User:Piggz/KexiHandbook

Kexi

Window Types

Reports

Introduction

The Kexi Report plugin allows for the creation of dynamic page-based business reports from data held within the database.

Data can be ordered independently to how it is stored, and the reports can be structured with groups, headers and footers.

Concepts

Many of the concepts are similar to those in similar applications such as Microsoft Access, Oracle Reports and the LibreOffice Report Builder.

Report

A report is an object made from one or more sections. This top level object contains properties that are applicable to the entire report, such as Name and Paper Size.

Sections

A report contains at least one section, the detail section. This section is repeated for every row in the data set that makes the report. Additional sections can be added to increase the structure of the report, such as group-header, group-footer, report-header, report-footer, and many types of page-header/footer.

Items

Fields in the data set can be represented by Items in the report. An item is added to one of the report sections. Some items do not need to be associated with a data field, such as the Label item, which shows static text.

Scripting

Although many report formats can be created using just the report gui designer, fully dynamic and advanced layouts can be created using code snippets that run on an event based system when the report is rendered.

Extensibility

Although the report system in Kexi is a plugin to the main Kexi application, it itself has a plugin system that allows for the addition of new Item types. Some of the default items are built-in, and some are plugins, such as the Barcode and Chart items.

Report Design

Report

The top-level report object contains properties that relate to the entire report. These properties are accessible by clicking on the rectangular region at the top-left of the report between the horizontal and vertical rulers.

Properties

Name	Type	Description
Title	String	The title that is displayed in the
Page Size	Fixed List of Values	Sets the paper size for the report. Several standard paper sizes are catered for. The report design area will automatically adjust to the appropriate dimensions. The default is 'A4'
Page Orientation	Fixed List of Values	Sets the page orientation to Portrait or Landscape. The report design area will automatically adjust to the appropriate dimensions. The default is 'portrait'
Page Units	Fixed List of Values	Sets the measurement units used for all sizes and positions in the report. The default is 'cm'.
Grid Snap	Boolean	Determines whether items added to the report sections will 'snap' into place. The snap location depends on how many grid divisions are selected. The default is 'yes'.
Show Grid	Boolean	Determines whether or not the grid is displayed in the report sections in the design view. The default is 'yes'.
Grid Divisions	Numeric	Sets the number of divisions between each major grid point. The default is '4'.
Left Margin	Numeric	Sets the width of the left margin. The value is in the units specified for the Page Units. The default is '1cm'
Right Margin	Numeric	Sets the width of the right margin. The value is in the units specified for the Page Units. The default is '1cm'
Top Margin	Numeric	Sets the height of the top margin. The value is in the units specified for the Page Units. The default is '1cm'
Bottom Margin	Numeric	Sets the height of the bottom margin. The value is in the units specified for the Page Units. The default is '1cm'
Script Interpreter	Fixed List of Values	Sets the language used for scripting the report. This is only required if adding advanced functionality via the scripting framework is desired. The default value is 'javascript'.
Object Script	Fixed List of Values	Sets the script to be associated with this report. The list of values is limited to scripts in the database that are defined as 'object' scripts, and which match the language set for the Script Interpreter. There is no default value.

Sections

The following is the list of all possible section types:

• detail
• group-header
• group-footer
• report-header
• report-footer
• page-header-any
• page-header-even
• page-header-odd
• page-header-even
• page-header-first
• page-header-last
• page-footer-any
• page-footer-even
• page-footer-odd
• page-footer-even
• page-footer-first
• page-footer-last

Sections are added and removed using the Edit Sections button available on the window toolbar. The section editor also allows for sorting of data within the report by any of the available fields in either ascending or descending order. When fields are added as a Group Section, the following can be set:

Column

The field associated with the group

Sort Order

Either ascending or descending

Group Header

Set if a header is to be displayed for this group

Group Footer

Set if a footer is to be displayed for this group

Insert Page Break after Footer

Set if the report is to start a new page after this group

The order of precedence for page headers/footer is:

• First/Last
• Odd/Even
• Any

The report-header appears at the start of the report, but after any page-header, and the report-footer appears at the end of the report, but before any page-footer.

Properties

Name	Type	Description
Height	Numeric	Sets the height of the section manually. The height can also be set by dragging the bottom of the section up or down. The default value is 2.5cm.
Background Color	Color	Sets the background color of the section. The default value is '#ffffff' or White.

Items

The following is the list of all built-in item types

• Label
• Field
• Text
• Image
• Check
• Line

The following is the list of all shipped item plugins

• Chart
• Barcode
• Web
• Map

Report View

Output Formats

Screen

Screen View Description

Printer

Description

Spreadsheet (ODS)

Description

Document

Description

HTML (Table)

Description

HTML (CSS)

Description