Building PowerApps from SharePoint lists, when you don't need the TITLE column

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Posted on by jensjakobsen

Hi All

I've built some SharePoint lists, which I then converted to a PowerApp.

For some of the SharePoint lists, I realised that I had no purpose for the embedded built-in column called TITLE, as my SharePoint lists were mainly based on columns that are defined as lookup columns types, thus displaying data from other SharePoint lists.

To make matters worse, you can't delete the TITLE column, and you cannot change it into another column type. At most, you can change its default value from TEXT to CALCULATED VALUE.

The latter option (calculated value) - I was hoping - would give me the option to "merge" or sort of concatenate the values from 2 other dropdown columns, thus finding a way to make use of the TITLE column. But merging/concatenating values from 2 separate dropdown columns is not possible in a SharePoint lists.

PowerApps appears to rely on the TITLE column, as a default parameter for searching from BrowseScreen1, and whenever I specify that the default search column is not to be TITLE but a column that contains lookup values from other SharePoint lists, I get the horrible DELEGATION WARNING error within the BrowseScreen1 -> BrowseGallery1 page.

How do you guys mitigate that you really don't need the TITLE column? Or have you found a way to merge/concatenate values from 2 separate lookup columns? Or something entirely different?

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Building Power Apps

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Pstork1 68,697 Most Valuable Professional on at

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A couple of things

1) Yes, the Title column is required in every SharePoint list and you can't change it from being a Single Line of Text

2) If you are using Power apps to create and update the list you can definitely concatenate values from two dropdowns and store that in the list. But you will have to do that calculation in Power Apps and store the result as a String.

3) Search() in Power Apps is always non-delegable for SharePoint. That would include the Title column. Lookup columns are a problem in both Search() and Filter(). Its not because they aren't the Title, its because they are Lookups. Read this article and the link in it on SharePoint. Understand delegation in a canvas app - Power Apps | Microsoft Docs

4) You can rename the Title column and use it for something else. In most apps there is at least one field that is simple text.

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jensjakobsen 49 on at

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Thanks a lot @Pstork1.
I always start with the SharePoint list, before I do the PowerApp, so with my limited perspective, I would have never guessed to be able to follow your advice, which is to actually write to the TITLE field FROM the PowerApp.

Please can you confirm once and for all (for me), that "concatenate values from two dropdowns" when BOTH dropdowns are lookups from other columns, is in fact not possible within a SharePoint list?

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Pstork1 68,697 Most Valuable Professional on at

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You can Concatenate one or more text fields or values from a choice field from the record that the Lookup returns from the other list. You can't concatenate the whole record. But Dropdowns that are lookups to other records normally have values. It is one or more of those values that you can concatenate.

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jensjakobsen 49 on at

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Thanks again @Pstork1 , but I think I need to served with a spoon before I understand.

Please take a look at my screendump.

How can I copy the value from SWIMMER into the TITLE field automatically?

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Pstork1 68,697 Most Valuable Professional on at

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There is no way to do it automatically behind the scenes. But if you are always using Power Apps to create and update items in the list you just make sure you submit the value from Swimmer to the Title column when you patch or submit the form.

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v-xiaochen-msft on at

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Hi @jensjakobsen ,

If you don't want to include the title column in the formula in powerapps, I think you can modify the title column setting in sharepoint.

Best Regards,

Wearsky

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Pstork1 68,697 Most Valuable Professional on at

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Yes you can, but its not normally a good idea since SharePoint is designed around the idea that Title is required. I don't remember the specifics at the moment, but I've seen cases where making the Title field optional has caused issues in SharePoint. I don't recommend it.

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v-xiaochen-msft on at

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Hi @Pstork1 ,

Thanks for your suggestion .

Best Regards,

Wearsky

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