DataFlex Reports 2014 User Guide

DataFlex Reports
User Guide
Create reports to get relevant information out of your data
DataFlex Reports User Guide
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Revision Date: December, 2014
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Table of Contents
1. Welcome to DataFlex Reports! ................................................................... 8
2. Getting started with DataFlex Reports ........................................................ 9
2.1 Creating a new report using the Report Creation Wizard ............................................... 10
2.2 Create a new report using a blank report......................................................................... 17
2.3 Create a new report based on an existing report ............................................................ 17
3. Charts........................................................................................................ 18
3.1 Adding a chart .................................................................................................................... 18
3.2 Chart types ......................................................................................................................... 19
3.3 Modifying the layout and appearance of a chart ............................................................. 20
3.4 Changing the datasource of a chart .................................................................................. 23
4. The File menu ........................................................................................... 24
4.1 Export.................................................................................................................................. 24
4.2 Options ............................................................................................................................... 26
5. The Edit menu ........................................................................................... 29
5.1 Undo and Redo .................................................................................................................. 29
5.2 Cut, Copy, Paste and Delete .............................................................................................. 29
5.3 Select all.............................................................................................................................. 29
5.4 Find ..................................................................................................................................... 29
5.5 Go to page .......................................................................................................................... 29
5.6 Object ................................................................................................................................. 29
6. The View menu ......................................................................................... 30
6.1 Field explorer...................................................................................................................... 30
6.2 Report explorer .................................................................................................................. 32
6.3 Repository explorer............................................................................................................ 34
6.4 Arrange Objects ................................................................................................................. 34
7. The Insert menu ........................................................................................ 36
7.1 Field heading ...................................................................................................................... 36
7.2 Summary............................................................................................................................. 36

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7.3 Group .................................................................................................................................. 37
7.4 Function field...................................................................................................................... 37
7.5 Text object .......................................................................................................................... 38
7.6 Line, Box and Picture ......................................................................................................... 38
7.7 Chart object ........................................................................................................................ 38
7.8 Sub-report .......................................................................................................................... 39
8. The Format menu ..................................................................................... 40
8.1 Font ..................................................................................................................................... 40
8.2 Lock size/position ............................................................................................................... 40
8.3 Suppress field ..................................................................................................................... 40
8.4 Field properties .................................................................................................................. 40
8.5 Move ................................................................................................................................... 49
8.6 Align .................................................................................................................................... 50
8.7 Size ...................................................................................................................................... 50
9. The Database menu .................................................................................. 51
9.1 Database expert ................................................................................................................. 51
9.2 Check database .................................................................................................................. 56
9.3 Set datasource location ..................................................................................................... 58
9.4 Edit RDS Sample Data ........................................................................................................ 58
9.5 Browse data........................................................................................................................ 59
9.6 Show SQL query ................................................................................................................. 59
9.7 Select distinct records........................................................................................................ 59
10. The Report menu ...................................................................................... 60
10.1 Filter expert ........................................................................................................................ 60
10.2 Filter function ..................................................................................................................... 61
10.3 Page Layer Expert ............................................................................................................... 61
10.4 Section expert .................................................................................................................... 62
10.5 Function Explorer ............................................................................................................... 64
10.6 Group expert ...................................................................................................................... 65
10.7 Record sort expert ............................................................................................................. 66

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10.8 Group sort expert............................................................................................................... 67
10.9 Refresh report data ............................................................................................................ 67
10.10 Performance information .............................................................................................. 68
10.11 Report document properties ......................................................................................... 68
10.12 Report options ................................................................................................................ 69
11. The Language menu .................................................................................. 70
12. Functions .................................................................................................. 71
12.1 Syntax ................................................................................................................................. 71
12.2 Language elements ............................................................................................................ 71
12.3 Built-in functions ................................................................................................................ 78
12.4 Supported operations per data-type .............................................................................. 162
13. External Library Functions ....................................................................... 164
13.1 DLL location ...................................................................................................................... 164
13.2 Reference ......................................................................................................................... 164
13.3 Prewritten ELF functions ................................................................................................. 165
13.4 Creating your own ELF DLL .............................................................................................. 168
14. Parameters ............................................................................................. 169
15. Special Fields ........................................................................................... 170
16. Page layers .............................................................................................. 173
16.1 Create a new page layer .................................................................................................. 173
16.2 Using a page layer in a report.......................................................................................... 173
16.3 Hiding page layers ............................................................................................................ 173
16.4 Updating a page layer ...................................................................................................... 174
17. ANSI collation sequences ........................................................................ 175
17.1 ANSI code pages ............................................................................................................... 175
17.2 DataFlex Reports ANSI collation file ................................................................................ 175
17.3 Example ............................................................................................................................ 176
18. Automating DataFlex Reports ................................................................. 177
18.1 Close DataFlex Reports .................................................................................................... 177
18.2 Open a report ................................................................................................................... 177

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18.3 Open a report preview..................................................................................................... 177
18.4 Start DataFlex Reports with a specific workspace.......................................................... 177
18.5 Print a report .................................................................................................................... 178
18.6 Export a report ................................................................................................................. 178
18.7 Using a command file ...................................................................................................... 179
19. Product support ...................................................................................... 182
20. Product registration and activation......................................................... 183
21. Problems and solutions ........................................................................... 184
21.1 Cannot open the language database .............................................................................. 184
21.2 Unable to instantiate COM object .................................................................................. 184

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1. Welcome to DataFlex Reports!
DataFlex Reports is a software tool for delivering timely, well organized reports and information to the people
who need it.
Designed to be used by end-users, power-users and professional software developers alike, DataFlex Reports
works with a wide variety of ODBC datasources including – but not limited to – Microsoft SQL Server, IBM DB2,
Oracle, MySQL, Pervasive SQL, PostgreSQL, Microsoft Access, the DataFlex embedded database and more.
The use of ODBC as the datasource is strongly advised when reports are created for a DataFlex based
application that has its data stored in an SQL environment (such as in MS SQL Server) rather than using the INT
files found in the application’s data folder.
DataFlex Reports’ Report Creation Wizard steps users through the entire process of creating a report from
selecting datasources to grouping, filtering, summarizing and sorting information. The wizard displays the
completed report in a visual, drag & drop WYSIWYG interface. Ready to view the results on-screen, print or make
further formatting changes and enhancements. A full range of text formatting (fonts, bold, italics, justification,
etc.) is available in DataFlex Reports along with a rich library of string, logical and math functions.
DataFlex Reports is developed in DataFlex, the state-of-art software development tool from Data Access
Worldwide.
For DataFlex developers, DataFlex Reports offers both seamless integration with their DataFlex development
environment and seamless integration of reports in Windows and web applications. When the developer edition
of DataFlex Reports is installed you have the option to install a report integration wizard and library for
integration of reports with applications made in the DataFlex Studio. More information about this integration
can be found in the DataFlex Reports Developer Guide.
For deployment, reports integrated in DataFlex Windows and web applications require only the installation of a
single OCX. Distribution of integrated reports and the OCX is royalty-free with the Developer Edition of DataFlex
Reports.

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2. Getting started with DataFlex Reports
There are two things you may want to look at first.
Check the ‘Options’ from the ‘File’ menu and make sure that DataFlex Reports uses the defaults of your
preference. All possible options are covered in section 4.2 (Options). The second thing to do is to change the
language. For more information how to change the language read section 11 (The Language menu).
There are three ways to start creating a new report:
 Use the Report Creation Wizard

 Use a blank report
 Use an existing report
Before creating a new report it is important to decide what data needs to be shown and how the information
will be grouped.
Let’s suppose that the report needs to show order-information and that the orders must be presented in groups
of order-lines per order-number. The data needed for making this report would be:
 Per order-line:
o product-number
o product-description
o quantity
o price
 Per order:
o For the ‘order header’:
 order-number
 order-date
 customer-name
 customer-address
 payment- and shipping-conditions
o For the ‘order footer’:
 total order amount
Next, determine which tables are needed to show the necessary information. Typically for a report that needs to
show order-information, the order-header, order-details, products or inventory, and customer table are needed.
These tables need to be related to each other. The relationship looks like this:
Order Detail Order Header Customer
Inventory
Other things to consider:
 In which order must the data be presented? Will it be sorted by order-number? Or customer-number?
 Must all orders be printed, or should it be possible to filter certain orders? What are the filtering criteria?

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2.1 Creating a new report using the Report Creation Wizard
The Report Creation Wizard supports the steps
that are needed to create the different parts of a
report. The wizard is started from the ‘File’ option
in the menu, followed by the ‘New’ and ‘Standard
Report Wizard’ options. Another way to start the
wizard is by using the Ctrl+ N shortcut.
Click on the button ‘Next’ to select tables to be

used in the report.
2.1.1 Step 1: Select the tables

The DataFlex ‘Order Entry’ sample workspace is
used for illustrating the use of the wizard. In
section 9.1.1 (Available datasources) on page 51
an in depth explanation of datasources is
provided, specifically, the access to data via ODBC.
After selecting ‘DataFlex’ in the treeview and

clicking the ‘Open’ button, select the
filelist.cfg file that comes with the Order
Entry workspace.
filelist.cfg is a DataFlex configuration file

where the (metadata of) tables are stored. It is
also possible to open DataFlex workspaces (.sws
or .ws files) and individual tables without using
filelist.cfg.
After selecting filelist.cfg, a ‘+’ symbol will

appear next to the DataFlex option. Click on the ’+’
symbol to show all tables.
A table can be added by double-clicking on it. By

using the buttons in the center of the dialog,
tables can be added or removed from the report.
The buttons with a single > or < symbol can be
used to add or remove a single table. The buttons
with << and >> apply to all tables.
Select the tables ‘OrderDtl’, ‘OrderHea’, ‘Invt’

and ‘Customer’. Click on the button ‘Next’ to
define the relationships between the tables.

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2.1.2 Step 2: Defining relationships between tables
If we use the tables of the DataFlex Order Entry
workspace, the relationships are automatically
recognized by the DataFlex file-system.
The boxes in the links viewer can be dragged

around or made smaller or larger.
Clicking "Auto-Arrange" reorganizes the display.
Read the section Relationships to create

relationships manually.
Click on the button ‘Next’ to select the database

fields used on the report.
2.1.3 Step 3: Select the fields

As with the previous selection dialog, the buttons
in the middle section support adding or removing
one field or all at once.
The fields will be arranged in sequence as sorted

in the right panel. Change the order by selecting a
field and clicking the buttons with the Up or Down
arrow in the top right of the panel.
Click the ‘Browse Data’ button to see a sample of

the actual data in the fields. Click the ‘Find Field’
button to search for a field by name.
Add the fields ‘OrderHea.Order_Number’, ’OrderDtl.Qty_Ordered’, ’Invt.Description’, ’OrderDtl.Price’,

’OrderDtl.Extended_Price’, ’OrderHea.Terms’, ’OrderHea.Ship_Via’, ’OrderHea.Customer_Number’,
’Customer.Name’, ’Customer.Address’, ’Customer.Zip’ and ‘Customer.City’. Click on the button ‘Next’ to
group the data.

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2.1.4 Step 4: Group the data
After selecting the database fields for the report
the wizard continues with the option to group the
data. In the case of the ‘Order Entry’ sample data,
it makes sense to group by the order-header and
order-detail data. An in-depth explanation of this
can be found in section 10.6 (Group expert).
In order to create a new group, select the

database field in the treeview on the left. In that
tree view, find two options:
 ‘Report Objects’; showing the database fields

that have been selected in the previous page
of the wizard.
 The second is an option for showing the
datasource with all tables and fields.
If a database field to be grouped on was already selected for the report, it can be found in both options. The
quickest way to select a field is to click on the ‘+’ symbol in front of the ‘Report Objects’ and click on the field.
When clicking the button with the ‘>‘ symbol in the center, the data will be grouped by that field.
The data in the report will be sorted in ascending order by default. In the bottom of the treeview on the right-
hand side, this can be changed. For each field that is grouped on, the sort order can be set to ascending or
descending.
The Group can easily be removed from the report by selecting it in the panel on the right-hand side and clicking
the button with the ‘<‘ symbol.
Group by the fields ‘OrderHea.Customer_Number’ and ‘OrderHea.Order_Number’. Click on the button

‘Next’ to add sum and total fields.
2.1.5 Step 5: Sum values; totaling

Having defined the grouping, a dialog to select
fields to total on is displayed.
Similar to the previous steps, the appropriate

fields can be selected and moved to the other
panel to be designated totals.
By selecting the type of sum in the combo box,

several ways of totaling can be opted for. The
default choice is ‘sum’.
Select the fields ‘OrderDtl.Qty_Ordered’,

‘OrderDtl.Price’ to add a sum on those fields.
Click on the button ‘Next’ to add data filters.

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2.1.6 Step 6: Define data filters
The interface for selecting or removing fields is
quite similar to the previous dialogs. The fields to
filter on can be added to the column on the right.
Selecting the field in the right box will enable the

operator and value dropdown box.
If you click the drop-down arrow of the value

dropdown box you will get a sample set of data
from the datasource. This is the same as the
‘browse data’ button underneath the 'Available
Fields' list would produce. The difference is that
you can pick a value from the list.
A more complete description of applying filtering

criteria can be found in section 10.2 (Filter
function).
Select the field ‘OrderHea.Customer_Number’ and pick ‘is equal to’ from the operator dropdown box. Enter
‘1’ in the Value box. Click on ‘Next’ for the next wizard page.
2.1.7 Step 7: Report options

After having defined the filtering criteria, the
wizard will continue to the options screen.
The first combo box lets you select the page size
for the report. Selecting a correct size here helps
you in the further design of the report. The new
report wizard divides the selected fields over the
width of the paper, selecting the desired page size
will give a different reduction in width if more
fields are selected than can be presented on one
row.
The work done to select the datasource and

create the data-model can be something that is
reusable for other reports in the future. By storing
this in the repository, it can be made immediately available at a later time. It helps to give it a meaningful name;
in this case ‘Order Information (DataFlex)’ would be right.
Click the 'Next' button to go to the Finish page. Here you can close the wizard by clicking on the ‘Finish’
button.

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2.1.8 Step 8: Change the visual design of the report
After closing the
wizard, the report is
presented in the visual
designer of DataFlex
Reports as shown.
The visual designer

consists of several
parts. A report always
has a minimum of the
following sections:
 Report Header
 Page Header
 Details
 Report Footer
 Page Footer
For each group, two

extra sections are
added to a report:
 Group Header
 Group Footer
Section Will be printed

Report Header First section of the report that gets printed
Page Header At the beginning of every page
Group Header At the beginning of each group
Details For each row
Group Footer At the end of each group
Page Footer At the bottom of every page
Report Footer Last section of the report that gets printed
On the left-hand side of the visual designer the labels of the various sections are shown.
A preview window can be opened to see what the result of the report will look like. Activating the preview
window can be done in several different ways:
 Select the ‘Preview Report’ option in the menu under ‘View’

 Click the ‘Print Preview’ icon in the button bar
 Use the Ctrl +R shortcut
 Click the ‘Refresh’ icon in the button bar to show and/or refresh the data
 Use the F5 function key
Hide the report header and footer

In the ‘Section Expert’ sections can be hidden so that they do not get printed. Hiding can
be done always or conditionally based on the results of a function. Hover the mouse
cursor over the label of the ‘Report Header’ in the left part of the section and click the
right mouse button. A context menu shows the option to hide the section. The visual
designer will now show the hidden section in a grey, shaded area. The same action can
be repeated to hide the section of the ‘Report Footer’.

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Moving and resizing of fields and objects
A field can be selected with the mouse, and dragged to the appropriate
position. Resizing a field can be done by hovering the cursor over the
border of the field. When the cursor shape changes, drag with the mouse
to resize the field.
Fields can be selected via a lasso. Hold the Shift key down
and drag with the mouse. Fields can also be moved by use
of the cursor keys on the keyboard. Resizing can be done
by keeping the Shift key pressed, while clicking a cursor
key. When multiple objects are selected with the lasso the order of selection depends on the order in the Report
Explorer.
The way the cursor keys react depends on the settings of the grid options. Read more about this in section 4.2
(Options).
A number of fields in the ‘Details’ section needs to be

moved to one of the ‘Header’ sections. Before starting to
move anything, it makes sense to enlarge the ‘Header’
sections. Move the cursor over the bottom separator of
the section. The cursor shape changes and the section
can be enlarged by holding the left mouse button down,
while dragging the separator down.
Multiple fields can be moved at once: select multiple

fields with the mouse while keeping the Ctrl key pressed.
Then move all selected fields to the ‘Group Header #1’
section by dragging the mouse while holding down the
left mouse button.
Replace ‘OrderHea.Order_Number’, ‘Orderhea.Terms’ and ‘Orderhea.Ship_Via’ to ‘Group Header #2’ and

‘OrderHea.Customer_Number’‘Customer.Name’, ‘Customer.Address’, ‘Customer.Zip’and ‘Customer.City’ to
the ‘Page Header’.

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Changing the appearance of fields
Looking at the report in the preview window
you may want to change the formatting of
certain fields.
The appearance can be changed via field

properties. Numeric fields for example will
show 2 decimals per default. Start the field
properties dialog from the Format menu,
choosing the 'Field Properties' menu item or by
clicking the right mouse button on the field
and then selecting the 'Field Properties' option.
Select object ‘Sum of OrderDtl.Qty_Ordered’

and open the properties dialog. On the last
tab page, change the ‘Number format’ to
‘Custom Number’ to have zero decimals and
remove the ‘Thousand separator’. Click the
‘OK’ button to save this setting.
Add lines and text objects

There are several ways to add a ‘Text Object’ to a report:
 Select the ‘Text Object’ option from the Insert menu.

 Click the icon on the toolbar for adding a ‘Text Object’.
 Click the right mouse button in the section and choose the
'Insert' option in the context menu, followed by selecting the ‘Text Object’ option.
Draw a ‘Text Object’ in the ‘Page Header’ section. Right click on the ‘Text Object’ and select ‘Edit text’ from
the popup menu. Type ‘Printed on’ into the box and click with the mouse outside the box. Move the Special
field ‘Print Date and Time’ from the ‘Report Header’ right after the text object.
In the ‘Group Header #2’ and ‘Group Footer #2’ separator lines are added. Select the line object in the
toolbar. The cursor changes into a pencil. Move the mouse to the position where the line should start and
drag the mouse, while pressing the left mouse button, to the position where the line should end.
Each order on a new page

To place each order from the order entry
system on a separate page we have to open
the Section Expert. You will find this on the
Report menu.
Select the ‘Group footer #2’ and check the

box ‘New page after this section’. Click the
‘OK’ button to save this setting.
The preview now shows that each order will be

printed on a new page.

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2.1.9 Step 9: Storing a report
The screenshot on the right shows the preview
of the report that was made using the wizard.
Save the report by choosing ‘Save’ from the

File menu, and enter a logical name so that
you can find the report again later. For
example "orders with details.dr". The
report can be stored anywhere on disk as the
datasource location is stored in the report. The
reports folder in a DataFlex workspace (e.g. c:\DataFlex Examples\Order Entry\Reports) is the preferred
location for report files. The integration wizard used to integrate reports in a DataFlex application will first look in
that folder.
2.2 Create a new report using a blank report

Select the option ‘Blank Report’ from the File menu to create a new report. A tab page for the design of the new
report is now available.
The most important steps for making a new report are:
 Select the datasource, using the Database expert.

 Create groups, using the Group expert.
 Add fields to the report, using the Field explorer.
 Add other fields such as texts, totals and page-numbers.
 Add filtering-criteria using the Filter Expert or add them manually, using the Filter Function.
 Finish the visual design of the report.
2.3 Create a new report based on an existing report

If the functionality of a new report is comparable to that of an existing report, you could consider taking the
existing report as a starting point. Open the existing report (File menu, ‘Open’) and save the report under a new
name. (File menu, ‘Save As’).
If it is likely that multiple reports will be using the same tables, the use of the repository is recommended, see
the 6.3 (Repository explorer).

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3. Charts
A chart is a graphical representation of data, in which
the data is represented by symbols, such as bars in a bar
chart or lines in a line chart.
3.1 Adding a chart

You can add a chart by clicking on the ‘Chart Object’ option in the Insert menu or by
clicking on the chart icon in the toolbar. The insert Chart wizard will appear.
After clicking on ‘Next’ in the welcome page you can select the type of chart you want to
use in your report. The different chart types are explained in section 3.2 (Chart types).
3.1.1 Datasource
After selecting the chart type you must select
the datasource for the Category (X-axis) and
Value (Y-axis).

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3.1.2 Labels and Appearance
In the final page of the wizard you can change
the basic appearance of the chart.
The Palette color scheme defines the colors

used to draw the bars, lines, dots, etc. that
represent the values. The palette schemes
can't be changed and are predefined.
The Appearance color scheme defines the

colors to draw the lines and background of the
charts. The appearance schemes are
predefined but can be overridden. See section
3.3 (Modifying the layout and appearance).
3.2 Chart types

3.2.1 Area
An area chart is very similar to a line chart. Data is displayed using different colors
in the "area" below the line. Area charts are commonly used to display
accumulated values over a period of time.
3.2.2 Bar
A bar chart displays data with rectangular "bars" with lengths relative to the data
they symbolize. Generally a bar chart is used to display discontinuous data (data
that has a discrete value); however it can also be used for continuous data.
Examples of discontinuous data would be "car color" or "tire size"; examples of
continuous data would be "population" or "age".
3.2.3 Line
A line chart is used to show a series of data points connected by straight line
segments. Charts of this type are generally used to illustrate trends in data over a
period of time.

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3.2.4 Point
A point chart displays data in a grid using Cartesian coordinates. Data is displayed
along the x and y axis, where x and y can represent any type of data. A point chart
is also referred to as a plot or scatter chart.
3.3 Modifying the layout and appearance of a chart

When you click with the right mouse button on a chart, a popup menu comes up where
you can select the option "Chart properties". Within the Chart properties you can change
how the chart will be displayed.
At the left bottom corner you will find a button "Change datasource". This will start up the
chart wizard where you can change the chart type, datasource and the basic layout of the
chart.
3.3.1 Common
In this tab page you can change the chart type,
see section 3.2 for the different chart types
you can select.
The Appearance and Palette options define the

default colors used in the chart where palette
defines the colors used to draw the bars, lines,
dots or slices that represent the values. The
appearance scheme defines the default colors
used to draw the lines and background that
makes up the chart.
The border defined in the Common tab page is

the border around the chart. Here displayed in
blue. When the color is set to default it takes the color defined in the Appearance scheme currently selected.
To display a label displaying the value of each bar, point, etc. check the "Label visible" checkbox.

