CiviCRM Community Forums (archive)

I created a custom field data group and added several fields where I've included crucial field help. When I preview the data group, the field help shows up and looks good (it's formatted as HTML). When I add the custom fields to a profile, the field help does not show up. It doesn't show up in a stand-alone form either. In fact, there's also a problem viewing the custom fields in a profile because the formatting like how many check boxes per row isn't shown properly. They all show up one on top of the other in a column, not arranged across the page. How do I ensure that the field help will show up?

Okay, I guess I have it part figured out. I noticed after setting up duplicate custom data fields and adding those to a new profile on the demo site that when I add a new custom field to the profile, it has a place to enter field help. This field is blank, despite the fact that I set up field help when I created the custom field. I assumed (silly me) that the field help I set up with the original custom field would carry over to when I apply that field in a profile. It really should, you know. Otherwise setting it up originally seems to serve no purpose since I don't see that it's possible to use a set of custom fields in a custom data group as a stand-alone form or anywhere other than in a profile or a stand-alone form based on a profile.

What I feel should happen is that when I've chosen a custom field to add to a profile, the field help text box should be populated with the field help that was configured when the custom field was created. Of course it should be editable for the particular profile, but it shouldn't have to be cut and pasted each time the custom field is used in a profile. Seems like this should work the same way that the profile's add field function populates the set of fields available depending on if the field is an Individual, Household etc. field.

The next thing is the layout of the custom fields (ie 4-across check boxes etc.). That's just lost. No way I see to replicate it from the custom field in the profile's add field page. It should be populated as well along with the field help item.

Here's the custom field preview as I set it up and as I'd like to see it in the profile:
http://demo.civicrm.org/drupal/civicrm/admin/custom/group?action=preview&reset=1&id=20

Here's how it shows up in the demo profile:
http://demo.civicrm.org/drupal/civicrm/admin/uf/group?action=preview&id=22&field=0

The stand-alone form generated from the profiles page generates a properly formatted form (ie 4-across check boxes etc.) but is missing the field help. I hope there are ways to get this to perform in a way that works.