Date Fields

This article describes the function and use of custom date fields within the Customs Editor. Each custom field is best suited to a specific type of data. Date fields are used for any data that is a date. Custom date fields include Date fields and Deadline (with reminders) fields. For information on Incident Date fields, read the special custom fields article.

To learn how to add custom fields, including date fields, read the article on using the Customs Editor.

Using Date Fields

Date fields accept numerals that are written as dates in a MM/DD/YYYY format between the years 1600 and 9999. This data can be entered manually or can be chosen from a dropdown calendar, as in the picture below. A Date field can be converted to an incident date field and vice versa.

Deadline (with reminders) fields consist of two date fields: a “Due” and a “Done” field. The “Due” date will appear on the project calendar and on the user calendar of project subscribers with an indication of whether or not it has been completed. When the “Done” field is filled, the box will be checked.

Deadline (with reminders) fields accept the same data as date fields, but they also require the user to choose a reminder schedule. The reminder schedule will determine when reminders are sent out, and will post a note in the project’s activity feed and send an email reminder (provided email notifications are on). The name and section of a Deadline (with reminders) fields will also appear on the project calendar and the user calendar of all project subscribers until the "Done" field is filled. 

Uses

Date fields are used for data that only requires that a date be recorded without reminders of calendars; Deadline (with reminders) fields are used for due dates of independent deadlines that apply to most projects. Any instances where a date needs to be entered, like date of intake, settlement date, or incident date, are good examples of when to use a Date field. Deadline (with reminder) fields are used to keep track of important due dates that apply in every project, like SOL dates.

Date fields’ strength is in the specific limitations they put on data entry. If a text field was used for a date, the formatting of the date could differ vastly. If you use a date field, the date will always be in the MM/DD/YYYY format.

Functions of Date Fields

Conversions

Date fields can be converted to incident date fields. Deadline (with reminders) field cannot be converted to any other field type once they have been created.

Reports

When creating date fields, it is especially important to make your field prompts accurate and specific. Field columns in a report will be named by the field prompt, but will not be in context of a section, meaning that if you use the prompt “date” on your intake form, rather than “date of intake,” the report may be unclear.

Date and Deadline (with reminders) fields have a wide variety of criteria users can employ to limit reports to certain line items. These limits allow users to run very specific reports. For example, a user could run a report on only items before a specific date, or only items overdue and due within 7 days. For more information on building reports, consult the Build a Report article. See below for a full list of all criteria available for these two custom fields:

Date Criteria

Deadline Criteria