Browser Features

The user can specify whether work item forms are opened in the Preview Pane or in a floating work item form. This can be set from the View > Preview menu on the work item list.

If the user chooses to display floating work item forms, he can further specify that the floating form be displayed in either a dialog or a separate browser window. This can be specified in User Options. Note, however, that the user can control whether the form is displayed in a dialog or separate browser window via User Options only if the dialog attribute in the <BrowserFeatures> record in config.xml is set to "no". If the dialog attribute is set to "yes", it forces the work item form to be displayed in a dialog. This allows you to control whether or not the user can choose a dialog or separate browser window.

The following describes all of the attributes available in the <BrowserFeatures> record. They allow you to specify the behavior of the window (things such as whether the window is resizable, whether or not a status bar is displayed, etc.) when the form is opened in a separate browser window.

The following describes the differences in behavior between dialogs and separate browser windows:

  • Floating Window Outside Application Window:
    • Separate browser windows can be floated outside the parent application's window.
    • Dialogs cannot be floated outside the parent application's window.
  • Close as child window:
    • Separate browser windows do not close (or minimize) when the parent is closed (or minimized).
    • Dialogs are children of the parent window. Therefore if the parent window is closed (or minimized), the dialog is also closed (or minimized).
  • Browser Feature Attributes:
    • Separate browser windows can be further controlled using the <BrowserFeatures> record in the config.xml file.
    • Dialogs cannot be controlled using the <BrowserFeatures> record in the config.xml file.

The following illustrations show you the general differences in appearance between a form in a dialog and in a separate browser window.

Work Item Form in a Dialog

Work Item Form in a Separate Browser Window

Also, the extent to which you can customize the browser window appearance depends on the type of browser (Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari, or Chrome) you are using, as shown in the table below.

Procedure

  1. Open the config.xml file.

    For information about how this file should be opened (i.e., via the Configuration Administrator or via the file system, see Introduction).

  2. Locate the <BrowserFeatures> record in the config.xml file: 
    <record jsxid="BrowserFeatures" type="Workspace" channelmode="no" dialog="no"
        directories="no" location="no" menubar="no" resizable="yes"
        scrollbars="yes" status="yes" toolbar="no">
</record>
  3. Modify the desired attributes to control browser window behavior. Each attribute can be set to either “yes” or “no” to indicate whether or not to display/enable that feature.

    The following table lists the available attributes for the <BrowserFeatures> record. The Browser columns indicate the browsers to which the attribute applies.

    Attribute Browser Description
    IE Firefox Safari Chrome
    channelmode X       Specifies whether or not to display the window in “theater mode”, that is, as a maximized window.
    dialog X X X X Specifies whether or not to display the window as a “dialog”.
    • If dialog = "yes", it forces work item forms to be displayed in a dialog, regardless the setting in User Options.
    • If dialog = "no", the user can control whether or not the form is opened in a dialog or separate browser window via a setting in User Options.
    directories   X     Specifies whether or not to display the "Bookmarks Toolbar" (in Firefox).

    Firefox users can force new windows to always render the Bookmarks Toolbar by setting dom.disable_window_open_feature.directories to true in about:config or in their user.js file.

    This setting is ignored in Internet Explorer.

    location X X X   Specifies whether or not to display the "Navigation Toolbar" in Internet Explorer, the "Location Bar" in Firefox, or the "Toolbar" and "Bookmarks Bar" in Safari.

    Firefox users can force new windows to always render the Navigation Toolbar by setting dom.disable_window_open_feature.location to true in about:config or in their user.js file.

    menubar X X X X(1) Specifies whether or not the browser window should display a “Menu Bar”.

    Firefox users can force new windows to always render the Menu Bar by setting dom.disable_window_open_feature.menubar to true in about:config or in their user.js file.

    resizable X       Specifies whether or not the browser window can be manually resized using the lower right corner of the window.

    Note - This attribute may not work as expected. Tests on various systems has shown that on some the window can be resized, while on others, it cannot. The exact cause(s) of the unexpected behavior remains unknown, although it is thought to be a combination of the browser being used, the browser version, and browser security settings.

    scrollbars X X   X1 Controls the display of scrollbars, on work item forms opened in a separate browser window, when the form content overflows the browser dimensions.

    Note - Scrollbars are always displayed, if needed, in Safari.

    status X     X1 Specifies whether or not the browser window displays a status bar on the bottom of the window.

    Firefox always displays the status bar.

    toolbar X X X X1 Specifies whether or not to display the Toolbar across the top of the window. This bar contains buttons/icons for Back, Forward, Refresh, Home, etc.

    In Internet Explorer this bar is referred to as the “Command Bar”, in Firefox it’s the “Tab Bar”, and in Safari it’s the “Toolbar” and “Bookmarks Bar”.

    Firefox users can force new windows to always render the Tab Bar by setting dom.disable_window_open_feature.toolbar to true in about:config or in their user.js file.

    (1) Setting menubar, scrollbars, status, or toolbar to “yes” when using Chrome causes the form to open in a new tab rather than a separate browser window.