What is the expandable “Viewing Data” criteria box at the top of so many record summary screens?
Record types other than client and contact records are initially filtered by a logical set of criteria that is available for expansion at the top a record summary list. Labeled "Viewing Data:<criteria filter description>", OutreachSystems also commonly refers to this expandable box as a record status filter box. An example of one is shown in the next graphic.
The record status filter box criteria is automatically applied in combination with several other filter types. For example, if you're viewing the most recent client summary view (i.e. * Last Client View) or the results of a previously saved subset, the record status filter box's criteria will be applied to these filters' criteria to create the most restrictive possible filter settings. Displaying a limited group of records rather than all records helps minimize the amount of time and server resources required to switch from one record view to another in WebCATS.
You can modify the default settings for a record status filter box, either temporarily or permanently, by following these steps.
- Display the filter criteria fields in your record summary view by clicking the + (plus sign) icon to the left of the filter description, as shown in the previous graphic.
- Specify new filter settings in the fields provided, keeping in mind that each criterion you select is applied in combination with the other filter criteria to create the most restrictive possible filter settings. For example, the session filter criteria shown in the next graphic would cause WebCATS to display only DLA-funded reportable counseling sessions that took place between 1/15/2008 and 5/15/2008 with John C. Miller as counselor and with session types of either "Initial/New" or "Follow-up or Ongoing."
- Select the Save as Default? check box if you want your new filters to be applied each time the selected record type is accessed from the current workstation. Otherwise, leave this option deselected. If you save your filter settings as the default, they are consistently applied whenever the corresponding record type is selected for viewing from the current workstation, regardless of the current active center or user account.
- When you are finished defining your filter settings, click the Requery button in the filter criteria frame to apply your newly established filters to the records at the current active center.
Filtering by Date Range
The following table outlines the various ways in which you can have WebCATS interpret your date ranges, and the appropriate way to configure your date range criteria fields in each case.
| To... | You Should... |
|---|---|
| Specify a fixed date range with a definitive start and end date | Enter your range start and end dates in the Start Date and End Date fields, respectively. |
| Create an open-ended date range (i.e. consider all records in the system entered before or after a particular date) | Clear one of the date fields in your filter criteria. For example, to consider all records in the system with dates that fall on or after January 1, 2008, clear the End Date filter field and set Start Date to 1/1/2008. |
| Create a rolling range of days (e.g. consider all records with dates that fall within the past month) | Set End Date to today's date and Start Date to the date that currently marks the beginning of your range. For example, if today is August 1, 2008, and you want your saved filters to always limit your display to records whose dates fall within the past two months, set Start Date to 6/2/2008 and End Date to 8/1/2008. |
| Have WebCATS ignore dates when filtering records | Clear both the Start Date and End Date fields in your filter criteria. This causes WebCATS to set your date range to 1/1/1980 - 12/31/2049, effectively considering records with any entered date. |
Some record types allow you to select differing fields for the date range filter. Specifically, four record types support multiple date range filters:
- Conference records. When viewing conference records, you can choose to filter records using the conference start date (this is the default), end date, or approval date, as shown in the previous graphic.
- Milestone records. When viewing milestone records, you can choose to filter records using the milestone occurrence date (this is the default) or the initial date. The Initial Date field is used to record your client's relevant business data before the milestone occurred for the purpose of comparison.
- Investment records. When viewing investment records, you can choose to filter records using the investment submission date (this is the default) or the investment completion date.
- Conference request records. When viewing conference request records, you can choose to filter records using the request date (this is the default) or, you can filter records according to the start, end, or approval dates of their associated conferences.
Note: Be aware that conference records with blank dates of the type selected from the drop-down list will always be considered by your view filters. For example, if you select "Approval," then conferences with blank approval dates or conference requests for conferences with blank approval dates, as well as those whose approval dates fall within the specified range, will display in your filtered summary view. This is not a concern for milestone or investment records because the date fields considered in the filter criteria for these record types are always mandatory if present.
Filtering by Funding Source
Unlike other types of WebCATS filter criteria, the Funding Source(s) filter criterion available in the record status filter box for most record types can have more than one associated value. For example, you can create a filter that limits your display to records with a funding source of "DLA," "SBA," and "Other Federal."
To edit the funding source selections in your filter settings, click the + button that displays to the right of the Funding Source(s) caption. This displays a selection list of all available system- and user-defined funding sources, as shown in the next graphic. Make your selections by clicking the check box to the left of each funding source that you want your filter settings to consider. You can use the "(All)" and "(None)" options in the associated drop-down list to select or clear all check boxes.
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Counseling-Session-Specific Criteria
If you're filtering counseling sessions, you have the option of only showing counseling session records for clients or counselors who have had a certain amount of total counseling time. For example, you could choose to only return counseling session records that belong to clients who have had at least 5 or more hours of counseling, as shown in the next graphic.
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It's important to note that this is an indirect counseling session record filter. You are not filtering individual counseling sessions that fall within this hour range; you are identifying the clients whose total hours of counseling session time fall within this hour range and then only displaying counseling session records for those clients.
Another counseling-session-specific option is the ability to display results by client, counselor, or unique session. These display options are especially helpful if your center's counseling session records support the assignment of multiple clients and/or counselors.