Report Settings

While the main report properties can be accessed via the report Smart tag, the complete settings list is available on the Properties window. The report properties are divided into the following tabs:

Appearance

Background Color

Specifies the background colour of controls. The functionality is also available on the Report Designer tab ().

Report background colors are not included when a report is exported to RTF or MHT format.

Border Color, Border Dash Style, Border Width and Borders

Specifies border settings for controls.

Font

Specifies the font settings for controls. Some of the functionality is available on the Report Designer tab.

Foreground Color

Specifies the text colour for controls. The functionality is also available on the Report Designer tab ().

Formatting Rule Sheet

Displays the Formatting Rule Sheet Editor window, used to manage and customise formatting rules, which can then be defined for report bands and controls.

Formatting Rules

Displays the Formatting Rules Editor window, used to choose which rules are applied to a report during report generation, and to define the priority of the applied rules.

Padding

Specifies indent values used to render the contents of the controls.

Page Color

Specifies the page background fill colour.

Style Sheet

Displays the Styles Editor window, which is used to manage and customise report style sheets.

Style Sheet's Path

Defines a path to the style sheet which is contained in a report style sheet file (.repss).

Text Alignment

Changes the alignment of report control text. The functionality is also available on the Report Designer tab.

Watermark

Customizes the report watermark options.

Behavior

Export Options

Sets the export options for each file type. For example, PDF, XLS, XLSX, TXT. The options vary with Reporting 311 file type.

Horizontal Content Splitting

Specifies whether report controls outside the bottom page margin are split across pages, or moved in their entirety to the next page.

Measure Units

Specifies the units of measurement for a report (one hundredth of an inch, a tenth of a millimeter or pixels).

Request Parameters

Defines whether the report parameter values are requested when generating a report.

Script Language

Specifies the programming language to be used in scripting (C#, Visual Basic or J#).

Script References

Manages the collection of strings that represent the paths to the assemblies used by scripts in a report.

Scripts

Contains events which can be handled with scripts.

Show Margin Lines in Preview

The page margin lines are dotted lines which display on the currently selected page in the report preview. Use the property to modify the visibility of margin lines.

Vertical Content Splitting

Specifies whether report controls outside the right page margin are split across pages, or moved in their entirety to the next page.

Visible

Specifies whether the band is visible when using the print preview.

Data

Calculated Fields

Displays the Calculated Field Collection Editor window, which is used to manage the report calculated fields.

Data Adapter

Specifies the report data adapter settings, used to populate the report data source. A data adaptor is created automatically when the Data Member property is defined.

Data Member

Specifies the specific list (database table) in a report data source, from which Reporting objects display data.

Note: It is not usually necessary to specify the Data Member property when binding a report to data. This property should only be set if the Data Source dataset contains more than one table.

Data Source

Determines the data source that provides the detail data for the report. If this property is not defined, the detail report gets data from the primary report data source.

Filter String

Displays the Filter String Editor window, which is used to define a filtering condition for report data.

Parameters

Displays the Parameter Collection Editor window, which provides access to the report parameters collection.

Tag

Adds additional information to a report, for example, the id, by which the report can then be accessible via scripts.

XML Data Path

Used to define a path to data contained in an external XML file. The data contained in the file is used as the report data source.

Miscellaneous

(Name)

Determines the name of the report, by which it can be accessed in the Report Explorer, Properties window or via scripts.

Bands

Displays the Report Editor window, which is used to manage and customise the report bands.

Bookmark

Defines how a report is named in a document map when report bookmarks are implemented. The default is the Name property of the report.

Bookmark Duplicate Suppress

Specifies if duplicated bookmarks are suppressed in the final report.

Data Source's Schema

Enables loading of an XML/XSD file, containing the schema of the report data source.

Designer Options

Provides access to the hints and warnings during report design.

Show Designer's Hints

Designer hints are intended to provide tooltips, both describing the purpose of certain controls for inexperienced users, and describing the reasons and solutions for possible export or printing warnings. The property is used to turn the hints on or off.

Show Export Warnings

Controls whether or not export warnings are displayed when report controls are overlapped, indicating that a report layout may be incorrect when exporting to certain table-based formats (for example, XLS, XLSX, HTML or RTF).

Show Printing Warnings

Controls whether printing warnings are displayed. Printing warnings indicate that a report control is placed outside the page margin, causing the report to generate unnecessary pages.

Display Name

Specifies the name displayed in the report title of another end user’s Designer tab, the display name is also used as the default file name for an exported report.

Draw the Grid

Determines whether or not the grid is displayed during report design.

Draw the Watermark

Specifies the display of a watermark during report design.

Landscape

Determines if the page orientation is landscape (when checked) or portrait (when unchecked).

Margins

Determines the report margins (in report measurement units).

The report top and bottom margin properties are linked to the height property of the page margin bands, modifying the margin values is reflected in the appropriate band’s height value, and vice versa.

Page Height

Specifies the page height in report measurement units. The functionality is only available if the Paper Kind property is set to Custom.

Page Width

Specifies the page width in report measurement units. The functionality is only available if the Paper Kind property is set to Custom.

Paper Kind

Determines the type of paper that the report is printed on. Setting this property to any value other than Custom prevents the Page Height, Page Width and Paper Name properties from being customised.

If the Paper Kind property is set to Custom, the printer paper is selected according to the Paper Name property value. In this case, it is also necessary to set the Page Width and Page Height properties to the values of the selected paper.

Paper Name

Determines the name of the custom paper used by the printer on which the report is printed.

The Paper Name value is applied only when the Paper Kind property is set to Custom. If this property is used, it is also necessary to set the Page Width and Page Height properties to the values of the selected paper. If the printer on which a document is printed does not support the paper type specified by the Paper Name value, it defaults to the Letter paper size.

Printer Name

Determines the name of the printer to use when printing a report.

Report Print Options

Provides access to options that define the printed report.

Blank Detail Count

Specifies the number of times the empty detail band is repeated before printing the regular data.

Detail Count

Specifies the maximum number of times the detail band is printed when a data source is defined for the report, and it is not empty.

Detail Count at Design Time

Specifies the number of times the detail band is printed when a report is being previewed.

Detail Count when Data Source is Empty

Specifies the number of times the detail band is printed when no data source is defined for the report.

Print When Data Source is Empty

Specifies whether or not a report is printed if the data source is empty.

Right to Left

Specifies the content orientation of the controls.

Right to Left Layout

Specifies the position of controls with report bands.

Roll Paper

Specifies if the report is being printed on roll paper (a continuous sheet).

Show Print Margins Warning

Specifies whether an error message is displayed when the page margins are set outside the printable area.

Show Print Status Dialog

Specifies whether a print status window is displayed when the report is printed.

Snap Grid Size

Determines the size of the grid (if displayed) during report design, the grid display is dependent on the Draw the Grid property value.

Snap Grid Step Count

Specifies the number of grid cells comprising a larger snap grid unit.

Snapping Mode

Specifies the snap mode for controls when resized or moved. The following snapping mode are available: Snap to Grid or Snap to Lines.

Using Settings of the Default Printer

Specifies which of the default printer settings are used when printing a report.

Favorites

Right-click on the Favorites tab and select Edit Favorite Property List to display the Favorite Properties Editor, which is used to customise the available properties on the Favorites tab.

Refer to Conditionally Modify Control Display, Store and Restore Style Sheets, Add Watermark, Handle Events via Scripts, Bind Report to Dabacon Project Data and Sort Report Data for further information.