How to style OutSystems input errors to match the application’s look and feel?

Styling OutSystems Input Errors to Match Application’s Look and Feel

Styling error inputs in OutSystems to align with your application's specific design can greatly enhance user experience by maintaining visual consistency throughout the app. This guide provides a comprehensive step-by-step approach to customizing input error styles in OutSystems, ensuring that they adhere to your desired aesthetics.

Prerequisites

• Access to an OutSystems development environment with appropriate permissions to modify styles.
• Basic understanding of CSS for customizing styles.
• Familiarity with OutSystems Service Studio and the architecture of the application you are working with.
• An established design or style guide that you wish to implement for your input errors.

Understanding Input Error Styling in OutSystems

• In OutSystems, input fields are often styled using predefined themes and style sheets, which can be overridden with custom CSS.
• Error messages or indications are applied through specific CSS classes that you can target and customize according to your application's design requirements.
• Styles such as border color, background color, font style, and error icons can enhance visibility and user experience.

Identifying the Default Error Style

• Open OutSystems Service Studio and locate the screen with input fields that you wish to style.
• Select a faulty input example and inspect it using the browser's Developer Tools to identify the default CSS classes associated with error states.
• Document these classes along with any specific styling attributes you wish to change.

Customizing Error Styles

• Navigate to the "Interface" tab in OutSystems Service Studio, and open the module's CSS editor or create a new style sheet as required.
• Add CSS rules targeting the specific classes identified in the previous step. For example:

      .input-error {
        border: 2px solid #ff0000; /_ Customized error border _/
        background-color: #ffe6e6; /_ Light red background for error visibility _/
      }
  
  .error-message {
    color: #cc0000; /_ Red color for error text _/
    font-weight: bold; /_ Bold font for emphasis _/
  }
  </pre>
  
    

• If you have an icon for errors, integrate it using pseudo-elements:

      .input-error::after {
        content: url('/path/to/error-icon.svg');
        position: absolute;
        right: 10px;
        top: calc(50% - 8px);
      }
      

• Ensure that the new styles are scoped correctly so they do not inadvertently affect non-error input fields.

Testing and Refining the Error Styles

• Once you have added or updated the CSS, publish the module in OutSystems Service Studio.
• Simulate input errors in the application to see the changes applied in real-time by introducing invalid inputs or manipulation of validation rules temporarily.
• Observe the appearance and adjust the styling as needed to achieve the desired visual outcome. This may include tweaking colors, margins, or sizes.
• Ensure cross-browser compatibility by testing in multiple browsers to ensure consistent styling appearance across environments.

Documenting and Maintaining Styles

• Document the custom styles in your project's coding guidelines or documentation for future reference and updates.
• As your design evolves, periodically review the error styles to ensure they are still in line with the current user interface standards of your application.
• Maintain a version control system for your CSS changes, enabling easy rollout or rollback of style updates as needed.

By following these steps, you can successfully align the input error styling in your OutSystems application with the overall design language, thereby improving both functionality and the user interface experience. This customization not only enhances aesthetics but also underscores the professionalism and attention to detail in your application development.