This tutorial includes the following topics:

• Report Basics

• Editing a Report

• Report Tips and Tricks
   

Editing a Report
We showed you how to find, open and print a report in the previous section - Report Basics. Now let's move on to one of the most popular of Mailware's features.

Note: For this tip we will use the R5110 Invoice for Date Range report which is located in the Company Database reports tab.

We are going to work with the most commonly modified report - Mailware's pre-built Invoice/Date Range. First, locate it in the Company Database (see the Report Basics tip for help locating the report).

Click the report to select it, then click the Edit button to open the Shazam Report Writer to the Define Search page then use your browser's BACK button to return to this page).

You should see the Define Search tab of the report on your screen. Now, follow the steps below to modify the invoice.

1. First, let's save the report under a different name so your original is left intact. At the top of the screen click the File text menu item, then select Save As from the menu that appears. In the dialog that opens type: Invoice Tutorial then click OK. The report will be saved under the new name.
   
    

2. The Define Search screen is used to add fields from Mailware's tables to the report. We have already added the ORDERS, ITEMS, CUSTOMER and PRODUCTS tables for you (the boxes in the top half of the screen), and, from each table, several fields (the columns at the bottom). For example, you can see the order number field (OrderNo) in the first column.
   
   We will return to the Define Search tab later to add a field to the report. For now we have what we need so let's move on to the Layout Page.
    
   Left click the Layout Page tab now.
    

3. The Layout Page shows us our Invoice as it will appear in a preview. Fields are placed on the page in square brackets (for example, under Bill To: the customer's company name is shown as [Company]). Labels and other special fields are preceded by an @ symbol or appear exactly as they will print. You can move these fields around, change their appearance and content or delete them entirely. Let's try a couple of quick exercises:
    
   Left click on the Ship To: field. Notice the black square squares that appear around the field? These indicate the field is selected. You can left click and drag any square to resize the field. Or, you can click in the center of a selected field and drag it around the page.
   
   
    
   Left click on the Bill To: field, then Right click it. A pop up menu appears with options for modifying the field. In this menu Left click the Customize Objects option.
   
   
    

4. The Page Designer opens. Options for changing the look and content of fields are available from this dialog. (Your Page Designer will contain different data then the following sample).
   
   
   
   The Page Designer is your main editing tool in the Layout Page tab. You can change the field it affects any time by simply clicking the desired field on the Layout while the Page Designer is open. For example,
    
   If necessary, move the Page Designer so you can see another field in the report. Then, Left click any currently unselected field.
    
   Did you notice the name of the field changed in the pulldown field at the top of the Page Designer's Customize tab? Try left clicking other fields and watch the name change. This lets you switch quickly to another field and edit it without closing the Page Designer.
    
   You can leave the Page Designer open while you work on the Layout or close it with the X in its corner if it is in your way. You can also open it anytime by clicking its icon on the toolbar.
    

Changing Field Properties
You can change the way fields look on your report by editing their properties on the Page Designer. To demonstrate, let's try changing some fonts. If you closed the Page Designer open it now by clicking its icon . Then Left click the [ShipCompany] field under Ship To:.

1. In the Page Designer left click the Customize tab at the top of the dialog, then left click the Properties tab at the bottom. Several rows of properties for the [ShipCompany] field are listed in the dialog. Scroll down to the Label section and left click in the white cell next to the Font field.
    

2. A button containing an arrow will appear in the field. Left click the arrow button to open a standard Windows font dialog.
    

3. In the Font dialog select a different font name from the list (for example, Times New Roman). You can jump quickly to a font by typing its name.
    

4. Left click the OK button to accept the new font. The [ShipCompany] field on the Layout page will change to the new font format.
    

5. You can continue selecting one field at a time and changing fonts the same way, however, there is a faster method. Left click the [FullName] field below [ShipCompany]. Then, hold Shift and left click the remaining address fields. This multi-selects fields. On the Page Designer change the font as described above and all fields are changed simultaneously
    
   (Note: to use multi-select to change properties always left click a single field first, then Shift-click additional fields. To move fields you can multi-select the same way, or simply drag a box around the fields you wish to move).
    
   You can use the above steps to change other properties available on the Page Designer. For example, multi-select fields you wish to be left aligned and change the Left field under Dimensions. Or, change the background color and text color by selecting colors in the Background and Foreground fields under Color.
    

