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The REPORT control can be considered as a white sheet of paper in which you render reporting output. The output may consist of:

• grids

• text

• images (jpg/svg)

From the control definition point of view, the REPORT control is very easy: you just have to define the size of the control and a reference to an adapter property that represents the control on the server side. Let us start building up a simple report step by step.

This document covers the following topics:

• The Very Beginning - A White Report Area

• Rendering a Grid into the REPORT Control

• Using Special Styles for Cell Output

• Adding Some Text

• Adding a Second Grid

• Adding an Image

• HTML Rendering - PDF Rendering

• Reacting on Mouse Clicks

• REPORTInfo API

• REPORT Controls versus TEXTGRID Control

• Properties

The Very Beginning - A White Report Area

Let us first define the page layout:

The layout definition is:

<page model="Demo_Report_Adapter">
    <titlebar name="Demo Report">
    </titlebar>
    <pagebody takefullheight="true">
        <rowarea name="Demo Report" height="100%">
            <report reportprop="report" height="100%" showpdf="true">
            </report>
        </rowarea>
    </pagebody>
    <statusbar withdistance="false">
    </statusbar>
</page>

The adapter code is:

// This class is a generated one.

import com.softwareag.cis.server.Adapter;
import com.softwareag.cis.server.util.REPORTCellFormat;
import com.softwareag.cis.server.util.REPORTInfo;

public class Demo_Report_Adapter
    extends Adapter
{
    // property >report<
    REPORTInfo m_report = new REPORTInfo(this);
    public REPORTInfo getReport() { return m_report; }
}

On the layout side, you see the REPORT control referencing the property report. The property itself is of type REPORTInfo.

Please note: in the XML layout definition, the property showpdf is set to "true". If you do so, you also have to create the instance of REPORTInfo by calling the constructor in which the instance of the adapter object that manages the control is passed.

Rendering a Grid into the REPORT Control

The following extension is done to the adapter class:

public void init()
{
    renderGrid();
}

/**
 * Renders a grid with 4 columns and 3 data rows.
 */
private void renderGrid()
{
    m_report.addHeadlineCell("Title 1","150");
    m_report.addHeadlineCell("Title 2","70");
    m_report.addHeadlineCell("Title 3","100");
    m_report.addHeadlineCell("Title 4","80");
    m_report.addNewLine();
    for (int i=0; i<3; i++)
    {
        m_report.addContentCell("A Cell " + i);
        m_report.addContentCell("B Cell " + i);
        m_report.addContentCell("C Cell " + i);
        m_report.addContentCell("D Cell " + i);
        m_report.addNewLine();
    }
}

The control now looks as follows:

You see that grids are rendered in a simple way. By using the API of REPORTInfo, you can add headline and content cells. You append the grid information cell by cell, indicating new lines between.

Using Special Styles for Cell Output

The grid uses style sheet definitions that are part of the normal Application Designer style sheet files. They are taken from the TEXTGRID definitions inside the style sheet file.

You can override these style definitions explicitly. In the following example, the renderGrid() method is extended to display a summary line at the end of the grid:

The code is:

private void renderGrid()
 {
     m_report.addHeadlineCell("Title 1","150");
     m_report.addHeadlineCell("Title 2","70");
     m_report.addHeadlineCell("Title 3","100");
     m_report.addHeadlineCell("Title 4","80");
     m_report.addNewLine();
     for (int i=0; i<3; i++)
     {
         m_report.addContentCell("A Cell " + i);
         m_report.addContentCell("B Cell " + i);
         m_report.addContentCell("C Cell " + i);
         m_report.addContentCell("D Cell " + i);
         m_report.addNewLine();
     }
     REPORTCellFormat sumFormat = new REPORTCellFormat();
     sumFormat.setBackgroundColor("#D0FFD0"); // light green
     sumFormat.setTextColor("#FF0000"); // red
     sumFormat.setFontWeight(REPORTCellFormat.FONTWEIGHT_BOLD);
     sumFormat.setAlign(REPORTCellFormat.ALIGN_CENTER);
     m_report.addContentCell("This is the summary line.", // text
                              4, // cellspan 
                              sumFormat); // cell format
 }

You see that the API for adding cells offers a variant by which you can pass a columns span definition and a REPORTCellFormat object.

