Forms and Form Sets – Origin & Beyond Quick Articles

If you're new to Micromine, arguably the most important thing to understand is how to use forms. Forms are dialogs within the software that the user completes before executing a tool/function. One of Micromine's greatest strengths is its ability to save these forms that can be recalled for later use. This article will discuss the difference between files and forms, filling out a form and the utility of form sets.

Files Versus Forms

The most important thing to understand when you begin using Micromine is the difference between files and forms. The easiest way to think about it is, a file is the raw data, whereas a form is how the data is displayed.

When files are loaded into a software package by double-clicking or drag & dropping, two things are actually happening: 1) you are directing a program to a raw data file to load, and 2) the program is trying to recognize what type of data is contained in the raw data file to display it appropriately. Micromine makes these two separate processes (e.g. if you want to load a wireframe: you open up the wireframe form, choose the raw data file, define how you want to display it and press OK).

The image below (Figure 1) shows practical utilization of formsets. Several formsets have been saved for the same wireframe/block model file. However, the display settings for the files (2D vs 3D, Oxide Code vs Geotech Code) are different; allow users to easily view files with consistent display colours or filtering logic.

Figure 1: Multiple forms loading the same data in a different way.

Filling Out a Form

Forms can range from basic to advanced, some containing dozens of controls arranged in different groups. Regardless of the complexity, the best way to fill out a form is in the same order you would read a newspaper: from the top down, working left to right (Figure 2). If the form contains tabs, you can treat the tabs as the pages.

Figure 2: Order of filling out a form in Micromine.

Fields highlighted in red are compulsory fields; you can execute the form with everything else blank, although it may not produce your desired result. Fields with a symbol require the user to either select or fill out a separate form; this will be for things like filters and colour sets (legends). Click on the symbol to select a saved form set, or right-click in the blank space and press New to create a new form set.

Useful tips:

Pressing the question mark in the top right of the form will bring you to a web-help article outlining what to put in each field.
Always select your input files by pressing the icon or double-clicking in the box, instead of typing.
For forms where you're displaying an object, always have Auto Load turned on to save you time.

Utility of Formsets

Micromine saves forms as form sets; this is an elegant way to save your entries to use later, or to send to your colleagues so they can view the data the exact same way. The small effort of initially creating a form set is more than compensated by the time saved in reusing it. Form sets enable you to create libraries of Vizex display layers, consistently reuse settings for repetitive tasks without re-entering values, and automate Micromine by writing macros. To view and save form sets, simply click on the button to open a new window (Figure 3). This window shows all of the saved form sets for that particular form. This window also has the functionality to save your current form and import/export form sets for collaboration purposes.

Figure 3: Form set management window.

Alternatively, navigate to Home | Forms | Form Set Manager to open the Micromine Form Set Manager (Figure 4). This is a catalogue of every saved form set available in your project, which you can easily export and also where you can easily import form sets from other people.