Reference Guide

Variables

Variables are great for data you want to store temporarily – for example, the recipient of a confirmation email in a holiday request app – or for values that might be referenced many times throughout a Workflow – for example, the current rate of VAT in an expenses app.

Variables only last as long as the current session – in other words, as long as your end-user is interacting with your app. As soon as they close the app, the Variable is reset. If you want to store data permanently (so it’s still there when you re-open the app) a database table is the better option.

Creating Variables

Variables are defined within the Data tab, and then referenced within your Workflow. Creating a variable is as simple as clicking a button, choosing a data-type and giving it a name. This process is covered in more detail in the Tutorials section.

Variables can be created under the Variables tab

Data Types

A Nutshell variable can accommodate one of a number of data-types, depending on what kind of information you’re storing.

Set the appropriate data-type for your Variables and Nutshell will keep you right

You can store the following types of data in a variable:

• String
  For storing short snippets of text not more than 256 characters long – for example, an email address or a surname.
• Long Text
  For storing blocks of text longer than 256 characters – for example, a product description or written report.
• Whole Number
  For storing integers – for example, an ID number or someone’s age.
• Decimal Number
  For storing numbers with at least one decimal place – for example, a price value.
• Boolean
  For storing simple True/False values.
• Image
  For storing images captured or uploaded from the device – for example, photographs in an incident reporting app.
• Date
  For storing Dates.
• Time
  For storing Times.
• DateTime
  For storing Date and Time values within the same field.
• Location
  For storing Longitude/Latitude geo-location values – for example, capturing the exact physical location of an incident within a reporting app.
• Signature
  For storing electronic signatures – for example, in critical approval processes.
• List
  For storing data that is displayed in list format – for example, checkboxes or drop-down menus.
• Data
  For storing entire datasets in a single variable – for example, temporarily storing a record set retrieved from a third party web service.

Variable Settings

Each variable you create has the following settings:

• Name
  Fairly self-explanatory.
• Default Value
  Some variables might not change throughout the session – for example, the current rate of VAT might be referenced at several stages of a job costing app, but never change. In these instances, a variable can be given a default value.
• Type
  By specifying what kind of data you expect to be stored in a variable, Nutshell can prevent you from making mistakes later, by alerting you to possible incompatibilities.