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3.3.2 Legend
If you want to display a legend check the
"Legend Visible" checkbox on the "Legend" tab
page.
The text font used in the legend can be

changed by clicking on the button right
beside the "Legend Font" box.
The placement of the legend box is defined by

the Horizontal and Vertical select boxes. The
base point is in the left top corner. Where
"Near" is the position closest to this point (left
or top) and "Far Outside" the position farthest
away (right or bottom).
"Marker height" and "Marker width" define the size of the marker icon left of the legend text.
When the colors in this tab page are set to "Default", the colors defined in the Appearance scheme currently
selected are being used.
3.3.3 Titles
On the "Titles" tab page you can define some
extra text that will be displayed with the chart:
a title and a subtitle.
The alignment of the titles is set in the reading

direction where "Near" is on the left side and
Far on the right side.
You can 'dock' each title on the "Top",

"Bottom", "Left" and "Right". The reading
direction of "Top" and "Bottom" is from left to
right, from bottom to top when docked on the
"Left" and top to bottom on the "Right" side.
3.3.4 Category
The ‘Category’ tab defines options for the X-
Axis.
Unchecking the ‘Visible’ checkbox hides all

information about the X-axis from the chart.
With the "Reversed" checkbox the Axis can be
reversed were the last value becomes the first
value in the chart.
The position of the X-axis within the chart can

be changed using the ‘Alignment’ option.
Normally the axis is drawn at the bottom of
the chart (‘Near’ option), but it can be set to
the top by selecting the ‘Far’ option.
The text, font, and alignment of the title can be changed.

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The category labels are displayed using a specific angle (default 45 degrees) and font. If the angle of the label is
set to 0, the label will be centered on the axis value.
When the colors in this tab page are set to "Default", the colors defined in the Appearance scheme currently
selected are being used.
3.3.5 Value
The ‘Value’ tab defines options for the Y-Axis
and is similar to the Category tab above.
One difference is the position of the Y-axis

within the chart. Normally the axis is drawn at
the left of the chart (‘Near’ option), but it can
be set to the right by selecting the ‘Far’ option.
The default angle for category labels is 0

degrees.
3.3.6 Lines
The ‘Lines’ tab contains options for the grid
lines in the chart area.
Four types of grid lines exist: (major) vertical

lines, minor vertical lines, (major) horizontal
lines, and minor horizontal lines. The minor
lines cannot be displayed without the major
lines.
For each type the visibility, line style, and line

color can be defined.
When the colors in this tab page are set to

"Default", the colors defined in the
Appearance scheme currently selected are being used.
3.3.7 Scale
In the ‘Scale’ tab a number of options for the
display scale of the axes can be defined.
When "Side margins" is checked, extra space is

drawn on both sides of the chart. Uncheck
"Show zero level" if you want the chart to start
with the first value instead of zero.
With "Tick spacing", which becomes available

when you uncheck "Auto spacing", you can
define when the chart draws a 'major' tick with
a label. In the example shown here, every 2
values a tick is drawn. The "Minor ticks"
defines the amount of ticks to be drawn
between the 'Major' ticks.

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3.4 Changing the datasource of a chart
If you want to change the data of the chart you can click on the button "Change datasource". The chart wizard
will be reopened where you can change the datasource. See section 3.1 (Adding a chart).

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4. The File menu
The ‘File’ menu offers several options for opening, saving and printing
reports. For most of these choices, a button is available on the button
bar as well.
The option ‘New’ offers several options: ‘Standard Report Wizard’,

‘Blank Report’, and ‘Page layer’, see sections 2.1, 2.2, and 16.1.
Use the option ‘Open…’ to open a report. The option opens a Windows
common file dialog from which you can select a DataFlex Reports
report file. The file extension is .dr for reports and .dpl for page
layers.
To close the active report or all reports, the options ‘Close’ and ‘Close
All’ are available.
The options ‘Save’ and ‘Save As…’ are self-explanatory.
The option ‘Lock report design’ requires the entry of a password. This
password must be entered every time the report is opened in DataFlex
Reports. Users can use such reports by integration with your DataFlex
application without the password.
Besides printing reports, it is possible to export report data to different file-formats such as PDF, RTF, CSV, Excel
and HTML or to an image file (JPG, GIF, TIF or PNG). This option is discussed in paragraph 4.1 below.
To modify the page setup, choose ‘Page Setup’.
The ‘Options’ for DataFlex Reports are explained in section 4.2 below.
The 10 most recently used reports are shown in the menu above the ‘Exit’ option. Simply select one of the listed
reports to open it.
Exiting DataFlex Reports while one or more unsaved reports are still open will display a request to save all
changes.
4.1 Export
Reports can be exported to various formats.
This includes several formats aimed at human
reading (HTML, image, PDF, and RTF) and
some aimed at machine reading (CSV and
Excel).
Each format has a number of export options

which are discussed in the following
paragraphs. One common option that all
formats support is the selection of pages to
export. You can choose to export all pages1, or
a single specific page.
1
Most image formats allow only a single page. TIFF has built-in support for multiple pages and DataFlex Reports
can use this.

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After choosing a format and setting its options you will be asked to specify a location and filename. When you
chose to export all pages in a format that generates multiple files, this chosen filename is used as a basis for the
filenames. The actual files will have an appended dash and sequence number just before the file extension. For
instance report.html will generate report-1.html, report-2.html, etc.
4.1.1 HTML export

When a report is exported to HTML this will generate one file for each page. Images are embedded within the
HTML file(s).
This format has no format-specific options.
4.1.2 RTF export

The RTF export generates a single file containing all pages.
This format has no format-specific options.
4.1.3 PDF export

The PDF format is widely used for distribution of documents and has some very interesting options.
A PDF document has limited control of how a PDF reading program will display the document by default. The
‘Page display’ options are:
 Full screen
 Display with outline
 Display with thumbnails
 Display without outline or thumbnails
PDF documents can also be secured using passwords. Setting an ‘Owner password’ makes sure that the
document cannot be manipulated without entering that password. Setting a ‘User password’ as well will require
readers to enter that password.
Many documents include images, which increases the file size a lot. In order to assure that PDF files are portable
images are compressed using an algorithm that drastically reduces the file’s size, but also reduces image quality.
You have a choice to increase the ‘Image quality’ setting from ‘Low’ to ‘High’, which results in better image
quality at the cost of a larger file size.
4.1.4 Image export

DataFlex Reports supports exporting to the JPEG, GIF, TIFF, and PNG formats. It can export a single page to an
image file, or all pages when using TIFF.
4.1.5 CSV export

The CSV (Comma Separated Values) format is widespread, but also knows numerous variations due to the lack of
standardization. DataFlex Reports has a number of options that allow you to generate the format you need.
The ‘Field separator’ in most CSV files is the comma, but implementations using semicolons or pipe characters
are also commonplace. In addition, because this character can occur in character values, a ‘character delimiter’
is needed. Usually this is a double quote.
CSV files often represent a single grid of rows and columns. The special sections in a report (report, page, and
group headers and footers) cannot easily be identified, so software programs (as well as people) reading the file
will have difficulty parsing the data. By default these sections are not exported to a CSV format file, but you can
choose to export them anyway using the three checkboxes ‘Export report sections’, ‘Export page sections’, and
‘Export group sections’.

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4.1.6 Excel export
The Excel export creates an XLS or XLSX file, depending on which ‘Excel version’ you choose. The default is XLS
(Excel 2003).
You can choose to put all data on a single worksheet, or to create one sheet for each page. Note that Excel
versions before 2010 have a maximum of 65,536 rows per worksheet.
By default the program attempts to export the file into a format that visually corresponds to the original report
(more or less). It uses the rows and columns of Excel as a drawing grid, which you can manipulate by changing
the ‘Column width’ setting. If you wish to export the report without any alignments and markup, the checkbox
‘Export data only’ allows you to do that.
In contrast to the CSV format Excel files have a lot of styling options, which makes report sections identifiable.
Therefore by default they are included in the export. If you do not want that, you can disable them.
4.2 Options
The window containing the default settings for DataFlex Reports consists of three tab pages: ‘Options’, ‘Fonts’
and 'Formatting'.
4.2.1 Options tab-page

By checking the option ‘Snap to Grid’ in the
‘Grid options’ group, objects will automatically
be aligned with the nearest line of the grid.
The distance between the grid-lines can be set
here as well.
The option ‘Show guidelines’ determines if

guidelines are displayed in the designer. These
guidelines can be created by clicking within the
rulers of the report designer.
By checking the option ‘Insert Detail Field

Headings’ in the ‘Field Options’ group the
name of a field will be automatically added as
a field-title in the ‘Page Header’ section of the
report.
The ‘Insert Group Name with Group’ setting

automatically places a group-name above a
new group.
In the group "Datasource options" the setting of the ‘Show tables’, ‘Show views’ and ‘Show stored procedures’
decides whether to list SQL Tables, SQL Views and SQL stored procedures in the Database Expert and New
Report Wizard.
When the option "Show information messages" is ticked, the product will show you informational messages
from the ODBC backend or messages like "Cannot open file".
The option ‘Always Sort Locally’ applies to reports with ODBC as a datasource. For the DataFlex database records
are always sorted locally. To sort records from an ODBC datasource using the selected collation instead of the
collation used in the ODBC backend you can check this option.

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Checking the box offers the possibility of
performing a special sort order, defined in
the collating sequence configuration file
named df_collate.cfg. DataFlex Reports
copies the collating sequence configuration
file to its own environment during the
installation of your DataFlex. The sort order
defined in that file can be easily adjusted
using a text editor.
When using DataFlex as you datasource you

have to make sure that the contents of this
configuration file in your DataFlex
environment matches with the sort order defined in the indexes of the tables that you use. The contents of the
collating sequence file in the DataFlex Reports environment and in the DataFlex environment may differ from
each other, but if they do you will see a different sort order in the reports to that in the applications you
distribute, which may be confusing for readers and is therefore discouraged.
4.2.2 Fonts tab-page

This page is reserved for the default fonts that
are to be used in a report, can be set for the
following sections: ‘Fields’, ‘Sum Fields’,
‘Group Name Fields’, ‘Text Objects’ and ‘Field
Titles’.
Click on the prompt button at the end of the

field of which you want to change the font to
select the default font, style, size and color.

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4.2.3 Formatting tab-page
This page contains the default formatting
options for 'Text', 'Number', 'Integer', 'Date'
and 'Time' fields when they are used in the
report.
For example if you like a date field to be

formatted using a custom date layout you can
click the prompt button at the end of the date
field formatting option and change the
defaults.

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5. The Edit menu
The ‘Edit’ menu contains several options for manipulating objects in the
design window. If the preview window is active the 'Go To Page' option
is the only available option.
5.1 Undo and Redo

Every change to an object can be undone by the ‘Undo …’ option. Re-
apply the change by using the ‘Redo …’ option. There are no limitations
on the maximum number of undo’s that can be performed.
5.2 Cut, Copy, Paste and Delete

The options ‘Cut’, ‘Copy’, and ‘Delete’ are only available when at least
one object in the design windows is selected. Once an object is copied or
cut, the ‘Paste’ option will be available.
5.3 Select all

Select all objects in the design window by choosing ‘Select All’. After that you can use options that can be
applied to multiple selected objects such as 'Bold', 'Italics' or 'Copy'.
5.4 Find
In large reports it can happen that an object becomes more
difficult to find. Use the ‘Find’ option to find an object. The
name attribute of the object is used for the search. If the
object is found, it will be selected and easily visually
identifiable as such.
5.5 Go to page
In the preview window, a quick way to go to a certain
page is by using the ‘Go to Page’ option.
Entering a page number larger than the last page of the

report jumps to the last page of the report.
5.6 Object
The last item on the menu shows "Object" or "Edit Text",
"Edit Function" or "Edit Parameter". When it shows
"Object" the menu item is unavailable and cannot be chosen. For "Edit Text", click on a text object (such as a
column label). For "Edit Function" click on a function object in the report and the function editor dialog will be
presented. This is documented in chapter 12. For "Edit Parameter" click on a parameter object in the report and
the parameter dialog will be presented. This is documented in chapter 14.

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6. The View menu
From the ‘View’ menu, several windows and panels that are available in DataFlex
Reports can be opened.
The ’Design’ and ‘Preview Report’ options switch between the design window and
the preview window.
If a window is opened, the active window can be closed using the ‘Close Current
View’ option. You can achieve the same result by clicking the 'X' in the report design
or preview tab-page.
The options for ‘Field Explorer’, ‘Report Explorer’, ‘Repository Explorer’ and ‘Arrange Objects’ are explained in
paragraphs below.
Clicking the option for the ‘Status Bar’ switches the status bar in
the bottom of the window to show, or not. The check-mark in
front of the option indicates that the status bar is activated.
The ‘Zoom’ option will represent the content of an active

window in a larger or smaller size.
6.1 Field explorer

The Field Explorer is launched from the ‘View’ menu or the button from
the button bar. The Field Explorer is used for adding fields to a report.
The tree view shows five top-level branches: ‘Database Fields’,

'Parameter Fields', ‘Function Fields’, ‘Group Name Fields’ and ‘Special
Fields’.
Clicking the ‘+’ symbol for ‘Database Fields’ will expand the tree and
show the tables that are available for the report. Clicking on the ‘+’
symbol for a table will show the fields of that table. You can drag a field from the tree to the report.

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Clicking the ‘+’ symbol for ‘Parameter Fields’ will expand the tree and
show all the parameter fields for the report. After selecting ‘Parameter
Fields’ in the tree view, the button ‘Create new’ in the button bar at the
top of the panel is enabled. The ‘Delete’, ‘Edit’ and ‘Rename’ buttons are
enabled when a parameter field is selected. The same options are
available in the context menu, which can be activated by clicking the
right mouse button while a parameter field is selected. Parameter fields
are detailed more fully in chapter 14 (Parameters).
Clicking the ‘+’ symbol for ‘Function Fields’ will expand the tree, and
show all the function fields for the report. After selecting ‘Function
Fields’ in the tree view, the button ‘Create new’ in the button bar at the
top of the panel is enabled. The ‘Delete’, ‘Edit’ and ‘Rename’ buttons are
enabled when a function field is selected. The same options are available
in the context menu, which can be activated by clicking the right mouse
button while a function field is selected. See more about function fields
in section 7.4 (Function field) and chapter 12 (Functions).
In the section named ‘Group Name Fields’, a field is listed for each group
in the report. See more about groups in section 10.6.
The section ‘Special Fields’ pertains to fields like report title, page number and print-date and -time. An
explanation of the special fields is listed in chapter 15 (Special Fields).
Add a field to a report as follows: activate the design window of the report and select the field to add. Drag the
field from the Field Explorer above the design window where the field needs to be placed, to drop it.
Remove a field from a report by selecting the field in the design window and pressing the Del key, or use the
context menu activated by a right mouse click, followed by choosing ‘Delete’.

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6.2 Report explorer
The Report Explorer is launched from the ‘View’ menu or by clicking the
button from the button bar. In a tree view it shows the several sections
of the report and provides opportunities to modify, reorder or remove
objects, or to add sections to a report.
Filters for showing or hiding data fields, functions, parameters, graphical

objects and sub-reports can be toggled by their buttons in the top of the
panel.
If a node is selected, a right mouse click presents a context menu,

offering several options. There are different context menus for different
nodes.
The floating menus for 'Report Header', 'Page Header', 'Details', 'Report
Footer' and 'Page Footer' offer the same options. The floating menus for
'Group Header' and 'Group Footer' also contain the same options.
The next paragraphs show what is available with a right-click on a couple

of tree nodes.
6.2.1 Report explorer floating menu

Right-clicking on the node with the report name as the label produces a
floating menu containing the general report functions available.
The following table explains all the options of the floating menu for the
report node.
Function Description
Refresh Report Data The datasource behind the report is requested to deliver the data again. You
need to confirm the action.
Performance Information Opens the report performance dialog, see 10.10 (Performance information).
Report Options Opens the report options dialog, see 10.12 (Report options).
Report Document Properties Opens the report document properties dialog, see 10.11 (Report document
properties).

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6.2.2 Group header/footer floating menu
Right clicking on a node labeled 'Group Header' or 'Group Footer'
produces a floating menu as shown on the right.
details section.
Group Expert Opens the group expert dialog, see 10.6 (Group expert).
Delete Group Delete this group from the report.
Hide Section Toggling the option to hide or show a section.
Section Expert Start the Section Expert, see 10.4 (Section expert).
Fit Section Changing the size of a section, automatically removing white-space in the
bottom of a section.
Insert Section Below Insert a new section and place it below an existing section.
Select All Section Objects Select all objects in a section. (For example to move, or Delete all at once).
6.2.3 Details section floating menu

Right-clicking on the node labeled "Details" (or at 'Report Header', 'Page
Header', 'Details', 'Report Footer' and 'Page Footer') produces a floating
menu as shown on the right.
details section.
Hide Section Toggling the option to hide or show a section.
Section Expert Start the Section Expert, see 10.4 (Section expert).
Fit Section Changing the size of a section, automatically removing white-space in the
bottom of a section.
Insert Section Below Insert a new section and place it below an existing section.
Select All Section Objects Select all objects in a section. (For example to move, or Delete all at once).
6.2.4 Database field floating menu

Right-clicking on the database field node (such as a node labeled
"OrderHea.Customer_Number") produces a floating menu with database field
specific options as shown on the right.
The available options of the menu are explained in the following table.

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Field Properties Setting the Field Properties, see 8.4 (Field properties).
Browse Field Data Opens a panel that shows the content of the database field.
Insert Sum Add a sum of a field Summary.
Lock Size/Position Toggle the switch that enables or disabled movement and resizing of
objects.
Suppress Toggle the switch to show or hide the object in a report.
Forward Switch the position of the current field in the report layout with the next
field. This way the current field will be used/executed after the next field
has been processed.
To Front In case objects overlap, an object can be made visible by moving it to the
front. For example: Place text to the front, and a picture in the background.
Backward Switch the position of the current field in the report layout with the
previous field. This way the current field will be used/executed after the
previous field has been processed.
To Back In case objects overlap, an object can be moved to the back.
Size to Font Resizes the object to fit the size of the used font
6.3 Repository explorer

The repository explorer shows information about the datasource location. A
tree view shows the stored repositories.
Existing repositories can be renamed, viewed or removed from the system.
The screenshot below shows the information you get when you click the
properties button in the Repository Explorer’s toolbar. You can see the name
of the repository, the tables used, the database name, connection string, if applicable the schema name and
number of relationships.
You can create a new report based on

a stored repository. Repository records
are created during report construction
via the standard report wizard, or via
the Database expert.
6.4 Arrange Objects

The Arrange Objects panel is used to manipulate the size or position of multiple
objects in the Report relative to each other.
6.4.1 Resizing objects

Select one or more objects in the Report that you wish to change, select the
number of points that you wish to change in the width (X) and/or height (Y)
dimensions. Select the Resize button and click on the apply button to

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change the object(s) sizes accordingly. If you do not enter a value into one of the X or Y dimensions then that
dimension is left unchanged.
6.4.2 Moving objects

Select two or more objects in the Report that you wish to change, select the number of points that you wish to
change in the left/right (X) and/or top/bottom (Y) dimensions. Select the Distance button and click on the
apply button to change the object distances relative to each other. If you do not enter a value into one of the
X or Y dimensions then that dimension is left unchanged.
Note when you use the lasso to select multiple objects, the base object is the first selected object in the report
explorer.

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7. The Insert menu
The ‘Insert’ menu lists several elements that can be inserted into a report, such as a
database field, text or graphical objects.
Except for the first option each choice is also available via a comparable button that can be
chosen from the insert button bar.
7.1 Field heading

If a database field is selected in the design window and the option ‘Field Heading’ is clicked
from the ‘Insert’ menu, a text object is inserted in the 'Page Header' section. The caption is
automatically assumed to be the field name. Change the caption by a right mouse click on
the text object and selecting ‘Edit Text’ from the context menu.
See paragraph 4.2.1 for the default setting to automatically place a text object with caption in the 'Page Header'
section when a database field is added to the report.
7.2 Summary
First select a field that needs to be summarized. Then choose ‘Sum’
from the ‘Insert’ menu. If we choose this for the field ‘qty_ordered’
from the orderdtl table we will see the dialog on the right.
The available summary options in this dialog are:
Sum Sums the values of the field (only works on numeric fields).
Average Show the average value of the field (only works on numeric fields).
Maximum Show the maximum value of the field (only works on numeric fields).
Minimum Show the minimum value of the field (only works on numeric fields).
Count Count the number of times that a certain value occurs.
Distinct Count Count the distinct number of times a value occurs (only works on numeric
fields).
You can select where the 'Sum' field is placed. This is normally either a 'Group Footer' or a 'Report Footer'. All
possible locations are shown.
If your report does not contain a group – see next paragraph – and you would like to place the summary in a
group you can immediately create the group by clicking the 'Insert Group' button.

