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The Report Designer helps you visually design report elements–variable strings and other controls–on screen. The Report Designer automatically generates and places the language structures and source code that describe these elements in your .APP file or source code document.
The Report Designer menu is visible during any Designer session, and provides populating controls options and alignment commands for spacing and sizing the controls within the window. You may place two or more controls so that their 'edges' match up with each other. You may also spread the controls out, or make all of them the same size.
To do so, first select two or more controls. Select the first by clicking on it. Select the second and subsequent controls by pressing the CTRL key, then clicking on the second control while the shift key remains pressed.
Lasso multiple controls by CTRL+CLICK+DRAGGING to form a box around the controls.
Duplicate a control by first selecting it, and then press the F2 key or CTRL + DRAG.
See Also:
How to Use the Report Designer -- An Overview
How the Print Engine Processes Report Sections at Runtime
Popup (right-click) Menu
The popup menu provides quick and easy access to a subset of the following menu commands.
| View Code | Closes the Report Designer with option to save (if necessary) and selects the REPORT structure. |
| Bring to Front | For overlapping controls, select this item to move the active control to the top. |
| Send to Back | For overlapping controls, select this item to move the active control to the back. |
| Align to Grid | Select this item to snap the selected control to the nearest grid point |
| Lock Controls | This option locks all controls to their current position. A “locked” icon appears in the upper left area of the control. When a control is locked, it may not be moved or resized. |
| Cut | Deletes the selected control from the work area and places it in the clipboard. |
| Copy | Places a copy of the selected control from the work area into the clipboard. |
| Paste | Pastes a control from the clipboard into the work area, at the cursor position. |
| Delete | Deletes the selected control. Alternatively, press the DELETE key. |
| Properties | Opens the Properties pad for the selected control or report band. |
Edit Menu
In the IDE Edit Menu, there is one dynamic menu item that is applicable to the Report Designer.
If the Report Designer is opened:
Exit Structure Designer (CTRL+E)
Exits the Report Designer. You are prompted to save or discard any changes.
If the Report Designer is closed:
Structure Designer (CTRL+D)
In the editor, place your cursor inside any REPORT structure and select this item. The Report Designer will be opened.
Report Designer Menu
Band View
Lets you edit your report and place controls separately, in each individual band.
Page Layout View
Lets you reposition and resize your report bands by dragging handles. All bands display together on a representation of the page.
Properties
Opens the Properties pad for the selected control or report band.
Populate Menu
Columns
Lets you place a string variable control tied to a data dictionary field or memory variable. The Select Field dialog appears. Select a field or variable, then CLICK in the window.
Multiple Columns
Lets you place a string variable control tied to a data dictionary field or memory variable. The Select Field dialog appears. Select a field or variable, then CLICK in the window.
After placing the first field, the Select Field dialog appears again, ready for you to place another field. When all fields are placed, press the Cancel button in this dialog to return to normal editing.
Report Designer > Format
The Format menu provides commands for spacing and sizing the controls within the report. You may place two or more controls so that their 'edges' match up with each other. You may also spread the controls out, or make all of them the same size.
To do so, first select two or more controls. Select the first by clicking on it. Select the second and subsequent controls by pressing the CTRL key, then clicking on the second control while the shift key remains pressed.
| Align > Lefts | Aligns the left borders of the selected controls with the left border of the last control selected (black handles). |
| Align > Centers | Aligns the center of the selected controls with the horizontal center axis of the last control selected (black handles). |
| Align > Rights | Aligns the right borders of the selected controls with the right border of the last control selected (black handles). |
| Align > Tops | Aligns the top borders of the selected controls with the top border of the last control selected (black handles). |
| Align > MIddles | Aligns the center of the selected controls with the vertical center axis of the last control selected (black handles). |
| Align > Bottoms | Aligns the bottom borders of the selected controls with the bottom border of the last control selected (black handles). |
| Align > To Grid | Snaps the selected controls to the nearest grid coordinate. |
| Make Same Size > Width | Makes all selected controls the same width as the last control selected (black handles). |
| Make Same Size > Size To Grid | Makes all selected controls the same size as the nearest grid points. |
| Make Same Size > Height | Makes all selected controls the same height as the last control selected (black handles). |
| Make Same Size > Both | Makes all selected controls the same width and height as the last control selected (black handles). |
Format >Horizontal Spacing
| Make Equal | Equalizes the horizontal spaces between the selected controls. |
| Increase | Increases the horizontal spaces between the selected controls. |
| Decrease | Decreases the horizontal spaces between the selected controls. |
| Remove | Removes all horizontal spaces between the selected controls. |
Format > Vertical Spacing
| Make Equal | Equalizes the vertical spaces between the selected controls. |
| Increase | Increases the vertical spaces between the selected controls. |
| Decrease | Decreases the vertical spaces between the selected controls. |
| Remove | Removes the vertical spaces between the selected controls. |
Format > Center in Form
| Horizontally | As a group (relative positions of selected controls don't change), centers the selected controls vertically within the window. |
| Vertically | As a group (relative positions of selected controls don't change), centers the selected controls horizontally within the window. |
Format > Order
| Bring to Front | For overlapping controls, select this item to move the active control to the top. |
| Send to Back | For overlapping controls, select this item to move the active control to the back. |
Format > Lock Controls
| Lock Controls | This option locks all controls to their current position. A “locked” icon appears in the upper left area of the control. When a control is locked, it may not be moved or resized. |
Report Designer > Bands Menu
Page Header
Adds a header band to your report.
The HEADER structure traditionally prints at the top of each page of the report. Typically, you place the report title, graphics and other “introductory” elements in the HEADER.
Page Footer
Adds a footer band to your report.
The FOOTER structure traditionally prints at the bottom of the report. Typically, you place a page number, or totals in the FOOTER.
Report Form
Adds a form band to your report.
The FORM structure prints as a “background layer.” Typically, you may display “overlays” such as graphics and field labels in the FORM layer, then print the actual foreground data in the DETAIL. The FORM remains constant from page to page.
Detail
Adds a detail band to your report..
The DETAIL structure is the “body” of the report. It contains the basic data, either in table or record format.
Break Group
Adds a new detail, break, group header and group footer bands. Place the crosshair where you want the new group of bands to appear, and CLICK. The Break Properties dialog appears. Specify the variable to break on and press OK.
A Group BREAK structure can have nested BREAK structures, each with their own HEADER, DETAIL, and FOOTER structures.
See Also:
How to Set Report Group Breaks
Group Header
Adds a new Group Header band to the selected break section.
Group Footer
Adds a new Group Footer band to the selected break section.
Surrounding Break
Adds a break group around an existing detail. Place the crosshair on the detail you want to break on, and CLICK. The Break Properties dialog appears. Specify the variable to break on and press OK.
View Menu
Expand Bands
Expands or contracts all report bands at once.
Preview!
Opens the Preview Print Details dialog which lets you generate “filler” data for your report. The data have no values, but serve as placeholders, so you can get a feel for the appearance of your finished report. Fonts, sizes, colors, and positions of report controls are all displayed
You can quickly “preview” alternative layouts for DETAILs, HEADERs, and FOOTERs, and you can see the effects of the page breaking options you have chosen, all without actually compiling or running your report. See Also: Using Print Preview.