Working with Natural Report Manager

This section describes Natural Report Manager. Each screen available in Natural Report Manager is described. The sections Navigating Within Natural Report Manager and Navigating Between the Layout Editor Screens tell you how to navigate between the main screens.

This section covers the following topics:

• What is Natural Report Manager?

• When is a Default Layout Generated?

• Invoking Natural Report Manager

• Issuing Commands

• Navigating Within Natural Report Manager

• Natural Report Manager PF Keys

• Layout Overview Screen

• Layout Editor Screens

• Layout Editor Editor Area

• Display Layout Element Screen

• Layout Field List Screen

• Extended Field Editing Window

• Array EditingWindow

• Layout Settings

• Testing Layouts

• Elements

What is Natural Report Manager?

Natural Report Manager is a tool which is available within Super Natural for editing the layout of reports.

You can create and edit the following layout elements:

• Preface

• Title

• Header

• List

• Groups

• Appendix

• Footer

Natural Report Manager generates a default layout for every Super Natural report. The type and number of layout elements generated by default depend on the entries you have made on the Worksheet and on the transaction mode. For example, when you define control breaks, a layout element of the type group is generated for each one and when you are using reporting mode Destination WORK FILE, only a title is generated. If you change the transaction modes of a transaction which already has a layout, the elements not relevant to the new mode can only be displayed not edited.

A standard Title element is supplied with Super Natural which contains the system variables TIMX, DATX, PROGRAM and PAGE-NUMBER but your administrator may change this.

Natural Report Manager is structured as shown in the following diagram:

When is a Default Layout Generated?

When you invoke Natural Report Manager from within a report, a default layout is automatically generated.

The default layout for reporting transactions always contains the layout element Title and can contain other elements according to the current transaction mode.

If you delete default layout elements, they are generated again when you next invoke Natural Report Manager with the following exceptions:

• The Title element is not regenerated unless it is the only default layout element.

• If you delete either the Header element or the List element (not both) from a default layout containing both, the element is not regenerated.

Entries made in the Layout Editor override those made in the Sequence column in the Worksheet. When you return to the Worksheet, you cannot use the Sequence column until you delete the elements list and header. Fields which have been used in the Layout Editor are marked with an "L".

If you add a transaction without invoking Natural Report Manager, a default layout is still generated but not until you save or run the transaction. The Sequence column of the Worksheet is not effected if you do not invoke Natural Report Manager.

Invoking Natural Report Manager

You can invoke Natural Report Manager from any point within a transaction you are creating or modifying.

To invoke Natural Report Manager

• Issue the LAYOUT command.

  The Layout Overview screen appears.

Issuing Commands

There are three ways of issuing commands in Natural Report Manager.

Using the Command Line

You can enter commands directly in the command line.

To issue a command directly

1. Type the command in the command line.

2. Press Enter.

Using the Command Line and the Cursor Position

In the Layout Overview screen, the Layout Editor split-screen with information sections and the Layout Editor editor area you can issue commands using the command line and cursor position.

To issue a command using the command line and cursor position

1. Type the command in the command line.

2. Position the cursor in the layout element box or section you want the command to act on.

3. Press Enter.

Using the Cursor Position and a PF Key

In the Layout Overview screen, the Layout Editor split-screen with information sections and the Layout Editor editor area you can issue commands using the cursor position and a PF key.

To issue a command using the cursor position and a PF key

1. Position the cursor in the layout element box or section you want the command to act on.

2. Press the relevant PF key.

Navigating Within Natural Report Manager

The following diagram shows the commands needed for navigation within Natural Report Manager:

OVERVIEW Command

The OVERVIEW command invokes the Layout Overview screen from the Display Layout Element screen, Layout Editor and Layout Field List screens.

EXIT and CANCEL Commands

The EXIT and CANCEL commands function as described in the section PF keys in the section Using Super Natural.

However, you should note the following:

If you issue the CANCEL command from the Layout Overview screen, you leave Natural Report Manager and return to Super Natural. The layout is returned to the version which existed before you invoked Natural Report Manager and you lose any changes made since.