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7.3 Group
A ‘Group’ is used to divide data into specific sections and for sorting. For
example: Group all orders per customer. The panel for adding a group to
a report looks like displayed on the right.
The First combo box is used to select the field on which the grouping
takes place. The second combo box defines the sorting-order (ascending
or descending).
The ‘Group Name Field’ has per default the same value as the field upon
which the grouping takes place. Suppose that the Group is defined as on
customer number, but the ‘Group Name Field’ needs to be the customer
name this can be changed by checking the checkbox ‘Customize Group
Name Field’ to change it to the appropriate field.
By checking the checkbox ‘Repeat Group Header On Each Page’ the

section with the header-details are repeated on each page.
7.4 Function field

A ‘Function Field’ is usually a field with content that is derived from another field. A ‘Function Field’ is a
calculation based on another field, or a different representation of text.
Select ‘Function Field’ from the ‘Insert' menu and move the mouse cursor to the place in the report where the
function field needs to be placed. Press the left mouse button down while dragging, to resize the object as
appropriate.
After the field has been placed in the report, the

‘Function editor’ window is activated.
The bottom half is the area for editing the

function. You can enter the name of the function
but it is not required. If you omit entering a name
the name will be "FunctionX", where "X" is the
number of the function. You can always change
the name later. After entering the function
contents you can validate the function by clicking
the ‘fx’ button.
Use the three panels in the top half to help in

building up the function. Double-clicking on an
element in the tree will automatically place the
appropriate piece of code in the editor below, in the function.
There is a tree view for selecting available fields (from report or database), one for selecting a specific type of
manipulation (expression or statement) and one for selecting functions.
If a function does not return a value (the 'return' statement is not present), the value returned from the function
is undetermined.
Example: If we want a function that returns the first 10 characters from the name of a customer we have to do
the following:
 Double-click the ‘Return’ expression in the middle tree view. While not shown here the editor part
will contain "return" after this.

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 Double-click the function
‘Left(string,number)’ in the ’Available
Functions’ tree view. Make sure that the
insertion cursor is placed between the
brackets of the ‘Return’ statement.
 Edit the second argument of the function

(the ‘Number’ behind the comma) to be 10.
 Then edit the first argument (the ‘String’

before the comma) by double-clicking the
customer name field in the database fields.
 Change the name of the function to a

meaningful name (e.g. CustomerName).
 Check the function by clicking the function-check button in the tool-bar of the function editor
window. If no error occurs, the syntax of the function is correct and you can click the OK button to
store the function in the report.
7.5 Text object

Select the option ‘Text Object’ and move the mouse cursor to the position in the report where the object needs
to go and keep the left mouse button pressed down to create the appropriate size of the object. After releasing
the mouse button, text can be edited. Changing the text afterwards can be done by clicking on the object with
the right mouse button and choosing ‘Edit Text’ from the context menu or by simply double clicking.
7.6 Line, Box and Picture

Select the option ‘Line’ or ‘Box’ and move the mouse cursor to the position in the report where the line or box
has to appear and keep the mouse-button suppressed while giving the line or box the appropriate size.
For adding a picture in a report, first select the picture, then move it to the place in the report and release it in
the report by clicking the left mouse button. By default the picture will have the same aspect ratio as the
original, and it can now be resized using the mouse.
Images which are stored in a database can also be added. For this, the field which contains the images has to be
added to the report.
7.7 Chart object

Select the option ‘Chart Object’ and move the mouse cursor to the position in the report where the chart has to
appear and keep the mouse-button suppressed while giving the chart the appropriate size. When the mouse is
being released the 'Insert Chart wizard' will appear. See paragraph 3.1 (Adding a chart).

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7.8 Sub-report
A sub-report is a report inside another report.
There are specific reasons for constructing
reports this way:
 Show details of data that is not related to

each other. For instance because the
data is not related, the data-types do not
match, or because the data resides in
separate databases.
 Combine two or more separate reports
into one report.
 Showing the same data multiple times in
one report, but with different dimensions.
A sub-report can either be linked, or not be linked to the main report. If the reports are not linked, the
information is not related, data from one report is not filtered by reference to the data presented in the other
report.
It is possible to link reports by using global variables in the filter functions and function fields. The following
example shows a main report with order-header information, linked to a sub-report showing order-details.
 Create a new report based on the table with order-header data and Group the data on order-number.
 Create a second Detail section, the report now shows ‘Details-A’ and ‘Details-B’
 Add a ‘Function field’ to the ‘Details - A’ section. The function will define a global variable named
“iOrder” that gets the value of the current order-number:
dim iOrder as global

let iOrder = {Orderhea.Order_Number}
return iOrder
 Hide section ‘Details -A’. We do this

because the result of the function is not
meant to be printed in the report.
 Add a sub-report by choosing 'Sub-

report' from the 'Insert' menu and place
it in section 'Details – B'. The ‘Report
Creation Wizard’ is activated for
creating the sub-report.
 Select the appropriate order-detail fields (no grouping and filtering).
 Open the sub-report by double clicking it. Add the following 'Filter Function':
dim iOrder as global

return ({OrderDtl.Order_Number} = iOrder)
Defining the global variable iOrder in the filter function is optional here, because it is already defined in the
main report, but it is good practice to leave it in for documentation purposes. The filter process will now
only use those order-detail records that belong to the current order record that was set in the main report.

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8. The Format menu
Items in the ‘Format’ menu are for changing the visual representation of objects. For
most options, a comparable button is placed on the button bar.
8.1 Font
The menu option 'Font' contains a sub-menu in which you can choose to make the field's
font bold, italic or underlined or to increase or decrease the font size. All five options also
have a button in the tool-bar to accomplish the same goal.
8.2 Lock size/position

With this menu option – also available as tool-bar button – you can lock the size and position of the object. This
means you cannot move the field with the mouse or cursor keys. The chosen state is saved for the object in the
report.
8.3 Suppress field

This option can be selected to suppress a selected field. The option is also available via a tool-bar button.
Remember that to conditionally suppress an object you can write a function via the field properties dialog.
8.4 Field properties

Depending on the type of object that is selected, the panel to change settings will have different tab pages.
8.4.1 Common
The first input field allows the name of
the object to be changed. The name of
the object does not need to be unique.
If the object refers to a function the
name of the function and the name of
the object might be different and it is
up to you to decide whether you want
to keep them in sync or not.
The second input field allows for

adding a tooltip text. A tooltip is the
text that will be visible when hovering
over the object with the mouse cursor.
A value is not required.
With the next four input controls you

can change the size and/or location of
an object. The value is internally stored
in TWIPS which means that the shown
value later is most likely to be slightly
different due to rounding.

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The data in an object can be shown as aligned to the left, to the right or in the center. The setting can be
specified via the combo-form or via the result of a function. An example of a function to align the field is:
if ({OrderHea.Order_Number} < 150) then

return drHorzAlignmentLeft
else
return drHorzAlignmentRight
end
By checking the checkbox ‘Suppress’, the object can be hidden in the report. Suppression can be conditionally
realized by using a function. Click the button on the right-side and enter a function. An example of a function on
how to suppress a field:
if ({OrderDtl.Qty_Ordered} = 0) then
return true
else
return false
end
Checking the ‘Lock Position and Size’ option locks the object so that size and location cannot be changed until
the object is unlocked again.
8.4.2 HTML
The ‘HTML’ tab page contains options that are specific for HTML output of reports.
‘Hyperlink id’ is meant for integration. Setting this value will create a DIV element when HTML output is chosen.
For further information on integration refer to the ‘DataFlex Reports Developer Guide’.
8.4.3 Border
On the ‘Border’ tab page the settings of
the object border can be changed. This
tab page is not available for all objects.
The available settings of border line

styles are:
 None (drBorderNone)
 Single (drBorderSingle)
 Double (drBorderDouble)
 Dashed (drBorderDashed)
 Dotted (drBorderDotted)
A border-line style can be conditionally

defined, using a function. Click the
button on the right-hand side to add
apply a function.
An example of using a function to

define a border:

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if ({OrderDtl.Qty_Ordered} < 1) then
return drBorderSingle
else
return drBorderNone
end
Pick one of the predefined colors from the drop-down or select a custom color from the RGB color range to set
the color of the borders.
Setting the color can also be done by using a function. Click the button to add a function.
An example of a function or setting a color:

return (drRed)
else
return (drBlack)
end
The background color can be set in the following styles:
 Solid (drSolidGradient)
 Horizontal (drHorizontalGradient)
 Vertical (drVerticalGradient)
Setting the gradient style can also be done by using a function. Click the button to add a function.
An example of a function or setting a gradient style:

return (drSolid)
else
return (drHorizontalGradient)
end
the color of the background. When the background-style is set to ‘Solid’ only the primary color is used. When a
gradient is selected the ‘End color’ defines the color on the right or bottom of the gradient. Setting the colors
can also be done by using a function. See the example above.
The bottom of the panel presents a preview sample of the result.

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8.4.4 Font
The ‘Font’ tab page contains settings that
control fonts: Size, color and styles. This tab
page is not available for all objects.
The first three combo boxes in the panel are for

defining the font, size and color.
The font, the size and the color of the font can
be defined conditionally by using a function.
An example of changing font settings:

return ("Courier")
else
return ("Verdana")
end
Note: make sure the named font is available on your development and/or the deployment machine.
For the styles, checkboxes can be used to display the font as ‘Bold’, ‘Italic’, ‘Underline’, and/or ‘Strikethrough’.
These setting can be conditionally defined by using a function as well.
An example of using a function for setting the font style:

return (true)
else
return (false)
end
The bottom of the panel shows an example of the result.

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8.4.5 Text field
If the field contains text (character strings or
textbox objects) the field properties dialog
contains a tab-page for text related settings.
With the first combo-form you can change the

rotation of the text in steps of 90 degrees. The
text can be presented normal, vertical, up-side-
down or reversed vertical. This can also be set
using a function, which must return a valid angle:
0, 90, 180, or 270.
return 90
Checking the checkbox ‘Variable Height’ will allow the field to automatically grow in height, if the content of the
field in the report will be larger than the original size of the object. This setting can be conditionally defined by
using a function. Such a function should return false or true.
Checking the checkbox 'Rich Text Format (RTF)' tells the system that the data contains RTF instructions that need
to be converted from RTF to formatting. This setting can be conditionally defined by using a function. Such a
function should return false or true.
Checking the checkbox 'RTL (right-to-left) Text' is meant for languages where writing starts at the right hand side
and continues to the left (reversed writing when compared to Western languages). Do not turn on this checkbox
if your data and fonts are not ready for it.
8.4.6 Date field

If the field contains a date (or a datetime) the
field properties dialog contains a tab-page for
formatting the date value.
The first combo box defines the date format:
 Windows long (drWindowsLongDate)

 Windows short (drWindowsShortDate)
 Custom (drCustomDate)
 Custom Mask (drCustomDateMask)
 None (drNone)
The setting can also be defined conditionally by

using a function. An example of such a function
is:

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Return ({User.DateFormat})
The ‘Custom’ option allows for several date settings. Depending on the settings, a ‘Date Mask’ of the object can
be set. The Date Mask determines how the date will be represented and can be designed manually or
conditionally by using a function.
The next table explains which codes can be used in a Date Mask.:
Code Representation
d The number of the day: 1 – 31
dd The number of the day, 2-digits: 01-31
ddd Abbreviated name of the day: Sat - Sun
dddd The full name of the day: Saturday - Sunday
M The number of the month: 1-12
MM The number of the month, 2-digits : 01-12
MMM Abbreviated name of the month: Dec – Jan
MMMM The full name of the month: December – January
yy The year, 2-digits: 00-99
yyyy The year, 4-digits: 0000-9999
g Period/era string, usually A.D.
For example, to get the date string "Wed, Aug 31 94", a "ddd',' MMM dd yy" mask should be used. Be aware that
the string values, like ‘ddd’, are returned in the user’s locale.
8.4.7 Time field

If the field is of the type time (or datetime) the
field properties dialog contains a tab-page to
format the time (part) of the data.
If the field’s data is a datetime value but the

time is not desired choose 'None' as your time
format. The same applies to the date part, you
can suppress the date.
With the first combo-form you select the

desired formatting from the following options:
 Windows default (drWindowsTime)

 Custom (drCustomTime)
 Custom mask (drCustomTimeMask)
 None (drNone)

using a function. An example of such a function
is:
Return ({User.TimeFormat})
The ‘Custom’ option allows for several date settings. Depending on the settings, a ‘Time Mask’ of the object can
be set. The Time Mask determines how the date will be represented and can be designed manually or
The next table explains which codes can be used in a Time Mask.:

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Code Representation
h Hours with no leading zero for single-digit hours; 12-hour clock
hh Hours with leading zero for single-digit hours; 12-hour clock
H Hours with no leading zero for single-digit hours; 24-hour clock
HH Hours with leading zero for single-digit hours; 24-hour clock
m Minutes with no leading zero for single-digit minutes
mm Minutes with leading zero for single-digit minutes
s Seconds with no leading zero for single-digit seconds
ss Seconds with leading zero for single-digit seconds
t One character time marker string, such as A or P
tt Multicharacter time marker string, such as AM or PM
For example, to get the time string "11:29:40 PM", use the "hh':'mm':'ss tt" mask.
8.4.8 Number field

If the field is of the type number (or
currency) the field properties dialog
contains a tab-page to format the
number.
The first combo-form allows selection

of the desired formatting from the
following options:
 Windows default number

(drWindowsNumber)
 Windows default currency
(drWindowsCurrency)
 Custom number (drCustomNumber)
 Custom currency
(drCustomCurrency)
The setting can also be defined

When a custom format is selected the

options to format the number will be enabled. If a custom mask format is selected the number mask entry will
be enabled.
The mask format is in the format LZ.ND;PF;NF;DS;TS;SY where:
 LZ is Leading Zeros; give a 0 for a leading zero or leave empty

 ND is Number of Decimals; give the amount of decimals in zeros or leave empty
 PF is Positive number Format where $ is a placeholder for a symbol
 NF is Negative number Format where $ is a placeholder for a symbol
 DS is Decimal Separator
 TS is Thousand Separator
 SY is the Symbol
The mask can also be set using a function. An example of such a function is:

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if ({Customer.Continent} = "Europe") then
//Format the number in EU (euro) format €1.000,00 / -€1.000,00
return "0.00;$1.1;-$1.1;,;.;€"
else
//Format the number in US (dollar) format 1,000.00$ / -1,000.00$
return "0.00;1.1$;-1.1$;.;,;$"
end
If ‘Suppress if Zero’ is checked DataFlex Reports will not print the number when the number equals zero, this can
also be set using a function.
8.4.9 Line field

If the field is of the type line the field properties
dialog contains a tab-page to format the line.
You can select the line style from the following

options:
 Solid (drLineSolid)
 Dash (drLineDash)
 Dot (drLineDot)
 Dash Dot (drLineDashDot)
 Dash Dot Dot (drLineDashDotDot)
 None (drLineNone)

using a function.
An example of such a function is:
if (gbImportant) then
return 1
else
return 4
end
You can select the line width from the second combo-form that shows a range from 1 to 3.5 points. The values
returned by a function are in twips, 15 twips equals 1 point, so a 1 point line requires a return value of 15.
In the color combo-form you can select a color for the line. The color can also be set from a function returning a
constant, a color number or the result of an RGB(R,G,B) function call.
Finally you can set the variable height of a line to true via the checkbox. This is active for vertical lines and made
effective if the section containing this line grows in height because of a variable height text field.

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8.4.10 Box field
If the field is of the type box the field
properties dialog contains a tab-page
to format the box.
The first three formatting options are

the same as a line object.
The fourth option is the rounding of

the box corners in a percentage
number from 0 to 100%. Zero means
no rounding, 100% makes it a circle or
ellipsis. A function can be used to
return the rounding percentage as
well.
The background color can be set in the

following styles:
 Solid (drSolidGradient)
 Horizontal
(drHorizontalGradient)
 Vertical (drVerticalGradient)
Setting the gradient style can also be done by using a function. Click the button to add a function.
An example of a function or setting a gradient style:

return (drSolid)
else
return (drHorizontalGradient)
end
the color of the background. When the background-style is set to a gradient using the combo box or by a
function the ‘End color’ will be enabled. Setting the colors can also be done by using a function. See the example
above.

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8.4.11 Image field
If the field is an image field the field properties
dialog contains a tab-page to specify the image
and format the image.
The first form allows you to specify the image to

be shown. Via the function button you can
specify a function to be called that returns the
name of an image.
By default the image is displayed using the

original aspect ratio and resized to fit inside the
field boundaries. This is the ‘Fit’ item of the
‘Image display’ option. It can be changed to ‘Fill’,
which ignores the aspect ratio and stretches or
compresses the image, or ‘Original’, which
keeps the original aspect ratio and size but clips
the image when it does not fit.
If the image name is a fixed location, the option

‘Embed image’ will include the image within the report file. This allows distribution of the report without
separate image files.
The ‘height’ and ‘width’ input boxes can be used to specify the exact dimensions of the image in pixels. The
‘horizontal scale’ and ‘vertical scale’ fields are useful for resizing an image by specific percentages.
8.5 Move
The ‘Move ‘ option supports ‘Forward’, ‘To Front’, ‘Backward’ and ‘To Back’. It is meant for arranging objects,
deciding which one is on top, or in the background (i.e. behind others).
Suppose that there are three objects in a report that are overlapping: A
text object, a box and a picture. If the picture is the last object that was
added to the report, it will end up on top, covering the other objects.
This is probably an unwanted situation.
To explain this move option, to the right is a screenshot of the Report

Explorer where the tree view shows the order and the arrangement of
the objects.
In this situation the image object would cover the text and box objects.
To let the picture object to go to the back, first click on the picture
object and then choose the ‘To Back’ option in the ‘Move’ menu. The
report explorer’s tree view will then look as follows:
Next, the box needs to go behind the text object. Select the box object
and click ‘Backward’ in the ‘Move’ menu. The tree view will now appear
as shown on the right.
As a result, the picture will be placed, then the box on top of it, and finally the text.
To move objects in the other direction (to the top) the options ‘Forward’ and ‘To Front’ are available.

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As well as managing the overlapping of objects the move object can be
used to cause a function field to be executed before another function
field or sub-report. If for example your sub-report needs to filter on the
value of a global variable that is set in a function you need to make sure
the function is executed before the sub-report is executed.
The tool-bar of the report explorer contains two buttons to move an

object forward or backward from its current order.
8.6 Align
Aligning multiple objects can be done thru the Align pulldown menu. The starting point of
the alignment is the first selected object.
Tops, Middles Bottoms, Left, Centers and Rights will align the selected objects at the same
corresponding value of the first selected object.
Baseline aligns the baselines of the objects at the baseline of the first selected object. A
baseline is the imaginary line under the text.
'Top to Bottom' spreads the selected objects over the height of the section, 'Left to Right'
will spread the objects over the width of the section.
Note when you use the lasso to select multiple objects the starting point is the first selected object in the report
explorer.
8.7 Size
When one or more fields are selected there are several options to manipulate the size. ‘Size to font’ changes the
size of each selected field to match the height of the font and the expected width of the field. ‘Size to section
height’ adjusts the position and height, so that each field covers the entire height of the section.
When multiple fields are selected they can easily be made the ‘same width’, ‘same height’, or both (using ‘same
size’).
Note that these options are unavailable when one of the selected objects has a locked position and size.

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9. The Database menu
Items in the database menu can be chosen to perform actions on the used
database in the report.
The menu options are discussed in their own paragraph below.
9.1 Database expert

The Database Expert is started from the ‘Database’ menu or by clicking the appropriate button in the button bar.
The window of the Database Expert is built up out of 3 parts: a tree view for selecting datasources, a tree view
with the selected tables and a graphic representation of the selected tables with the relationships.
9.1.1 Available datasources

Per report, only one
datasource can be used. If a
datasource is selected, the
tables and optionally the
database views will be
presented in the first tree
view.
The arrows in the top of the

dialog are for selecting and
adding tables to the report.
To add a single table, select the

table on the left side, and click
on the button with the single
arrow pointing to the right. A
table can also be added by
double-clicking it.
By selecting the ‘Tables’ or

‘Views’ part in the left tree
view all tables can be added by
clicking on the button with the
double arrow, or by double-
clicking.
If you click the Find button ( )the name of a table can be entered and DataFlex Reports will try to find that
table in the tree with available datasources. The Find Next button ( ) can be used to find the next table with
the entered name. You can enter a full or a partial name (like ‘inv’ for ‘inventory’).
The tree view for the datasources consists of five elements: Current, DataFlex, ODBC, Runtime Datasource and
Repository.

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Current
Current shows the currently selected datasource. This can greatly reduce the time spent on searching your
datasource if there are many.
DataFlex
Select ‘DataFlex’ in the left tree
view and click the ‘Open database’
button, or double-click the
‘DataFlex’ text to add a DataFlex
table as a datasource.
The DataFlex developer’s

environment uses ‘filelist.cfg’.
This is a configuration file that
captures all the tables that are
used in an application. In the
filelist.cfg relational links are
defined to other DataFlex tables
but also to other types of
databases, such as Microsoft SQL Server, Pervasive.SQL or IBM DB2. By choosing ‘DataFlex’ as the datasource it
is possible to combine data from different types of datasources.
Another option to using the filelist.cfg for opening tables is by opening a table directly or using a VDF
workspace. When using a VDF workspace (either a .sws or .ws file), the filelist accociated with the workspace is
automatically opened and DataFlex Reports uses the same search path as specified in the workspace file. When
opening tables directly both .dat and .int type files can be used.
ODBC
All databases, for which an ODBC driver is
available, can be used as a datasource for
DataFlex Reports. ODBC is short for Open
DataBase Connectivity and it’s a universal
way to access all sorts of databases. In order
to access a database via ODBC, the
appropriate driver needs to be installed.
The window for selecting an ODBC

datasource shows that there are three ways
of selecting an ODBC datasource:
 Select one of the registered user or

system DSN’s.
 Select a file DSN.
 Provide a ‘Connection string’.
A DSN (Data Source Name) is a set of details

(parameters) necessary for an ODBC-driver to access a specific database. There are three kinds of DSN’s:
Type Description
User The user DSN is stored in the Windows registry and is only accessible for a specific user.
System The system DSN is stored in the Windows registry and is available for all users on the
computer.