Adding Some Text

By using the addText(...) methods of REPORTInfo, you can add text to the reporting area:

The adapter code is:

private void renderGrid()
{
    // headline
    REPORTCellFormat hlFormat = new REPORTCellFormat();
    hlFormat.setFontSize("16pt");
    hlFormat.setFontWeight(REPORTCellFormat.FONTWEIGHT_BOLD);
    m_report.addText("Demo Report",hlFormat);
    m_report.addVerticalDistance("10");
    
    // grid
    ...
    ...
    ... see coding above
    ...
    ...
    
    // description
    m_report.addVerticalDistance("10");
    m_report.addText("This is a description of the grid. " + 
                     "This is a description of the grid. " + 
                     "This is a description of the grid. " + 
                     "This is a description of the grid. " + 
                     "This is a description of the grid. ");
}

In the code, you see the usage of the addText(...) method. Text can be combined with an explicit cell format object (as done in the title) or can be output straight forward (as done in the description). In order to keep a certain distance between the texts and the grid, the method addVerticalDistance(...) is called.

Adding a Second Grid

You can repeat the add methods for rendering grids, texts, etc. multiple times. The formats (column width etc.) of each grid are completely independent from one another:

The code of the example was changed in the following way:

public void init()
{
    renderGrid();
    renderGrid2();
}
    
private void renderGrid()
{
    ...see coding above
}

private void renderGrid2()
{
    m_report.addVerticalDistance("10");
        
    m_report.setIndent("50");
    m_report.addHeadlineCell("Second Grid's Title","250");
    m_report.addNewLine();
    m_report.addContentCell("Line 1");
    m_report.addNewLine();
    m_report.addContentCell("Line 2");
    m_report.addNewLine();
}

By using the method REPORInfo.setIndent(...), the second grid was indented by 50 pixels.

Adding an Image

Images that are part of your web application can be added by using the addGIFGraphic(...) or addJPEGGraphic(...) interface. If adding the following code to your example

public void init()
{
    renderLogo();
    renderGrid();
    renderGrid2();
}
    
private void renderLogo()
{
    m_report.addGIFGraphic("../HTMLBasedGUI/images/logo.gif","550");
}

then the report will look like:

Pay attention: only add images that are accessible through your web application, e.g. that are part of your Application Designer project in which you are working. Do not add images by defining an absolute URL (http://.....) - this will cause problems when transferring the result to PDF.

HTML Rendering - PDF Rendering

When clicking on the PDF icon in the right top corner of the REPORT controls, the report will be rendered into PDF:

The PDF output is not a 100% match to the HTML output but a "as much as possible" match. When specifying sizes (e.g. column sizes, indent sizes) always use straight values representing pixels - as done in the examples above. There is a certain calculation factor (that can also be explicitly set by an API) between "Pixels" and PDF centimeters.

HTML tables are quite forgiving when specifying non-fitting pixel widths - there are optimisation rules that recalculate widths, e.g. if a text of a cell exceeds the size of the cell. FOP/PDF rendering is not as forgiving but will let your text overlap into the next cell. Consequence: keep an eye on your PDF output during development.

The sizing of the PDF document is done in the following way.

• First the system tries to render the report into an A4 paper, portrait.

• If the document exceeds the width, then the document is switched to landscape.

• If the document still exceeds the width, then the document size is increased accordingly. The page width and height will always keep the A4 relationships.

This all happens automatically - you do not have to take care of this.

Reacting on Mouse Clicks

The examples up to now only showed one way reporting. A report was just produced and output.

The REPORT controls also offer the possibility to react on mouse clicks. When a grid is clicked, certain information is passed to the adapter program that identifies the clicked object. You can either identify whole rows or single cells within rows.

If clicking onto a row in the top grid, then a corresponding ID is output in the status bar. The same happens if clicking onto a cell in the bottom grid.

