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About Siebel Report Object Types

The following object types are used in Siebel Tools to define the structure of the data for each report and are used to generate the data supply ROL file for that report:

• Report object type. A report object definition provides the high-level properties for one report. Report properties identify the filenames of the generated data supply library and the report executable, the business component name, the report type (Actuate or Access), and so on. The property types:
  • Business Component property. This specifies the business component whose data is used in the main report. The business component of the subreport is specified in the subreport object definition.
  • Template Name property. This is the name of the data supply library generated in Siebel Tools (without the ROL extension) that supplies information to Actuate about the report. This property is left blank for Access reports. It is also left blank for custom Actuate reports in which the data supply library file is too complex to generate from Siebel Tools, and must be created as program code.
  • Access Base DB Name property. For Actuate reports, this is the name of the executable file (without the ROX extension) that the Siebel application will run when the report is selected. For Access reports, this is the MDB (database) file that contains the report specification.
  • Class property. The CSSActuateReportViewer class identifies an Actuate report.
  • Search Specification property. The conditional expression used to retrieve a subset of records. If a search specification is defined in the report object definition and you want to run the report from Actuate e.Report Designer Professional, the search specification does not pass through from Siebel Tools. To check if the search specification is working, you will have to run it from the Siebel application.

    NOTE:  The same result occurs if the Current Record Only property (a type of search specification) is defined. Setting this property to TRUE does not pass through to Actuate e.Report Designer Professional from Siebel Tools.

    Also, if you set a search specification on your parent datastream in Actuate Start(), this search spec will override the dynamic view query results in the report and look through all the records in the business component.

  • Sort Specification property. You can set a sort specification in a report object definition to send the rows to Actuate through the datastream in sorted order. Otherwise, the rows are sent in the sort order on the current view. Ordering the data coming from the Siebel application will, at a minimum, improve performance when the report runs, and may be required to make the report work.

    NOTE:  Setting a search or sort specification property is also possible for subreports.

  • Menu Text property. The menu text to appear in the Reports menu when this report is included in the active view by means of a view report object definition.
  • Parameter Applet property. The name of a parameter entry pop-up applet created in Siebel Tools.
• Report Field object type. A report field object definition identifies one field to be included in the report from the report's business component. In Actuate reports, the list of report field object definitions is incorporated into the data supply library file when it is generated. For a field to appear in the datastream, and hence in the report when it is run, it must be included as a report field object definition for the report in Siebel Tools. You can list more report fields than are actually used in the report. Note, however, that the system retrieves all listed fields, so listing unused fields needlessly degrades report performance. Each field in the ROL file is a variable on the child data row component of a datastream.
• Report Locale object type. A report field object definition that identifies the language-specific overrides associated with the Report object type.
• Sub Report object type. A subreport object definition that uses data from a detail business component and contains information to manage a detail portion of a master-detail report. One datastream component is included in the data supply ROL file for the main report and for each subreport child of the report. Each detail datastream component is generated from a subreport object definition and its subreport field children.
• Sub Report Field object type. A subreport field object definition identifies one field to be included in the subreport from the subreport's business component. The list of subreport field object definitions goes into the subreport datastream component as variables in the data row.

The following child object types of the View object type are used to attach a specific report, as defined in its report object definition, to a specific view:

• View Report object type. A view report object definition creates an association between a report object definition and a view, causing that report to be available in the Reports menu when the view is active.
• View Report Locale object type. A view report object definition that identifies the language-specific overrides associated with the View Report object type.

  NOTE:  In Actuate, an apostrophe indicates that code after it will be read as comments. As a result, a field name in any of the report objects that contains an apostrophe will result in compilation errors.

In addition to report object types, virtual business components may be used to create reports. Virtual business components allow you to represent external data as a business component within a Siebel application. They also allow the use of business services to transfer data. For more information about virtual business components, see Using Siebel Tools and Overview: Siebel eBusiness Application Integration Volume I.

NOTE:  For information on the set of properties for these object types, see object types on Siebel Tools Online Help.