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Type Description
File Details are not stored in the registry, but in a separate file on disk. From Windows Vista
and up the default location is your documents folder. Make sure that you select a folder
accessible for all users.
If no DSN is available for a certain datasource, it can be defined using the ODBC Data Source Administrator. Read
more in the documentation of your Windows operating system about this.
If, for some reason, a DSN is not used, a Connection String can be used to connect to a datasource. An example
of a connection string: SERVER=(local);DRIVER=SQL Server;DATABASE=001;UID=sa. The connection string may be
different for each database driver. Refer to the documentation for your environment or attempt to find out the
right syntax via the ODBC Datasource manager.
Using ODBC views

If the ‘Show views’ option in the ‘Options’ dialog is checked all views defined in an ODBC datasource are
available in the ‘New Report Wizard’ and ‘Database Expert’. ODBC views work just like regular ODBC tables and
can be linked together.
Using ODBC stored procedures

If the ‘Show stored procedures’ option in the ‘Options’ dialog is checked,
the ‘New Report Wizard’ and ‘Database Expert’ will show all Stored
Procedures (SP’s) defined in an ODBC datasource. SP’s cannot be linked
to other tables or stored procedures. If an SP has input parameters, you
need to specify the values of them via the parameters branch in the field
explorer. Highlight the parameter and click the edit button or choose
'Edit' from the floating menu.
Parameters can also be set and retrieved from functions – like the filter
function – using the ‘{?ParamName}’ format where ‘ParamName’ is the
name of a input Parameter. For example, to set the value of a parameter in a filter function, use the following
code.
dim sOrder as global

let {?OrderID} = sOrder
return true // no further filtering

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Runtime datasource
Instead of getting data from a 'real'
database DataFlex Reports can also retrieve
data from an array of data.
The array needs to be populated by the

programmer that integrates the report with
his application. Runtime Datasource adds
extra power to DataFlex Reports as the
programmer can get data from any
datasource, including virtual datasources.
If you select this option you will get a modal

dialog in which you enter the table name,
add column names and their types and
lengths. After OK'ing the dialog all the other
normal steps to create a report are applied.
9.1.2 Selected database and tables

This part of the Database Expert dialog shows the database and tables in use for the report. You can remove one
or more tables. To remove one table select a table on the right side, and click the button with the single arrow,
pointing to the left.
After selecting the database (root) item, all tables can be removed at once by clicking the button with the double
arrows pointing left.
When you remove table(s) from the report you will get a question whether you really want to do this when the
report uses fields from the table. If you confirm the question the objects using the fields will be removed. The
designer will not enumerate all your functions and remove the database references. This means you must check
the functions in the report and change the references to the table(s) removed from the report.
9.1.3 Relationships
To use multiple tables in a report,
relationships must be defined between
those tables. In most cases the relationship
between two tables is based on two
common fields pointing from the field in
one table to the field in the other table.
Sometimes a relationship between tables
requires multiple fields, which is supported
by DataFlex Reports. The example on the
right shows the relationship from the
‘Customer’ table to the ‘Orderhea’ table.
Here the relationship is made from the

customer table to the orderhea table; such
a relationship is called a 1 to N relationship,
where each record in the main table can
relate to multiple child records; one customer can have multiple orders. If the relationship is made from the
orderhea table to the customer table, there is a 1 to 1 relationship. For 1 record from the main table there can
be only parent record (1 orderhea record can only have one customer and vice versa).

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For each report, the type of relationship between the tables needs to be defined. The way relationships are
made also influences performance, where such things as filtering criteria and indices on tables are an important
factor as well. The diamond symbol indicates that the given database field is (part of) an index.
A relationship is created by selecting the common field in the main file, and dragging the mouse while keeping
the left mouse button suppressed, towards the common field in the other, related table.
Relationships can only be made between two tables if the common fields are of the same type and length.
Clicking with the right mouse button on a field, offers the ‘Show Field Types’ option, showing the data-type and
field length.
For DataFlex tables the link to field needs to have a unique index.
The following table offers the options for the ‘Table Links’ buttons at the right hand side of the dialog.
Auto Link Automatically create relationships
Auto Size Automatically create the size of table panel
Auto Arrange Automatically arrange tables
Minimize Tables Minimize the table panel
Delete All Links Remove all the table links
Delete Selected Link Remove the selected link
Edit Link Properties Edit the properties of the selected link
By clicking on the line between two tables (the relationship) with the right mouse button shows the context
menu. Selecting the ‘Link Options’ choice or the button for the ‘Edit the link properties’ shows the panel for
changing the specific properties of the relationship.
When linking tables there can be only one starting point

(left-most table). For example in the Order Entry
workspace you can start from orderhea -> customer and
to salesp but you cannot go from customer and salesp at
the same time to orderhea.
In the following paragraphs the ‘Links Options’ are

explained.
Join type
The table below explains what the results are when the
different ‘Join Types’ of the relationships are used for the example of the customer and orders table. Fields from
the customer table as well as the orders table are used in the report, which is relevant because a relationship to
or from a table is ignored if no fields from that table are used in the report.
Join Type Description Result

Inner Join Shows all records for which the content of the All customers and their related orders,
related fields in both tables is exactly the same. but NOT customers without orders and
For a DataFlex datasource, this is the standard NO orders that are not related to a
join type. customer.
Left Outer Join Shows all records for which the content of the All customers and all related orders,
related fields in both tables is exactly the same including customers without orders.
AND the records of the main table even when
the value of the common field does not exist in
the related table.

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Join Type Description Result
Right Outer Join Shows all records for which the content of the All orders and related customers,
related fields in both tables is exactly the same including orders that are not related to
AND the records in the related table even when a customer.
the value in the common field does not exist in
the main table.
This type is not applicable for a DataFlex
datasource.
Full Outer Join Shows all records of both tables All customers and related orders,
This type is not applicable for a DataFlex including customers that have no
datasource. orders and orders that have no
customers.
Enforce join
For reports that use an ODBC datasource, a SQL statement is prepared for fetching the data set. The table below
explains the influence of ‘Enforce Join’ on the SQL query.
Enforce Join Description

Not Enforced The join is only executed if the main table as well as the child table are in the SQL Query.
Enforced From The join is forced when the child table is in the SQL query.
Enforced To The join is forced if the main table is in the SQL query.
Enforced Both The join is forced if either the main table, or the child table are in the SQL query.
Link type
The table below explains each ‘Link Type’.
Link Type Description

= Shows all records for which the related fields have the exact same value. This is the only
applicable type for a DataFlex datasource.
> Shows all records for which the related field of the main table is larger than that of the
child table.
>= Shows all records for which the related field of the main table is larger than or equal to
that of the child table.
< Shows all records for which the related field of the main table is smaller than that of the
child table.
<= Shows all records for which the related field of the main table is smaller than or equal to
that of the child table.
!= Shows all records for which the related field of the main table is unequal to that of the
child table.
9.2 Check database

When you create a report the collected information about the structure of the datasource will be stored with
the report. This means that DataFlex Reports knows about information such as the number of fields, the order of
these fields, the type of the fields, the indexes etc.
When you change the structure of one or more tables after the report creation you should use the option Check
database to get the report lined up with the table structure again. If you do not do this errors can be reported or
wrong information can be printed.
This option also needs to be chosen if you want to change the definition (number of columns, column names,
column types) of an RDS datasource.
Selecting Check Database performs a test using the following matrix:

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# Position Name Type Result
1 √ √ √ Match Position, name and type are same
2 X √ √ Match Name and type same, position
changed
3 √ X √ Match if others properties are the Position and type same, name
same, otherwise, no match changed
4 √ √ X No match (i.e. a string is changed Position and name same, type
to numeric, an automatic match changed
seems inappropriate)
5 X X √ No match Only type same
6 X √ X No match Only name same
7 √ X X No match Only position same
8 X X X No match
If no changes are detected you will see the notification
message as shown on the right.
If there are changes you will see a dialog in which the

stored database definition is shown on the left hand side
and the newly read database definition on the right hand
side. The differences between the stored and read
information are shown in bold in both tree view objects.
The screenshot clearly shows the following changes:
 The length of the field "SalesPerson_ID" has been changed from 4 to 5 characters.
 The field "Order_Total" does not exist anymore.
 A new field named "Processed" has been added with a length of 1 character.

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The first change is "simple", the adjustment can be done
fully automatically. The only point of importance might be
that you want to enlarge the size of the object that
displays the data.
The second change might have more consequences.

When the field is used it will be removed from the report
layout. When the field is not in use it is an easy change, it
simply vanishes from the table definition in the report.
The third detected change is a new field in the database

definition. If you take no action in the check database
dialog the new field will be added to the available fields in
the report and that’s it. But you can also map the field to
an object used in the report. For example, you might know
that it is the replacement for the removed "Order_Total"
field. To find out what to do you should make use of the
"Browse Field Data" functionality. This is available via the
first button on the button bar at the right tree view and
lets you explore the contents of the new field.
9.3 Set datasource location

This option under the ‘Database’ menu is for
changing the location of the datasource. To
do so, click the ‘Change location’ button and
select a new location for the datasource.
In the dialog you can browse the tables of

your current datasource (a DataFlex
database in this example) and alter the
information on the right hand side.
If the database is the DataFlex database and

the filelist was used to select tables you can
change the location of the filelist and/or the
connection string (which is the DataFlex DF_OPEN_PATH value). The location of the tables is relative to the
filelist which means that they are automatically relocated / found.
When the database is the DataFlex database but individual tables are selected the location of each of the tables
and/or the connection string can be changed.
When the database is an ODBC datasource you can change the datasource to be used and/or the connection
string used. If the current tree view item points at a table you can view the information but not alter it.
9.4 Edit RDS Sample Data

This option can be used to edit the data in the Runtime Datasource, if this is used as the report datasource. See
section 9.1.1 for more information about datasources.

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9.5 Browse data
This option under the ‘Database’ menu is useful for
inspecting the content of a selected database field. The
option is also available from a floating menu on a field in
the report.
The dialog has a checkbox – labeled ‘Show unique values

only’ – to get distinct values.
9.6 Show SQL query

This option under the ‘Database’ menu item is for showing
the SQL query that is used for fetching data from an ODBC
datasource.
The option is not selectable until the report has run at

least once in the preview window. The option is also not
selectable if the datasource is not an ODBC datasource.
It is not possible to change or replace the SQL script. You

can copy the information via the usual Windows copy key
(Ctrl +C) combination to an e-mail or into a script editor
window in for example Microsoft SQL Server Management Studio.
9.7 Select distinct records

For reports that use an ODBC datasource, the SQL ‘Distinct’ clause can be applied. When selected a details row
will only be printed when the values of above rows are different.
If this option is selected, a check-mark shows in the appropriate item of the ‘Database’ menu.
The two pictures to

the left show the
result of the no
distinct vs distinct. In
the right hand side
list (distinct) the
double Madrid line is
taken out.

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10. The Report menu
In the ‘Report’ menu we find the options to filter data, configure sections,
configure group, record and group sort ordering, refresh data, report
statistics, properties and options. Some of the options have a button in the
toolbar which starts the same operation.
10.1 Filter expert

The Filter Expert is launched from the
‘Report’ menu or by clicking the
appropriate button in the button bar. It
allows for specifying which records to
show in a report. When an ODBC
datasource is used the selection
information is passed to the SQL select
statement.
When the DataFlex database is used

DataFlex Reports attempts to perform
a jump into, jump out of index
operation to limit the number of
records to read from the database.
For more complex filters, filter functions can be defined manually. See paragraph 10.2 below.
Adding a filter starts with selecting a database field in the available fields tree view. The tree view shows two
top-levels: ‘Report fields’ showing the fields that are used in the report and ‘Database fields’ showing all tables
and fields.
Click on the ‘Browse Data’ button in the button bar at the top of the tree view, to inspect the content of a
selected field.
By clicking the ‘Find Field’ button a fieldname can be found. This is particularly useful if the tree view contains
many entries.
After selecting a database field a filter can be added, by clicking the button with the single arrow, pointing to the
right.
Removing a filter is done in a similar fashion. Select the filter and click the button with the single arrow pointing
to the left to remove the filter.
A filter can be added by selecting the type from the combo box, for instance: ‘is greater than’. Next, the value
can be entered in the entry form, for example ‘1000’, or by selecting a value from a selection list, by clicking the
prompt button.
Note: for DataFlex datasources, only filters on the left-most table can be optimized.

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10.2 Filter function
The ‘Filter Function’ is
designed for complex
filters and can be created
from the ‘Report’ menu.
Simple filters should be
entered using the ‘Filter
Expert’, see section 10.1
above. The filter function
depends on the return of
a value of ‘True’ (<>0) or
False (=0).
Example of a filter
function:
return (Left({OrderDtl.Item_ID},3) = "ACE")
In this example, only records are selected that contain item ID’s starting with ‘ACE’.
More detailed explanations of functions are given in chapter 12.
Note: filters defined using the ‘Filter-Expert’ and ‘Filter-Function’ are both used when selecting records.
10.3 Page Layer Expert

The Page Layer Expert can be used to add, delete, hide and manage page layers. Read more about page layers in
Chapter 16.

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10.4 Section expert
The 'Section Expert' can be started from the ‘Report’ menu, or by clicking the appropriate button in the button
bar, or by clicking the right mouse button left margin of the design window.
10.4.1 Available sections

A report is built up of several sections: ‘Report Header, ‘Page Header’, ‘Details’, ‘Report Footer’ and ‘Page
Footer’. For each Group in the report, 2 extra sections are added: a ‘Group Header’ and a ‘Group Footer’.
Section Description
Report Header The part of the report that is printed as the very first element
Page Header Printed at the beginning of each page
Group Header Printed at the beginning of each group
Details Printed for each record
Group Footer Printed at the end of each group
Report Footer Printed at the very end of the report
Page Footer Printed at the end of each page
The Section Expert is for changing settings, as well as adding new sections. The original sections cannot be
removed, though they can be hidden.
The sections of a report are shown in the available sections tree view. The button bar at the top of the panel is
for adding, merging or removing sections. At the right-hand side of the panel, options available for the selected
section are shown. For each option that supports conditionally switching the option on or off a button is
available.
Most options are self-explanatory. The 'Filler section' is available only for detail sections and can be used to fill
up the space between the last printed detail line and the group or page footer for example to draw vertical lines.
10.4.2 Sections
In some cases it makes sense to split up one section into multiple sections.

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Let’s suppose that the ‘Details’ section contains a field that can either have a value, or be empty. The empty field
could cause an unwanted white space in the report. By splitting up the Details section, the conditionally filled
field can be placed in that section. If the field is empty, the section can then be suppressed.
The image below shows a report with customer details split in ‘Details A’ showing data unconditionally, and
‘Details B’ showing details conditionally. The option ‘Hide this section' for the ‘Details B’ section is set by a
function to suppress that section in case the field is empty.
Another practical use of splitting sections is for supporting language dependencies. An extra section for each
language can be added. A section can then be suppressed or shown depending on a variable that indicates which
language should be used. Here is an example of a function for hiding a section based on a language code:
if ({Customer.Country} <> "USA") then

return (true)
else
return (false)
end
10.4.3 Options
The several settings of each section can be toggled by selecting the appropriate checkbox. It can be toggled
conditionally, based on a function as well. Check the appropriate checkbox and click the ‘Function’ button,
followed by entering the function.
An example of a function for hiding a section:

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if ({OrderDtl.Qty_Ordered}=0) then
return (true)
else
return (false)
end
The background color of a section can be set by choosing the preferred color in the combo box.
As mentioned before, functions are powerful. For example we can color each other row in the report output
through the results of a function. Use the following steps to create a report with output like:
Select the details section in the available sections tree view and click on function button of the background color.
Enter the following function, close the dialog and – if needed – refresh the report.
if (mod({&Record Number},2) = 0) then

return (rgb(255,255,255))
else
return (rgb(200,200,200))
end
10.5 Function Explorer

DataFlex Reports uses a VB-Like scripting language for functions. The
Function Explorer can be used to manage and edit these functions.
The Function Explorer can be launched from the ‘Report’ menu or by

clicking the appropriate button in the button bar. The Function
Explorer is displayed on the left, with the Function Editor on the
right.
With the Function Explorer users can navigate easily through all the
functions in a report. The functions are displayed per report section.
Both user defined as well as built-in functions are displayed.
The filter button can be used to hide sections without functions.
10.5.1 Function Editor

Functions selected in the Function Explorer can be edited in the Function Editor. More on functions can be found
in Chapter 12 (Functions).

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10.6 Group expert
The Group Expert can be
launched from the ‘Report’
menu or by clicking the
appropriate button in the
button bar.
In order to make complex

reports more readable, the
information can be split into
groups. By adding a new
Group to the report two extra
sections are added to the
report: a ‘Group Header’ and
a ‘Group Footer’.
For each group, a ‘Group

Name Field’ is created. The ‘Group Name Field’ has per default the same value as the field upon which the
grouping takes place, for instance customer number. But it is also possible to assign another value to it, for
instance the customer name or the result of a function.
Grouping can be based on a database field or based on a function.
Adding a group starts with selecting a database or function field in the available fields tree view. The tree view
shows three top-levels: ‘Report fields’ showing the database fields that are used in the report, ‘Function Fields’
showing the function fields defined in the report and ‘Database fields’ showing all tables and fields.
selected field.
many entries.
After selecting a database or function field a Group can be added to the report by clicking the button with the
single arrow pointing to the right.
Removing a group works in a similar fashion; select the Group and then click the button with the single arrow
pointing to the left. Note that fields placed in the group header or footer will be removed from the report.
An additional group is placed under the already existing groups. The order in which the groups appear can be
changed by selecting a group and then clicking the ‘Up’ or ’Down’ button.
If a group is selected, clicking the ‘Properties’ button shows the panel for the settings for that Group:
 The combo box ‘Sort order’ is for setting the sort order to ascending or descending.
 The default value of the ‘Group Name field’ is the same as the value of the field on which grouping takes
place; it can be set to any other field by selecting that field in the corresponding combo box.
 By checking the checkbox ‘Repeat Group Header On Each Page’ the ‘Group Header’ section is repeated on
each page of the report.

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10.7 Record sort expert
The Record Sort Expert can be
button bar.
Data can be sorted on the

value of one or more fields.
Adding a sort order starts

with selecting a database or
function field in the available
fields tree view. The tree view
shows three top-levels:
‘Report fields’ showing the
database fields that are used
in the report, ‘Function Fields’ showing the defined function fields and ‘Database fields’ showing all tables and
fields.
selected field.
many entries.
After selecting a database or function field, a new sort order can be added by clicking the button with the single
arrow pointing to the right.
Remove a sort order by selecting it and clicking on the button with the single arrow pointing left.
A new sort order is placed under already existing sort orders. The order of each can be changed by selecting it
and clicking the ‘Up’ or ‘Down’ button.
The combo box in the button bar at the top of the right-panel is for setting the sort order of each sorting field (to
ascending or descending).
Note that a group sort executes before a record sort which means that the record sort is always within a group
(if present).

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10.8 Group sort expert
The Group Sort Expert can be
button bar.
Data can be sorted on one or

more sum fields, using the
various kinds of sorting types.
After selecting a group, the

group sort options can be set
in the panel at the right-hand
side. Setting the sort options
is only possible if there is at
least 1 sum field for the
group.
The combo box ‘Group sort type’ is for setting the sorting type to: ‘None’, ‘All’, ‘Top N’, ‘Bottom N’, ‘Top N
percent’ or ‘Bottom N percent’. For the last four types the entry form ‘Where N is’ is enabled for entering the
value of ‘N’. For sorting type ‘All’ the combo box ‘Group sort order’ is enabled for selecting an ascending or
descending ordering.
The combo box ‘Sum to sort on’ is for selecting the sum field to sort on.
Check the option ‘Include ties’ to accommodate groups whose summarized values are equal. The example below
explains what the results are when the ‘Include ties’ option is checked for sort type ‘Top N’ and N = 3.
Sum value Option ‘Include ties’ not selected Option ‘Include ties’ selected
1000 √ √
750 √ √
500 √ √
500 - √
500 - √
250 - -
By checking the option ‘Include ties’, not three but five groups are selected.
10.9 Refresh report data

The ‘Refresh Report Data’ option in the ‘Report’ menu rereads the information from the datasource and
previews the report. The same function can be found via a toolbar button or pressing F5 .

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10.10 Performance information
The ‘Performance Information’
option in the ‘Report’ menu
provides information about the
performance of the report.
Select ‘Report Definition’ in the

tree view to find out how many
fields, groups, pages, etc. are
present in the report.
Select ‘Performance’ in the tree

view to find out how much time
was spent for opening the report
and for reading and sorting the
records. The information about
the time needed to read records
is presented here only after the results have been previewed.
10.11 Report document properties

The ‘Report Document Properties’ choice in
the ‘Report’ menu is for changing the
properties of the report.
The properties tab page is for entering a

title, subject, author, category and
keywords of this report.
Using the statistics tab page the version

number of the report can be entered and
the dates the report was created and saved
can be viewed.
The document properties can be used in the

report as special fields. See chapter 15 for
more information.

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10.12 Report options
The ‘Report Options’ choice in the
‘Report’ menu is for changing the
settings of the report.
The ‘Database character set’ combo

box is for selecting the correct
character-set, so that DataFlex Reports
can convert the data correctly. For the
DataFlex embedded database this is
normally OEM, for ODBC databases it
usually is ANSI.
When you have a printer that is capable

of printing from different paper trays
you can setup your report to use this
feature. In the dropdown list of ‘Default
source’ you can select the default paper tray to print from. This option will be saved in the report.
To print pages from different trays, such as printing the Report header and footer on a different paper type or
color, use a result from a function.
if {&Page Number} = 1 then

//Report Header, print from the upper bin
return drBinUpper
else
if {&Page Number} < {&Total Page Count} then
//Print from the middle bin
return drBinMiddle
else
//Report Footer, print from the lower bin
return drBinLower
end
end
It is possible to include a custom ANSI collation sequence in the report. This is loaded from a file and saved
within the report file. The custom collation sequence allows sorting based on character weight and includes the
code page for which the collation was created. See chapter 17 (ANSI collation sequences) for more information.
‘Always Sort Locally’ is only for reports using an ODBC datasource and is set to its default values as defined in the
global settings of DataFlex Reports, see paragraph 4.2.1.
Checking the checkbox ‘Suppress Printing If No Records’ avoids an empty page, showing just a header and footer
when no records were selected for the report.
The checkbox ‘Select Distinct Records’ is only for reports using an ODBC datasource. It forces a repeating
combination of certain values to be only shown once in a report. This setting can also be defined directly from
the ‘Database’ menu, see paragraph 9.7.
When the option ‘Add Ellipsis’ is set, DataFlex Reports will add ‘…’ before the last number in a numeric object
when the number exceeds the width of the object.