The adapter code is:

// This class is a generated one.

import com.softwareag.cis.server.Adapter;
import com.softwareag.cis.server.util.REPORTCellFormat;
import com.softwareag.cis.server.util.REPORTInfo;

public class Demo_Report__interactive_Adapter
    extends Adapter
{
    public class MyREPORTInfo
    extends REPORTInfo
    {
        public MyREPORTInfo(Adapter Adapter)
        {
            super(model);
        }
        public void reactOnClick(String id)
        {
            outputMessage(MT_SUCCESS, "Clicked id = " + id);
        }
    }
    
    // property >report<
    REPORTInfo m_report = new MyREPORTInfo(this);
    public REPORTInfo getReport() { return m_report; }

    private void renderGrid1()
    {
        //     headline
        REPORTCellFormat hlFormat = new REPORTCellFormat();
        hlFormat.setFontSize("16pt");
        hlFormat.setFontWeight(REPORTCellFormat.FONTWEIGHT_BOLD);
        m_report.addText("Interactivity on Row Level", hlFormat);
        m_report.addVerticalDistance("10");
        //     grid
        m_report.addHeadlineCell("Title 1", "150");
        m_report.addHeadlineCell("Title 2", "70");
        m_report.addHeadlineCell("Title 3", "100");
        m_report.addHeadlineCell("Title 4", "80");
        for (int i = 0; i < 3; i++)
        {
            m_report.addNewLine("ROWID_" + i);
            m_report.addContentCell("A Cell " + i);
            m_report.addContentCell("B Cell " + i);
            m_report.addContentCell("C Cell " + i);
            m_report.addContentCell("D Cell " + i);
        }
    }

    private void renderGrid2()
    {
        //     headline
        m_report.addVerticalDistance("10");
        REPORTCellFormat hlFormat = new REPORTCellFormat();
        hlFormat.setFontSize("16pt");
        hlFormat.setFontWeight(REPORTCellFormat.FONTWEIGHT_BOLD);
        m_report.addText("Interactivity on Cell Level", hlFormat);
        m_report.addVerticalDistance("10");
        //     grid
        m_report.addHeadlineCell("Title 1", "150");
        m_report.addHeadlineCell("Title 2", "70");
        m_report.addHeadlineCell("Title 3", "100");
        m_report.addHeadlineCell("Title 4", "80");
        for (int i = 0; i < 3; i++)
        {
            m_report.addNewLine();
            m_report.addContentCell("A Cell " + i,"CELL_A_" + i);
            m_report.addContentCell("B Cell " + i,"CELL_B_" + i);		
            m_report.addContentCell("C Cell " + i,"CELL_C_" + i);
            m_report.addContentCell("D Cell " + i,"CELL_D_" + i);
        }
    }

    /** initialisation - called when creating this instance*/
    public void init()
    {
        renderGrid1();
        renderGrid2();
    }
}

You see that there is an own subclass of REPORTInfo that is used within the adapter program. The subclass has overridden the method reactOnClick(...). Through the method, it receives an ID.

The ID is set either when creating a new line or when creating a cell. You are responsible for defining the format and the semantics behind the ID.

REPORTInfo API

The previous topics showed you by example how to build reports. They did not cover the full interface of REPORTInfo and related classes. See the corresponding Java API documentation.

REPORT Controls versus TEXTGRID Control

The REPORT is designed to produce flexible output lists. Compared to the text grid, it has the following advantages:

• It is easier to program. The report list is generated inside the Java Code; you do not have to work both in the Layout Painter and in your Java editor.

• It is more flexible. You can span cells, and you can individually colorize them.

• It is faster. The HTML for the REPORT is created on the client side and plugged into the client's area. There is no additional dynamic rendering at the client side.

It has the following disadvantages:

• It does not offer server side scrolling, i.e. the whole report list result is always transferred to the client in one step. If it is a really large report, this may take a while, especially in WAN scenarios.

• It does not offer the same kind of interactivity but is more static. You can only click on rows. It does not offer right mouse button pop-up menus, highlighting of selections, roll over effects, switching columns, etc.

Properties

www.softwareag.com

Copyright © 2005-2014 Software AG, Darmstadt, Germany.

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