Most field work is capture: a new order, a photo of a shelf, a signature on a delivery, a serial number off a carton. The mobile app treats these as first-class, and — with one exception called out below — they all work offline, queueing on the device and syncing later. Which capture tools you see depends on your organization's layouts: forms are designed per record type, and photo, signature, catalogue and scanning widgets appear only where an administrator placed them.
Prerequisites
- The xMatix mobile app, signed in, with the first sync complete.
- Create or edit permission on the record type — the + button and Edit action simply do not appear without it.
- Camera capture (photos, selfies, barcodes) asks for camera permission on first use; the app explains what it needs it for.
Procedure
No web screenshot is shown here: the native mobile form chooses a designed mobile Create layout (with a metadata-driven fallback), writes through the device store-and-forward path, and exposes camera, signature and scanner capabilities that a phone-width web create form cannot evidence. The steps below refer to the native controls; a future visual must be captured from an authenticated demo2 mobile build.
Step 1 — Create or edit a record
Open the correct list and tap +, or verify a record's identity before choosing Edit. Work through each tab/section, confirm partner, branch and account context first, and read required markers and inline errors. Review server-provided defaults rather than assuming they are correct; offline forms may require you to supply values that would otherwise be defaulted.
Step 2 — Save, online or offline
Review the form, tap Save once, and read the result: online confirmation means server acceptance; Saved offline means a local durable write awaiting sync. Open Sync Status and verify one pending item. If rejected later, use Fix, correct the exact field messages and resend the same queued change rather than recreating the record.
One habit worth forming: save early. The form does not keep drafts, so a half-filled form abandoned by navigation loses its input, while a saved record can always be edited again.
Step 3 — Attach photos and files
After saving the parent record, use Camera, Gallery or File in its attachment section. Preview the selected file, verify orientation/content and remove accidental personal data before upload. Two controls matter:
- The record must be saved first; the section tells you so on a brand-new form.
- This general attachments section talks to the server directly, so it needs a connection — offline it shows Not available offline, and an upload attempted without a network fails rather than queues.
Photo steps inside visit tasks are the offline-capable counterpart: a photo taken there is copied into safe storage on the device and queued, with the toast Photo stored · uploads later telling you exactly what happened. So if your day is built around visits, capture photos through the visit's own photo tasks and connectivity stops mattering — see Complete a visit.
Step 4 — Capture a signature
Open the required signature task, explain what is being acknowledged, and let the signer review the record before signing. Use Clear for an incomplete mark and accept only after visually confirming the final signature. Verify the task shows captured/complete and, when offline, that one signature upload is queued. A rebuild/version warning belongs with the administrator; do not substitute a photo for a required signature.
Step 5 — Scan barcodes
Grant camera permission only when prompted by a configured scanner, centre one code in the frame, and verify the decoded value or item before accepting it. Scanning appears in three places:
- Filling a field. In line-item editors, columns whose purpose is a code — serial, batch, lot, IMEI, part or barcode fields — carry a scan icon that opens a full-screen scanner and types the code into the field. Pure text entry by camera: it works offline and reads the common retail and industrial symbologies, QR included.
- Building a document by scanning. Where your organization added the barcode quick-add screen to a document, the camera is live the moment it opens: each scanned product is added as a line at quantity 1, quantities adjust with a stepper (rescanning does not increment — deliberate, so an accidental second read cannot inflate an order), and a search box covers items whose barcode will not read. Scanned items resolve against the item data on your device, so this too works offline; submitted lines queue like any other change. If an item cannot be added, the strip above the viewfinder says why — not active, not for sale, or the code is not in the product list.
- Jumping to a product. In the order-taking screen, scanning navigates to the product so you can order it — Point at the product to jump to it.
Step 6 — Use the item catalogues
Use configured catalogues to search/filter items, then verify SKU, unit, price, offer and quantity before adding a line. Treat Price on sync as unresolved and obtain connectivity before promising the amount. Frequently ordered and live stock/scheme panels require a connection; offline catalogues use the last synced data. Review the final document lines and total, save once, and confirm their queue status like any other form.
Expected result
The record is saved once in the correct context with validated fields and verified captured evidence. Offline-capable forms, visit photos and signatures queue durably and later sync; connection-only attachments or live catalogue operations clearly wait rather than pretending to have uploaded.
Common problems
The attachment upload failed. Almost always no connection — the general attachments section is the one capture surface that cannot queue. Reconnect and add the file again; nothing was partially uploaded. If you are on a visit, prefer the visit's photo task, which queues.
A barcode scans but the item is not found. For quick-add, the item is resolved from the data synced to your device — an item outside your offline scope or newer than your last sync will not resolve until you sync. No connection — try this one again means the lookup itself needs a retry; This barcode isn't in the product list means the code genuinely matches nothing you can sell.
The scan icon or a capture widget is missing. These appear where your organization's layout puts them. If a colleague has a scanner on the same screen and you do not, you are likely in a different app or on a different layout — a question for your administrator, not a device setting.
Common questions
Are my photos compressed or resized?
Photos are re-encoded at capture to keep uploads practical, and the server enforces the size limit and permitted file types — an oversized or disallowed file is refused at upload with a clear failure rather than silently shrunk further.
Do photos I take carry my location?
No. The app does not embed coordinates in captured images. Location, where your organization uses it, is recorded separately — as a stamp on check-in punches and specific records, or as the check-in trail described in Location tracking — never hidden inside a photo file.
Can I capture data for a record I have not synced?
You can always create new records offline, and edit anything already on your device. What you cannot do offline is open a record that was never synced to the phone — there is nothing local to edit. If a record you need is routinely missing, ask your administrator about the offline scope for that record type.