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11. The Language menu
DataFlex Reports supports a number of languages. Before changing the language, make sure that the Windows
Regional Options are set to the language of your choice. This ensures that the correct (ANSI) code page is
selected in Windows. Change the Regional Options in the Windows Control Panel. For full language support you
must change both the ‘Standards and formats’ option to ensure correct date and number handling and the
‘Language for non-Unicode programs’ option.
The name of these options may differ in various versions of Windows. After changing the Windows Regional
Options you can change the language in DataFlex Reports by choosing a language from the ‘Language’ menu.

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12. Functions
DataFlex Reports uses a VB-Like scripting language for functions these functions can be edited by clicking on the
function button when applicable.
Note: if a function does not return a value (the 'return' statement is not present), the value returned from the
function is undetermined.
12.1 Syntax
When writing functions you need to comply with the syntax rules in this section.
Rule Example
Text must be between single or double quotation-
"Ok"
marks. //or
'Ok'
Numbers must consist of one or more digits with a

(-0.75 * Amount)
dot as decimal separator and negative values must
be preceded by the minus sign.
Reference to a database column must be placed
{Customer.Name}
between curly brackets.
Reference to another function must be preceded by

{@discount}
the ‘@’ character and it must be placed between
curly brackets.
Reference to a (stored procedure) parameter must
{?MyParam}
be preceded by the ‘?’ character and it must be
placed between curly brackets.
Reference to a special field must be preceded by a
{&Total page count}
‘&’ character and it must be placed between curly
brackets.
The arguments of functions must be placed between
LTrim ({Customer.Name})
brackets.
Comment is preceded by 2 forward slashes.

// this is a comment
Multi line comment is possible by starting with a /*

/*
and ending with a */. Commented out by: SomePerson
Commented out at: Juli 2013
Let x= -10
*/
12.2 Language elements

The language elements are divided in the following functional groups:
 Expressions
 Statements
 Constants

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12.2.1 Expressions
The following expressions can be used inside functions.
Logical or, operator “or”

The result will be true when one of the two operands is true.
if ({Customer.Credit_Limit} = 0 or {Customer.Purchases} = 0) then

return 'credit limit or purchases is zero'
else
return 'neither credit limit or purchases is zero'
end
Logical and, operator “and”

The result will be True if both operands are True.
if ({Customer.Credit_Limit} = 0 and {Customer.Purchases} = 0) then

return 'credit limit and purchases are zero'
else
return 'credit limit and purchases are NOT zero'
end
Logical not, operator “not”

The result of the operation is the reverse of expression value.
if (not ({orderhea.status} = ‘Y’)) then

return drGreen
else
return drBlack
end
Comparison greater than, operator “>”

With this operator you can compare two operands (numbers or strings) with each other where the result is true
when the value of the left operand is greater than the value of the right operand.
if ({Customer.CurrentSpeed} > {Road.MaxSpeed}) then

return "You get a ticket"
else
return "Pass"
end
Comparison less than, operator “<”

when the value of the left operand is less than the value of the right operand.
if ({Customer.Credit_Limit} < {Customer.Purchases}) then

return drRed
else
return drBlack
end
Comparison greater than or equal to, operator “>=”

when the value of the left operand is greater than or equal to the value of the right operand.

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if ({Customer.Credit_Limit} >= {Customer.Purchases}) then
return drRed
else
return drBlack
end
Comparison less than or equal to, operator “<=”

when the value of the left operand is less than or equal to the value of the right operand.
if ({Customer.Credit_Limit} <= {Customer.Purchases}) then

return drRed
else
return drBlack
end
Comparison equal, operator “=”

when the value of the left operand is equal to the value of the right operand.
if ({Customer.Credit_Limit} = {Customer.Purchases}) then

return drRed
else
return drBlack
end
Comparison not equal, operator “<>”

when the value of the left operand is not equal to the value of the right operand.
if ({Customer.Credit_Limit} <> {Customer.Purchases}) then

return 'not equal'
else
return 'equal'
end
Arithmetic add, operator “+”

The operator is used to add two numeric values to each other.
return ({Customer.Credit_Limit} + {Customer.Balance})
Arithmetic subtract, operator “-”

The operator is used to subtract two numeric values from each other.
return ({Customer.Credit_Limit} - {Customer.Purchases})
Arithmetic multiply, operator “*”

The operator is used to multiply two numeric values.

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return ({OrderHea.Order_Total} * 2)
Arithmetic divide, operator “/”

The operator is used to divide two numeric values by each other.
return ({OrderHea.Order_Total} / 10.1)
Unary negate, operator “-”

You use this operator to reverse a numeric value (of an expression).
return (-{OrderHea.Order_Total})
When used as:
let iNum = -10

return (-iNum)
The result is positive 10.
Unary plus, operator “+”

The operator does not force a sign conversion by itself; it is more a documentation item. If you find:
Let iNum = +10
is more clear than:
Let iNum = 10
you can use the unary plus operator.
12.2.2 Statements
The function language has the following statements defined.
Let
For assigning a value to a variable, where the value can be a constant, a database field or an expression.
It is not necessary to declare the variable first, the type of variable is automatically determined based on the
content. The variable name must start with a letter, followed by a number of alpha-numeric characters
(including an underscore ‘_’).
let x = {OrderHea.Order_Total}
let y = 0.75
let z = (y * x)
In the above example, variable ‘x’ gets the value of the order amount (database field). The variable ‘y’ is a
constant (value 0.75) and variable ‘z’ is the outcome of the multiplication of 0.75 times the order amount
(expression).
If then end
For conditional execution of statements.

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if ({OrderHea.Order_Total} > {Customer.Order_Limit}) then
return 300
end
The result in this example is 300 if the Total order amount is higher than the order limit of the customer.
If then else end

For conditionally executing statements.
if ({OrderHea.Order_Total} > {Customer.Order_Limit}) then

return "!"
else
return "v"
end
The result in this example is an exclamation point (‘!’) if the Total order amount is higher than the order limit of
the customer. Otherwise the result is a check-mark (‘v’).
let iRed = rgb(255,0,0)

let iGreen = rgb(0,255,0)
let iBlack = rgb(0,0,0)
if ({OrderHea.Order_Total} > 0) then

return iGreen
else
if ({OrderHea.Order_Total} < 0) then
return iRed
else
return iBlack
end
end
The above example illustrates that it is possible to nest statements. The result is green for an amount higher
than 0, red for an amount less than 0 and black for equal to 0.
Note: for rgb color-codes, constants drRed, drGreen and drBlack can be used.
Return
Ends the function and sets the result for the function.
return ({Customer.Purchases} - {Customer.Balance})
In the above example the result is the differential between the total amount of purchases of the customer and
the balance.
While do end
This command group can be used to execute a loop.
The example below tests if a variable consists only of numbers. The characters are tested one by one. If a
character is found that is not a number, the loop is exited.
Note: The while loop automatically terminates when it iterates for more than 1000 times in order to avoid
infinite recursion, which causes the program to become unresponsive.

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let testval = "1234X5678"
let length = len(testval)
let testchar = ""
let stop = 0
let cnt = 1
// test if the variable ‘testval’ only consists of numbers

while ((cnt <= length) and (stop = 0)) do
let testchar = mid(testval,cnt,1)
let stop = (Not(instr("1234567890",testchar)))
let cnt = (cnt + 1)
end
if (stop = 0) then
return "variable consists only of numbers"
else
return "variable does not only consist of numbers"
end
Dim
This command declares a variable. The variable only exists inside the function. Declaring a variable is optional.
The ‘Let’ statement automatically declares a variable before assigning a value to it. The variable name must start
with a letter, followed by any number of alphanumeric characters, including the underscore (‘_’).
dim nAmt
let nAmt = ({OrderDtl.Extended_Price} * 0.75)
return nAmt
The result of this function is 75% of the amount.
Dim as global
This command declares a global variable. Global variables are persistent throughout the report. The name of the
variable must start with a letter, followed by any number of alpha-numeric characters, including an underscore.
dim gTotal as global

let gTotal = 1
return gTotal //The global variable is also available in other functions.
12.2.3 Constants
This part of the language elements shows which constants are defined and accepted in functions.
Category Values
Boolean  True
 False

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Category Values
Colors  drAqua
 drBlack
 drBlue
 drFuchsia
 drGray
 drGreen
 drLime
 drMaroon
 drNavy
 drOlive
 drPurple
 drRed
 drSilver
 drTeal
 drWhite
 drYellow
Date  drWindowsLongDate
 drWindowsShortDate
 drCustomDate
 drCustomDateMask
Time  drWindowsTime
 drCustomTime
 drCustomTimeMask
Number  drWindowsNumber
 drCustomNumber
Currency  drWindowsCurrency
 drCustomCurrency
Weekdays  drWindowsDayOfWeek
 drSunday
 drMonday
 drTuesday
 drWednesday
 drThursday
 drFriday
 drSaturday
Miscellaneous  drNone
Border styles  drBorderNone
 drBorderSingle
 drBorderDouble
 drBorderDashed
 drBorderDotted
Line styles  drLineNone
 drLineSingle
 drLineDouble
 drLineDashed
 drLineDotted
Text alignments  drHorzAlignmentLeft
 drHorzAlignmentCentered
 drHorzAlignmentRight

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Category Values
Sum types  drSum
 drAverage
 drMaximum
 drMinimum
 drCount
 drDistinctCount
Sum start  drReport
 drGroup1 … drGroup9
Gradients  drHorizontalGradient
 drVerticalGradient
 drSolid
Paper trays  drNone
 drBinUpper
 drBinLower
 drBinMiddle
 drBinManual
 drBinEnvelope
 drBinEnvManual
 drBinAuto
 drBinTractor
 drBinSmallFmt
 drBinLargeCapacity
 drBinCassette
 drBinFormSource
12.3 Built-in functions

The built-in functions are divided in the following functional groups:
 String functions
 Conversion functions
 Date and Time functions
 Arithmetic functions
 Miscellaneous functions
 Database functions

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12.3.1 String functions
Trim
Returns a string with leading and trailing spaces removed.
Syntax:
trim(str)
Argument Description
str Required. Any valid string expression from which the spaces will be
removed.
Returns: String
Notes: When str cannot be converted to a string, a runtime error is generated.
Sample:
let sTest = " Hello World "
return trim(sTest) // returns "Hello World"

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LTrim
Returns a string with leading spaces removed.
Syntax:
ltrim(str)
str Required. Any valid string expression from which the leading spaces
will be removed.
Returns: String
Sample:
return ltrim(sTest) // returns "Hello World "

// four spaces at the end are still there

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RTrim
Returns a string with the trailing spaces removed.
Syntax:
rtrim(str)
str Required. Any valid string expression from which the trailing spaces
will be removed.
Returns: String
Sample:
return rtrim(sTest) // returns " Hello World"

// four spaces at the start are still there

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Left
Returns a string containing a specified number of characters from the left side of the string.
Syntax:
left(str, int)
str Required. Any valid string expression from which the specified
number of characters are returned.
int Required. Any valid integer expression. The number of characters
returned.
Returns: String
Notes: When str or int cannot be converted to the specified type a runtime error is generated.
If int is 0, an empty string ("") is returned. If greater than or equal to the number of
characters in str, the entire string is returned.
Sample:
let sTest = "Hello World"
return left(sTest,5) // returns "Hello"

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Right
Returns a string containing a specified number of characters from the right side of the string.
Syntax:
right(str, int)
returned.
Returns: String
Notes: When str or int cannot be converted to the specified type a runtime error is generated.
If int is 0, an empty string ("") is returned. If greater than or equal to the number of
characters in str, the entire string is returned.
Sample:
return right(sTest,5) // returns "World"

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Mid
Returns a string containing a specified number of characters from a string.
Syntax:
mid(str, int1 [, int2])
int1 Required. Any valid integer expression. Starting position of the
characters in str to return. int1 is one based.
int2 Optional. Any valid integer expression. Number of characters to
return.
Returns: String
Notes: When the arguments cannot be converted to the specified type a runtime error is
generated.
If int1 is greater than the number of characters in str, the function returns an empty
string ("").
If int2 is omitted or if greater than or equal to the number of characters in str from
int1, the entire string from the start position is returned.
Sample:
let sTest = "Mid Function Demo"
let sRet1 = mid(sTest, 1, 3) // = "Mid"
let sRet2 = mid(sTest, 14) // = "Demo"
let sRet3 = mid(sTest, 5, 8) // = "Function"
return (sRet1 * sRet2 * sRet3) // returns "Mid Demo Function"

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UCase
Returns a string with all characters converted to uppercase.
Syntax:
ucase(str)
str Required. Any valid string expression which will be converted to
uppercase.
Returns: String
Sample:
return ucase(sTest) // returns "HELLO WORLD"

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LCase
Returns a string with all characters converted to lowercase.
Syntax:
lcase(str)
str Required. Any valid string expression which will be converted to
lowercase.
Returns: String
Sample:
return lcase(sTest) // returns "hello world"

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Len
Returns the number of characters in a string.
Syntax:
len(str)
str Required. Any valid string expression.
Returns: Integer
Sample:
return len(sTest) // returns 11

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InStr
Returns the starting position of the first occurrence of one string within another.
Syntax:
instr(str1, str2 [,int [,bool]])
str1 Required. Any valid string expression. The string being searched.
str2 Required. Any valid string expression containing the search string.
int Optional. Any valid integer expression containing the starting position
of the search.
bool Optional. Any valid Boolean expression indicating if the search is case
insensitive.
Returns: Integer
generated.
If int is omitted the search will begin with the first character.
If bool is omitted the search will be case-sensitive.
If str2 is not found the function returns 0.
Sample:
let iPos = instr("AbraCadaBra", "b")
return iPos // returns 2
//Example starting point:

let iPos = instr("AbraCadaBra", "r", 3)
//Example case sensitive search:

let iPos = instr("AbraCadaBra", "B")
//Example case insensitive search:

let iPos = instr("AbraCadaBra", "B", 0, true)

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InStrRev
Returns the starting position of the last occurrence of one string within another.
Syntax:
instrrev(str1, str2 [,int [,bool]])
str1 Required. Any valid string expression. The string being searched.
int Optional. Any valid integer expression containing the starting position
of the search.
insensitive.
Returns: Integer
generated.
If int is omitted the search will begin with the first character.
If str2 is not found the function returns 0.
Sample:
//Example case sensitive search:
let iPos = instrrev("AbraCadaBra","A",5)
//Example case insensitive search:

let iPos = instrrev("AbraCadaBra","A",5, true)

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Replace
Returns a string with all occurrences of substring replaced with another string.
Syntax:
replace(str1, str2, str3 [,bool])
str1 Required. Any valid string expression. The string in which the string
will be replaced.
str3 Optional. Any valid string expression containing the string which will
replace all occurrences of str2 in str1.
insensitive.
Returns: String
generated.
Sample:
//Example case sensitive replace:
let sTest = replace("ABC123abc", "abc", "def" )
return sTest // returns "ABC123def"
//Example case insensitive replace:

let sTest = replace("ABC123abc", "abc", "def", 1)
return sTest // returns "def123def"

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Asc
Returns the ANSI character code of the first characters in a string.
Syntax:
asc(str)
Returns: Integer
Sample:
return asc("a") // returns 97
return (asc (lcase (left ({Customer.Name},1))))

// depending on first character of customer name

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Chr
Returns the character associated with the specified ANSI character code.
Syntax:
chr(int)
int Required. Any valid integer expression containing the ANSI character
code.
Returns: String
Notes: When int cannot be converted to an integer, a runtime error is generated.
The range of int is between 0 and 255. Control characters (< 32) are allowed.
Sample:
return Chr(97) // returns "a"

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StrComp
Compares two strings and returns an integer indicating the result of the comparison.
Syntax:
strcomp(str1, str2 [,bool])
str1 Required. Any valid string expression.
str2 Required. Any valid string expression.
bool Optional. Any valid Boolean expression indicating if the compare is
case insensitive.
Returns: Integer
Return value Meaning

-1 str1 is lesser than str2
0 str1 is equal to str2
1 str1 is greater than str2
generated.
Sample:
//Example case sensitive compare:
let sStr1 = "ABCD"
let sStr2 = "abcd"
// This is a case sensitive comparison.

return strcomp(sStr1, sStr2, 0) // returns -1 (less than)
// Example case insensitive compare:

let sStr1 = "ABCD"
let sStr2 = "abcd"
// This is a case insensitive comparison.

return strcomp(sStr1, sStr2, true) // returns 0 (equal to)

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StrReverse
Returns a string with the order of characters reversed.
Syntax:
strreverse(str)
Returns: String
Sample:
return strreverse(sTest) // returns "dlroW olleH"
return strreverse({customer.name})
// when in above the customer name is "True Value & Tool Comp"
// the result is: "pmoC looT & eulaV eurT"

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String
Build up a string with repetitions of the passed string argument.
Syntax:
string(int, str)
returned.
str Required. Any valid string expression. You can use a number that
corresponds with an ASCII character.
Returns: String
generated.
Sample:
return string(5, 42) // returns "*****"
return string(4, "a") // returns "aaaa"
return string(3, " sample ") // returns " sample sample sample "

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Space
Returns a string that contains 1-256 space characters.
Syntax:
space(int)
int Required. Any valid integer expression. The number of spaces
returned.
Returns: String
Notes: When int cannot be converted to the specified type a runtime error is generated.
The value of int needs to be between 1 and 256. Above or below you will get a runtime
error.
Sample:
return ("Hello" + Space(3) + "World") // returns "Hello World"

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ProperCase
Formats a string by upper- and lowercasing the input value using optional rules.
Syntax:
propercase(str1 [,str2])
str1 Required. Any valid integer expression.
str2 Optional. Overrides the default behavior of capitalizing the first alpha
character after each space.
The first alpha character in string is capitalized when a non-alpha
character is found that matches a non-alpha character in override
string.
When the override string contains an upper case alpha character all
corresponding characters in string will be upper cased.
If in override string a lower case alpha character is used all
corresponding characters in string will be lower cased.
Returns: String
generated.
Sample:
return ProperCase("JOHN DOE") // returns "John Doe"
return ProperCase("sentence one. sentence two", ".")

// returns "Sentence one. Sentence two"
return ProperCase("12ABcdef !gH", "aDE!") // returns "12abcDEf !Gh"
return ProperCase("1, string: ONE. 2, string: TWO.", ":t")

// returns "1, String: One. 2, String: two"

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NumberToRoman
Returns a Roman presentation of an integer.
Syntax:
numbertoroman(int)
int Required. Any integer expression. The value to be converted to a
Roman presentation.
Returns: String
Notes: Roman numbers have a range from 1 to 3999, when passing a number greater than
3999 a runtime error is generated.
Sample:
return NumberToRoman(459) // returns CDLIX
return NumberToRoman(year(now())) // returned MMXIII in 2013

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12.3.2 Conversion functions
CInt
Returns an expression converted to an integer.
Syntax:
cint(exp)
exp Required. Any valid expression.
Returns: Integer
Notes: CInt rounds expressions. When the fractional part is exactly 0.5, CInt always rounds to
the nearest even number.
CInt uses the locale settings to convert expression to integer.
When exp cannot be converted to an integer, a runtime error is generated.
Sample:
let nTest = 2345.6789
return cint(nTest) // returns 2346

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CBool
Returns an expression converted to a Boolean.
Syntax:
cbool(exp)
Returns: Boolean
Notes: If exp evaluates to zero, CBool returns false (0); otherwise CBool returns true (-1).
When exp cannot be converted to a Boolean, a runtime error is generated.
Sample:
let A = 4
let B = 5
return cbool(A = B)

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CByte
Returns an expression converted to a byte.
Syntax:
cbyte(exp)
Returns: Byte
Notes: CByte rounds expressions. When the fractional part is exactly 0.5, CByte always rounds
to the nearest even number.
CByte uses the locale settings to convert exp to byte.
When exp cannot be converted to a byte (0-255), a runtime error is generated.
Sample:
let nTest = 125.5678
return cbyte(nTest) // returns 126

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CCur
Returns an expression converted to a currency.
Syntax:
ccur(exp)
Returns: Currency
Notes: CCur rounds expressions to four decimals and uses the locale setting for decimal and
thousand separators.
When exp cannot be converted to a Currency, a runtime error is generated.
Sample:
let nTest = 125.5678
return ccur(nTest) // returns 543.2146 (4 decimal currency)

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CDate
Returns an expression converted to a date.
Syntax:
cdate(exp)
Returns: DateTime
Notes: CDate uses the locale settings to convert expression to date.
When exp cannot be converted to a date, a runtime error is generated.
Sample:
let sTest = "February 10 2010"
return cdate(sTest)

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CDbl
Returns an expression converted to a double.
Syntax:
cdbl(exp)
Returns: Double
Notes: CDbl uses the locale settings to convert expression to double.
When exp cannot be converted to a double, a runtime error is generated.
Sample:
let nTest = ccur(234.456784)
let nCurr = (nTest * 8.2 * 0.01)
return cdbl(nCurr) // returns 19.2254576

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CLng
Returns an expression converted to a (long) integer.
Syntax:
clng(exp)
Returns: Integer (32 bit)

Notes: CLng rounds expressions. When the fractional part is exactly 0.5, CLng always rounds to
the nearest even number.
CLng uses the locale settings to convert expression to integer.
When exp cannot be converted to an integer, a runtime error is generated.
Sample:
let nDouble = 75.3421115
return clng(nDouble) // returns 75

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CSgn
Returns an expression converted to a single precision floating point.
Syntax:
csgn(exp)
Returns: Single precision floating point number

Notes: CSgn uses the locale settings to convert expression to single.
When exp cannot be converted to a numeric value, a runtime error is generated.
Sample:
let nDouble = 75.342111568945835
return cstr(csgn(nDouble)) // returns 75.34211156894584

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CStr
Returns an expression converted to a string.
Syntax:
cstr(exp)
Returns: String
Notes: When exp cannot be converted to a string, a runtime error is generated.
Sample:
let nTest = 123.456
return ("Amount: " + cstr(nTest)) // returns "Amount: 123.456"

