Understanding Grid Alignment

The grid alignment feature enables you to tighten or loosen the design grid for flexibility in positioning fields in a group section. The closer the dots, the tighter the grid. A tighter grid enables you to move fields in smaller increments for more precise positioning.

The vertical spacing value represents pixels on the workstation that are used for designing the report. The value is converted to a workstation-independent measurement when it is saved. Set this option to ensure that the report maintains the same proportions when it is viewed on a different workstation.

The following options are available for grid alignment:

• Horizontal spacing.

  Adjusts the horizontal grid spacing for the entire report template. If you designed the report to be exported to a CSV file, set the horizontal spacing to 52. This value corresponds to the default column width in Microsoft Excel.

• Vertical spacing.

  Adjusts the vertical grid spacing for the entire report template.

• Display the grid.

  Displays a grid of dots to assist in positioning fields. When this option is cleared, no grid appears in the design workspace.

• Snap to grid.

  Aligns fields with the nearest grid line intersection even if the grid is not displayed. When this option is cleared, you can position fields that do not line up with the grid. If you designed the report to be exported to a CSV file, the Snap to Grid option should be selected.