Overview

This article discusses how to employ best practices when designing lists. Adhering to these guidelines improves the usability of your instance and enhances user experience.

Best Practice #1: Use the record number or other unique information as the first column.

For consistency with existing lists in the system, use the record number or other unique information as the first column in a list:

• When a user clicks an item in the first column of a list, the system opens a record from that list rather than a reference record in some other list. This applies to Incident, Problem, Change Request, Business Rules, and other lists.
• When designing a list, avoid using reference fields in the first column. If possible, use the string field that defines the list, for example, the item number, name, or ID. If the record does not have a string field, consider using a date field, such as the date the record was created or updated. 

Best Practice #2: Avoid displaying fields with long values in list views.

Avoid displaying fields with long values in list views, including HTML, large text, and journal fields. Some fields, such as work notes, take up more vertical and horizontal space in the list without providing the most essential information. 

Best Practice #3: Limit the number of columns to avoid horizontal scrolling.

To save space, limit the number of columns to avoid horizontal scrolling. To enhance the user experience, include only the columns that most users really need to see. Users can personalize their own view of the list without affecting others if they want to add other columns. 

Best Practice #4: Review the list controls and list UI actions to understand user access.

If your list includes list controls or UI actions, review these elements to understand what they do, and who has access to them and under what conditions. By clicking this menu icon or right-clicking the list header, you can personalize the list controls to specify which roles are able to perform these actions.  

Best Practice #5: Limit the number of records that a list can show per page.

Users can specify the number of records listed per page from the menu icon in the title bar. It is best to stick with the base system maximum of 100 rows per page and not make larger numbers available. The more items displayed per page, the longer it takes the system to query the database and render the list. This is especially true if some fields must be calculated, or there are related lists on a form with many records. This results in better performance, and users can still view all items by paging through the list. 

For more information, see Using Lists.