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12.3.3 Date and time functions
Now
Returns the current date and time.
Syntax:
now()
Returns: DateTime
Notes:
Sample:
let dtSys = now()
return dtSys // returns current date and time

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Date
Returns the current date.
Syntax:
date()
Returns: DateTime
Notes:
Sample:
let dSys = date()
return dSys // returns current date

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Time
Returns the current time.
Syntax:
time()
Returns: DateTime
Notes: Time returns a DateTime variable with the date portion set to December 30, 1899.
Sample:
let iTime = time()
return iTime // returns current time

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Year
Returns the year from a datetime expression.
Syntax:
year(date)
date Required. Any valid datetime expression from which the year will be
returned.
Returns: Integer
Notes: When date cannot be converted to a datetime, a runtime error is generated.
Sample:
// the following returns the current year
let dtSys = now()
return year(dtSys)
// the following returns the number of years between two dates

return (year(now) – year({Orderhea.Order_Date})

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Month
Returns the month from a datetime expression.
Syntax:
month(date)
date Required. Any valid datetime expression from which the month will
be returned.
Returns: Integer
When date is passed as string, your PC’s regional settings are used for the conversion to
datetime. If that fails you get a runtime error.
Sample:
// returns the month (2) of the year
return month("3 february 2010")
// returns the month of the order date

return month({orderhea.order_date})
// returns the month (2) of the constructed date via DateSerial

return month(dateserial(2000,2,3))
// returns the month of the static date string

return month("02/03/2000")

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Day
Returns the day from a datetime expression.
Syntax:
day(date)
date Required. Any valid datetime expression from which the day will be
returned.
Returns: Integer
Sample:
// returns the day of the month of the orderdate
return day({OrderHea.Order_Date})

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Hour
Returns the hour from a datetime expression.
Syntax:
hour(date)
date Required. Any valid datetime expression from which the hour will be
returned.
Returns: Integer
Sample:
let dtSys = now()
return hour(dtSys) // returns the hour of the current time

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Minute
Returns the minute from a datetime expression.
Syntax:
minute(date)
date Required. Any valid datetime expression from which the minute will
be returned.
Returns: Integer
Sample:
let dtSys = now()
return minute(dtSys) // returns the minute of the current time

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Second
Returns the second from a datetime expression.
Syntax:
second(date)
date Required. Any valid datetime expression from which the second will
be returned.
Returns: Integer
Sample:
let dtSys = now()
return second(dtSys) // returns the second of the current time

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Weekday
Returns an integer indicating the day of the week from a datetime expression.
Syntax:
weekday(date)
date Required. Any valid datetime expression from which the weekday will
be returned.
Returns: Integer
WeekDay does not use the locale settings to calculate the weekday – it always returns
the same value for a specific day of the week.
Sample:
// returns 1 (Sunday = 1 , Monday = 2 ...)
return weekday(dateserial(2014,5,30))
// Returns a text based on the compare if the weekday is monday

if (weekday ({OrderHea.Order_Date}) = drMonday) then
return "first day"
else
return "other day"
end

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WeekdayName
Returns a string holding the day of the week from a datetime expression.
Syntax:
weekdayname(date [,bool])
date Required. Any valid datetime expression from which the weekday will
be returned.
bool Optional. When a true value is passed the abbreviated name of the
weekday is returned (e.g. "mo" instead of "Monday").
Returns: String
WeekDayName uses the locale settings to determine the name of the weekday.
Sample:
// returns "Friday" when PC’s regional settings are set to English
return weekdayname(dateserial(2014,5,30))

z
MonthName
Returns a string holding the month from a datetime expression.
Syntax:
monthname(date [,bool])
date Required. Any valid datetime expression from which the month will
be returned.
bool Optional. When true, the returned name is the abbreviated name of
the month (e.g. Sep vs September).
Returns: String
MonthName uses the locale settings to determine the name of the month.
Sample:
// returns "May" when PC’s regional settings are set to English
return weekdayname(dateserial(2014,5,30))

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DateDiff
Returns the interval between two dates.
Syntax:
datediff(str, date1, date2)
str Required. One of the following letters, static or as result of an valid
expression:
 D (day)
 H (hour)
 N (minute)
 S (second)
date1 Required. Any valid datetime expression.
date2 Required. Any valid datetime expression.
Returns: Integer
generated.
Sample:
// returns the number days between current date and time and the
// stored order date and time
return datediff('D', now(), {OrderHea.Order_Date})

z
DateAdd
Returns a date with the specified interval added.
Syntax:
dateadd(str, int, date)
str Required. Any valid string expression containing the interval:
 D (day)
 H (hour)
 N (minute)
 S (second)
int Required. Any valid integer expression holding the amount to add.
date Required. Any valid datetime expression to which the interval is
added.
Returns: DateTime
generated.
Sample:
// Adds 2 days to the order date
return dateadd ('D', 2, {OrderHea.Order_Date})
// Print order date and date to pay

return ('Ordered at: ' + cstr({OrderHea.Order_Date}) +
', pay before: ' + cstr(dateadd ('D', 14, {OrderHea.Order_Date})))

z
DatePart
Returns the specified part from a date.
Syntax:
datepart(str, date)
str Required. Any valid string expression containing the interval:
 D (day)
 H (hour)
 N (minute)
 S (second)
 Yyyy (year)
 M (month)
 Y (day of year)
 W (weekday)
date Required. Any valid datetime expression to which the interval is
added.
Returns: Integer
generated.
Sample:
// Returns the day number of the order date
return datepart("D", {OrderHea.Order_Date})
// returns the difference between now and the order date in years,
// months and days. Days can be negative, no correction made on that.
let iYears = datepart("Yyyy", now())
- datepart("Yyyy", {OrderHea.Order_Date})
let iMonths = datepart('M', now())
- datepart('M', {OrderHea.Order_Date})
let iDays = datepart('D', now())
- datepart('D', {OrderHea.Order_Date})
return ("Difference: " + cstr(iYears) + ' years, '

+ cstr(iMonths) + ' months and '
+ cstr(iDays) + ' days')

z
DateSerial
Returns a date from the specified year, month and day.
Syntax:
dateserial(int1, int2, int3)
int1 Required. Any valid integer expression containing the year.
int2 Required. Any valid integer expression containing the month.
int3 Required. Any valid integer expression containing the day.
Returns: DateTime
generated.
DateSerial returns a datetime with the time portion set to midnight.
For int1 (the year), values between 0 and 99 are interpreted as the years 1900-1999.
Sample:
// Constructs a new date by subtracting 10 years from the static year
1990
let dVar = dateserial(1990 - 10, 5, 31)
return dVar // returns 31 May, 1980

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TimeSerial
Returns a time from the specified hour, minute and second.
Syntax:
timeserial(int1, int2, int3)
int1 Required. Any valid integer expression containing the hour.
int2 Required. Any valid integer expression containing the minute.
int3 Required. Any valid integer expression containing the second.
Returns: DateTime
generated.
DateSerial returns a datetime with the time portion set to midnight.
TimeSerial returns a datetime variable with the date portion set to December 30, 1899.
Sample:
// returns Saturday, december 30, 1899 6:15:00 AM
let dtTime = timeserial((12 - 6), 15, 0)
return dtTime

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DateValue
Returns a date from the specified expression.
Syntax:
datevalue(str)
str Required. Any valid string expression containing the date.
Returns: DateTime
generated.
DateValue uses the locale settings to determine the date.
DateValue returns a date with the time portion set to midnight.
Sample:
// returns a fixed date; Saturday, June 05, 2010, 12:00:00 AM
return datevalue("06/05/2010")
// returns the date of now, so current date.

// The result is identical to Date()
return datevalue(now())

z
TimeValue
Returns a time from the specified expression.
Syntax:
timevalue(str)
str Required. Any valid string expression containing the time.
Returns: DateTime
generated.
TimeValue uses the locale settings to determine the date.
TimeValue returns a datetime variable with the date portion set to December 30, 1899.
Sample:
// returns Saturday, december 30, 1899 12:34:00 PM
return timevalue("12:34")
// returns the time of now, so current time. The result is identical

to Time()
return timevalue(now())

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InLeapYear
Returns whether the specified date expression resolves to a leap year or not.
Syntax:
inleapyear(date)
date Required. Any valid date expression.
Returns: Boolean
generated.
Sample:
// Are we in a LeapYear?
if InLeapYear(now()) then
return "We are in a leap year"
else
return "We are not in a leap year"
end

z
WeekAgo
Returns a date and time minus 7 days from the specified date and time.
Syntax:
weekago(datetime)
datetime Required. Any valid date expression containing a date.
Returns: DateTime
generated.
WeekAgo returns a datetime variable with the time portion set to 0:00:00 if no time
value is given.
Sample:
// returns Monday, march 25, 2013 00:00:00 PM
return WeekAgo("01-04-2013")
// returns the time of now minus 7 days with the current time.
return WeekAgo(now())

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InLast7Days
Returns true if the specified date expression is in the last 7 days.
Syntax:
inlast7days(date)
Returns: Boolean
generated.
Sample:
// Placed in a Font Color function
if InLast7Days({OrderHea.Order_Date}) then
return drBlack
else
return drRed
end

z
InLastFullMonth
Returns true when the specified date is in the last full month.
Syntax:
inlastfullmonth(date)
Returns: Boolean
generated.
Sample:
if InLastFullMonth({OrderHea.Order_Date}) then
return drBlack
else
return drRed
end

z
InLastFullWeek
Returns true if the passed date is in the last full week (Sunday to Saturday).
Syntax:
inlastfullweek(date)
Returns: Boolean
generated.
Sample:
if InLastFullWeek({OrderHea.Order_Date}) then
return drBlack
else
return drRed
end

z
InLastYearMTD
Returns true if the passed date falls in any date in the current month last year up to the current date last year. If
the current date is 2014-12-18 any date passed that is between 2013-12-01 and 2013-12-18 is valid.
Syntax:
inlastyearmtd(date)
Returns: Boolean
generated.
Sample:
if InLastYearMTD({OrderHea.Order_Date}) then
return drBlack
else
return drRed
end

z
InLastYearYTD
Returns true if the passed date falls in any date in the last year up to the current date last year. If the current
date is 2014-12-08 any date passed that is between 2013-01-01 and 2013-12-08 is valid.
Syntax:
inlastyearytd(date)
Returns: Boolean
generated.
Sample:
if InLastYearYTD({OrderHea.Order_Date}) then
return drBlack
else
return drRed
end

z
InLast4WeeksToSunday
Returns true if the passed date falls in the last four weeks ending the last Sunday. If the current date is 2013-08-
20 any date passed that is between 2013-07-21 and 2013-08-17 is valid.
Syntax:
inlast4weekstosunday(date)
Returns: Boolean
generated.
Sample:
if InLast4WeeksToSunday({OrderHea.Order_Date}) then
return drBlack
else
return drRed
end

z
InAgedToDays
Returns true if the passed date is between a number of days ago.
Syntax:
inagedtodays(date, num1 [,num2])
num1 Required. The maximum days ago.
num2 Optional. The minimum number of days ago. Default = 0.
Returns: Boolean
generated.
Sample:
if InAgedToDays({OrderHea.Order_Date}, 30) then
return drBlack
else if InAgedToDays({OrderHea.Order_Date}}, 60, 31) then
return drYellow
else if InAgedToDays({OrderHea.Order_Date}, 90, 61) then
return rgb(205,140,0) // Orange
else // Date is > 90 days ago
return drRed
end

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12.3.4 Arithmetic functions
Abs
Returns the absolute value of a number.
Syntax:
abs(num)
num Required. Any numeric expression.
Returns: Number
Notes: When num cannot be converted to a number, a runtime error is generated.
Sample:
let nVar = -50.3
return abs(nVar) // returns 50.3

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Atn
Returns the arctangent of a number.
Syntax:
atn(num)
Returns: Number
Sample:
return (4 * Atn(1))
// returns 3.14 (when the field has a 2 decimal format)

z
Cos
Returns the cosine of an angle.
Syntax:
cos(num)
num Required. Any numeric expression. Represents the angle in radians.
Returns: Number
To convert degrees to radians, multiply degrees by pi/180.
Sample:
return cos(1.047)

z
Sin
Returns the sine of an angle.
Syntax:
sin(num)
Returns: Number
Sample:
return sin(0.5235988)

z
Tan
Returns the tangent of an angle.
Syntax:
tan(num)
Returns: Number
Sample:
return tan(0.593412)

z
Log
Returns the natural logarithm of a number.
Syntax:
log(num)
num Required. Any numeric expression greater than 0.
Returns: Number
Sample:
return log(86)

z
Sqr
Returns the square root of a number.
Syntax:
sqr(num)
num Required. Any numeric expression greater than 0.
Returns: Number
Sample:
return sqr(23)

z
Exp
Returns the natural antilogarithm of a number.
Syntax:
exp(num)
num Required. Any numeric expression. If num exceeds 709.782712893 an
error is generated.
Returns: Number
Sample:
return exp(5)

z
Fix
Returns the integer portion of a number.
Syntax:
fix(num)
Returns: Integer
Notes: When num cannot be converted to an integer, a runtime error is generated.
Sample:
return fix(-99.8)
// returns -99

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Sgn
Returns an integer indicating the sign of a number.
Syntax:
sgn(num)
Returns: Integer, the following can be returned:
num returned value

Greater than zero 1
Zero 0
Less than zero -1

Sample:
return sgn(-3)
// returns -1

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Mod
Returns the remainder after a number is divided by a divisor.
Syntax:
mod(num1, num2)
num1 Required. Any numeric expression. Specifies the value to divide.
num2 Required. Any numeric expression greater than 0. Specifies the
number to divide by.
Returns: Number
Sample:
let nTest = mod(47.9, 9.35)
return nTest // returns 1.15

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Round
Returns a rounded number.
Syntax:
round(num [,exp [,type]])
num Required. Any numeric expression. The number to be rounded.
exp Optional. Any numeric expression. The number of decimals included
in the rounding or when type is drRoundUpToExp or
drRoundDownToExp the number to round to.
type Optional. One of the following constants defining a method of
rounding:
 drRoundHalfToEven (default) rounds to the nearest even
number.
As default "Gaussian" rounding will be used. This method uses
the Gauss rule, also known as the "Banker's rounding", that if you
are in a perfect half case, you must round to the nearest digit
that can be divided by 2 (0, 2, 4, 6, and 8). This rule is important
to obtain more accurate results with rounded numbers after
multiple mathematical operations.
 drRoundHalfUp rounds half towards positive infinity.
That is, half-way numbers are always rounded up. If the fraction
of num is exactly 0.5, then the result is num + 0.5. For example,
by this rule the value 23.5 gets rounded to 24, but −23.5 gets
rounded to −23.
 drRoundHalfDown rounds half towards negative infinity.
As opposed from drRoundHalfUp, drRoundHalfDown will round
num down. For example 23.5 is rounded to 23 and -23.5 will be
rounded to -24.
 drRoundHalfToZero rounds half away from infinity.
That is, half-way numbers are always rounded towards zero. If
the fraction of num is exactly 0.5, then the result is num - 0.5.
For example, by this rule the value 23.5 gets rounded to 23, but
−23.5 becomes −23.
 drRoundHalfFromZero rounds half towards infinity.
That is, half-way numbers are always rounded away from zero. If
the fraction of num is exactly 0.5, then the result is num + 0.5.
For example, by this rule the value 23.5 gets rounded to 24, but
−23.5 gets rounded to −24.
 drRoundFromZero rounds towards infinity.
The function returns the smallest number which is not less than
the input. For example, 12.2 gets rounded to 13 and -12.2 gets
rounded to -13.
 drRoundToZero rounds away from infinity.
The function returns the smallest number which does not exceed
the input. For example, 12.2 gets rounded to 12 and -12.2 gets
rounded to -12.
 drRoundUp rounds towards positive infinity.
Aka take the ceiling, the function returns the smallest integer
that is not less than num. For example, 12.2 gets rounded to 13,
but -12.2 gets rounded to -12.

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 drRoundDown rounds towards negative infinity.
Aka take the floor, the function returns the largest integer that
does not exceed num. For example, 12.2 gets rounded to 12, but -
12.2 gets rounded to -13.
 drRoundUpToExp rounds up to the power of.
The number will be rounded up to the first multiplied value of
exp that is not less than num. This rounding is called the
"Merchants rounding" as it is most used to avoid penny prices on
products. See example below.
 drRoundDownToExp rounds to available value.
The number will be rounded up to the largest multiplied value of
exp that does not exceed num. See example below.
Returns: Number
Sample:
return round(32.445, 2) // returns 32.44
return round(32.445, 2, drRoundHalfUp) // returns 32.45
return round(32.445, 2, drRoundHalfDown) // returns 32.44
return round(32.445, 2, drRoundHalfToZero) // returns 32.44
return round(32.445, 2, drRoundHalfFromZero) // returns 32.45
return round(9.555, 2) // returns 9.56

return round(9.555, 2, drRoundDown) // returns 9.55
return round(9.555, 2, drRoundUp) // returns 9.56
return round(-8.205, 2) // returns -8.20

return round(-8.205, 2, drRoundDown) // returns -8.20
return round(-8.205, 2, drRoundUp) // returns -8.21
return '$ ' + round(37.53, 0.05, drRoundUpToExpr)

// returns $ 37.55
return '$ ' + round(37.53, 0.05, drRoundDownToExpr)
// returns $ 37.50
let AmountSold = 200

let OrderAmount = 144 // supplier delivers by the gross
return round(AmountSold, OrderAmount, drRoundUpToExpr)
// returns 288
let AmountAvailable = 200

let SendAmount = 12 // We deliver by the dozen
return round(AmountAvailable, SendAmount, drRoundDownToExpr)
// returns 192

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12.3.5 Miscellaneous functions
RGB
Returns a color constant.
Syntax:
rgb(int1, int2, int3)
int1 Required. Any integer expression. The Red component of the color
ranging from 0 to 255.
int2 Required. Any integer expression. The Green component of the color
int3 Required. Any integer expression. The Blue component of the color
Returns: Integer
Notes: If any color component exceeds 255, the value 255 is used.
Sample:
let red = rgb(255,0,0)
let green = rgb(0,255,0)
let black = rgb(0,0,0)
if ({OrderHea.Order_Total} > 0) then

return green
else
if ({OrderHea.Order_Total} < 0) then
return red
else
return black
end
end

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TypeName
Returns a string representing the type of expression.
Syntax:
typename(exp)
Returns: String
Notes: The following values can be returned:
exp Returns
Empty, only defined variable Empty
Cint(123.4) Integer
1234.5 Double
Ccur(12.78) Currency
Now() Date
‘abc’ String
1<2 Boolean
To use the returned value in a comparison, use a case insensitive compare.
Sample:
let iTest = cint(123.456)
return typename(iTest) // returns "Integer"
if (ucase(typename(iTest)) = "INTEGER") then

return "Integer value"
else
return "Not an Integer value"
end

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VarType
Returns an integer indicating the type of expression.
Syntax:
vartype(exp)
Returns: Integer
Notes: The following values can be returned. The value is equal to the standards for variant data
types.
exp Returns
Empty, only defined variable 0
Cint(123.4) 3
1234.5 5
Ccur(12.78) 6
Now() 7
‘abc’ 8
1<2 11
Sample:
let iTest = cint(123.456)
return vartype(iTest) // returns 3 (= "Integer")

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IsDate
Returns a Boolean indicating if expression is of type date.
Syntax:
isdate(exp)
Returns: Boolean
Notes:
Sample:
let dTest = cdate("30/05/2010")
return isdate(dTest)

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IsEmpty
Returns a Boolean indicating if expression is empty.
Syntax:
isempty(exp)
Returns: Boolean
Notes: Empty is different than a string without contents or numeric zero value.
Sample:
// the following variable is declared but not assigned a value
// and thus empty
dim sTest
return isempty(sTest)

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IsNull
Returns a Boolean indicating if expression is null.
Syntax:
isnull(exp)
Returns: Boolean
Notes:
Sample:
let sTest = "Test"
return isnull(sTest)

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IsNumeric
Returns a Boolean indicating if expression is a number.
Syntax:
isnumeric(exp)
Returns: Boolean
Notes:
Sample:
let sTest = 459.5
return isnumeric(sTest)

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Hex
Returns a hexadecimal string presentation of an integer.
Syntax:
hex(int)
int Required. Any integer expression. The value to be converted to a
hexadecimal presentation.
Returns: String
Notes:
Sample:
return hex(459) // returns 1CB
return ("The value of hex(459) is:" * hex(459))

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CelciusToFahrenheit
Converts a value from Celsius to Fahrenheit (ºC to ºF).
Syntax:
celsiustofahrenheit(num)
Returns: Number
Sample:
return CelciusToFahrenheit(20) + " ºF"
// returns "68 ºF"

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FahrenheitToCelsius
Converts a value from Fahrenheit to Celsius (ºF to ºC).
Syntax:
fahrenheittocelsius(num)
Returns: Number
Sample:
return FahrenheitToCelcius(77) + " ºC"
// returns "25 ºC"

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12.3.6 Database functions
Previous
Returns the column value of the previous database row.
Syntax:
previous(column [,records])
column Required. Column name where the value should be retrieved from.
records Optional. The amount of previous rows where the value should be
retrieved from.
Returns: The column value of the previous row.

Notes: When the previous record is before the first record in the set, empty is returned. This can
be validated with the IsEmpty function.
Sample:
if ({&Record Number} > 1) then
return previous({Customer.Name})
else
return ""
end
dim counter
dim State
let records = 1
let State = ""
while (isempty(previous({Customer.State}, records)) = false)

do
let State = previous({Customer.State}, records)
let records = records + 1
end
return State

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Next
Returns the column value of the next database row.
Syntax:
next(column [,records])
column Required. Column name where the value should be retrieved from.
records Optional. The amount of following rows where the value should be
retrieved from.
Returns: The column value of the last row.

