SPO List with hyperlink field.

[CW]

Hello.

1. I have a simple "Links" list in SPO.
2. Created an app for the list,
3. ISSUE: There doesn't seem to be anywhere to input the URL descriptive text in the edit form, only the URL (??). URLs always displayed with a simple "Descriptive text" not a long url. You can enter that in the SPO list, why not here?

Is PowerApps unable to handle hyperlinks??

TX

CW

[WarrenBelz]

Hi @CW ,

I am a little unsure exactly what you are asking here, but you can certainly store a URL in a Text field in SharePoint and launch it from that field. If you want a description, you can also store that in another field in the record.

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[CW]

Hi Warren, thanks for responding 😊

Essentially, I want to edit my url field in Powerapps exactly the way they're supposed to be, as in the SharePoint list: A url box and the url title (friendly description or whatever  it's name is).

Text fields, dates choices etc. are all fine but rarely does one provide anyone a link that looks like "https://somelongggggiganticlookingweirdrls.com?ththisthatandtheotherthing$63ox1", but rather, simply: "Click here".

Am I missing something here with Powerapps in that we can only provide a 1985 version of a url in 2022 with a paid subscription to a web based collaborative set of services? Or is this another 'oversight" relegated to the UserVoice rabbit hole? If either way, pretty unprofessional and laughable really.

I'm not attacking you Warren, I realize you obviously didn't dev the service,frommy vantage point, I'm just addressing an elephant in the room? This is what they expect people to use unless you implement some inane power automate flow, just to make a url?? No way, it can't be that. That's Candid Camera level stuff.

Thanks Warren.

[WarrenBelz]

Hi @CW ,

No offence taken - I see you are a big Power Apps fan. Firstly a couple of comments on the elephant.

Power Apps has no data of its own - it needs to get it from a data source, so the real issue is the field types available for it to read, however you do not see the actual URL unless you want to show it to the user. I have never found this to be a restriction - on any trigger in a Form or a Gallery, you can simply open it with (including a button with Click Here)

Launch(ThisItem.URLFieldName)

You can even open it on a LookUp

Launch(
   LookUp(
      ListName,
      YourCriteriaHere
   ).URLFieldName
)
      

If you want to see "Click here" put a HTML text box in a Form or Gallery with

"<a href = '" & ThisItem.URLFieldName & "'>Click here</a>"

BTW you might note URLs were only defined in 1994 . . . I did not know how to spell URL in 1985 - about the time I got my first IBM AT PC with twin floppy drives and DOS 3.0. Power Apps would have been much better than the Batch Files and Basic supplied  . . .

[CW]

Thanks for the examples Warren.

I dont have a problem opening the link, it's INPUTTING the friendly title/name of the url as shown in the image below:

You can input/edit a new or existing link in SPO, but relegated to only a url when attempting it in PowerApps. Seen in the "https://microsoft.com"  link I input in the PowerApps form.

I think in today's "day and age", this is completely unacceptable!! THOSE kind of issues is what turns me off PowerApps.

[CW]

This URL Aleternate Text descriptor HAS to be available in PowerApps for editing/creating/updating/writting to or whatever. It needs to be accessed, not swept under the rug by Microsoft.

There must be SOMETHING out there. I've been at this for 1day so far, just trying to input into a simple little text box. Unreal.

[WarrenBelz · Accepted solution]

Hi @CW ,

That is where the Purist and Pragmatist have to agree to disagree (I am one of the latter) and I often have this discussion with IT people (which I am not), but generally around Delegation which comes as part of using a shared cloud service. There are almost always ways of doing what you need to with some planning of your data structure (I have a blog on this if you are interested) and general design/process flow. I believe the benefits and power of the Power Platform mostly far outweigh the small inconveniences of having to code something differently and/or taking a bit more time to do it.

In your example above, I would simply add the "friendly" name to another Text field and display that, then launch with

Launch(ThisItem.URLFieldName)

[CW · Accepted solution]

Thanks Warren, I understand your point of view. However!!! Everything in Microsoft seems to be incomplete and requires, as in this case, a workaround or a hack. Sorry, pragmatism aside, this is unacceptable. For a field to be in production for this long and STILL after many years we need to employ hacks and workarounds is not pragmatic, it's asinine. I've heard this from  M.A.N.Y. IT pros. I'm surprised they're still in business.

Anyways. I did manges to find a solution using an HTTP Request  (a.k.a. Hack/Work around) from this discussion:
2nd Comment down by Anonymous 

Here is what I have and it worked. Keeping it simple made it run over and over again since the item was continually modified. Added the extra conditions in to determine if it's a new item or an existing where on ly the title or URL fields were amended.

[WarrenBelz]

Hi @CW ,

In your trigger, go to Settings

and add a condition with the email address of the Flow owner (I use a Service Account)

and it will not run the second time.

[CW]

Thx Warren, good idea although I understand there's an issue if I do that using my email and it'll never run again.

I'm the only one in this subscription, just me so my email is the account.

I was trying to use the "Get changes for an item or a file (properties only)" step right after the trigger, then go into a condition such rtthat if Title has changed, then run the HTTP request. That didnt work, I tried the same thing using the URL field and that didnt work either. 
How dumb of me to think that after creating and updating the Title and Url fields in my list that it would actually work. Nope. Surprise!!! Gotcha again.