Reverse attachments and how to work with them

As we've seen, it is a simple matter in the primaryAn attachment is made from one record to another. The record from which the attachment is initiated is the Primary record; the record that is attached is called the Target. module to:

• Identify when an attachment has been made from one of its field (there is Summary DataA one line summary of key fields in a record. In Details View the current record's Summary Data displays beneath the Tool bar; and a Target record's Summary Data displays in an attachment field when an attachment has been made. in the attachment field and the View Attachments button is active).
• Navigate from there to the attached record (simply click the View Attachments button).

From a Target record how do we know that the record is attached to another record and how do we then display the Primary record (the record that made the attachment)?

In this example, a Loans record (Primary) made an attachment to a record in the Parties module (Target). We locate the Parties record and navigate back to the Loans record:

1. Search the Target module for the required record (in this case the Parties module).
2. Select the required record(s).
3. Select View>Attachments>Current Record from the Menu bar.

   Note: You'd select View>Attachments>Selected Records if more than one record was selected.

   The Attachments box displays listing (on the left) all modules that can make an attachment to this module (i.e. the Primary modules). Beside the name of each module is an icon:

   • The red cross indicates that there is no attachment to this record from the module.
   • The green tick beside the Loans module indicates that one or more attachments were made from the Loans module to this record in the Parties module.
4. Select Loans in the Module list:

   

   The Field list on the right of the Attachments box lists the field(s) in the Loans module from which an attachment can be made to this record in the Parties module. The number in the Refs column indicates how many records in the Loans module have attached to this Parties record using this field.

5. Select the Borrower/Lender: (Loan Details) field and click View.

   The Loans module opens and displays the record that made the attachment to the Parties record.

For all modules, except for the Parties module, it is possible to display Reverse Attachment tabs. A Reverse Attachment tab displays a list of all primaryAn attachment is made from one record to another. The record from which the attachment is initiated is the Primary record; the record that is attached is called the Target. records that made an attachment to the current record.

For example:

• Events, Loans, Narratives, Movements, Conservation and Taxonomy records can all attach to a record in the Catalogue module.
• In the Catalogue module itself it is possible to display a tab for each of these modules and to list any records that have attached to the current record.
• From one of these Reverse Attachment tabs it is possible to navigate back to the primary record.

  Note: Tabs that display reverse attachments are read-only (they cannot be edited) and can be displayed or hidden.

In the case of the Bibliography module, for instance, the following tabs are added to the Tabs bar when Show Attachments is selected:

Tab	Module
References	Bibliography
Objects	Catalogue
Coll. Events	Collection Events
Taxonomy	Taxonomy
Narratives	Narratives
Events	Events

The Show / Hide attachment options are accessed by selecting View>Attachments>Options from the Menu bar:

Option	Description
Show Tabs	Displays all Reverse Attachment tabs that the user has the right to view.
Show Filled Tabs	Only displays Reverse Attachment tabs that contain one or more attachments.
Hide Tabs	Does not display Reverse Attachment tabs.
Show Search Tabs	In Search mode, all Reverse Attachment tabs that can be searched are displayed.

Note: Avoid using the Show Filled Tabs option if your connection to the EMu database is slow as it will slow it down even more as all filled tabs for all records will be displayed. The View>Show Attachments (F4) command does the same as Show Filled Tabs but only for the current record and it may be more efficient to set the Hide Tabs option and press F4 for specific records.

To Show / Hide Reverse Attachment tabs:

1. Select View>Attachments>Options>Show Tabs from the Menu bar.

   Note: To view the Reverse Attachment tabs for the current record only, select View>Show Attachments (F4). This is a quicker option than View>Attachments>Options>Show Tabs.