If you issue the EXIT command from the Layout Overview screen, you leave Natural Report Manager and return to Super Natural. When you keep, save or run the transaction, the current version of the layout is kept or saved.

DISPLAY, EDIT and FIELDS Commands

The DISPLAY, EDIT and FIELDS commands invoke the Display Layout Element screen, Layout Editor and Layout Field List screens respectively for the layout element you specify or for the layout element you are working with.

With an Element Name

If you want to work with a layout element, you can issue the DISPLAY, EDIT and FIELDS commands with an element name.

To process a layout element

• Issue one of the following commands from the Display Layout Element screen, Layout Editor or Layout Field List screen:

  • DISPLAY element-name

  • EDIT element-name

  • FIELDS element-name

With No Element Name

Once you are working with a layout element, the commands DISPLAY, EDIT and FIELDS act upon it until otherwise specified.

The ALL Keyword

The ALL keyword allows you to process all the elements of a layout together.

To process all the elements of a layout together

• Issue one of the following commands:

  • DISPLAY ALL

  • EDIT ALL

  • FIELDS ALL

  Note:
  You cannot issue the FIELDS ALL and EDIT ALL commands if one or more layout elements are protected.

  When you have all elements in the editor area, all elements are affected by the line and field commands you then issue.

The Asterisk (*) List Function

The Asterisk List function provides you with a list of elements available with a certain command.

To invoke a selection list of elements, which you can display, edit or see the field list for

• Issue one of the following commands:

  • DISPLAY *

  • EDIT *

  • FIELDS *

Natural Report Manager PF Keys

The following table shows the default PF key allocation in Natural Report Manager. These PF key allocations are additional to the standard allocations described in the section Using Super Natural earlier in this documentation.

Layout Overview Screen

The Layout Overview screen shows which elements are already present in the layout.

If an element is outlined with a dotted line, you may not edit it.

In the example below, the element types for a simple report are present.

 12:34                   *** NATURAL REPORT MANAGER ***              07.Dec.1992
 NRMPAGE                       - Layout Overview -                        Monday
                                                                                
                     +------------------------------------+                     
                     I                Title               I                     
                     +------------------------------------+                     
                     +------------------------------------+                     
                     I               Header               I                     
                     I                                    I                     
                     +------------------------------------+                     
                     +------------------------------------+                     
                     I                List                I                     
                     I                                    I                     
                     I                                    I                     
                     I                                    I                     
                     I                                    I                     
                     I                                    I                     
                     I                                    I                     
                     I                                    I                     
                     +------------------------------------+                     
                                                                                
 Command ===>                                                                   
 Enter-PF1---PF2---PF3---PF4---PF5---PF6---PF7---PF8---PF9---PF10--PF11--PF12---
       Help  Set   Exit  Field Edit  Flip              Tech              Canc   

Invoking the Field List for, Displaying and Editing Elements

To display, edit or invoke the field list for an element

• Issue a direct command as described in the section Navigating within Natural Report Manager.

Deleting Elements

To delete a layout element

• Issue the DELETE element-name command.

ALL Parameter

The ALL parameter allows you to delete all the elements of a layout at once.

To delete all the elements of a layout at once

• Issue the DELETE ALL command.

  The Confirm Multiple Delete window appears where you can select between confirming each deletion, deleting without confirmation or cancelling the deletion.

The Asterisk (*) List Function

The Asterisk List function provides you with a list of the elements available with a certain command.

To invoke a selection list of elements which you can delete

• Issue the DELETE * command.

Creating Elements

To create a new layout element

• Issue the EDIT element-name command.

Select Function Window

The Select Function window displays a selection list of the functions available from the Layout Overview screen.

To invoke the Select Function window

1. Position the cursor in the layout element you want to process.

2. Press Enter.

Layout Editor Screens

There are three ways of displaying the Layout Editor.

