Print Headers and Report Message when no records

[ohioguy_tim]

Hello

I'm using Alpha5 v 10.5. I'm creating a desktop application. I would like to know how to print report headers and a report message when there is not data returned from the filter/query in the report preview window? Right now when there is no data it shows a blank page.

I have all the report arguments in the header of the report. I want a report that there was no data based on the agruments the user picked.

I know about going to View/Systems/Preferences/Reports and setting a Report Message but you still get a blank page in the report preview window. Its not until you print the blank page or save the report, do you see the Report Message and only the Report Message. The Warning Diaglog box is not helpful either. Says something like "No data for layout" the users doesn't know what a layout is.

Can anyone help?

Thank you.

Ohioguy_tim

[Keith Hubert]

Re: Print Headers and Report Message when no records

Hi Tim,

This has come up before and the suggestion was to turn off the blank preview and display a dialog message box conditionally if there were no records to print.

This was done by way of getting the count in a query first.

[ohioguy_tim]

Re: Print Headers and Report Message when no records

Hi Keith

Thanks for replying.

I will think about your suggestion. Its sounds doable.

What I really would like is for the user to be able to have a printed copy of the headers with the report message no data for report. Then they could print it and file it. It would show that the date range they typed in has no data to report on.

Tim

[Keith Hubert]

Re: Print Headers and Report Message when no records

Hi,

I understand what you are asking but the idea is to save the planet and not to print documents unless they contain meaningful data.

[Donald Duck]

Re: Print Headers and Report Message when no records

Tim:

I agree with you. I "print" reports and post them to the web for my customer organizations and it has always bothered me that I could not get the heading and "No information avaiable"( or other wording),it has not effect on the trees.


If The Alpha software folks are monitoring these notes, this is a suggestions to have an option to "print" or "not to print" blank reports.

[ohioguy_tim]

Re: Print Headers and Report Message when no records

Hi Donald

Thanks for your reply.

I agree it would be nice to print headers and report messages when there is no data.

Sounds like I need to post the the Wishlist forum :)

Tim

[Tbaker]

Re: Print Headers and Report Message when no records

Tim

I had a scenario similar to what you are requesting.

I created two forms - the first form had all the fields and was available if there were records in the filter.

The second form was just the header and then the detail field names
but no fields in the detail area.

The only thing in the detail area was a text box that read " No records were found to match the filter"

Then in my code to call the report I used a dialog box to get the filter and then queried the table to get the records that matched the filter.

I used qry.records_get() to find out the number of records that were returned by the query - if records were returned I printed the real report - if there were no records in the query I printed the report with header and the text box stating no records. (the filter on that report was imbedded in the report select records recno()=1. It didn't matter what record number #1 was because there no fields in the detail section or anywhere except for the header information and the text box.

However, I did this in xbasic and not action scripting but I am sure you could do the same in AS with branching etc.

Just thought I would through that in - It was Keith's reponse that jogged my memory.

FWIW

Tom Baker

[ohioguy_tim]

Re: Print Headers and Report Message when no records

Hi Tom

Thanks for your reply.

I see how this could work.

I'm a programmer so I'm cool with xbasic.

This would take a little more work but I could do this.

Just hate the idea of doing it for every report I create.

Thanks Tom

Tim

[Tbaker]

Re: Print Headers and Report Message when no records

Tim

The attached zip file might give you some ideas -

There are two table, in the app with two forms and three reports.

The table are identical except for the name (there are three records in each table)

The forms names are based on the table so you can determine which one you are viewing -

There is a button on each form to run a report for that form. Pushing the button a dialog box will come up asking for a name - if you put in the name of one of three records in the table, it will run the real report for that table. If you put a wrong name in the text box it will run the no_rec report with a header that says what table your are using. There is only one no_recs report for both tables (but it could be a hundred tables with the header changed)

Also when you push the button it will assign to a variable the header (v_header) which is the name of the table in this case and the filter used to populate the report (filt). These will both show up on the no rec report.

While there are two individual reports, there is only one report for no records.

By assigning the header when you push the button, the variable is shown in the header of the no records report when there are no records.

Using this you can have a hundred reports (those are the ones that you have to recode some things - see the code behind the buttons) but only one no rec report.

I have used this technique before and it works if you need a plain vanilla report that say there are no records. You can manipulate the no rec reports by using global variable to say anything that you want in the report header.

Just thought I would pass this on.

Tom Baker

[ohioguy_tim]

Re: Print Headers and Report Message when no records

Hi Tom

Thanks for attaching the zip file.

I will take a look at the file and see how I can incorporate it into my project.

I love learning new techniques.

Thanks once again.

Tim

[MikeC]

Re: Print Headers and Report Message when no records

Tim, Tom...just another way to approach this problem which works.

I used the same approach as Tom on a project that required almost exactly the same requirements....no records in the detail section, but they still wanted the beginning and ending balances and header/footers to show....and a message of "NO ACTIVITY" to be placed.

Instead of the possible maintenance headache with multiple reports, I just checked to see if there were records prior and if none, added one. Also, the "NO ACTIVITY" was placed on a conditional that checked for a value---

In my case, since dealing with passive linked tables, the added record was destroyed upon refreshing the table....otherwise a procedure to get rid of the record should also be created.

I had to do this for 3 subreports, but basically copy and paste/duplicate procedure once one was created like most things.

[ohioguy_tim]

Re: Print Headers and Report Message when no records

Hi Mike

Thanks for the replying and for another option.

I will check it out.

Thanks

Tim