This chapter contains the following topics:
You add a new printer to the system and define the print properties using the JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Printers (P98616) application. You define printers for use by a specific user role or for all users. You have the option of associating printers with:
A specific report.
A specific version of a report.
All reports.
JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Report Design Aid (RDA) incorporates printing properties to determine the format of the report output. The basic hierarchy of print properties is:
Print properties defined at runtime override all other printer definitions.
This includes definitions set in the JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Printers application, report template, and batch version.
Print properties defined in batch versions override the properties defined in the associated report template.
Print properties defined in RDA override the properties defined in the JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Printers application.
Print properties defined in the JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Printers application are the default properties used for batch applications.
Note:
When you modify print properties in an existing report template, the modifications are not reflected in any of the batch versions that exist prior to making the modification.This section provides overviews of designated printers, the Initialize Logical Printer Name system function, paper types, exporting to comma separated values (CSV), and output stream access (OSA) interfaces, lists the prerequisite, and discusses how to:
Define printers in RDA.
Select paper types in RDA.
Export to CSV in RDA.
The system administrator defines the default printer to be used with all batch processes. The printer is associated with a user role or with *PUBLIC, a default value that includes all users. The printer is associated with a batch application, a batch version, or *ALL (a default value that includes all batch applications or all batch versions for a specific batch application).
A printer associated with a specific user role overrides a printer associated with *PUBLIC and a specific batch process. You can override these printer definitions by selecting a printer using Print Setup on the File menu in RDA. The printer that you select in RDA is stored in the print specifications, causing the report to always print to the printer that you defined unless overridden at runtime.
When defining a printer in RDA, consider the hierarchy that the system uses to determine the printer that is used at runtime. The system looks first for the printer defined in RDA, if no printer is defined, the system uses the default printer defined in the JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Printers application. The printer hierarchy is:
Printer defined at runtime.
Printer defined in RDA.
The printer definition becomes part of the report specifications.
Printer defined in the JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Printers application using this hierarchy:
Specific report defined for the user or role.
All reports defined for the user or role
Specific report defined for *PUBLIC.
All reports defined for *PUBLIC.
You can use the Do Initialize Printer event to specify a printer to be used by the system when the batch application processes. The Do Initialize Printer event is a report level event located on the File menu. Using this event, you can print the same report to different printers based on criteria that you define. The event rules located on this event are the first event rules processed at runtime. The event rules are also processed each time a subsystem trigger record is processed. The Initialize Logical Printer Name system function resolves and validates the printer name that you pass to it. The batch engine uses the printer name, if valid, to obtain a printer device context. Portions of this device context can be overridden when the appropriate settings in the report specifications are set.
The Initialize Logical Printer Name system function is ignored if placed on any event other than the Do Initialize Printer event. If you place this system function on a different event, the system generates a message in the jdedebug log.
When defining the paper size for reports, you can select from predefined paper sizes or you can enter custom paper dimensions. The standard predefined selections available in the JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Printers application are:
A4
Legal
Letter
You must define one of these selections as the default paper type. You can override the default paper type from Print Setup in RDA.
The paper types defined in the JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Printers application are stored in the Paper Definition (F986162) table. RDA inherits the paper size from this table. You must define additional paper types for use in RDA using the JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Printers application.
You can use a selection of different units of measurement to define custom paper sizes in the JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Printers application. The minimum definable width in inches is two inches, and the maximum is 21 inches. The minimum definable height in inches is two inches and the maximum is 24 inches. In RDA, you can also define custom paper sizes from the Print Setup form. Definitions that you set up in RDA override the definitions set up in the JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Printers application.
In addition to viewing the report in a CSV file, you can manipulate the report data after the report finishes processing. To view report data in a spreadsheet program, such as Microsoft Excel or Lotus 123, select the export to a CSV option. You can select the CSV option using these methods, each with a different result:
In RDA for the report template.
Use this option to ensure that the report is output to a CSV file every time any of the associated batch version are run.
Select a report template and in RDA, select the Export to CSV option in Print Setup.
