Create a Simple Item
By default, the Form generates a simple item for each field of the formData object. In case you need to create items for specific fields only, add the names of these fields to the items array.
jQuery
$(function() {
$("#formContainer").dxForm({
formData: {
firstName: "John",
lastName: "Heart",
position: "CEO",
officeNo: 901
},
items: ["firstName", "lastName", "position"]
});
});Angular
<dx-form
[(formData)]="employee"
[items]="['firstName', 'lastName', 'position']">
</dx-form>
import { DxFormModule } from "devextreme-angular";
// ...
export class AppComponent {
employee = {
firstName: "John",
lastName: "Heart",
position: "CEO",
officeNo: 901
}
}
@NgModule({
imports: [
// ...
DxFormModule
],
// ...
})A simple form item is a label-editor pair. The label is the field name that undergoes a slight conversion, for example, the field name "firstName" becomes the "First Name" label. For more information on configuring labels, visit the Configure Item Labels section.
The editor that will be used in a particular simple item depends on the type of data that its field contains. However, you can force an item to use an editor of your choice. For this purpose, specify the item's editorType option. To configure the editor, use the editorOptions object. Note that you also need to specify the dataField option to bind the item to a formData field.
jQuery
$(function() {
$("#formContainer").dxForm({
formData: {
name: "John Heart",
hireDate: new Date(2012, 4, 13),
notes: "John has been in the Audio/Video industry since 1990. He has led DevAv as its CEO since 2003."
},
items: [ "name", {
dataField: "hireDate",
editorType: "dxCalendar",
editorOptions: {
value: new Date()
}
}, {
dataField: "notes",
editorType: "dxTextArea",
editorOptions: {
placeholder: "Add notes..."
}
}]
});
});Angular
<dx-form
[(formData)]="employee">
<dxi-item dataField="name"></dxi-item>
<dxi-item dataField="hireDate"
editorType="dxCalendar"
[editorOptions]="{ value: new Date() }">
</dxi-item>
<dxi-item dataField="notes"
editorType="dxTextArea"
[editorOptions]="{ placeholder: 'Add notes...' }">
</dxi-item>
</dx-form>
import { DxFormModule, DxCalendarModule, DxTextAreaModule } from "devextreme-angular";
// ...
export class AppComponent {
employee = {
name: "John Heart",
hireDate: new Date(2012, 4, 13),
notes: "John has been in the Audio/Video industry since 1990. He has led DevAv as its CEO since 2003."
}
}
@NgModule({
imports: [
// ...
DxFormModule,
DxCalendarModule,
DxTextAreaModule
],
// ...
})Customize a Simple Item
If none of the available editors suit your requirements, you can define a custom one or even place anything you find useful instead. For this purpose, implement a custom template and pass it to the template option.
jQuery
$(function() {
$("#formContainer").dxForm({
formData: {
name: "John Heart",
picture: "https://js.devexpress.com/Content/images/doc/19_1/PhoneJS/person2.png"
},
items: [{
dataField: "name",
template: function (data, itemElement) {
itemElement.append("<div id='textAreaContainer'>")
.dxTextArea({
value: data.component.option('formData')[data.dataField],
onValueChanged: function(e) {
data.component.updateData(data.dataField, e.value);
}
});
}
}, {
dataField: "picture",
template: function (data, itemElement) {
itemElement.append("<img src='" + data.editorOptions.value + "'>");
}
}]
});
});Angular
<dx-form
[(formData)]="employee">
<dxi-item
dataField="name"
[template]="'nameTemplate'"></dxi-item>
<dxi-item
dataField="picture"
[template]="'pictureTemplate'">
</dxi-item>
<div *dxTemplate="let data of 'nameTemplate'">
<dx-text-area [(value)]="data.component.option('formData')[data.dataField]"></dx-text-area>
</div>
<div *dxTemplate="let data of 'pictureTemplate'">
<img src="{{data.editorOptions.value}}">
</div>
</dx-form>
import { DxFormModule } from "devextreme-angular";
// ...
export class AppComponent {
employee = {
name: "John Heart",
picture: "https://js.devexpress.com/Content/images/doc/19_1/PhoneJS/person2.png"
}
}
@NgModule({
imports: [
// ...
DxFormModule
],
// ...
