Product custom fields
If Breww's built-in product fields don't capture something you need to record, you can add fields of your own. Custom fields appear on the form when you create or edit a product, show on the product's page, and can be used in BrewwQL to filter and report on your products.
You'll find them under Settings -> Product settings -> Product custom fields.
The list shows each field's name, the product types it applies to, its type, its description and whether it's required.
Creating a custom field
Press New custom field and fill in:
- Name - what you'll see on the product form, and the name you'll use when filtering with BrewwQL.
- Which product types does this field apply to? - pick one or more of Stock item, Cask, Keg, Smallpack, Multi-pack, Mixed-pack and Service. The field only appears on products of the types you choose, and the list shows "All" if you pick every one.
- Field type - what kind of value the field holds. See the table below.
- Description - optional. Shown as help text beneath the field on the product form, and as a tooltip on the product page.
- Required - whether a value has to be given before the product can be saved.
Field types
| Field type | What it holds |
|---|---|
| Short text | A single line of text |
| Long text | Several lines of text |
| Date | A date |
| Date & time | A date and a time |
| Decimal number | A number that can have decimal places |
| Whole number | A number with no decimal places |
| True / False | A tickbox |
| Multiple Choice | A value chosen from a list you define |
Choosing Multiple Choice reveals an Options section. Add a row per option with the Add item button, and remove one with the button at the end of its row. Options have to be unique and you need at least one. Tick Can select multiple? if a product should be able to have more than one of them selected at once.
Naming rules
Because the name doubles as the name you'll use in BrewwQL, Breww applies a few rules to it:
- It must be unique among your product custom fields.
- It must start with a letter, although it can contain numbers after that.
- It can't be "And" or "Or".
- It can't match one of Breww's own built-in product field names.
- It needs enough ordinary letters and numbers to make a usable name, so a name made up almost entirely of symbols is rejected.
Where your custom fields appear
- On the New product wizard and the Edit product form, for products of the types the field applies to.
- In a Custom fields panel on the product's page, with any description shown as a tooltip.
- In BrewwQL, so you can filter product lists and reports on the value.
- In the product importer and bulk updater, so you can set values in bulk. Every field type is supported there except Date & time, and Multiple Choice fields that have Can select multiple? ticked. See Bulk updating data and the Data import guide.
Editing and deleting a custom field
Use the pencil button on a row to edit a field's setup, and the bin button to delete it.
Deleting a custom field also deletes every value stored in it, on every product, and this can't be undone. Breww won't let you delete a field while products are still using it, so you'll need to clear it from those products first.
Two things to watch when editing:
- Renaming a field changes the name you use for it in BrewwQL. Any saved list or filter that refers to the old name will need updating.
- Changing the field type of a field that already holds values means those existing values will no longer show, because they're stored in a different format for each type. Only change the type when you're confident the field isn't in use.
For a Multiple Choice field, Breww won't let you edit the setup at all once products have chosen from its options, because saving rebuilds the option list. Clear the field from those products first.