Cascading Dropdowns in InfoPath 2003

[KrazyKenny]

I have cascaded 3 dropdowns for my primary data source by populating the
dropdowns from data fields, binding them to query fields, adding hidden text
boxes and a rule where if the dropdown does not equal the textbox then I set
the value of the textbox and run the query for that data source. This works
great, but I don't see any way to sort the dropdowns nor to filter out
duplicate values (such as last name dropdown list). The alternative appears
to be populating the lists from seperate web services each one being fed by
the values of the other 2. Sounds like a pain in the wazoo, esp. if I need
to provide 6 or 8 drill down criteria vs. the 3 I am testing with. Am I
missing something here? Will sortable lists be built in on 2007?

 

[Greg Collins [InfoPath MVP]]

IP2007 has built-in filtering but not sorting.

Since you are using a Web service, why not have it sort before it sends?

For filtering, look at the following:

Display Only Unique Options in a List
http://www.infopathdev.com/howto/tutorials/default.aspx?i=51dce616335a4ff6a78f2d289baf4651

Filter a Repeating Drop-Down List on Previous and Future Selections
http://www.infopathdev.com/howto/tutorials/default.aspx?i=1fe635d7e2cd4c478b7a1eea929153ea

 

[KrazyKenny]

Hmm...That should work for filtering only if I get it sorted. I was trying
to avoid using web services because it looks like it will be a mess if I have
to cascade a lot of dropdowns.... could be 6 or 8...haven't talked to the
users about that yet....
Anyway, if I do use a webservice to sort, I can just use 'Select
Distinct...' and get filtering as well.
Thanks for your time.
Kenny

 

[Greg Collins [InfoPath MVP]]

Sorry, I thought you said you were already using a web service.
You can write code to do the sorting in the DOM.