This is a simple process via one menu item, which contains pages for the various components of the report. When you are finished defining the applicable components, you Save the Quick report. You can then run the report via the Quick Report Builder window or via the separate menu item entitled Run Quick Report.
- Select the Manage Quick Report definitions menu item from the Quick Report Writer sub-menu or All functions list (or Quick Report definitions menu item from the Object categories list).
- You access the Object manager-Quick Report definitions window. click the New icon (alternatively File/New… from the menu bar).
- You access the Quick report builder window for the Main page:
- Identity
- Enter the name of your Quick Report. This name must be unique.
- Description
- Enter a description describing the report.
- Secured
- Check the box if you want to secure the report, i.e. limit access to authorised users). See Grant authority to access reports and components in Analyser for instructions on securing reports.
- Layout definition
- Pull down the drop down list to select either the default layout template that is delivered with the Quick Report Writer, or an existing layout that was created for a report via the Standard Report Writer. Tip: Click the Preview icon to the far right of this field to preview the layout of the report.
- Print key value
- Check this box if you want to print key values on the report. If, for example, you state that you want to print key values and you specify Country in the Sequence notebook page, the report will list the actual country codes.
- Print key descriptions
- Check this box if you want to print key descriptions connected to the key values on the report. If, for example, you want to print key descriptions and you specify Country in the Sequence notebook page, the report will list the description of the country codes.
- Format definition
- Pull down the drop down list to select from any existing Report format definition created for a Quick Report (via the Manage Report format definitions) menu item, or click the Create new format definition icon to the right of this field to define your own. Complete the applicable fields on the window that is accessed and then save the information. Upon returning to the Quick report builder window, select your new format from the drop down list.
- Printer definition
- Pull down the drop down list to select from any existing Report printer definition created for a Quick Report (via the Manage Report printer definitions) menu item, or click the Create new printer definition icon to the right of this field to define your own. Complete the applicable fields on the window that is accessed and then save the information. Upon returning to the Quick report builder window, select your new format from the drop down list.
- From (Year/Period)
- Pull down the drop down list and select the from Year and Period from which you want to start to collate the information.
- To (Year/Period)
- Pull down the drop down list and select the To Year and Period, up to which you want to collate the information.
- Either, select the column you want from the Available columns box and click the >>> button
- Or, drag the key from the Available columns box and drop it in the Select columns box.
- Pull the scroll bar down to the very bottom of the Available columns section. You see the Calculated value icon
- Drag the Calculated value icon over to the Selected columns section of the window.
- The Edit column properties window prompts. Enter the applicable column heading. Then complete the calculation in the Calculation field. Alternatively click Edit.
- You access the Edit formula window.
- highlight the column that you want as the first part of the formula. The column number is displayed in formula field at the bottom of the window
- click on an arithmetic operator to the right in the window. The sign is displayed after the column number in the formula field at the bottom of the window.
- highlight the column that you want as the second part of the formula. The column number is displayed after the arithmetic sign in formula field at the bottom of the window
- Double click the column you want to change (in the Selected columns box), or
- Select the column you want to change and click the Properties icon.
- drag and drop it back to the available column, or
- highlight the appropriate column and click Remove or
- go to the Edit column properties window and click the Delete icon.
- Mask selection
- This field can be used in two ways:
- If you only want to include country GB, enter GB in the Mask field for the key.
- If you want to include all customer/supplier numbers with the character “2” in the third position of the code (102000, 112040, 122300), enter __2________ in the Mask column.
Main page
Define the parameters to create a new report. Complete the following information:
The last segment of this Main page is where you define the period range. The period range has both past and future periods from which to choose.
Toggle to the Keys page.
Keys page
On the keys page you select the keys that you want to include in the report. The key determines the eventual sorting and/or selection criteria for the report. All the keys you plan to make reference to at a later time should be included in the Chosen list. Select the keys applicable for the report by clicking the key(s) in the Available box and dragging and dropping it/them in the Chosen box (alternatively click the >>> button).
