Endpoints for Version 6.1 (OnePager Express)

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About Modifying Endpoints

1) There are four endpoints definable in OnePager for each task. Although deadlines can be applied to both tasks and milestones, the four endpoints only apply to tasks.

2) Accordingly, and for all practical purposes, the four possible endpoints (Endpoint1, Endpoint2, Endpoint3, and Endpoint4) can be thought of as additional deadlines for tasks.

3) As you see, the control and the behavior of all four endpoints are identical to that discussed for deadlines (See: Deadlines for OnePager Express).

4) As an additional thought, you can consider the four endpoints as task-oriented milestones as they occupy the same row as their parent task.

5) The initial association of Endpoints 1 through 4 to Microsoft Excel fields is determined from your initial Template settings input to OnePager Express (OPX) during the creation of the project view.

6) Controls are provided as described below whereby you can configure the endpoint association with Microsoft Excel source plan fields.

Displaying Endpoint

1) For OnePager to properly display your endpoints, you must first define the endpoint field in your Microsoft Excel source plan and map them to OnePager through the OnePager choices ((OPC) form as mentioned above. A sample, Microsoft Excel source plan is shown below with both deadline and endpoint definitions:

X53-10 12 1-53-(1)-12242015.png

2) In the sample above, we see the typical task information with a flag field used to signal OnePager which rows to import, the Excel source plan's user-specified deadline field, and four auxiliary date fields (Endpoint1, Endpoint2, Endpoint3, and Endpoint4) which is used to import information to OnePager representing Endpoints 1 through 4, respectively.

3) When the OnePager button is clicked on the Microsoft Excel tool bar and you click the NEW button on the OnePager Express Start form, OnePager displays the first page of the OnePager choices (OPC) form as shown below:

X60-10 12 1-60-(2)-02102017.png

4) Clicking the Next> button with the Show field mappings checkbox checked brings you to the second page of the OPC form shown below:

X60-10 12 1-60-(3AA)-03072017.png

5) Clicking the Edit current template… button takes you to the Template Properties form where you should navigate to the Task Bars tab and the Endpoints checkbox in the Gantt Bar Decorations group of the form which is shown below:

X60-10 12 1-60-(4)-02102017.png

6) Now, clicking on the Endpoint Properties button shows the Set endpoint properties form shown below:

X60-10 12 1-60-(5)-02102017.png

7) The above form is almost identical to the Set deadline properties form. The difference is the Show this endpoint checkbox which refers to the dropdown menu shown above whereby you can select which endpoint to control. In effect, this form is four (4) forms in one and allows you to turn on or off each individual endpoint and configure the properties for each separately.

8) The illustration above covers up two important controls that need to be addressed: The Show this endpoint checkbox and the Field dropdown menu by which you tell OnePager which Microsoft Excel source plan field is used for each particular endpoint. These controls are shown here in more detail:

X60-10 12 1-60-(6)-02102017.png

9) Now that we have defined endpoints with distinct properties for all tasks in our example, we go back to the Template Properties form, click the Save and use button to get back to the second page of the OPC form, and clicked the Create new project view button. OnePager produces the following project view:

X52-10 12-(7)-06082015.png

Modifying Endpoint Properties

1) Configuring Other Endpoint Properties. The above discussion covered the set up and initial display of endpoints. Recall that endpoint controls are exactly identical to the controls for deadlines. The exception is only for the necessity to turn on the individual endpoints through their respective Show this endpoint checkbox and to enter the Microsoft Excel source plan field that is used for the respective endpoints in the Field dropdown menu of the Set endpoint properties form.

2) Setting Endpoint Properties for Individual Tasks. Endpoint properties can be set or changed for individual tasks.

3) A prerequisite for modifying individual endpoint properties is the necessity for endpoint data to be imported from the Microsoft Excel source plan. Some individual task endpoint properties can be changed by selecting the desired task or tasks with a left-click operation and then right-clicking on one of the selected tasks to show the context menu shown below:

X52-10 12-(8)-06082015.png
a) Select the Format… command which brings up the Change Marker Properties form. Next, navigate to the Endpoints tab, which displays the endpoint control options shown below:
X52-10 12-(9)-06082015.png
b) From the Endpoints tab of the form above, you are able to turn the selected endpoint off or on, show the endpoint connector to the task and display or turn off the endpoint date label.
c) For example, using the Deadlines-Endpoints Example previously illustrated above, suppose we want to make the following changes:
  • Turn off the display of Endpoint 1 for Task B
  • Show the Endpoint connector for Endpoint 1 to Task C
  • Show the Date Label for Endpoint 4 for Task C under the task
  • Turn off Deadlines for all Tasks
d) For each task we select the task with a left-click, then right-click to get to the context menu, select the Format…command to get to the Change Marker Properties form and finally go to the Endpoints tab.
e) We do these steps for each of the tasks involved starting with Task C where we’ll make one change to Endpoint 1 and then to Task C where we’ll make a change to Endpoints 1 and 4. All deadlines disappears. After making these changes the project view looks like this:
X52-10 12-(10)-06082015.png

(10.12.1-61)