})A simple item can be accompanied by a line of text that gives a hint, for example, of the values that this item accepts. To specify this text, use the helpText option. If filling an item is required, assign true to its isRequired option. In this case, a special mark appears near the item. For more information, see the Additional Marks topic.
jQuery
$(function() {
$("#formContainer").dxForm({
formData: {
name: "John Heart",
phone: "+1(360)684-1334"
},
items: [{
dataField: "name",
isRequired: true
}, {
dataField: "phone",
helpText: "Example: +1(111)111-1111"
}]
});
});Angular
<dx-form
[(formData)]="employee">
<dxi-item dataField="name" [isRequired]="true"></dxi-item>
<dxi-item dataField="phone" helpText="Example: +1(111)111-1111"></dxi-item>
</dx-form>
import { DxFormModule } from "devextreme-angular";
// ...
export class AppComponent {
employee = {
name: "John Heart",
phone: "+1(360)684-1334"
}
}
@NgModule({
imports: [
// ...
DxFormModule
],
// ...
})You can modify automatically generated items using the customizeItem function. This function is called for each item before it is rendered. To access the item, use the function's parameter. Its structure mirrors the Simple Item structure, therefore, you can modify any option available for a simple item.
jQuery
$(function() {
$("#formContainer").dxForm({
formData: {
firstName: "John",
lastName: "Heart",
email: "jheart@dx-email.com",
phone: "+1(213) 555-9392"
},
customizeItem: function (item) {
if (item.itemType == "simple") {
item.label = {
location: "top"
};
if (item.dataField === "email" || item.dataField === "phone") {
item.colSpan = 3;
}
if (item.dataField === "phone") {
item.helpText = "Example: +1 (111) 111-1111";
}
}
}
});
});Angular
<dx-form
[(formData)]="employee"
[customizeItem]="form_customizeItem">
</dx-form>
import { DxFormModule } from "devextreme-angular";
// ...
export class AppComponent {
employee = {
firstName: "John",
lastName: "Heart",
email: "jheart@dx-email.com",
phone: "+1(213) 555-9392"
}
form_customizeItem (item) {
if (item.itemType == "simple") {
item.label = {
location: "top"
};
if (item.dataField === "email" || item.dataField === "phone") {
item.colSpan = 3;
}
if (item.dataField === "phone") {
item.helpText = "Example: +1 (111) 111-1111";
}
}
}
}
@NgModule({
imports: [
// ...
DxFormModule
],
// ...
})See Also
Create an Unbound Simple Item
If you do not need a simple item to be bound to a formData field, create an unbound item. It can be useful if you need, for example, to hide or show some additional information. To create such an item, specify its name, but do not set its dataField option. You will be able to access the item by this name if you need to.
In the following example, the order item contains the DataGrid widget. This widget is shown only when the CheckBox in the show-order item is checked. Both the order and show-order items are unbound items.
jQuery
$(function () {
var isOrderShown = false;
var form = $("#form").dxForm({
formData: {
firstName: "John",
lastName: "Smith"
},
items: [
"firstName", "lastName", {
name: "show-order",
label: {
text: "Show the order"
},
template: function (data, $itemElement) {
$("<div>").appendTo($itemElement).dxCheckBox({
value: isOrderShown,
onValueChanged: function(e) {
isOrderShown = e.value;
form.itemOption("order", "visible", isOrderShown);
}
});
}
}, {
name: "order",
visible: isOrderShown,
template: function (data, $itemElement) {
$("<div id='dataGrid'>")
.appendTo($itemElement)
.dxDataGrid({
dataSource: [{
productName: "DesktopLCD 19",
cost: 68,
salePrice: 110
}, {
productName: "DesktopLCD 21",
cost: 75,
salePrice: 120
}]
});
}
}
]
}).dxForm("instance");
});Angular
<dx-form
[(formData)]="employee">
<dxi-item dataField="firstName"></dxi-item>
<dxi-item dataField="lastName"></dxi-item>
<dxi-item name="show-order">
<dxo-label text="Show the Order"></dxo-label>
<div *dxTemplate>
<dx-check-box
[(value)]="order.visible">
</dx-check-box>
</div>
</dxi-item>
<dxi-item #order name="order"
[visible]="false">
<div *dxTemplate>
<dx-data-grid
[dataSource]="orders">
</dx-data-grid>
</div>
</dxi-item>
</dx-form>
import { DxFormModule, DxCheckBoxModule, DxDataGridModule } from "devextreme-angular";
// ...
export class AppComponent {
employee = {
firstName: "John",
lastName: "Smith"
}
orders = [{
productName: "DesktopLCD 19",
cost: 68,
salePrice: 110
}, {
productName: "DesktopLCD 21",
cost: 75,
salePrice: 120
}]
}
@NgModule({
imports: [
// ...
DxFormModule,
DxCheckBoxModule,
DxDataGridModule
],
// ...
})