Notes: When the next record is after the last record in the set, empty is returned. This can be
validated with the IsEmpty function.
Sample:
if ({&Record Number} > {&Total Record Count}) then
return next({Customer.Name})
else
return ""
end
let records = 0
while (isempty(next({Customer.State}, records + 1)) = false)

do
let records = records + 1
end
return next({Customer.State}, records)

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Sum
Returns the Sum.
Syntax:
sum(type, start, field)
sum Summation type (see paragraph 12.2.3 for valid constants).
start Starting point of the summation (see paragraph 12.2.3 for valid
constants).
field Field to summarize.
Returns: Number
Notes:
Sample:
// Avarage Purchases of all customers
return sum(drAverage, drReport, {Customer.Purchases})
// Maximum Purchases of customers that are grouped in level 2

return sum(drMaximum, drGroup2, {Customer.Purchases})

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12.4 Supported operations per data-type
In the previous paragraphs expressions were occasionally listed. Operators are sometimes allowed within
expressions. The next listing shows the allowed operators per data-type.
12.4.1 String
Operator Description
+ Concatenate
- Trim and concatenate
* Trim and concatenate with space
> Greater than compare
< Less than compare
>= Greater than or equal compare
<= Less than or equal compare
= Equal compare
<> Not equal compare
12.4.2 Boolean
Or Logical or
And Logical and
Xor Logical exclusive or
12.4.3 DateTime
< Less than compare
= Equal compare
12.4.4 Integer
+ Add
- Subtract
/ Divide
* Multiply
< Less than compare
= Equal compare
12.4.5 Number
+ Add
- Subtract
/ Divide
* Multiply
< Less than compare

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= Equal compare

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13. External Library Functions
It is possible to create your own DLL with languages such as Visual 'C' that contain one of more exposed
functions and use the results of such functions from within DataFlex Reports. The creation of your own ELF DLL is
quite advanced but the use of published functions is a feature everyone should be able to perform.
13.1 DLL location

To be found and used the ELF DLLs need to be copied into the same folder that has the DataFlex Reports OCX,
which is usually the DataFlex Report installation location.
13.2 Reference
They need to be registered in the repository database DR.DB. Reference is
done via the 'Function editor' dialog.
If the current tree item points to the 'External library functions' node or a
present ELF function you can add a new function via the "Add" button.
The following dialog pops up.
The name that you specify in the first input

control does not need to match with the
name used in the DLL.
The number of arguments NEEDS to match

with the number of arguments defined by the
developer of the ELF.
The combo labelled "Function name" contains

all enumerated functions from the ELF DLL.

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13.3 Prewritten ELF functions
13.3.1 CodeMast.dll
This library is installed with the DataFlex Reports Designer. It is not possible to obtain the source code of this
DLL.
CodeDescription
Syntax:
codedescription(location, type, code)
location Location and name of the DataFlex codemast table.
type Codetype (e.g. SHIPPING, REASONS, etc.)
code Code to be looked up (e.g. FEDEX, LUNCH, etc.)
Returns: String
Notes: The definition of the ELF is present in the also installed DR.DB file so that you can
immediately use the function.
Sample:
return CodeDescription("Codemast.dat","SHIPPING",{OrderHea.Ship_Via})

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ExternalLibraryFunctions.dll
This library is not shipped with DataFlex Reports. The code and build instructions are available on the Data
Access Development Team Blog.
NumberToWords
Returns a word presentation of a number or currency.
Syntax:
numbertowords(num [,currency [,subcurrency]])
currency Optional. A string representing the currency. This string is placed
between the integral and fractional part.
subcurrency Optional. A string representing the subcurrency. This string is placed
after the fractional part.
Returns: String
Notes: See paragraphs 13.1 and 13.2 for information how to add this function.
The source code of this function is published on our blog at:
http://support.dataaccess.com/Forums/entry.php?163-How-to-make-your-own-ELF
Sample:
return NumberToWords(123.61)
// returns "one hundered twenty three and sixty one"
return NumberToWords(12,"dollar")
// returns "twelve dollar"
return NumberToWords(24.55,"euro", "cents")

// returns "twenty four euro and fifty five cents"

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FileExists
Determines whether a path to a file system object such as a file or folder is valid.
Syntax:
fileexists(str)
str Required. The full path of the object to verify.
Returns: Boolean
Notes: See paragraphs 13.1 and 13.2 for information how to add this function.
The source code of this function is published on our blog at:
http://support.dataaccess.com/Forums/entry.php?164-How-to-use-Windows-API-
functions-in-Visual-Report-Writer
Sample:
// check if there is a logo of the customer
if (FileExists("C:\logos\" + {Customer.Name} + ".jpg")) then
return "C:\logos\" + {Customer.Name} + ".jpg"
else
return ""
end

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13.4 Creating your own ELF DLL
Using External Library Functions (ELF) is a great way to extend the functionality of DataFlex Reports.
13.4.1 ELF function declaration

If we take Visual 'C' as the development tool to create an ELF function, the function skeleton should be:
VARIANT __declspec(dllexport) YourFunctionName(VARIANT param1, VARIANT param2)

{
CComVariant vResult;
// Some code to process param1 and param2 into vResult
return vResult;
}
DataFlex Reports uses the standard calling convention (_stdcall). Make sure that you use this convention. ELF
functions must use parameters to be passed as type VARIANT.
On our blog http://support.dataaccess.com/Forums/entry.php?163-How-to-make-your-own-ELF a walkthrough

has been published how to make your own ELF.

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14. Parameters
Parameters can be used in two ways in a report. They can play
an important role in a report based on stored procedures and
they can be seen as variables for the report. Such variables can
be easily changed at the integration level, more easily than
functions can be changed.
Parameters are maintained via the Field Explorer and can be

just set, can be used in functions or even directly printed in the
report. However parameters are not like global variables in that
their value cannot be used in a sub-report.
A parameter has a specific data-type and size given at

declaration level. In the DataFlex Reports designer you can
change the data-type but you cannot change the data-type
from the integration level.
After selecting "Create new" from the floating menu while the
current tree-view item is on 'Parameter Fields' or on an existing parameter the following dialog will be opened
for the parameter definition.
In the Parameter dialog you specify a name

for the parameter, select the data-type of the
parameter and depending on the data-type
you can or need to specify length and
precision. Finally you enter the value as you
want to use it in the report.
If you create a report based on a stored

procedure the list of parameters is
automatically filled with the parameters as
defined in the datasource. You cannot change
the name, data-type or length of these
parameters, only the value.

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15. Special Fields
Special fields can be used inside the body of a function or anywhere in the report layout. DataFlex Reports has
the following special functions:
File Creation Date and Time

Returns the date and time when the report was initially created.
return {&File Creation Date and Time}
Modification Date and Time

Returns the date and time the report was last saved.
return {&Modification Date and Time}
To calculate the amount of time between the creation of the report and the latest save:
return DateDiff("H", {&Modification Date and Time}, {&File Creation Date and Time})
Data Date and Time

Returns the date and time of the used data.
return {&Data Date and Time}
Print Date and Time

Returns the date and time of printing.
return {&Print Date and Time}
File Path and Name

Returns the name and location of the DR file.
return {&File Path and Name}
Filter Function
Returns the contents of the record filter if one is defined for the report. This is not the same as filter expert.
return {&Filter Function}
Record Number
Returns the number of the record from the data-set. This is not the same as "recnum" which is a normal field in
recnum tables.
If the following code is used for the background color of the details section, you give a different color to the even
and uneven output lines in the report.

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if mod({&Record Number}, 2) > 0 then
return rgb(192,192,193)
else
return drNone
end
Total Record Count

Returns the total number of records in the data-set.
return {&Total Record Count}
Page Number
Returns the current page number.
If the following example is used for the details background color you will get a gray color on each uneven page.
if mod({&Page Number}, 2) > 0 then

return rgb(192,192,193)
else
return drNone
end
Page N of M
Returns the page number relevant to the total number of pages.
At preview time the total number of pages might not be known yet and thus the special field returns "1 of 1". As
soon as the next page (or the last page) has been printed the number reflects the current location. The number
is always correct when printing.
return {&Page N of M}
Total Page Count

Returns the total number of pages in this report.
At preview time the total number of pages might not be known yet and thus the special field returns "1". As
soon as the next page (or the last page) has been printed the number reflects the current location. The number
is always correct when printing.
Report Title
Returns the report title value. You can enter this value via Report | Report document properties.
return {&Report Title}
Report Subject
Returns the report subject value. You can enter this value via Report | Report document properties.
return {&Report Subject}
Report Author
Returns the report author value. You can enter this value via Report | Report document properties.

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return {&Report Author}
Report Category
Returns the report category value. You can enter this value via Report | Report document properties.
return {&Report Category}
Report Keywords
Returns the report keywords value. You can enter this value via Report | Report document properties.
return {&Report Keywords}
Report Comments
Returns the report comments. You can enter this value via Report | Report document properties.
return {&Report Comments}
Report Revision
Returns the report revision value. You can enter this value via Report | Report document properties. The default
value of this property is zero.
return {&Report Revision}
Group Number
Returns the number of the group. Each time a group is used (printed) in the report the group number increases.
return {&Group Number}

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16. Page layers
Page Layers are a special type of document that can be used as a “background” for one or more reports. They
consist of a single page on which only text, lines, boxes, and images can be placed.
16.1 Create a new page layer

In the ‘File’ menu select ‘New’, ‘Page layer…’ to create a new page layer. You are free to place text, lines, boxes,
and images all over the page, but remember that reports will be printed on top of the page layer. Most often,
page layers will simply be used for placing a logo and address, similar to pre-printed company paper.
Creating a new page layer based on an existing one is done the same way as with a report. See section 2.3.
You must save the page layer file before it can be used in a report.
16.2 Using a page layer in a report

Open the ‘Page Layer Expert…’ option in the
‘Report’ menu. The Page Layer Expert contains
a list of page layers that are present in the
report. You have the option to add or remove
page layers here.
Having multiple active page layers is a

possibility. In that case it is useful to define the
order in which they are rendered, especially
when they have overlapping areas. The sort
order in the list reflects the rendering order
from top to bottom.
16.3 Hiding page layers

The only property for a page layer is to hide it. This option is available in the Page Layer Expert, and can be set by
a function, which opens up the interesting possibility of using a different page layer on a different page. For
instance in a double-sided document you may want the company logo to be on the right for odd pages and on
the left for even pages. Also, you can define a completely different front page. The codes below achieve that.
// Function Field IsFirstPage

return {&Page Number} = 1
// Function Field IsEvenPage

let result = mod({&Page Number}, 2)
return result = 0
// page layer TitlePage – hide function

return not {@IsFirstPage}
// page layer EvenPage – hide function

return not {@IsEvenPage}

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// page layer OddPage – hide function
return ({@IsEvenPage} or {@IsFirstPage})
16.4 Updating a page layer

When a page layer file is updated, all reports that use it will need to do a refresh of the page layer. To do this
open each report, open the Page Layer Expert, select the page layer, click the update button, and find the page
layer file. Do not forget to save the report afterwards.

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17. ANSI collation sequences
Many reports output the data in a specific sort order, also called a collation sequence. By default DataFlex
Reports does a fine job for US and Western Europe, but many other countries need to handle special characters
and some customers may want some very specific changes to the sort order. One of the simplest examples is the
choice between a case-sensitive and a case-insensitive sorting: is ‘a’ the same as ‘A’, or should the lowercase
character come first or last?
DataFlex Reports supports the usage of advanced custom collation sequence files. These files allow the choice of
a specific ANSI code page (for exotic characters) and fine-grained control of the sort order.
When using a custom collation sequence DataFlex Reports performs the actual sorting, which is otherwise
performed by the database. If the database can support the desired collation sequence and has the proper
index, it can return the data sorted as required which has better performance.
17.1 ANSI code pages

A code page is a table that defines which value (0-255) equals which character (letters, figures, and special
characters). The number of values per code page is limited to 256, which means not all characters that are used
in the world can be in a single code page. The Windows (ANSI) code pages were created so that specific regions
or countries have a special code page containing their special characters. For example code page 1255 supports
Hebrew and 1256 Arabic.
It is important to note that DataFlex Reports only accepts collation sequences that match the current Windows
code page. If the code page of the collation file is different DataFlex Reports will notify you with an error
message.
17.2 DataFlex Reports ANSI collation file

The collation file is a plain text file with a .collate extension. During creation or editing Windows (or you
advanced text editor) should be set to the desired code page so that printable characters look correct.
Collation files support a number of different statements that define one or more characters. The general sort
order will be from the top of the file down.
Statement Example Explanation

* This character defines a comment. From the * until
* this is a comment
CP 1252 * and this too
the end of the line is considered comment and is
ignored.
CP num Defines the ANSI code page to use. This statement
CP 1252
can be used only once and must be the first non-
comment in the file.
SINGLE num Defines a single character. Mostly useful for non-
SINGLE 127
printing characters like the DEL (127).
RANGE num num Defines a range of characters that are sorted in
RANGE 32 47
order. This example is for 16 printable special
characters.
RANGE_EQ num Defines a range of characters that are considered
num RANGE_EQ 0 31
equal. This example is for 32 non-printable
characters.
TEXT "string" Defines a number of printable characters that are
TEXT "0¼½¾1¹2²3³456789"
sorted in order.

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Statement Example Explanation
TEXT_EQ Defines a range of characters that are considered
"string" TEXT_EQ "AÀÁÂÄÃÅÆ"
equal. This example is for the capital letter A with
several variants.
Refer to the following page for valid code page identifiers:
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/desktop/dd317756%28v=vs.85%29.aspx
17.3 Example
The following listing shows an incomplete example of a collation file, which reflects a normal English case-
sensitive collation sequence.
* Codepage
CP 1252
* Control characters
RANGE 0 31
SINGLE 127 * DEL
SINGLE 160 * NBSP
SINGLE 173 * SHY
* Unused
SINGLE 129
SINGLE 141
SINGLE 143
SINGLE 144
SINGLE 157
* Punctuation
RANGE 32 47
RANGE 58 64
RANGE 91 96
RANGE 123 126
SINGLE 130
RANGE 132 137
SINGLE 139
RANGE 145 153
SINGLE 155
SINGLE 161
RANGE 166 169
RANGE 171 172
RANGE 174 177
RANGE 180 184
SINGLE 187
SINGLE 191
SINGLE 215
SINGLE 247
* Currency signs
TEXT "€£¥¤¢"
* Numbers
TEXT "0¼½¾1¹2²3³456789"
* Alpha characters
TEXT_EQ "AÀÁÂÄÃÅÆ"
TEXT_EQ "aàáâäãåæª"
TEXT_EQ "B"
TEXT_EQ "b"
TEXT_EQ "CÇ"
TEXT_EQ "cç"
.
.
.

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18. Automating DataFlex Reports
DataFlex Reports is a great tool for authoring and generating reports. In some situations it is useful to use it
without the graphical user interface, to simply print a report for instance. This is a basic form of automation
which DataFlex Reports support via command line arguments.
DataFlex Reports supports the following command line options:
Option Description
-autoclose Close DataFlex Reports once the preceding command(s) are completed.
-cmdfile Read the command line options from file. Useful for multiple commands.
-csvexport Export the specified report to a CSV file.
-htmlexport Export the specified report to an HTML file.
-imageexport Export the specified report to an image file (GIF, JPG, or TIFF).
-pdfexport Export the specified report to a PDF file.
-print Print the specified report.
-report Open the specified report
-rtfexport Export the specified report to a RTF file.
-run Open the specified report and its preview.
-x Start DataFlex Reports with the specified workspace.
-xlsexport Export the specified report to an Excel XLS file.
18.1 Close DataFlex Reports

The -autoclose option is special. It is meant to be used in combination with one of the other options. When this
option is specified at the end DataFlex Reports will perform all preceding commands and then close.
18.2 Open a report

When opening a .dpl or .dr file from Windows Explorer, DataFlex Reports is started using the -report option in
order to load the specified report. The example below will open DataFlex Reports with the file
C:\Reports\Report Example.dr opened.
–report "C:\Reports\Report Example.dr"
It is possible to open multiple reports and page layers by adding additional -report statements, like this
example:
–report "C:\Reports\Report Example.dr" –report "C:\Reports\Company Logo.dpl"
18.3 Open a report preview

The -run options opens a report and immediately previews it as well.
18.4 Start DataFlex Reports with a specific workspace

Normally with each new report you have to select the database. This can become a nuisance when creating
multiple reports for the same project. The -x option can be used to start DataFlex Reports with a specific
workspace, making its database available for every report created during that session.
The following example opens DataFlex Reports with the Order Entry example workspace.
-x "C:\DataFlex 18.0 Example\Order Entry\Order Entry.sws"
This option cannot be repeated – only one workspace file can be opened per session.

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18.5 Print a report
The -print option can be used to open a report, and immediately print it. The program will prompt you for the
printing options and printer to use. For example, to print a report:
-print "C:\Reports\Report Example.dr"
18.6 Export a report

As described in paragraph 4.1 DataFlex Reports can export a report to several formats. This can also be
facilitated from the command line, which for example is useful for weekly or monthly report exports.
Each of the available export formats has its own set of options. Partially they overlap but they will be described
separately in each of the following paragraphs. The only option that is required for all exports is -exportfile.
This options is used to specify the output file path.
18.6.1 HTML export

The -htmlexport exports the report to HTML and supports only a few customization options.
Option Description
Multipage This boolean option, which is true by default, specifies that the entire report
will be exported. When false, only a single page is exported.
Page If the multipage option is false, this option specifies which page is exported. By
default this is set to page 1.
18.6.2 RTF export

The -rtfexport option exports the report to an RTF file.
Option Description
Allpages This boolean option, which is true by default, specifies that the entire report
Page If the allpages option is false, this option specifies which page is exported. By
18.6.3 PDF export

The PDF export is triggered using the -pdfexport option.
Option Description
Image Default is OLEdrLow (0).
Ownerpwd Specifies a password that must be entered to open the PDF for editing. Default
is no password.
Pagemode Default is OLEdrNormal (0).
Userpwd Specifies a password that must be entered to open the PDF for reading. Default
is no password.
18.6.4 CSV export

Option Description
Delimiter Default is ‘,’.
Groupsections Default is “False”.

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Option Description
Pagesections Default is “False”.
Reportsections Default is “False”.
Separator "
18.6.5 XLS export

Option Description
Allpages Default is “True”.
Columnwidth Default is 20.
Dataonly Default is “False”.
Groupsections Default is “True”.
Nosheets Default is OLEdrNoSheets (0).
Page Default is “1”.
Pagesections Default is “True”.
Reportsections Default is “True”.
Version Default is OLEdrXLS2003 (0).
18.6.6 Image export

Option Description
Multipage Default is “False”.
Page Default is “1”.
Type Default is OLEdrJPEG (1).
'jpeg' ‘png’ 'tiff’ 'gif'
18.7 Using a command file

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-pdfexport "C:\Examples\DataFlex 18.0 Examples\Order
Entry\Reports\CustomerList.vrw" EXPORTFILE=c:\tmp\ik1234.pdf PAGEMODE=1
OWNERPWD=vincent USERPWD=DataFlex ALLPAGES=0 PAGE=3 IMAGE=1 -autoclose
-x "C:\Examples\DataFlex 18.0 Examples\Contact Management\Contact Management.sws"
-x "C:\Examples\DataFlex 18.0 Examples\Contact Management\Programs\config.sws"
-csvexport "C:\Examples\DataFlex 18.0 Examples\Order

Entry\Reports\CustomerList.vrw" EXPORTFILE=c:\tmp\ik1234.csv SEPARATOR=34
DELIMITER=44 REPORTSECTIONS=1 GROUPSECTIONS=0 PAGESECTIONS=1 ALLPAGES=0 PAGE=3 -
autoclose
-xlsexport "C:\Examples\DataFlex 18.0 Examples\Order

Entry\Reports\CustomerList.vrw" EXPORTFILE=c:\tmp\ik1234.xls VERSION=2007
NOSHEETS=1 REPORTSECTIONS=1 GROUPSECTIONS=0 PAGESECTIONS=1 ALLPAGES=0 PAGE=3
COLUMNWIDTH=30 DATAONLY=0 -autoclose
-rtfexport "C:\Examples\DataFlex 18.0 Examples\Order

Entry\Reports\CustomerList.vrw" EXPORTFILE=c:\tmp\ik1234.rtf ALLPAGES=0 PAGE=3 -
autoclose
-htmlexport "C:\Examples\DataFlex 18.0 Examples\Order

Entry\Reports\CustomerList.vrw" EXPORTFILE=c:\tmp\ik1234.html MULTIPAGE=0 PAGE=3 -
autoclose
-imageexport "C:\Examples\DataFlex 18.0 Examples\Order

Entry\Reports\CustomerList.vrw" EXPORTFILE=c:\tmp\ik1234.tiff MULTIPAGE=1 TYPE=tiff
PAGE=0 -autoclose

Entry\Reports\CustomerList.vrw" EXPORTFILE=c:\tmp\ik1234.jpg MULTIPAGE=1 TYPE=jpg
PAGE=3 -autoclose

Entry\Reports\CustomerList.vrw" EXPORTFILE=c:\tmp\ik1234.gif MULTIPAGE=1 TYPE=gif
PAGE=3 -autoclose
-print "C:\Examples\DataFlex 18.0 Examples\Order Entry\Reports\CustomerList.vrw"
-cmdfile "C:\Projects\DataFlex Reports\Studio\4.0\cmdline.ini"

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[pdfexport]
report=C:\Examples\DataFlex 18.0 Examples\Order Entry\Reports\CustomerList.vrw
exportfile=c:\tmp\customerlist.pdf
PAGEMODE=1
OWNERPWD=DataFlex
USERPWD=Reports
ALLPAGES=0
PAGE=3
IMAGE=1
[csvexport]
exportfile=c:\tmp\customerlist.csv
SEPARATOR=34
DELIMITER=44
REPORTSECTIONS=1
GROUPSECTIONS=0
PAGESECTIONS=1
ALLPAGES=0
PAGE=3
[xlsexport]
EXPORTFILE=c:\tmp\customerlist.xls
VERSION=2007
NOSHEETS=1
REPORTSECTIONS=1
GROUPSECTIONS=0
PAGESECTIONS=1
ALLPAGES=0
PAGE=3
COLUMNWIDTH=30
DATAONLY=0
[rtfexport]
EXPORTFILE=c:\tmp\customerlist.rtf
ALLPAGES=0
PAGE=3
[htmlexport]
EXPORTFILE=c:\tmp\customerlist.html
MULTIPAGE=0
PAGE=3
[imageexport]
EXPORTFILE=c:\tmp\customerlist.tiff
MULTIPAGE=1
TYPE=tiff
PAGE=0
[autoclose]

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19. Product support
Free support for DataFlex Reports is limited to the validity of your product subscription plan. Read more about
how Data Access handles support at http://www.dataaccess.eu/support.
Support for DataFlex Reports can be reached via the following ways:
 Your local distributor

 The Data Access Worldwide forums (http://support.dataaccess.com/forums)
 An e-mail to Data Access Europe directly (support@dataaccess.eu)
 Directly entering your support request in the online support database (http://hde.dataaccess.eu). If you do
not have an account as yet, send us an e-mail.

