Updating records in a related list using custom button

Question

I have a list of 'Packages' that will be delivered to the client. It is related to Opportunity. It contains Name of Carrier, tracking number, email sent checkbox, date/time email sent and checkbox for send email.

I am thinking that I will create a VF page for the team to add multiple packages on a single page.

Right now I have a button (called Toggle Email Selection) to set the Send Email checkbox to true. There will be a second button to send the email. I don't want to automate the sending of the email as the user may not have all of the packages when they enter the first.

I want the setting and unsetting of the checkbox using the Toggle Email Selection button to be a toggle but cannot get it to work.

{!REQUIRESCRIPT("/soap/ajax/32.0/connection.js")} 

var records = {!GETRECORDIDS($ObjectType.Package__c)}; 
var updateRecords = []; 

if (records[0] == null) { 
    alert("Please select at least one package for which an update should be sent to the client.");  
} else { 
    for (var a=0; a<records.length; a++) { 
        var update_Package = new sforce.SObject("Package__c");
        update_Package.Id = records[a];
alert(update_Package);
        if(update_Package.Send_Email__c == false){
          update_Package.Send_Email__c = true;
        } else {
          update_Package.Send_Email__c = false;
        }
        updateRecords.push(update_Package);
    }
    result = sforce.connection.update(updateRecords); 
location.reload(true);
}

This doesn't work because the value is absent from the data passed by the button. I can't think of an easy way to make it work. I don't really want to have 2 buttons: "Set CB to True" and "Set CB to False"

Can anyone help me?

---

Edited code:

{!REQUIRESCRIPT("/soap/ajax/32.0/connection.js")}

var records = {!GETRECORDIDS($ObjectType.Package__c)};
var updateRecords = [];
var queryRecords= [];
var idList = '(';

if (records[0] == null){
    alert("Please select at least one package for which an update should be sent to the client.");
} else {

  for (var i = 0; i < records.length; i++) {
    idList += "'" + records[i] + "'";
    if ((i + 1) !== records.length) {
        idList += ',';
    }
  }
  idList += ')';

  var packages = sforce.connection.query("SELECT Id, Send_Email__c, shipping_Carrier__c FROM Package__c WHERE ID IN "+idList); 
  queryRecords = packages.getArray("records");

  for (var a=0; a<queryRecords.length; a++){
//    var update_Package = new sforce.SObject("Package__c");
    update_Package = queryRecords[a];
alert(update_Package.Send_Email__c );
alert(update_Package.shipping_Carrier__c );

    if(queryRecords[a].Send_Email__c == false){
      update_Package.Send_Email__c = true;
    } else {
      update_Package.Send_Email__c = false;
    }
    updateRecords.push(update_Package);
  }
alert(updateRecords);
  result = sforce.connection.update(updateRecords);
  location.reload(true);
}

This does not update the field. (I have 3 rows all set to False and none update.

Answer 1

You can always try querying via connection.js to get the most up-to-date value from the database.

var idList = '(';

for (var i = 0; i < records.length; i++) {
    idList += "'" + records[i].Id + "'";

    if ((i + 1) !== records.length) {
        idList += ',';
    }
}

idList += ')';

result = sforce.connection.query('SELECT Send_Email__c from Package__c WHERE Id IN ' + idList);
queryRecords = result.getArray('records');

for (var i = 0; i < queryRecords.length; i++) {
    var record = queryRecords[i];

    Console.log(record.Name + ' -- ' + record.Id);
}

Adapted from a code snippet from the AJAX Toolkit Guide.

You can use the IN filter criteria with a javascript query. Heres a demo page you can try out yourself:

<apex:page>
    <script src="/soap/ajax/32.0/connection.js" />
    <script>
        sforce.connection.sessionId = '{!$Api.Session_ID}';
        var someIds = ['00161000004jaoc', '00161000004jaol', '00161000004jaof']; // ids from Developer Edition 
        var idList = '(';

        for (var i = 0; i < someIds.length; i++) {
            idList += "'" + someIds[i] + "'";

            if ((i + 1) !== someIds.length) {
                idList += ',';
            }
        }

        idList += ')';

        result = sforce.connection.query('SELECT Name, Id from Account WHERE Id IN ' + idList);
        queryRecords = result.getArray('records');

        for (var i = 0; i < queryRecords.length; i++) {
            var record = queryRecords[i];

            console.log(record.Name + ' -- ' + record.Id);
        }
    </script>
</apex:page>