Adding blank rows to report

[Mark Campidonica]

First let me say that I DO try to search the forum before posting the question.

Second, everybody here is awesome.

I am trying to clone a paper form. Actually, my organization frowns on cloning forms, but I get away with it because usually I can make such a good copy. WordPerfect works extremely well. However, WordPerfect's relational database capabilities are nil.

I need to have 14 rows per page. If I don't have enough records, I need to "pad" the report to make the total rows equal 14. With WordPerfect, I simply added blank records to the data table, to make the total records a multiple of 14.

The problem with the whole WordPerfect approach was that I was handling batches of records that were in separate tables. With Alpha5 I want to have a true database, containing all the records together.

I know that I could create a temporary table that contains my desired records and add blank records to create a multiple of 14. But this is essentially the same as the old WordPerfect approach. Is there a better way that doesn't involve creating a temporary table?

[Keith Hubert]

RE: Adding blank rows to report

Hi Mark,

First off, I confess I am not awesome but I will still try and help if I can.

Are you trying to merge two tables and you want to make sure there is always 14 records in the second table? Or is it that you want to have 14 rows because that is your paper size? Please let me know.

Keith Hubert
London.

[Mark Campidonica]

RE: Adding blank rows to report

Hi,

The form must have fourteen rows on each page. Even if the last ones are blank. Basically think of filling out a paper form, but I want Alpha to print out the form. Essentially it's just one table.

Another clunky idea I thought of is that I can scan the table part of the form and print on top of the image, but the image file would occupy a lot of memory and slow printing. I am hoping for a programming solution without generating any additional tables.

Thanks,

Mark

[JohnZaleski]

RE: Adding blank rows to report

I seem to remember this coming up on the Alpha Five Version 4 forum. Try searching in that forum on:
report blank row

[forskare]

RE: Adding blank rows to report

Mark,

What do you maen by:

>>The form must have fourteen rows on each page. Even if the last ones are blank.

[forskare]

RE: Adding blank rows to report

Yes, it has been discussed on this board. I searched using 'report and lines' and found this thread. Haven't read it but it may lend a suggestion or 2.

RE: Fixed length detailed reports

[whanigsberg]

RE: Adding blank rows to report

Mark,

What happens if you have *more* than 14 records. Do you print two reports the first with 14 and the second with the rest?

Anyway, I would reconsider the temp table route. It would not have to be like Word Perfect. That is, the whole thing could be invisible to the user who would specify the print range in your data table and press a button.

The button would run code to
-empty the temp table;
-append the records to print;
-add enough blank records to total 14
-print a report which you have previously defined for the temp table.

The only drawback is you have this temp table hanging around which is used only for printing but which users never see. In other words, no big deal.

Sometimes printing from an intermediate table can be a big help as you can efficiently preprocess the data before the report sees it.

Bill

[Willard]

RE: Adding blank rows to report

Mr Hanigsberg, you are a smart cookie. the stuff you see and comment on is fantastic to say the least. Thanks for all you 'STUFF'

[Mark Campidonica]

RE: Adding blank rows to report



William Hanigsberg wrote:
-------------------------------
Mark,

What happens if you have *more* than 14 records. Do you print two reports the first with 14 and the second with the rest?

*YES


Anyway, I would reconsider the temp table route. It would not have to be like Word Perfect. That is, the whole thing could be invisible to the user who would specify the print range in your data table and press a button.

*SIGH, I was afraid I would have to do this. I thought maybe there might be a function or something.

The button would run code to
-empty the temp table;
-append the records to print;
-add enough blank records to total 14
-print a report which you have previously defined for the temp table.


*YES, I thought of that approach, but was trying to avoid that route. I do this already with an import from a spreadsheet file.

The only drawback is you have this temp table hanging around which is used only for printing but which users never see. In other words, no big deal.

Sometimes printing from an intermediate table can be a big help as you can efficiently preprocess the data before the report sees it.

Bill

[Mark Campidonica]

RE: Adding blank rows to report

Thanks. I was dumb and went to the Version 4 board before realizing that YOU were talking about this board.

The user in the previous post (as usual) thought of a third approach.

He printed a blank form with Alpha 5 and then reprinted on top of that form. Kinda like printing on top of the bitmap image, but would use less memory. Inconvenient, however.

Well, at least I am not the only one who wants this functionality. pad_row(total rows). Looks like the old WordPerfect approach wins (temp table).

[crimmelcp]

RE: Adding blank rows to report

Mark:
I do this with my timesheets and purchase order apps.
I do it thru Xbasic code.
for Po's I need my records to print 1 Po per page or 2 pages if the linecount is more than 14.
It takes a about 10 seconds longer because it runs the xbasic code but it does fill up the page.
If the PO has 5 lines, then it pints 5 lines filled in and 9 blank lines.
see code below
charlie crimmel

when the user selects print

''XBasic
' Check for 14 records in printdetail
' --------------------------------------------------------
dim global linenumber as n
dim global ponumber1 AS C
var->linnumber = 0

message.text = "Check 14 Print Detail"
tbl = table.open("podetail.dbf")
tbl.fetch_last()
record = tbl.recno()
var->ponumber1 = tbl.ponumber
var->linenumber = tbl.recno()+1

while record linenumber,2)
tbl.ponumber = trim(var->ponumber)
tbl.enter_end(.T.)
record = record + 1
var->linenumber = var->linenumber +1
end while
tbl.close()

[whanigsberg]

RE: Adding blank rows to report

That's a good idea. I have a question, though. What happens to all the blank records you accumulate each time you run a print job? Do you have a routine to purge them?

Bill

I always figured someone would show us a way to do the report without an extra table!

[Bill Parker]

RE: Adding blank rows to report

I recently did a report that needed to pad up to a certain number of lines, and did not find a solution. but reading this thread gives me an idea that I have not tried.

Subreports is the way to go. In the detail section, one subreport prints the actual lines that exist in the data. Make the height of the subreport "field" in the main report small. It will expand at print time. A calculated field calculates the number of lines printed.

Add a second subreport directly below the first one. This has a rich text field containing 14 conditional objects, to allow for 14 blank lines, as follows
IF cLineCount

[Bill Parker]

RE: Adding blank rows to report

As I was writing the last sentence of the previous (almost) brilliant idea, I had a better one.

Instead of subreports, use a group break. Print the detail as you normally would in the detail section. Calculate the number of lines in the group. In the group footer place the rich text field mentioned in message above. Again, make it height small. It should then expand to the correct number of lines.

To handle situations of more than 1 detail page, the conditional expression could be
IF mod(cLineCount,14)>0.or.cLineCount=0 _____ Else End If
IF mod(cLineCount,14)>1.or.cLineCount=0 _____ Else End If
...
IF mod(cLineCount,14)>12.or.cLineCount=0 _____ Else End If
IF cLineCount=0 _____ Else End If

Bill.

[Mark Campidonica]

RE: Adding blank rows to report

YEAH! This was what I was looking for. Do need the purge routine though.

Thanks Charlie!

Mark

Note that each row is part of a table with cell borders. I can't use expanding white space like a rich text field. I needed actual blank records, which Charlie's method produces.