Functionality and Usuability of the BOM and grid tab needs to improve

[Anonymous]

To convince users to move from Excel is very painful, because adding/entering data is so slow.

We have approx. 25 columns in both grid and BOM tab.

First, there is no on-edit trigger – we have data integrity problems because users forget to run an on demand script that handles our calculations. 

To give an example of expectations, a quick Google finds an example JavaScript widget:

https://handsontable.com/examples?manual-resize&manual-move&conditional-formatting&context-menu&filt...

• The display performance is excellent
• The grid has a clean feel, with less wasted whitespace. Faint grid lines help visibility
• Moving around is natural (tab to cell, cursor keys, …)
• The columns filter in a familiar Excel-type way
• Drill down (multi-column filtering) in familiar Excel-type way
• Numeric columns are correctly aligned (eg right for numbers)
• Display of data is localised to browser settings (decimal points, etc)
• Columns are color-coded red/green for negative results
• Selecting ranges, and copy/paste from Excel works naturally
• Ability to freeze columns so when entering data on right side, I am sure what I am editing
• Export directly to CSV
• Nested headers
• Collapsible columns to hide very wide data
• Ability to hide columns when working
• Copy down functionality 
• Cell level validations
• Different permissions for columns (like section permissions on item details page)

…

Please play with the example above to give an idea of what users are expecting from a grid widget in a webpage.

To help acceptability of our FLC-based solution, we request consideration to a re-implementation of the FLC Grid widget, and on edit trigger for other tabs. 

Thank you Maarten.

[gareth.wager]

We are also interested in grid usability and performance. This is our primary concern moving from classic to modern.

[Anonymous]

We find usability issues with the grid and performance. Modern needs to address these issues

[philipfrench]

I agree the above points, especially the lack of on-edit trigger on bom/grid/pm tabs.

BTW I did discover today that if you remove the "display as link" on some grid columns, although it still does display as a link(!?) it does NOT show the "preview" option. I found that this really improves the jumpiness of the grid rows, and the scroll/display time.

I suggest you try this if you are having any stability problems editing the grid.

[john.staffordA3PCM]

I agree. There are limitations to the grid that are problematic. The lack of on-edit/on-save trigger is a cause for concern and is vital to assure data integrity. The user experience is also hampered by the absence of basic functionality, such as 'insert' row, freeze pane and the ability to assign edit permissions by column.

[philipfrench]

100 votes reached, and still gathering support.

Is there a secret target we must reach?

[Aron_Thorfinnsson]

I would like to add to general improvements on the Grid. Image fields in the Grid is something I desperately miss.
I have made attempts to use F360M for digitalized procedures and in such applications, you NEED an image field accessible from within an expandable list (i.e. the Grid).
I have also considered to create WS for MoM but just skipped it since my MoMs typically include images/snapshots. Thus, my MoMs are just written in office files like before but it is an example of application that would be fantastic as WS in F360M just if images could be included in the Grid.

[bruce.nyfeler]

Grid limitation must be improved. I support this idea 

[ajackson_balltec]

The Grid is a useful tool inside Fusion Manage, but it's export capabilities are lacking. It is effectively a spreadsheet within the PLM environment but can only be printed rather than exported. The ability to export the data in the Grid to a CSV or Excel file format, in a similar manner to the BOM export to CSV, would be a highly useful addition.

[philipfrench]

An excel button would be helpful yes, but you can create a view that includes the grid columns, and then export that.

Filter your view to the items you want, and include the grid columns in the view too.

Use the Excel button at top of the View to export the data.

(Same thing for Reports)

[bruce.nyfeler]

Report is output as HTML-Excel. It must first be converted into a real Excel. The Report is incredibly large data file.

I have the problem, the Items and Bom Report is approximate 3GB. It is not possible to convert it to Excel .xlsx

Report from view on top right side, causes in ERROR. Could not export data.

Another export 1.6GB and after converting it was 60MB. A small, but important difference.

If you have not too many Items, the Report as Excel function is a big plus.

[philipfrench]

Yes. I hit that issue yesterday. 10Gb download would not open in Excel.

There should be another icon in the report row, eg HTML, XLS. and also XLSX.

BTW, if you hit this again, and you cannot export through the view, then do this in the browser...

/api/rest/v1/reports/12345.json (12345 is your report id)

Now your challenge is how to process a huge json file.

There also used to be a utility floating around called "Report To Tsv File", and you can guess what that does.

The trick is to use a json parser that does not need to load the whole thing into memory. If you can do that, you can download 1+ gb and save to tsv/csv in a matter of seconds. The API is pretty fast.

[bruce.nyfeler]

Hello @philipfrench 

Thanks for your advice. I will keep in mind for the next time.