• Editor area with information sections

• Editor area with show area

• Editor area with full screen

Navigating Between the Layout Editor Screens

The following diagram shows the commands you need to navigate within the Layout Editor:

Editor Area with Information Sections

When you invoke the Layout Editor from the Layout Overview screen for the first time, it consists of three sections as shown in the diagram below:

Section A and section B display information about the transaction fields and field delimiters you can use. You can decide which information you want to be displayed in which information section. The editor area is where you edit layout elements and is described later in this section.

To invoke the editor area with information sections

• Issue the SECTION command from within the Layout Editor.

  A screen similar to the following appears:

  

Transaction Field Information

Transaction field information lists the fields in the file or files you chose when creating the transaction. Transaction field information also lists any system variables and user fields used in the transaction.

Qualifier

Every field which you can use in the Layout Editor has a qualifier (number). Fields which you cannot use, for example group fields and phonetic descriptors are marked with a period (.).

Field Format

The format of each field is shown to the right of the transaction field list. You can shift the field format information further to the right until it is no longer visible. This is useful, if for example, the field names are truncated.

To shift the field format information to the right

1. Position the cursor in the section displaying transaction field information.

2. Issue the > or RIGHT command until the information becomes invisible.

To shift the field format information to the left

1. Position the cursor in the section displaying transaction field information.

2. Issue the < or LEFT command until the information becomes visible.

Delimiter Information

Delimiter information lists the field delimiters available. Field delimiters are symbols which represent a combination of field class, field attributes and field color. You use field delimiters to determine what kind of fields are used and how they are displayed.

The delimiter information contains four columns:

You can create your own field delimiter definitions or modify existing ones. For further information, see Layout Settings in Working with Natural Report Manager.

Escape Character

The escape character for field and line commands is part of the delimiter information and is displayed next to the header character.

Header Character

The header character is part of the delimiter information and is displayed next to the escape character. You use the header character to generate the header text defined in Super Natural for a field.

When a header layout element is first created, the header texts defined for the fields used in the editor are generated and underlined. If no header text is defined, the field name is generated. However, when you position subsequent fields in the Layout Editor, header text is not automatically generated. You can either type in a header as text or use the header character to generate it.

To generate header text for a field

1. Type in the header character and qualifier for the field.

   You can additionally use a text delimiter between header character and qualifier.

2. Press Enter.

   The header text defined for the field in Super Natural is generated. No underline is generated.

   You can use the header character to generate header text in any layout element.

Changing the Information in Sections A and B

You can choose whether you want to display transaction field and delimiter information in section A or in section B.

If you have long lists of transaction fields or of delimiters, it can be useful to use both A and B to display different parts of the same list.

To change the information in section A or B

• Issue the section-name information-type command

  where section-name is A or B and information-type is TRANSACTION or DELIMITER as shown below:

Paging in Section A and Section B

To page in section A or section B

• Enter the section-name paging-command command where section-name is A or B and paging-command is one of the Super Natural paging commands or one of those listed below:

  Command	Description
  + n	Pages forward n lines
  - n	Pages backwards n lines
  LINE n	Pages to the line number specified
  SCAN fieldname	Pages to the field named (only for the section displaying transaction fields)

  

  You can also issue the paging commands by positioning the cursor in the section you want to page in and using a PF key.

Editor Area with Show Area

Instead of the sections A and B, you can display a layout element in the top half of the Layout Editor as shown in the following diagram:

To invoke the show area with the editor area

• Issue the SHOW command from within the Layout Editor.

  A screen similar to the following appears:

  12:35 *** NATURAL REPORT MANAGER *** 07.Dec.1992 NRMEDIT - Layout Editor - Monday More: > All ---010---+----+----+---030-- ( Title ) +---050---+----+----+---070--- Cmd (XXXXXXXX _SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS(XXX ___ (XXXXXXXX _SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS(999 ___ _SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS ___ ___ ___ ___ All ---010---+----+----+---030--- ( List ) +---050---+----+----+---070--- Typ )X)XXXXXX)XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX)00000000)00000000)0000 Lst ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ Command ===> Enter-PF1---PF2---PF3---PF4---PF5---PF6---PF7---PF8---PF9---PF10--PF11--PF12--- Help Set Exit Field Edit Flip - + Tech < > Canc

Commands in the Show Area

You can perform the following two commands on lines displayed in the show area by entering them in the command column:

Apart from using the ..R and ..M commands, you cannot edit the element displayed in the show area.

