(proposal) use typeahead for defining row account(s) in complex vouchers

[sfount]

I propose that we re-factor the complex vouchers module to use typeaheads to select accounts. This would be similar in funcionality to the patient invoice module where inventory items can be searched for and then 'locked in' by selecting the item or pressing enter.

Pros:

• The current ui-select that is used is too tall for our grid rows. This is a bad user experience with some of the select missing from the bottom. A typeahead avoids this by being used on a simple native input.

• The DOM for the ui-select is much larger and more complex. This means that if there are a large number of rows in a voucher every row will have to render this complex element. It will also have to be rendered and removed when scrolling with ui-grid. A typeahead would simply be an input and it would be removed once the user has 'locked in' their choice.

• A uniform ui-grid entity selection (accounts, inventory items).

• ui-select overrides the tab key and forces you to tab through all of the options, in this case this is not helpful as it is just a small element on a complex page.

• If there are many accounts it can be much more convenient to just type in the number vs. given the display options in the first place.

Cons:

• ui-select is used for account select throughout the application, this would be a different experience however it would be inline with how selects work in grids.
• If you have completely forgotten an account, both the name and the account number you will have to go and look it up in the chart of accounts.

[jniles]

I can't imagine a case that anyone will have forgotten an account ... even with a ui-select, what would you do? Scan the accounts list? Usually you make a voucher with a defined transaction between each account (plus, if you aren't sure, people usually put it in an "autre" account).

It sound also be noted that a typeahead's performance is much higher than the ui-selects. So is should be easier on our client's computers.

I'm in favor of this proposal.