Creating a Custom Alarm List

The first item you should configure for a custom alarm display is an alarm list. When you are planning a custom alarm list, consider the following:

What category of alarms (i.e. current, unacknowledged, active, history, disabled, or configured) do you initially want displayed in this custom alarm list?

Will this alarm list always display the same category of alarms, or will users be able to change the category of alarms it displays?

 

To add an alarm list to your custom alarm display:

1.   Click the Libraries button in the Configuration Toolbox. The Libraries dialog will open.

2.   Click on the plus sign beside Drawing Tools to open the list of libraries.

3.   Right-click on the Alarm Tools library to open its context menu.

4.   Click the Draw button. The Alarm Tools library will open.

5.   Click the Alarm List button. A sample list will be attached to the cursor

6.   Drop the button on the page where you would like the list to be located. The Alarm List graphic editor dialog will open.

7.   Click in the Name field to insert the cursor, and then enter a name for this alarm list. If your application will have more than one custom alarm list, be sure to name this list so that you will easily be able distinguish it from any others.

8.   Click the  button to the right of the Font field. The Tag Browser will open and display only those Font Style tags that have been created within your application.

9.   Select the Font Style tag whose font you wish to use to display items in the alarm list. If a suitable Font Style tag does not exist, you may create a new one.

10. Click the Tag Browser’s Select button. The Tag Browser will close and the selected Font Style tag will be displayed in the Font field of the Alarm List Style dialog.

11. Enter a number indicating the style in which you wish alarm list entries to be displayed in this alarm list. This may be one of:

•   “1”   Indicates the standard line format, which displays the following information in your alarm list: event/status, priority, time, date, area, message, and operator.

•   “2”   Indicates the alternate line format, which displays the following information in your alarm list: time, date, and message.

12. Click the Background button. The Select Color will open.

13. Select a color for the background of the alarm list.

14. Click the OK button. You will be returned to the Alarm List Style dialog where a sample of the selected background color will be previewed.

15. Select category of alarms you initially wish this alarm list to display from the Starting List drop-down list.

16. Click the OK button.

17. Click the alarm list to select it. Handles will appear around its perimeter.

18. Click and drag the handles to resize the alarm list.

 

Once your alarm list is complete, you may add buttons to allow users to change the category of alarms being displayed. The section that follows provides instructions on using the Alarm List Button tool to create such buttons.