You can use the Super Natural Shift functions, Paging functions or one of the commands listed below for positioning within the layout element displayed in the show area:

Displaying Another Layout Element

To display another layout element

• Issue the SHOW element-name command.

Editor Area Full-Screen

You can also choose to display the editor area only as shown in the diagram below:

To invoke the editor area only

• Issue the FULL command from within the Layout Editor.

  A screen similar to the following appears:

  )X)XXXXXX)XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX)00000000)00000000)0000 Lst ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ All ---010---+----+----+---030--- ( List ) +---050---+----+----+---070--- Typ Command ===> Enter-PF1---PF2---PF3---PF4---PF5---PF6---PF7---PF8---PF9---PF10--PF11--PF12--- Help Set Exit Field Edit Flip - + Tech < > Canc

Layout Editor Editor Area

You can use the Layout Editor editor area to position and edit transaction fields and text constants within layout elements either directly or using line commands, field commands and direct commands.

Reports can be up to 250 columns wide and 250 lines long. The editor area is 75 columns wide, 20 lines long in the full-screen Layout Editor screen and 9 lines long in the split-screen Layout Editor screen.

If your report is wider than the editor area, you can use one of the Super Natural Shift functions or one of the commands listed below to position to the right or left in the layout element(s) displayed:

If your report is longer than the editor area, you can use the Super Natural paging commands to page within the layout element(s) displayed.

Scale

The scale is a line either at the top or the bottom of the editor area which displays information about the element(s) you are editing.

In the two split-screen Layout Editor screens, the information line separates the editor area from the rest of the screen. In the full-screen Layout Editor screen, the information line is in the message line and is overwritten if a message is displayed.

The scale displays the following information:

Line Position Information

Line position information shows the number of the first line you can see in the editor area. The information ALL (when you can see the whole element), TOP and BOTTOM appear as appropriate.

Element Name

The scale displays the name of the element you are editing or the text All Elements'.

Column Numbers

The scale also shows which columns are displayed. The columns are identified by a three-figure number at intervals of 20 columns. The column itself is underneath the second figure of the number.

Type Column

The Type (Typ) column contains a three-letter abbreviation showing the layout element type of each line used in the editor area. Blank lines in an element are also marked.

To move the Type column to the other side of the screen

• Issue the TYPE command.

Paging Information

The paging information shown after the More: prompt always refers to the editor area when the editor area is displayed.

Positioning Transaction Fields in a Layout Element

Each transaction field qualifier must be preceded by a delimiter of the class OUTPUT.

For further information on delimiters, see Delimiter Information.

To position a transaction field in a layout element

1. Position the cursor one position to the left of the column in which you want the field to be displayed.

2. Type in a field delimiter of class OUTPUT.

3. Type the field qualifier (number allocated to the field in the information section) after the field delimiter.

4. Press Enter.

   For right-justified fields of numeric (N), integer (I) or packed numeric (P) format, the figure nine (9) appears to represent the full length of the field. For example, if you choose a field of the format N12, twelve 9's appear.

   For left-justified fields of numeric (N), integer (I) or packed numeric (P) format, the figure zero (0) appears to represent the full length of the field. For example, if you choose a field of the format N12, twelve 0's appear.

   For fields of alphanumeric (A), floating (F), Date (D), time (T) or binary (B) format, the letter X appears to represent the full length of the field. For example, if you choose a field of the format A12, twelve X's appear.

   Fields of any type with an edit mask are represented by the letter M.

To alter the position of transaction fields already present in a layout element

• Use the field commands and line commands described later in this section.

Positioning Text Constants in a Layout Element

A text constant is piece of text which always appears in a layout element. You can enter text constants directly into the editor area.

Each text constant must be preceded by a delimiter of the class TEXT.

To alter the position of text constants already present in a layout element

• Use the field commands and line commands described later in this section.

  The first column of the editor area is only for delimiters or commands. You may not position text constants in it.