The Export to CSV option is selected by the system at runtime. When a report template is defined to export to CSV for every instance, you can clear the Export to CSV option at runtime if you do not want the batch version to export to a CSV file for a single submission.
Use this option to ensure that the report is output to a CSV file every time this specific batch version is run.
Select a batch version and in RDA, select the Export to CSV option in Print Setup. The batch version specifications will include information to export the output to a CSV file.
The Export to CSV option is selected by the system at runtime. When a batch version is defined to export to CSV for every instance, you can clear the Export to CSV option at runtime if you do not want the batch version to export to a CSV file for a single submission.
Use this option to output batch versions to a CSV file for a single submission only.
When running batch versions locally, select the Export to CSV option to submit the batch version.
When running batch versions on the server, select Export to CSV (Comma Delimited) on the Document Setup tab of the Printer Selection form.
Before exporting report data to CSV, you should review the report and follow these recommendations:
| Recommendation | Description |
|---|---|
| Set the horizontal grid alignment to 52 and select the snap to grid option. | The default column width in spreadsheet programs is equivalent to 52 units in RDA. For best results, use these grid guideline so that each column included in the report template is equal to a column in the spreadsheet program. |
| Ensure that no fields of the report overlap. | If a data field overlaps into the next column, the data in the spreadsheet program displays in discrete columns. You can wrap the text in a cell once the data is exported to the spreadsheet program. Delete unused columns in the spreadsheet program and reformat information as needed. |
| Align data fields vertically. | If data fields are not aligned vertically, they display in separate rows in the spreadsheet program. If more than one data field with the same vertical and horizontal alignment displays in a column, only one of these fields displays in the CSV file. The first field output during the export process occupies the cell in the spreadsheet program. |
| Format dates properly. | Spreadsheet programs typically use the same date format used in the report. |
| Use the Auto Format feature. | After the report is exported cleanly, use the Auto Format feature in the spreadsheet program to further format the report. |
| Countries that use a comma as a decimal marker. | In these countries, the decimal separator is recognized as a comma when the report exports. Tabs are stripped out instead of commas and a tab-separated file with a .txt extension is created.
The information transfers as flat text, so totaling columns display only text. You must then set up totaling in the spreadsheet program. |
When you export batch versions to CSV:
A CSV file is created in the PrintQueue directory.
A PDF file is created in the PrintQueue directory.
The CSV file is displayed by a spreadsheet program such as Microsoft Excel or Lotus 123, which launches automatically when you run the batch version locally.
When you run the batch version on a server, select View CSV from the Submitted Job Search form to launch the spreadsheet application and view the file. Only single spacing and portrait orientation is supported for CSV files. Drill-down links are ignored in CSV generation.
You can select to output reports to third-party software programs using OSA. OSA interfaces enable the third-party program to process and format the data concurrently. The OSA interface must be predefined; several interfaces might exist for a single program, depending on the section types included in the report and the desired output.
OSA uses its own set of commands from a third-party library.
Employs the formatting options of the target software program.
Employs the processing power of the target software program.
Before defining printers, check out an existing report template.
From EnterpriseOne Life Cycle Tools, select Report Management (GH9111), Report Design Aid.
From the File menu, select and open a report template that is checked out.
From the File menu, select Print Setup.
On the Print Setup form, click the browse button immediately following the Printer Name field.
On the Printer Search & Select form, select the printer to use for the report and click Select.
In RDA, select Print Setup from the File menu to access the Print Setup form.
Select a predefined paper type from the drop-down list in the Size field.
If an appropriate paper type is not available, select Custom and indicate the paper width and height.
In RDA, select Print Setup from the File menu to access the Print Setup form.
Under Orientation, select Portrait.
Under OneWorld Printer, select Export to CSV and click OK.
Verify that no columns or fields in the report overlap.
From the Layout menu, select Grid Alignment.
On the Alignment Grid form, set the horizontal spacing to 52.
Select the Snap to Grid option and click OK.
The system applies these settings to the entire report.