Note: There is an automatic cross validation performed by the system. This means that only the applicable balance types for the chosen keys will be available for selection. Balance types are things which hold a balance value (e.g., quantity, amount, asset, etc). Whenever a transaction occurs in the system which carries a cost, quantity, etc., the value is updated in the applicable “Transaction file” during the applicable event (e.g., Sales order cost is updated during invoicing, Purchase order cost is updated during reception, etc.). See Overview of balance structure for information about Balance types.
Note: You can, at a later time add more keys to the report, but they must be supported by the balance types chosen.
Toggle to the Columns page.
Columns page
On this page a number of pre-defined columns for the different system balance types in the system are available for selection. As previously mentioned, the columns you can choose depends on the key(s) you chose to include in the report.
To define the column(s), you have the following two methods from which to choose:
The Edit column properties window will prompt where you can fill in the applicable Column heading for the column. Note: If you are adding a Budget column you follow the same procedure as stated above. However, you must also choose the budget you want to use, on the Edit column properties window.
Add a calculation column:
If you want to add a calculation column depicting the sum of two columns do as follows:
From this window you enter the formula that you want to use for the calculation. The columns that have already been defined will appear in the edit formula window.
To enter a formula do the following:
The Quick Report Writer calculator has two additional features. The Selected period function and the Percentage factor function. These two functions are explained below:
Selected period
If you click the Selected period icon the SLP constant will be added in the formula. You can also type SLP directly into the formula field. The SLP constant is replaced with the selected period at report execution time. The selected period is the number of the period you select when you execute a report.
Example:
C01 + C02 / SLP * 15% + 1000
If you have selected 2010 November when you execute a report, the SLP constant in all calculations in that report will be replaced by the number 11 (November is the eleventh period).
This could be useful when you want to calculate an average for the values in the selected period.
Note: When you execute a Quick Report, you will only be allowed to select a period if you have used any relative values in the period range selection. It should also be noted that in any report (Normal or Quick) without relative period values, the SLP constant has little or no meaning and should normally not be used.
Percentage factor
With this function you can use values from the (Iptor.com) Percentage table in the formula. Percentage factors are entered in the form %XX, where XX represents the percentage factor code within the (Iptor.com) Percentage table. By using this code you can always be certain the correct (Iptor.com) percentage factors are used in the calculation. This means that when percentage factors change you will not need to change the reports that use them in calculations, as they will be updated automatically.
When you use percentage codes in calculation formulas the actual value is retrieved at report execution time.
Example:
The percentage code DT has a percentage rate of 4.5% defined in the (Iptor.com) Percentage table. If you enter the code %DT in a formula, that code would be replaced by the value 4.5 and not by 0.045. Therefore this means that if you want to multiply a value with a percentage factor you must first divide the percentage factor by 100.
Click OK. You return to the Edit column properties window with the information updated. Click Save to save the information and return to the Columns page with the information updated.
Change column heading
To change a column heading, you can either:
Delete a column
To remove a column from the Selected columns box you can either:
Toggle to the Sequence page.
Sequence page
All the keys that you included in the report (via the Main page of the Report definition edit view window) are displayed in the Available keys box.
In this window you define the sorting order of the keys. The information for the report will be presented in the order you define here.
Select the key, which is to be the first sorting order, in the Available keys box and drag/drop it to the Selected keys box (alternatively click the >>> arrow). Repeat this procedure for all remaining relevant keys.
Toggle to the Selections page.
Selections page
In this page you define the range (From/To) selection values or Mask selection values for the relevant keys.
In the first two positions you enter underscores (__), in the third position you enter the character 2, in the next eight positions you enter underscore (________). The total length of characters and underscores, must equal the length of the key. That is why you have to enter eight underscores after the character 2.
Complete any selection parameters for the applicable keys.
Click Save. The Run push button becomes available.
You are now ready to run the report which you can do by clicking Run on the bottom of the window or by accessing the separate Run Quick report menu item.