Line Commands

Line commands influence the editor lines and are structured as follows:

The escape character of a line command is entered in the first position of an editor line. You may only enter escape characters or delimiters in this position.

When all elements are in the editor area, all elements are effected by the line and field commands you issue.

Escape Character

The first two characters of each line command are the escape character. The default escape character is a period (.). The escape character defined for you is shown in the Delimiter information which you can invoke in one of the information sections of the split-screen Layout Editor.

Line Command Character

You can use some line command characters in combination with a repetition factor or with a marker.

(Blank)

Entering a blank at the end of each line command prevents the editor from trying to interpret any other information in the editor line as part of the line command.

Issuing Line Commands

To issue a line command

1. Type the first escape character at the first position of an editor line.

2. Type the second escape character at the second position of the editor line.

3. Type the line command character immediately after the second escape character.

4. Type a blank.

5. Press Enter.

   Do not leave a blank between the second escape character and the line command character.

   The following is an example of a correctly-positioned line command:

   

List of Line Commands

The line commands available in the Layout Editor editor area are listed in the following section.

Field Commands

Field commands influence the field in which you enter them and are structured as follows:

You can apply field commands to a range of fields or constants. You can specify a range as follows:

• With two or more of the same field commands on the same screen. The column range (horizontal range) and the line range (vertical range) are determined by the positions of the commands.

• With the repetition factors "n" (where "n" is a number) or asterisk (*). With the repetition factor "n", the command is applied to the designated field and to the fields in the n-1 lines below it. The repetition factor asterisk (*), causes repetition until the bottom of the element is reached.

Field commands are entered in the first position of a field. The escape character of the field command is entered in the same position as the delimiter of the field.

When all elements are in the editor area, all elements are effected by the line and field commands you then issue.

Escape Character

The first character of each field command is the escape character. The default escape character is a period (.). The escape character defined for you is shown in the Delimiter information which you can invoke in one of the information sections of the split-screen Layout Editor.

Field Command Character

You can use some field command characters in combination with a repetition factor as described above.

(Blank)

Entering a blank at the end of each field command prevents the editor from trying to interpret any other information in the line as part of the field command.

Issuing Field commands

To issue a field command

1. Type the escape character at the first position of a field (the same position as the field delimiter).

2. Type the field command character immediately after the escape character.

3. Type a blank.

4. Press Enter.

   Do not leave a blank between the escape character and the field command character.

   The following is an example of a correctly-positioned field command:

   

List of Field Commands

The field commands available in the Layout Editor editor area are listed in the following section.

Overlapping

When executing a line or field command would result in fields being overwritten or the margins of the report being exceeded, an error message is displayed which indicates overlapping. The command is not executed.

Display Layout Element Screen

The Display Layout Element screen displays a layout element or elements. You can display elements which you are not allowed to edit.

 12:03                   *** NATURAL REPORT MANAGER ***              07.Dec.1992
 NRMSHOW                   - Display Layout Element -                     Monday
                                                                   More:       >
 All   ---010---+----+----+---030--- ( List ) +---050---+----+----+---070--- Typ
 )X)XXXXXX)XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX)00000000)00000000)0000                            Lst
                                                                                
                                                                                
                                                                                
                                                                                
                                                                                
                                                                                
                                                                                
                                                                                
                                                                                
                                                                                
                                                                                
                                                                                
                                                                                
                                                                                
                                                                                
                                                                                
 Command ===>                                                                   
 Enter-PF1---PF2---PF3---PF4---PF5---PF6---PF7---PF8---PF9---PF10--PF11--PF12---
       Help  Set   Exit  Field Edit  Flip  -     +     Tech  <     >     Canc   

For information on the scale, see Layout Editor Editor Area.

To display a layout element

• Issue the DISPLAY element-name command from the Display Layout Element screen, Layout Editor or Layout Field List screen.

  The element named is displayed in the Display Layout Element screen.

To display all layout elements

• Issue the DISPLAY ALL command from the Display Layout Element screen, Layout Editor or Layout Field List screen.

  All elements are displayed in the Display Layout Element screen.