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20. Product registration and activation
In order to use DataFlex Reports for longer than 60 days, the standard evaluation period, you need to purchase a
license and register the product.
You can register the DataFlex

Reports product from within
the product itself. Go to the
help pull-down and select
"Register DataFlex Reports".
The registration dialog pops
up.
In the top half of the dialog

enter your serial number and
your registration name and
code. Then click the ‘Register’
button. If all the entered
information is correct your
license will be registered. You
will now no longer receive a
message about the number of days left in the evaluation when DataFlex Reports starts up.
If the registration was successful DataFlex Reports will ask if you want to activate the product now. You need to
have an internet connection for this.
If you do not have an internet connection at this time you

can manually activate your license via
http://www.dataaccess.eu/dractivation and enter the
returned activation code, or by contacting one of the Data
Access regional offices.

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21. Problems and solutions
In this chapter we will discuss the problems that may arise when using DataFlex Reports and solutions for
resolving any such problems.
21.1 Cannot open the language database

DataFlex Reports and the runtime OCX use translation text strings stored in a database named language.db.
The Visual Report designer will default to the built in English text strings when the database cannot be found or
cannot be opened. No message is given but you will find that all languages of the language pull-down are grayed
out.
If the OCX needs to find a text for translation and the language.db cannot be opened you will get a message to
this effect and then the OCX defaults to the built in English text strings. The language database is used for text
strings such as "Page N of M", for errors generated by the database driver, or errors generated internally in the
OCX. If a translation cannot be found the system defaults to the built in English text string.
The language.db should be present in the same folder as where the DataFlex Reports Workstation Runtime is
installed.
21.2 Unable to instantiate COM object

The DataFlex Reports designer uses three CodeJock ActiveX modules, its own runtime OCX and an editor OCX. If
any of these COM modules is either not or wrongly registered on your machine you will get this error. At the end
of the error text you will see a COM error code which is a hexadecimal number indicating why the COM object
could not be instantiated. A couple of common codes are:
Errorcode Explanation Solution

0x8007007e (OCX) File not found One of the following files is missing:
 Codejock.DockingPane.v12.0.2.ocx
 CodeJock.CommandBars.v12.0.2.ocx
 DfEdit40.dll
 DataFlex Reports 2013 Developer Edition API.ocx
Locate the files on your machine and make sure they are where
your registry tells where they were expected.
0x80040154 Class not registered One of the following OCX files is not registered:
 Codejock.DockingPane.v12.0.2.ocx
 CodeJock.CommandBars.v12.0.2.ocx
 DfEdit40.dll
 DataFlex Reports 2013 Developer Edition API.ocx
Find the file and use RegSvr32 to re-register the OCX files.
You may need your systems administrator to fix the above problems.

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Index
- operator (subtract) ................................................73 CDbl ....................................................................... 104

- operator (unary negate) .......................................74 CelciusToFahrenheit ............................................. 157
* operator (multiply) ...............................................73 Change appearance .................................................16
/ operator (divide) ...................................................74 Change design ..........................................................14
+ operator (add) ......................................................73 Chart .........................................................................18
+ operator (unary plus) ...........................................74 Adding a chart ......................................................18
< (LT) Less than ........................................................72 Appearance ..........................................................19
<= (LE) Less than or equal to ...................................73 Category ...............................................................21
<> (NE) Not equal ....................................................73 Datasource ...........................................................18
= (EQ) Equal .............................................................73 Labels ...................................................................19
> (GT) Greater than .................................................72 Legend ..................................................................21
>= (GE) Greater than or equal to ............................72 Lines .....................................................................22
Abs ......................................................................... 136 Palette ..................................................................19
Align objects .............................................................50 Scale .....................................................................22
Always Sort Locally ..................................................26 Titles .....................................................................21
ANSI ........................................................... 69, 70, 175 Value ....................................................................22
ANSI code pages ................................................... 175 Chart properties.......................................................20
Area chart.................................................................19 Chart types ...............................................................19
Arithmetic functions ............................................. 136 Area ......................................................................19
Abs ..................................................................... 136 Bar ........................................................................19
Add (+ operator) ..................................................73 Line .......................................................................19
Atn ..................................................................... 137 Point .....................................................................20
Cos ..................................................................... 138 Check database ........................................................56
Divide (/ operator) ...............................................74 Chr ............................................................................92
Exp ..................................................................... 143 CInt ...........................................................................99
Fix ...................................................................... 144 CLng ....................................................................... 105
Log ..................................................................... 141 CodeDescription ................................................... 165
Mod ................................................................... 146 CodeMast .............................................................. 165
Multiply (* operator) ...........................................73 CodeMast functions
Round ................................................................ 147 CodeDescription ............................................... 165
Sgn ..................................................................... 145 Collation file .......................................................... 175
Sin ...................................................................... 139 Collation sequence ............................................... 175
Sqr ..................................................................... 142 Common field properties ........................................40
Subtract (- operator) ...........................................73 Connection String ....................................................53
Tan ..................................................................... 140 Constants .................................................................76
Asc ............................................................................91 Conversion functions ...............................................99
Atn ......................................................................... 137 CBool ................................................................. 100
Bar chart ...................................................................19 CByte ................................................................. 101
Border field properties ............................................41 CCur ................................................................... 102
Border style ..............................................................41 CDate ................................................................. 103
Bottom N ..................................................................67 CDbl ................................................................... 104
Bottom N percent ....................................................67 CInt .......................................................................99
Box field properties .................................................48 CLng ................................................................... 105
Browse data ...................................................... 59, 65 CSgn ................................................................... 106
Built-in functions .....................................................78 CStr .................................................................... 107
Cannot open the language database ................... 184 Copy ..........................................................................29
CBool ..................................................................... 100 Cos ......................................................................... 138
CByte ..................................................................... 101 Create blank report .................................................17
CCur ....................................................................... 102 Create new function ................................................31
CDate ..................................................................... 103 Create new parameter ............................................31

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Create report from existing.....................................17 Day ......................................................................... 113
CSgn ....................................................................... 106 Define data filters ....................................................13
CStr ........................................................................ 107 Defining relationships ..............................................11
Cut ............................................................................29 Delete .......................................................................29
Data Date and Time .............................................. 170 Deselect tables .........................................................10
Data Source Name ...................................................52 Details section floating menu .................................33
Database expert.......................................................51 df_collate.cfg ...........................................................27
Database field floating menu ..................................33 DF_OPEN_PATH .......................................................58
Database Fields ........................................................30 Dim ...........................................................................76
Database functions ............................................... 159 Dim as global ............................................................76
Next ................................................................... 160 Distinct .....................................................................59
Previous............................................................. 159 DSN ...........................................................................52
Sum ................................................................... 161 Edit function field ....................................................29
Database menu ........................................................51 Edit menu .................................................................29
DataFlex database ...................................................52 Edit parameter field .................................................29
DataFlex embedded database .................................. 8 Edit RDS Sample Data ..............................................58
DataFlex Reports Options .......................................26 Edit text field ............................................................29
Date ....................................................................... 109 ELF ......................................................................... 164
Date and time functions ....................................... 108 CodeMast .......................................................... 165
Date ................................................................... 109 ExternalLibaryFunctions ................................... 166
DateAdd ............................................................ 121 Function declaration ........................................ 168
DateDiff ............................................................. 120 location ............................................................. 164
DatePart ............................................................ 122 Reference .......................................................... 164
DateSerial .......................................................... 123 Enforce join ..............................................................56
DateValue ......................................................... 125 Exp ......................................................................... 143
Day .................................................................... 113 Export report............................................................24
Hour .................................................................. 114 Expressions ..............................................................72
InAgedToDays ................................................... 135 External Library Functions .................................... 164
InLast4WeeksToSunday ................................... 134 ExternalLibaryFunctions functions
InLast7Days ....................................................... 129 FileExists ............................................................ 167
InLastFullMonth ................................................ 130 NumberToWords .............................................. 166
InLastFullWeek ................................................. 131 ExternalLibraryFunctions ...................................... 166
InLastYearMTD ................................................. 132 FahrenheitToCelsius ............................................. 158
InLastYearYTD ................................................... 133 Field color .................................................................42
InLeapYear ........................................................ 127 Field explorer ...........................................................30
Minute ............................................................... 115 Field heading ............................................................36
Month ............................................................... 112 Field properties ........................................................40
MonthName ..................................................... 119 Border ..................................................................41
Now ................................................................... 108 Box ........................................................................48
Second ............................................................... 116 Common...............................................................40
Time................................................................... 110 Date ......................................................................44
TimeSerial ......................................................... 124 Font ......................................................................43
TimeValue ......................................................... 126 Image....................................................................49
WeekAgo ........................................................... 128 Line .......................................................................47
Weekday ........................................................... 117 Number ................................................................46
WeekdayName ................................................. 118 Text .......................................................................44
Year ................................................................... 111 Time......................................................................45
Date field properties ...............................................44 File Creation Date and Time ................................. 170
Date formats ............................................................44 File menu..................................................................24
Date Mask ................................................................45 File Path and Name............................................... 170
DateAdd ................................................................ 121 FileExists ................................................................ 167
DateDiff ................................................................. 120 filelist.cfg ..................................................................10
DatePart ................................................................ 122 Filter expert ..............................................................60
DateSerial .............................................................. 123 Filter function ..........................................................61
DateValue .............................................................. 125 Filter Function ....................................................... 170

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Filters ........................................................................60 Box ........................................................................38
Find field...................................................................60 Chart .....................................................................38
Find Field ..................................................................66 Function field .......................................................37
Find object ...............................................................29 Group ...................................................................37
Fix .......................................................................... 144 Line .......................................................................38
Floating menu Picture ..................................................................38
Database ..............................................................33 Sub-report ............................................................39
Details section .....................................................33 Summary ..............................................................36
Group footer ........................................................33 Text object ...........................................................38
Group header ......................................................33 Insert menu ..............................................................36
Report explorer ...................................................32 InStr ..........................................................................88
Font ..........................................................................40 InStrRev ....................................................................89
Font field properties ................................................43 IsDate .................................................................... 152
Format IsEmpty .................................................................. 153
Field properties....................................................40 IsNull ...................................................................... 154
Font ......................................................................40 IsNumeric .............................................................. 155
Lock size/position ................................................40 Join type ...................................................................55
Suppress field ......................................................40 Language elements..................................................71
Format dates ............................................................44 LCase ........................................................................86
Format menu ...........................................................40 Left............................................................................82
Full Outer Join ..........................................................56 Left Outer Join .........................................................55
Function constants ..................................................76 Legend ......................................................................21
Function Editor ........................................................64 Len ............................................................................87
Function Explorer ....................................................64 Let .............................................................................74
Function Fields .........................................................30 Line chart .................................................................19
Functions ..................................................................71 Line field properties.................................................47
Go to page ................................................................29 Link type ...................................................................56
Group data ...............................................................12 Locate ELF ............................................................. 164
Group expert ............................................................65 Lock size/position ....................................................40
Group footer floating menu ....................................33 Log ......................................................................... 141
Group header floating menu ..................................33 Logical and ...............................................................72
Group Name Field....................................................65 Logical not ................................................................72
Group Name Fields ..................................................30 Logical or ..................................................................72
Group Number ...................................................... 172 LTrim .........................................................................80
Group sections .........................................................14 Menu
Group sort expert ....................................................67 Database ..............................................................51
grouped ...................................................................... 9 Edit .......................................................................29
Hex......................................................................... 156 File ........................................................................24
Hide sections ............................................................14 Format ..................................................................40
Hour ....................................................................... 114 Insert ....................................................................36
IBM DB2 ...............................................................8, 52 Report ..................................................................60
If then else end ........................................................75 View ......................................................................30
If then end ................................................................74 Microsoft Access ........................................................ 8
Image field properties .............................................49 Microsoft SQL Server .......................................... 8, 52
InAgedToDays ....................................................... 135 Mid ...........................................................................84
Include ties ...............................................................67 Minute ................................................................... 115
InLast4WeeksToSunday ....................................... 134 Miscellaneous functions ....................................... 149
InLast7Days ........................................................... 129 CelciusToFahrenheit ......................................... 157
InLastFullMonth .................................................... 130 FahrenheitToCelsius ......................................... 158
InLastFullWeek...................................................... 131 Hex .................................................................... 156
InLastYearMTD ...................................................... 132 IsDate ................................................................ 152
InLastYearYTD ....................................................... 133 IsEmpty.............................................................. 153
InLeapYear ............................................................ 127 IsNull.................................................................. 154
Inner Join ..................................................................55 IsNumeric .......................................................... 155
Insert RGB .................................................................... 149

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TypeName ......................................................... 150 Product support .................................................... 182
VarType ............................................................. 151 ProperCase ...............................................................97
Mod ....................................................................... 146 RDS ...........................................................................58
Modification Date and Time ................................ 170 Record Number .................................................... 170
Month.................................................................... 112 Record sort expert ...................................................66
MonthName .......................................................... 119 Redo .........................................................................29
Move Reference ELF ....................................................... 164
Backward..............................................................49 Refresh report data .................................................67
Forward ................................................................49 relationship ................................................................ 9
To Back .................................................................49 Relationships ............................................................54
To Front ................................................................49 Remove a sort order ................................................66
Move a field .............................................................49 Remove one table ....................................................54
MySQL ........................................................................ 8 Removing a group ....................................................65
New page .................................................................16 Replace .....................................................................90
Next ....................................................................... 160 Report Author ....................................................... 171
Non-Unicode ............................................................70 Report Category .................................................... 172
Now ....................................................................... 108 Report Comments ................................................ 172
Number field properties ..........................................46 Report Creation Wizard ...........................................10
Number mask...........................................................46 Report document properties ..................................68
NumberToRoman ....................................................98 Report explorer ........................................................32
NumberToWords .................................................. 166 Floating menu ......................................................32
Object .......................................................................29 Report Keywords .................................................. 172
ODBC .....................................8, 10, 26, 52, 56, 58, 69 Report menu ............................................................60
Stored procedures ...............................................53 Report options .........................................................69
ODBC Administrator ................................................53 Report Revision ..................................................... 172
ODBC stored procedures.........................................53 Report Subject ...................................................... 171
ODBC views ..............................................................53 Report Title ........................................................... 171
Operating language ................................................... 9 Repository explorer .................................................34
Options .................................................................9, 26 Return .......................................................................75
Fonts.....................................................................27 RGB ........................................................................ 149
Formatting ...........................................................28 Right .........................................................................83
Options .................................................................26 Right Outer Join .......................................................56
Oracle ......................................................................... 8 Round .................................................................... 147
Page layer .............................................................. 173 RTrim ........................................................................81
Create ................................................................ 173 Runtime datasource ................................................54
Hide ................................................................... 173 Second ................................................................... 116
Update .............................................................. 174 Section expert ..........................................................62
Use in report ..................................................... 173 Section options ........................................................63
Page Layer Expert ........................................... 61, 173 Sections ............................................................. 14, 62
Page N of M .......................................................... 171 Select all ...................................................................29
Page Number ........................................................ 171 Select DataFlex database ........................................52
Parameter Fields ......................................................30 Select default fonts ..................................................27
Parameters ............................................................ 169 Select fields ..............................................................11
Paste .........................................................................29 Select tables .............................................................10
Performance information .......................................68 Selected database and tables .................................54
Pervasive SQL ............................................................. 8 Selecting tables ........................................................10
Pervasive.SQL ...........................................................52 Set datasource location ...........................................58
Point chart................................................................20 Sgn ......................................................................... 145
Position fields ...........................................................15 Show unique values .................................................59
PostgreSQL ................................................................. 8 Sin .......................................................................... 139
Previous ................................................................. 159 Sort order ........................................................ 65, 175
Print Date and Time .............................................. 170 Space ........................................................................96
Problems and solutions ........................................ 184 Special fields ......................................................... 170
Product activation ................................................ 183 Data Date and Time .......................................... 170
Product registration ............................................. 183 File Creation Date and Time ............................ 170

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File Path and Name .......................................... 170 Right .....................................................................83
Filter Function ................................................... 170 RTrim ....................................................................81
Group Number.................................................. 172 Space ....................................................................96
Modification Date and Time ............................ 170 StrComp ...............................................................93
Page N of M ...................................................... 171 String ....................................................................95
Page Number .................................................... 171 StrReverse ............................................................94
Print Date and Time ......................................... 170 Trim ......................................................................79
Record Number ................................................ 170 UCase ...................................................................85
Report Author ................................................... 171 StrReverse ................................................................94
Report Category ............................................... 172 Sum .................................................................. 12, 161
Report Comments ............................................ 172 Sum to sort on .........................................................67
Report Keywords .............................................. 172 Summarized values ..................................................67
Report Revision................................................. 172 Suppress field ...........................................................40
Report Subject .................................................. 171 Tan ......................................................................... 140
Report Title ....................................................... 171 Text field properties ................................................44
Total Page Count .............................................. 171 Thousand separator ................................................16
Total Record Count........................................... 171 Time ....................................................................... 110
Special Fields ............................................................30 Time field properties ...............................................45
SQL............................................................................56 Time Mask ................................................................45
Sqr ......................................................................... 142 TimeSerial.............................................................. 124
Statements ...............................................................74 TimeValue ............................................................. 126
If 74 Top N ........................................................................67
If else ....................................................................75 Top N percent ..........................................................67
Let .........................................................................74 Total Page Count................................................... 171
Return ..................................................................75 Total Record Count ............................................... 171
While ....................................................................75 Trim ..........................................................................79
Store report .............................................................17 TypeName ............................................................. 150
Stored procedures ...................................................53 UCase........................................................................85
StrComp ...................................................................93 Unable to instantiate COM object ....................... 184
String ........................................................................95 Unary negate ...........................................................74
String functions ........................................................79 Unary plus ................................................................74
Asc ........................................................................91 Undo .........................................................................29
Chr ........................................................................92 Variable Height ........................................................44
InStr ......................................................................88 VarType ................................................................. 151
InStrRev ................................................................89 View menu ...............................................................30
LCase ....................................................................86 Views ........................................................................53
Left .......................................................................82 WeekAgo ............................................................... 128
Len ........................................................................87 Weekday ............................................................... 117
LTrim ....................................................................80 WeekdayName ..................................................... 118
Mid .......................................................................84 While do end ............................................................75
NumberToRoman ................................................98 Windows Regional Options .....................................70
ProperCase...........................................................97 Year ........................................................................ 111
Replace .................................................................90

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DataFlex Reports

Revision Date: December, 2014

Page 2 of 189 Business Software for a Changing WorldTM

© 2009-2014 DATA ACCESS CORPORATION. All rights reserved.

DataFlex is a trademark of Data Access Corporation.

DB2 is a registered trademark of IBM Corporation.

Pervasive.SQL is a registered trademark of Pervasive Software, Inc.

Page 3 of 189 Business Software for a Changing WorldTM

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There are three ways to start creating a new report:

 Use the Report Creation Wizard

Order Detail Order Header Customer

Other things to consider:

Page 9 of 189 Business Software for a Changing WorldTM

Click on the button ‘Next’ to select tables to be

2.1.1 Step 1: Select the tables

After selecting ‘DataFlex’ in the treeview and

filelist.cfg is a DataFlex configuration file

After selecting filelist.cfg, a ‘+’ symbol will

A table can be added by double-clicking on it. By

Select the tables ‘OrderDtl’, ‘OrderHea’, ‘Invt’

Page 10 of 189 Business Software for a Changing WorldTM

The boxes in the links viewer can be dragged

Clicking "Auto-Arrange" reorganizes the display.

Read the section Relationships to create

Click on the button ‘Next’ to select the database

2.1.3 Step 3: Select the fields

The fields will be arranged in sequence as sorted

Click the ‘Browse Data’ button to see a sample of

Add the fields ‘OrderHea.Order_Number’, ’OrderDtl.Qty_Ordered’, ’Invt.Description’, ’OrderDtl.Price’,

Page 11 of 189 Business Software for a Changing WorldTM

In order to create a new group, select the

 ‘Report Objects’; showing the database fields

Group by the fields ‘OrderHea.Customer_Number’ and ‘OrderHea.Order_Number’. Click on the button

2.1.5 Step 5: Sum values; totaling

Similar to the previous steps, the appropriate

By selecting the type of sum in the combo box,

Select the fields ‘OrderDtl.Qty_Ordered’,

Page 12 of 189 Business Software for a Changing WorldTM

Selecting the field in the right box will enable the

If you click the drop-down arrow of the value

A more complete description of applying filtering

2.1.7 Step 7: Report options

The work done to select the datasource and

Page 13 of 189 Business Software for a Changing WorldTM

The visual designer

For each group, two

Section Will be printed

 Select the ‘Preview Report’ option in the menu under ‘View’

Hide the report header and footer

Page 14 of 189 Business Software for a Changing WorldTM

A number of fields in the ‘Details’ section needs to be

Multiple fields can be moved at once: select multiple

Replace ‘OrderHea.Order_Number’, ‘Orderhea.Terms’ and ‘Orderhea.Ship_Via’ to ‘Group Header #2’ and

Page 15 of 189 Business Software for a Changing WorldTM

The appearance can be changed via field

Select object ‘Sum of OrderDtl.Qty_Ordered’

Add lines and text objects

 Select the ‘Text Object’ option from the Insert menu.

Each order on a new page