CAA Product Help

(HELP ?) Circles provide narratives on Training, Explanations, and Hints. These can be related to the overall screen, or to specific items on the screen.

This (HELP ?) Circle narrative is for the "FILTERS" on the Navigation Panel for the "CONTACTS" Screen and Display Panel in MemberLink.

Filters for Segmenting Key Data:

MemberLink comes with certain "Standard Data Fields" and the option for you to create as many additional "Custom Data Fields" as you need.

Sometimes certain Custom Data Fields contain "key church data" that would be useful in showing segments of data (segments of people records) on the "CONTACTS" Screen and Display Panel or ROW/COLUMN Form.

If you move the data tracked via a Custom Data Field to a "Filter Field", you begin tracking that data with the "Filter Field" and no longer need the corresponding Custom Data Field. After you move the Custom Data Field "data" to a "Filter Field", with a Global Change function, you can delete the Custom Data Field. The data that was in that field will now be in the "Filter Field".

Creating a "Filter Field" and moving key data to it with a Global Change function should be performed only by the MasterAdmin or a SysAdmin who has special training for performing this function.

Overview of Key Data Filters:

At the top of the Navigation Panel , your church name will appear.

If you create one or more "Database Segmentation Filter Fields", known as "Filters", and have at least one Filter activated, a "Menu of Filters" will appear near the bottom of the Navigation Panel .

The purpose of Filters is to automatically select and display on the "CONTACTS" Screen and Display Panel those contact records (people) that match the Filter Criteria.

Turning Filters "On" can be an effective way of selecting (or narrowing) the list of active records more quickly than using the "SEARCH" Hyperlink. When you use the "SEARCH" Hyperlink function, you have many parameters on that screen to choose from. You can build simple, compound, and very complex searches to meet different needs. Such a comprehensive tool ensures you can find and display the specific people you want to be active on the "CONTACTS" Screen and Display Panel .

Filters are not as flexible as the "SEARCH" Hyperlink function, since a Filter is based upon just one parameter or one piece of key church data "" but the Filter is very quick because it is like having a pre-set "SEARCH" Hyperlink function that can be executed with just one click of the mouse.

How Filters are Setup

To create Filters, click the "OPTIONS" Tab on the Operations Bar . Then look for the "Configure Filters" option on the "OPTIONS" Screen. Click that option to go to the font size="3">"SEGMENTATION FILTERS" Screen.

When maintaining Filters, they can be turned "On" or turned "Off". If no Filters are active, that is, none have been created or those that exist are all turned "Off", the "Menu of Filters" will not appear on the Navigation Panel .

A church can create as many Filters as they want. If at least one Filter exists and is activated, the "Menu of Filters" will appear on the Navigation Panel . If two or more Filters exist and have been activated, they will be positioned "top to bottom" in the order you specified on the "SEGMENTATION FILTERS" Screen when you created them.

How the Filters Work

Filters start out showing the value of "All" at the top of the "Menu of Filters". A Filter is not active when "All" is the selected value "" it is not filtering out any contact records but rather is permitting "All" of them to display and be active. "All" means no limits, show "All" the records.

To set a Filter, click the Menu Selection Arrow and select one of the choices on the "Selection Menu List". That value will now show as the Filter setting. Instantly, the contact records displayed on the "CONTACTS" Screen and Display Panel will be only those that match the Filter value you selected.

If more than one Filter is present on the "Menu of Filters", you can make Menu Selections for any or all of them, and in any order you wish. The Filters act like a compound "AND", that is, a contact record must match all the Filters to be active and displayed on the "CONTACTS" Screen and Display Panel .

** Example of Compound Filters:

- You define a "Membership Filter" and one of the selection values is "Member"; an "Attendance Filter" and one of the selection values is "Active"; and a "Residence Filter" and one of the selection values is "Resident".

- You click the Menu Selection Arrow on the "Membership Filter", you select "Member". Immediately on the Display Panel all the records with any value other than "Member" disappear. Those could have been the Guest people, Prospect people, etc. The only people left on the "CONTACTS" Screen and Display Panel are those with a status of "Member".

- Next you click the Menu Selection Arrow on the "Attendance Filter" and you select "Active". Immediately on the Display Panel all the Member records with any value other than "Active" disappear. Now the only people left on the Display Panel are those with a status of "Member" AND a status of "Active".

- If you leave the "Residence Filter" set to "All", your Member/Active people will include all people who are "Residents", "Non-Residents", etc.

Resetting Filters

If you select "All" again for any Filter, it resets and those Contact records that had been filtered out will reappear on the "CONTACTS" Screen and Display Panel .

Finally, next to the (HELP ?) Circle for the "FILTERS" on the Navigation Panel there is a "RESET" Hyperlink. When you click it, it resets all the Filters to the original "All" setting. In effect, this removes all the Filters at once and all the people return to the "CONTACTS" Screen and Display Panel as active records.

"CAA Product Help" from CAA Ministries at Support@CAAsoftware.com or 404-551-4230