Parameter data types in html view

Hello,

I'm working on an app that allows a business to keep track of customer information (form = Customer_Info, each with a unique Customer_Number field) and their related orders (form = Order_Form, each with a unique Order_Number field). I'm doing just fine passing these parameters back and forth between various forms to access my data wherever I need it (using fetches), but I am striking out when it comes to using them in Views.

I have had success filtering views using my unique identifiers by calling a view from a form or function, after building an URL that includes the Customer_Number (e.g., openUrl("#Form:Order_Form&Customer_Number=" + input.Customer_Number, "same window");)

What I'm stuck on is --How do I pass these parameters to a View --especially an html view-- so that I can then do a fetch and use all the data as I need to (within the view script)? I tried adding a parameter to my html view using the button at the top (typed in Customer_Number), but there was nowhere to give the data type...and sure enough, when I tried to put in a fetch within the view, I got the error that the view's Customer_Number is a string (and so couldn't be compared to the form's integer field). I tried changing the parameter to 'int Customer_Number' but that didn't work either. What am I missing? How do I 'catch' the Customer_Number integer that I'm passing to the html view?

I would also love to be able to do a fetch within a non-html view, but I can't figure out where to put that in the code --the debugger always rejects it no matter where I put it. And of course, there's still the problem of how/where to define a parameter for the view in the first place.

Thanks very much in advance!

--CAT ; )