Column Formats

You define the format of your report columns using format groups . These format groups tell the Report Painter which format to use in each report column. You can define up to five format groups, allowing you to use five different column formats in your report.

A format group is used to determine the following layout parameters:

You define the layout parameters for the different format groups in the report layout assigned to the report. The report layout also contains information on the report page layout and text formats. For more information on standard layouts, see Standard Layouts and Creating a Standard Layout .

You can display the standard layout assigned to your report with  Formatting Report layout . In the dialog box displayed, you can make changes to the report layout. The function Use standard layout assigns the new layout to the report as the standard layout.

The Format group row in the report definition displays the format group currently assigned to each report column. Format group 0 is automatically set as the default for all columns. To change the format group assigned to a column, double-click the format group field and select the desired format group. The column is then formatted according to the layout parameters for the specified format group.

You can overwrite the default layout parameters for individual format groups in your report. These changes are only valid for the report that you are currently editing. To do so, position the cursor on the column to which the format group is assigned, and choose  Formatting Column .

You can overwrite the default parameters of the standard layout using the Column width , Numerical format , and Reverse sign functions. The numerical format controls how values are displayed in your report (scaling factor and number of decimal places).

You establish the alignment of the column headings for all report columns. To change the horizontal alignment of text (left-justified, centered, or right-justified), choose  Formatting All columns Text alignment .

You can also specify which type of text you want to use in all column headings (short, medium, or long text). To do so, choose  Formatting Row/column texts and select the text type you want to display.

Row Formats

You can use the Over-/Underscore functions to highlight individual report rows. For example, you can have the system display lines above and/or below totals rows. To do so, position the cursor on the row and choose  Formatting Row. In the subsequent dialog box, activate Underscore and/or Overscore .

You can add color highlighting to individual report rows. To do so, position the cursor on the row and choose  Formatting Row. In the following dialog box, select a color (for totals, subtotals, inserted rows, or for emphasis). The system assigns a color based on the selection you make here.

You can specify which type of text you want to use in the report lead column (short, medium, or long text). To do so, choose  Formatting Row/column texts . In the dialog box, select the text type you want to display.

You can only use the Expand to/Collapse functions for report rows that are exploded in the report definition and contain totals rows. You must therefore select a group as the characteristic value for the row and explode that row. The lowest level in a group hierarchy (usually the individual values) are not displayed in the report definition.

If you position the cursor on an exploded row in the report definition and choose Collapse to or  Formatting Collapse to , you can specify the summation level up to which you want to collapse exploded report rows.

By choosing  Formatting Expand to , you can specify the summation level up to which you want to expand exploded report rows.

The summation levels you define in the report definition are used when you output the report. You can, however, expand or collapse these rows again in the report output.

For more information, see Layout and Section Layout