Friday, May 23, 2008
Tip of the Day: When to Use Report Actions vs. Report Band EEPs Section: Report/Label Designer . R:BASE 7.6 for Windows (Build: 7.6.3.30516 or higher) . R:BASE C/S:I 7.6 for Windows (Build: 7.6.3.305016 or higher) . R:BASE Turbo V-8 for Windows (Build: 8.0.17.30516 or higher) Do you know when it is appropriate to use Report Actions versus using Report Band EEPs? In the R:BASE Report/Label Designer there are now several different options now available for developers and users to run custom code within reports and labels. There are "Report Actions" and "Report Band EEPs". With Actions, there are several levels that your custom code can be executed during a report's stages of use. The levels include: . Before Preview - executes code before a report is previewed . After Preview - executes code after a report is previewed . Before Generate - executes code before a report is generated . After Generate - executes code after a report is generated . On Before Design - executes code before the designer is launched . On After Design - executes code after the designer is closed A Report Action is geared to be used for initializing variables and creating temporary or permanent tables and views. The reason for this is because Report Actions are only intended to be executed once when the report is generated in the R:BASE Report Generator. When using Report Band EEPs, you can run custom code before or after a report band, i.e. Page Header (PH), Report Footer (RF), etc., is generated. As R:BASE reports are generated from top to bottom, the Report Band EEPs will execute in this same fashion. If you right click on any report band, you will see the following options for EEPs: . Before Generate Custom EEP . After Generate Custom EEP If you intend to alter the characteristic of any report field, i.e. color, visibility, size, etc., then you must issue the appropriate PROPERTY and GETPROPERTY commands within your Report Band EEPs. Also, when you decide to document your database and application code, remember that you can document your Actions and Custom EEPs from within the Report/Label Designers. The available output options include: Report Designer | Main Menu | Report |Document Custom EEPs . Printer . Text file . PDF file . Clipboard Label Designer | Main Menu | Label | Document Custom EEPs . Printer . Text file . PDF file . Clipboard Enjoy and make sure to have fun! Very Best R:egards, Razzak.
