Tools are enabled and these actions do not appear in an entity window, then the entity does not currently have an automation interface.

  • Developer Tab. This action shows the Developer tab for the current entity only and the tab disappears once you close the editing window. You can press Ctrl+F12 at any time from an automation-capable entity to display the tab again.
  • Always Show Developer Tab. This action shows the Developer tab for every entity with an automation interface and persists until you turn the feature off by reselecting Always Show Developer Tab. (The presence or absence of a checkmark in the menu margin next to the action indicates whether the feature is on or off.)

ClosedUse the Automation subtab

Use the information in the Automation subtab to assist when creating automation objects such as bots and import files. You can copy field names and field values from the text box and paste directly into your code or application.

To copy content from the text box, highlight the content to copy and press Ctrl+C or right-click your selection and select Copy from the context menu.

ClosedUse the Export (XML) subtab

The Export (XML) subtab shows the syntax for exporting the selected record. You can copy and paste the syntax from the text box as an exemplar for creating your own automation objects for bots, import files, ActivWebAPI, etc.

To copy content from the text box, highlight the content to copy and press Ctrl+C or right-click your selection and select Copy from the context menu.

Content menu

Options in the Content menu help you customize the export based on the content you want to include.

Content > Complete (same as Content > Complete plus Content > Attachments > None)

Selecting "Complete" shows the syntax for exporting complete data records. This syntax is illustrated in the first image in this section.

Content > List (same as Content > List plus Content > Attachments > None)

Selecting "List" shows the syntax for exporting a list of data records only; hence, the resulting XML is more compact.

Content > Complete plus Content > Attachments > Complete

Choosing Attachments > Complete appends <Attachments></Attachments> tags near the end of the data section of the XML content along with <item></item> tags which hold details about each attachment and a digital representation of the content.

Content > Complete plus Content > Attachments > List

Choosing Attachments > List appends <Attachments></Attachments> tags near the end of the data section of the XML content along with <item></item> tags which hold details about each attachment but not the digital representation of the attachment itself.

Content > List plus Content > Attachments > Complete

Choosing Attachments > Complete appends <Attachments></Attachments> tags in the data section of the XML content along with <item></item> tags which hold details about each attachment in the list and a digital representation of the content.

Content > List plus Content > Attachments > List

Choosing Attachments > List appends <Attachments></Attachments> tags in the data section of the XML content along with <item></item> tags which hold details about each attachment in the list but not the digital representation of the attachment itself.

Content > Attachments > Complete plus Content > Attachments > Item Limit

When there are multiple attachments on an entity record, you can specify a particular attachment to include in the export XML.

Choosing Attachments > Item Limit opens the Attachments Item Limit dialog.

In the Item field, enter the file name, GUID, or index number of the attachment to include, then click OK.

Content > Attachments > List plus Content > Attachments > Item Limit

When there are multiple attachments on an entity record, you can specify a particular attachment to include in the export XML.

Choosing Attachments > Item Limit opens the Attachments Item Limit dialog.

In the Item field, enter the file name, GUID, or index number of the attachment to include, then click OK.

ClosedUse the Import (XML) subtab

Use the Import (XML) tab to explore the XML syntax for importing entity records. In particular, investigate the syntax which results when using Data.Import and ActivWebAPI data POST and DELETE routes.

To load XML for analysis, click Import. You are prompted for an import file.

In the Import dialog in the File field, click and browse to and select the file to import.

Ensure that "/XML/data" is entered in the XPath field.

Click OK. You may be prompted to save records as they are imported. Click Save in the toolbar and then click Next in the Import dialog to move to the next record. When you finish, click Close.

The resulting Import XML syntax loads in the text box.