Layout Field List Screen

The Layout Field List screen lists the fields in the layout element specified.

  12:00                   *** NATURAL REPORT MANAGER ***             07.Dec.1992
  NRMVARL                     - Layout Field List -                       Monday
                                                                   More: <      
 ------------------------------------ List -------------------------------------
 Cmd  Field Name (Truncated)                           Format Field Type        
  __  SAG-TOURS-E-PERSON.SKIPPER-SAILING-INSTRUCTOR___ A1     Primary           
  __  SAG-TOURS-E-PERSON.AREA-CODE____________________ A6     Primary Array     
  __  SAG-TOURS-E-PERSON.PHONE-NUMBER_________________ A15    Primary Array     
  __  SAG-TOURS-E-PERSON.PERSON-ID____________________ N8     Primary           
  __  SAG-TOURS-E-PERSON.BIRTH-DATE___________________ N8     Primary           
  __  YEAR-OF-BIRTH___________________________________ N4     User              
  __  ________________________________________________                          
  __  ________________________________________________                          
  __  ________________________________________________                          
  __  ________________________________________________                          
  __  ________________________________________________                          
  __  ________________________________________________                          
  __  ________________________________________________                          
  __  ________________________________________________                          
 Available field commands: EDIT ARRAY DELETE                                    
                                                                                
 Command ===>                                                                   
 Enter-PF1---PF2---PF3---PF4---PF5---PF6---PF7---PF8---PF9---PF10--PF11--PF12---
       Help  Set   Exit        Edit  Flip  -     +     Tech  <     >     Canc   

You can perform the following commands on fields displayed in the Layout Field List screen by entering the command abbreviation in the command column:

The Extended Field Editing window and the Array Editing window are described later in this section.

Extended Field Editing Window

You can use the Extended Field Editing window to edit fields individually. For example, you may want to have the field NAME shown twice in a list, in pink at the top and in blue at the bottom.

To invoke the Extended Field Editing window

• Enter the field command .E in the first position of the field.

  Or:
  Enter ED in the command column next to the field in the Layout Field List screen.

  Note:
  You can also issue the EDIT command using the cursor position as described earlier in this section.

  The following example shows the version of the Extended Field Editing window which appears for numeric fields:

  17:50 *** NATURAL REPORT MANAGER *** 1993-05-07 Layout LCRUISE1 - Layout Editor - NRMVAR More: > +-------------------------Extended Field Editing (1)--------------------------+ ! Field Name (Field Type: Primary ) ! ! SAG-TOURS-E-CRUISE.START-DATE____________________________________ ! ! ________ Identical Suppress.. ON _ OFF _ ! ! Format ................. N8___ Output Length .......... 8____ ! ! Attributes ............. IL______ Numeric Sign ON ........ _ ! ! Colors ................. ________ Zero Print ON .......... _ ! +More: +--------------------------------------------------------------------+ (XXXXXXXX _SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS(XXX Ttl (XXXXXXXX _SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS(999 Ttl _SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS Ttl Ttl Starting Date: E9999999 Ttl

The Extended Field Editing window contains the following fields:

Dynamic Attributes

If you know that the contents of a field is always structured in a certain way, you may want to draw attention to part of the field by giving it different attributes.

To determine the attributes of parts of an alphanumeric field according to its content

1. Type the character after which you want the field attributes to change in the Dynamic Attributes field of the Extended Field Editing (2)window.

   You can enter either a special character or the hexadecimal value for any other character. The field help will help you with the required notation.

   This character will not be displayed in the report.

2. Type one of the following two-character abbreviations for color (optional if new dynamic attribute defined):

   • BL (Blue)

   • GR (Green)

   • NE (Neutral)

   • PI (Pink)

   • RE (Red)

   • TU (Turquoise)

   • YE (Yellow)

3. Type one of the following abbreviations for a dynamic attribute (optional if new color defined):

   • B Blinking

   • C Italic/Cursive

   • D Normal (default)

   • I Intensified

   • N Not displayed (for passwords etc.)

