Understanding the task attributes

Task attributes are contained in the Attributes area. Access to certain fields may be prevented if the field content originates from the Study Definition module.

Note: When creating task attributes, it is the attributes of the eForm or visit's Plan that must be set, not its Action.

Generic task attributes

Generic task attributes are located in the General section of the 'Attributes area'. Access to certain fields is prevented if the field content originates from the Study Definition module: the content of these fields cannot be amended and is for display only.

Name	A unique alphanumeric identifier for the task, starting with a letter. You can use underscore in lieu of a space.
Caption	A user-friendly title for the task. May contain any characters except for double quotes or the backward quote.
Description	A description of the task in words.
Precondition	Condition which must be true before a task may be started.
Internal trigger	Condition which prevents a task being started until the condition is true. Click here for more details.
Postcondition	One or more data assignments representing data to be added automatically to the local database on completion of a task. The setting of the value of a data item in the form DataItem = Value. Simple data assignments may be combined with the operator 'and'. Postcondition data is not available for use in validations during Web data entry. For example, if you create a warning validation condition that refers to a postcondition, the warning will not be fired when the postcondition is fulfilled.

Specific task attributes

Task Instance
Optional	Tasks are mandatory by default. If a task is designated as optional, it does not have to be completed for the plan to be complete.
Automatic	Automatic decision or action does not require user confirmation before completion. Status is set within the parent plan.
Number of cycles	Determines how many times a task can be done. -1 indicates an indefinite number of cycles. Enter an integer number for a finite cycle, e.g. 4. When setting cycling for an eForm, it is important to set the eForm to be repeating on the visit schedule before setting the number of cycles, otherwise an error will occur when the data entry user attempts to save the eForm.
Cycle until	Condition for the termination of cycling which overrides the number of cycles above. Once cycling has been terminated, it cannot be started again. Once cycling has reached this 'Cycle until' number, it cannot be restarted.
Cycle interval	Repeat interval for a task cycle specified in a number of time units, e.g. 3 hours, 1 day, etc.