Editing Field Contents
Reports contain 2 types of fields: Data fields are created in the Define Search tab and Placed on the report from the Page Designer. Custom fields are labels, bitmap images, calculated fields and shapes you add from the Page Designer and edit directly on the Layout page.
 
Let's start with Custom fields.

 

1. Open the Page Designer with its icon on the toolbar, then left click the Place tab.
    

2. The Place tab contains your data fields in the center window and custom fields as icons on the left edge. To add a freeform label to your report left click the L icon . It will depress. Next, left click anywhere in the report to drop the field.
    

3. The Label field will remain selected on the report so you can edit it easily. On the Page Designer left click the Customize tab at the top of the dialog, then left click the Caption tab at the bottom.
    

4. You should see the name of the label field in the pulldown, and the contents of the field in the edit area. To change the caption left click in the edit area and delete the word Label. You can use the Del or Backspace key on your keyboard to delete the text.
    
   In the edit box type: Thank you for your order
    
   Next, left click the label field you dropped. Its contents will change to the message you typed (Note: you can also close the Page Designer or click anywhere in the report to see the changes).
    

5. The field is too small to hold the text so let's enlarge it. Move your cursor over the middle black handle on the right edge of the field. The cursor will change to a double headed arrow. Left click and drag the handle to the right. When you release the left mouse button the text will update. Resize as needed until it fits in the box.
    

6. Now, you can left click the middle of the field and drag it to another area of the report. Try placing it above the Ship To: field.
    
   You can use any of the icons on the Place tab of the Page Designer to add any custom field. 
    
   Tip: You can add your company logo using the Image icon . You will need a bitmap (.bmp) of your logo in the appropriate size (about 250 pixels wide) already saved to your Mailware data directory. When you place the image into the report a dialog will open so you can browse to the bitmap.

 

Now, let's add a data field.

 

1. Mailware's CUSTOMER table includes a Country field in the customer's billing address. Let's add it to the Bill To address on the invoice. Before it can be added to the Layout page, however, you need to add it to the Define Search page. To do so,
   
   Left click the Define Search tab.
    

2. On the Define Search tab find the CUSTOMER table in the top half of the screen. Use the scroll bar in the CUSTOMER table to locate the Country field (it's about the 12th item from the bottom).
   
   
    

3. Double click the Country field to add it to the columns in the lower half of the Define Search screen.
    

4. Left click the Layout Page tab to return to Layout and open the Page Designer with its icon . Then, left click the Place tab on the Page Designer.
    

5. In the center of the Page Designer's Place tab are the fields from the columns in the Define Search screen. Scroll to the bottom to locate the Country field you added.
    

6. Left click and drag the Country field into your report and drop it below the Bill To: address.
    

7. Two fields are added. The Country field is a header, and the [Country] field is the actual data. Left click on any blank area of the report to deselect the fields. Then left click the Country header field to select it. Press the Del key on your keyboard to remove the Country field.
    
   Tip: Before dragging a field to the report you can uncheck the option on the Page Designer. This will let you drag and drop just the data field without its header.
   
    

8. Left click and drag the [Country] field to position it below the Bill To address. If you wish, you can preview your changes by clicking the Preview Report tab. Be sure to enter a date range that includes orders. Also, please note that the country will appear below the Bill To address only if the Country field in the customer's account was entered.
    
   You can add any fields you need from the tables in a report using this method. You can also add new tables using the Add Tables icon on the toolbar in the Define Search screen. However, added tables must be linked by common field names (You can see the links in the invoice report now. They are connected by lines, for example, CustNo in the ORDERS table is connected to CustNo in the CUSTOMER table). Adding tables is a bit tricky since they affect the data that is displayed. In most cases you can simply work with the tables provided in existing reports. To learn more about adding tables refer to the Creating a Report from Scratch section of your Mailware Manual or .pdf file on your Mailware CD.
    

You can edit any report in Mailware by simply opening it normally then using the steps above. In most cases it is a good idea to immediately save the newly opened report under a different name before making changes. When you finish your changes to a report in the Report Explorer you will be returned to the Explorer where you can locate your new report and add a memo to the lower half of the screen. It's a good way to document the changes you made.

Now that you know how to edit reports it's time to move on to the Report Tips and Tricks section.

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