Richfaces column Filter: How to fire an event on intro key

Question

I have a rich:extendedDataTable and I am using column filtering. I want the filter to be fired once the user enters the "intro" key, but in javascript there is no such event.

I want to do so because if I use events such as onkeyup I get too many requests and I have problems because of that. I'm using richfaces 3.3.0GA and facelets.

This is the component:

<ui:composition>
<a4j:form ajaxSingle="true" requestDelay="700">
    <rich:extendedDataTable id="tablePatients" value="#{user.patientsTab.patients}" var="patient" rows="20" 
        onRowMouseOver="this.style.backgroundColor='#F1F1F1'" onRowMouseOut="this.style.backgroundColor='#{a4jSkin.tableBackgroundColor}'">
        <f:facet name="header">
            <h:outputText value="Patient List" />
        </f:facet>
        <rich:column label="#{msg.id}">
            <f:facet name="header">
                <h:outputText value="Id" />
            </f:facet>
            <h:outputText value="#{patient.id}" id="patientId" />
        </rich:column>
        <rich:column label="#{msg.name}"  sortable="true" filterBy="#{patient.profile.name}" filterEvent="onkeyup">
            <f:facet name="header">
                <h:outputText value="Name" />
            </f:facet>
            <h:outputText value="#{patient.profile.name}" id="name" style="#{patient.isUnrated? 'font-weight:bold':''}" />
        </rich:column >
        <rich:column label="#{msg.lastexamination}" sortable="true">
            <f:facet name="header">
                <h:outputText value="Last Examination" />
            </f:facet>
            <h:outputText value="#{patient.lastExaminationDate}" style="#{patient.isUnrated? 'font-weight:bold':''}" />
        </rich:column>
        <rich:column label="#{msg.action}">
            <f:facet name="header">
                <h:outputText value="#{msg.action}"></h:outputText></f:facet>
            <a4j:commandLink id="editlink" oncomplete="#{rich:component('patientPanel')}.show()" reRender="a4jPatientPanel">
                <h:graphicImage value="/images/icons/PNG-24/Add.png" style="border:0" />
                <f:setPropertyActionListener value="#{patient}" target="#{user.patientsTab.patientPanel.patient}" />
            </a4j:commandLink>
            <rich:toolTip for="editlink" value="Edit" />
        </rich:column>

        <f:facet name="footer">
            <rich:datascroller renderIfSinglePage="false" maxPages="5" />
        </f:facet>
    </rich:extendedDataTable>

    </a4j:form>

    <ui:include src="/pages/panels/patientPanel.xhtml" />
</ui:composition>

Answer 1

Unfortunately, there is no easy way to customize this functionality. There are options to make it more usable, though:

• <a4j:queue requestDelay="1000" ignoreDupResponce="true" /> - place this in your <a4j:form> or <a4j:region> and your onkeyup requests will be delayed and grouped. See richfaces demo page:

  • Setting ignoreDupResponces to true reduces the count of DOM updates on typing inside the input. (in initial state count of updates is equals to count of requests)
  • Disabling the queue causes fully asynchronous updates. Note that updates could appear not only in direct order and as a result you could get wrong string.
  • Setting request delay to greater value reduces the requests count on fast typing. (More similar requests are combined in the result)

• I'm currently using the following alternative:

  <rich:dataTable (..some attributes..)
      onkeypress="if (event.keyCode == 13) {document.getElementById('formId:tableId:j_id70fsp').blur(); return false;} else {return true;}"
      ><!-- disabling submit-on-enter -->
      <rich:column label="#{msg.name}" sortable="true" 
         filterBy="#{patient.profile.name}" filterEvent="onblur">
  </rich:dataTable>
  

  Where you have to see the generated id for j_id70fsp. It is not guaranteed that it will remain such forever, though.

  And the result is that the column is filtered on pressing the enter key, which is fairly usable.

Answer 2

Bozho is right, but instead of using getElementById I prefer using this script:

<rich:extendedDataTable onkeypress="
if (!event) { var event = window.event; }
if (event.keyCode == 13) {
    var targ;
    if (event.target) targ = event.target;
    else if (event.srcElement) targ = event.srcElement;
    if (targ.nodeType == 3) targ = targ.parentNode;
    if (targ) targ.blur();
    return false;
} else return true;">

It should work with FF, EI, Safari(the targ.nodeType == 3 thing).