When you select one of the default layout styles in the Report Wizard, Reports Builder creates the necessary layout objects, based upon the reports data model. For example, if you want to build a mailing label report and have defined an appropriate data model, simply choose the mailing label default style. Reports Builder automatically creates the reports layout objects and displays them in the Layout Model view. You can completely customize any default layout you create. You can cut, copy, paste, move, resize, and edit each layout object that Reports Builder generates for you.
Layout defaulting is governed by the following rules:
All previously-defined layout objects for the report will be overwritten (including format triggers) unless you define the area in which you wish to create the layout as one which does not already contain layout objects.
One report can have any number of different formats. For example, you can build a report that has a tabular format on the top of the first page, and a matrix format on the bottom of the same page by creating an additional report layout.
Once you have created a report layout, any further changes you make to the data model will not automatically be included in the layout. For example, if you create a query after you have created a report layout and then run your report, the data from the new query will not appear in the report output. To incorporate your changes, you need to either redefault or modify the layout.
Reports Builder defaults report layout according to the following rules:
Unless otherwise noted, a group with a Print Direction of Across defaults identically to a group with a Print Direction of Down, except that the default format is transposed. To quickly determine the defaulting of an Across group, do the following:
Draw the down layout for the group on translucent paper.
Turn the page over as if it was a page in a book.
Rotate the page counter-clockwise 90 degrees.
In form letter reports, all default fields are hidden, and have a Horizontal
Elasticity property setting of Variable
and a Vertical
Elasticity property setting of Fixed.
In all other reports, all default fields have a Horizontal Elasticity
and Vertical Elasticity property setting of Fixed.
Exception: For tabular, form-like,
group left/above, and matrix reports, the default for CHAR (if you reduce
the default width) and LONG fields have a Horizontal Elasticity property
setting of Fixed and a Vertical
Elasticity property setting of Varia ble.
As a result, all of the field's value will be displayed, instead
of truncated, by word-wrapping any data to the next lines.
Caution: For form letter
and mailing label reports, the default for CHAR (if you reduce the default
width) and LONG fields have a Horizontal Elasticity and Vertical Elasticity
property setting of Fixed.
As a result, the field value will be truncated if the size of the data is
greater than the size of the field.
Summaries that are owned by the report, not by a group, are allowed in all report layout styles. They are all formatted in the following way:
If the layout style is form-like, form letter, or mailing label, the summary is a report column. A report column is formatted like any other database column for that report style.
If the layout style is tabular, group left/above, or matrix, and the column on which the summary performs its function is not selected, the summary is a report column. (It is formatted as stated in the bullet above.) Otherwise, the summary is a report summary. It is formatted left-justified at the end of the report, with the label to the left of the field (if there is room).
If the layout style is tabular, group left/above, or matrix, a summary is defaulted like a database column if the column it summarizes is not selected. Otherwise, a summary is defaulted like summaries (that is, appearing inside the M_groupname_FTR frames).
If the layout style is tabular, group left/above, or matrix, Reports Builder places one summary type per line, in the following order:
SUM
AVERAGE
MINIMUM
MAXIMUM
COUNT
FIRST
LAST
% OF TOTAL
STANDARD DEVIATION
VARIANCE
If the layout style is tabular, group left/above, or matrix, the summary label will appear to the far-left of the group footer frame (M_groupname_FTR). If there is not room for the full label, the label will be truncated.
Creating a default layout for a report
Creating a default layout for a section
Horizontal Elasticity property
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