   • U Underlined

   • V Reverse video

4. Type in a final special character.

   The final special character is the character after which the dynamic field attributes revert to the original attributes.

Example:

For example, if the field NAME is always structured as follows:

Mr.surname,firstname

you could decide to have the surname displayed differently to the rest of the field. To have the surname displayed in red and blinking, you would enter the following in the Dynamic Attributes field:

'4BREB,

where '4B represents the special character period (.) in EBCDIC code. The special character period (.) is not displayed in the report.

Array Editing Window

You can use the Array Editing window to determine how the occurrences of multiple-value fields and periodic groups are displayed.

Before you perform array processing, the following applies:

• For fields numbered in the Sequence column of the Worksheet, the number of occurrences defined in your user profile for multiple-value fields and periodic groups are displayed.

• For fields not numbered in the Sequence column of the Worksheet, only the first occurrence is displayed.

To invoke the Array Editing window

• Enter the field command .A in the first position of the field in the Layout Editor.

  Or:
  Enter AR in the command column next to the field in the Layout Field List screen.

  09:52 *** NATURAL REPORT MANAGER *** 1993-05-10 Layout LCRUISE1 - Layout Editor - NRMARR More: > +--------------------------------Array Editing--------------------------------+ ! Field Name (Field Type: Primary Array ) ! ! SAG-TOURS-E-CRUISE.LANGUAGES ! ! Upper Bounds Output Occurrences Starting from Spacing ! ! 99___ Vertical__ 1__ ________ 0_ Lines ! ! 191__ Horizontal 1__ ________ 1_ Columns ! ! 1____ __________ 1__ ________ 0 ! +-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+ )XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX )S000.00 )S00000000 AXX Lst

The Array Editing window contains the following columns as well as showing field name and field type:

Layout Settings

To invoke the Layout Settings (General) window

• Issue the SETTINGS command.

  The Layout Settings (General) window appears. You can page forward to change newpage, format and delimiter settings as described below:

General

Newpage

If you specify no condition, a new page is always started before or after an element type as defined. If you specify a condition, a new page is only started if the condition is fulfilled.

Format

Delimiter

Testing Layouts

When you test a layout, you are shown how the report data would be presented if you ran the transaction you are working on using Report Destination SCREEN, PRINTER, CON-NECT or EDITOR. The test report is filled with dummy data.

To test a layout

• Issue the TEST command from within the Layout Editor.

  The TEST command is allocated to PF12.

Elements

Element Length

The Layout Editor does not allow you to create a title as long as or longer than the page. If you are also using a header and footer, the Layout Editor makes sure that there is room for the report data.

Element Sort Order

The elements in the Layout Editor editor area are sorted (or not) according to the defaults set by the administrator. You can use the SORT command to sort the elements into the following order:

• Title

• Preface

• Header

• List

• Groups 1 - 10

• Footer

• Appendix

When you run a transaction, the layout elements always appear in a logical order. Title and footer (if defined) appear on every page and the other elements appear in the order listed above.

Title

A default Title element is generated for all reports at your site. You can edit the default Title element like any other element.

The following shows the default Title element supplied with Super Natural:

The standard default Title element supplied with Super Natural contains the system variables TIMX, DATX, PROGRAM and PAGE-NUMBER but your administrator may change this.

For further information on system variables, see System Variables.

The Super Natural administrator provides a default Title element to fit the needs at your site. For example, he may want the name of the company to appear at the top of all reports.

S Lines

The S lines are a placeholder for up to 5 lines of selection criteria. Each S line contains 60 Ss. If you either add or erase Ss from the S lines, the Ss are interpreted as text. You can edit the S lines if you wish. For example, you can move the S lines two lines down and enter text above them.

Dynamic Values in Title Element

If you use dynamic input fields in the first 5 lines of your selection criteria, the current value of the field does not appear in the standard title when the transaction is run.

To display the current value of a dynamic input field in the title when the transaction is run

1. Edit the Title element.

2. Position the dynamic input field in the editor area as described in the section Positioning Transaction Fields in a Layout Element earlier in this section.

   The current value of the dynamic input field is supplied in the title when the transaction is run.