Standard Toolbar

The standard toolbar (Figure I.5) contains the command field and several command buttons for working on screens and navigating between them. The name of this toolbar comes from the fact that the functions of these components are commonly executed on, or universal to, every screen, regardless of its specific purpose. Consequently, this toolbar is found on every screen in the SAP application.

Figure I.5. Components of the standard toolbar

Command Field

The command field is another tool for navigating to the initial screens of transactions. Every initial screen in the SAP application is identified by a unique transaction code. You can navigate to that screen by entering that code in this field.

The command field also contains a history button at its right end (Figure I.6A). This feature, which is found inside other fields on many screens, displays a list of recently entered transaction codes (B) when it is clicked.

Figure I.6. The history button (A) of the Command field reveals a list of recently used transaction codes (B).

Lastly, the command field is accompanied by its own control arrow (C), which displays or hides the field when it is clicked. (We recommend that you keep this field open at all times so that you can use it for navigation.)

We describe the use of the command field in more detail in Lesson 7 of this book.

Command Buttons

The command buttons execute universal tasks, such as entering and saving data, printing a screen, and navigating back to the previous screen, when they are clicked. You can display a label that describes the function of a button by placing your cursor over it (Figure I.7). If the command can also be executed from your keyboard, the keystroke will also be displayed in parentheses in the label.

Figure I.7. Place your cursor over a button to see a label with its description and an alternative keystroke for that command (in this case, the F3 function button).

Here are some of the important design and operation features of the standard toolbar.

1. You can vary the width of the application window with the frame grabber in its lower-right corner (see Lesson 2). But if the window is too narrow, the buttons on the right end of the standard toolbar are cut off and replaced by a list button (Figure I.8A). However, you can click this button to display a menu of the hidden commands (B), then scroll down and click one to execute it.

   Figure I.8. You can display the hidden commands of a shortened standard toolbar by clicking the list button (A).

   
   
   

2. Some of the buttons in the standard toolbar provide convenient shortcuts for commands that can be executed from the menu bar. For example, the Create session and Create shortcut buttons are shortcuts for the same commands in the System menu.

3. Some of the functions of the buttons can also be executed with keystrokes. For example, you can print a screen's content either by clicking the Print button in the standard toolbar or by the keystroke Ctrl + P.

   Similarly, you can enter data on a screen by clicking the Enter button in the standard toolbar or by hitting the Enter key on your keyboard. We always instruct you to use the keyboard for this command because it is faster.

4. On any given screen, some of the buttons in the standard toolbar appear in full color and others are "grayed out." The full-colored buttons are active or hotthat is, they function on that screenwhile the gray ones are inactive or cold because they serve no purpose there.

   For example, the Save, Back, and Cancel buttons are all grayed out on the SAP Easy Access screen because there is nothing to save, no screen to return to (this is the "home page"), and nothing to cancel (Figure I.1).