The warmest greetings to you! A new version of our software will come out very soon. Today, we would like to introduce you to the most significant and exciting innovations we are preparing for more convenient and efficient work with your data.

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Blockly

Add new capabilities to your reports using visual programming in report events. An integrated tool from Google Blockly in the Event editor will allow you to create various scenarios when events may trigger.

Scheduler

Automate reporting processes using the built-in scheduler in Stimulsoft Designer. Export your reports and send them by Email "just in time" without any action from a user.

Dashboards.PHP

Use analytics in your PHP applications. We are going to release a full-featured solution for the PHP platform.

Manual Data Entering

Enter your data manually to design analytical panels.

Text in Shapes

Add flowcharts to your reports using shapes and text in them.

Hello everybody! Unfortunately, summer is over, but a wonderful fall is coming. The season is time when we get started to work with new strengths and set the most ambitious goals for ourselves. To quickly and efficiently achieve goals in management, marketing, manufacturing and other spheres, you need high-quality and reliable software for data visualization and analytics. We are developing reporting tools and components to work with data and today we will tell you about creating reports, and specifically about how to do this work efficiently and quickly.

Ways of report creation

Firstly, let's figure out how we can create reports. There are three basic ways:

• Manual design. This means adding, changing components, data connection, and manual design of elements.
• Using code. Everything is clear here - all report parameters are specified with a programming code.
• Report design using embedded tools. This is what we will tell you about in more detail.

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Wizard

First, we will tell you about the main special tool – The Wizard. It is used, particularly, to develop simple and Master Detail-lists. To create a report with a simple list, you should follow the step-by-step instruction, which looks like this:

• Connect data;
• Selection columns;
• Place data columns in the order you need;
• Sort, filter, and group data.

If needed, you may design your report - select a theme, apply a style, etc. To design a Master-Detail list, you should connect a data source with a relation, select several sources, and define relations.

In any case, after you create any report, you can edit it – for example add or remove some component, create and apply a style to it, add conditions, filters and much more.

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Wizards of special reports

Also, the Stimulsoft report designer contains wizards to create definite custom reports, for example, invoices, business invoices, purchase orders, orders, and much more. In comparison with the Wizard, which was described before, these assistants are template customization.

When choosing them, you can go in two ways:

• open a template in the designer;
• customize it, not only connect data but define the attributes of your company and select parameters of a report culture.

You should know that these assistants contain three examples of translation strings - German, English, and Russian. You can find more detailed information about translation strings in this article.

Besides, you can find wizards in our report designer, for example, with a label or a chart. They are hidden in the File menu, but you should type the request you need (chart or label) in the search line to display them.

You can find more detailed information about work with wizards on our YouTube channel following this link.

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Online storage

Another variant that can be used to reduce the time spent on report creation is online storage. You should select a report in the storage, open it and reconnect your data.

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In conclusion, let's consider another exciting capability that allows you to create a list instantly. This capability is actual when you select the manual design mode. You should just drag a data source into the page, then define a component for data in a report in the opened window: the Table or the Data band. In addition, you can select data columns and report style, add the Header and the Footer bands.

Today we will tell you about the report design.

This has been dealt with. Next question:

How can I make a report?

You should know that in this article we will tell you about the ways of designing a report and not about how to do it. We have particular articles and lessons about it; the links to them we will indicate to you later in the text.

Now we will consider each way in detail.

Design using of a component properties

Each report or dashboard component contains a range of design properties. It contains not just changing the color of the content or background but also borders, indents, and shadows. You may find all these properties in the property panel of a selected component. Some settings are duplicated on the Ribbon tab and in the component editor. For example, as it happens with the Dashboard text element. There are its settings in the properties panel, on the Ribbon tab, and in the editor of this element.

As a rule, this way is used if you need to change only the design of one component or change some parameter of the design without editing the component style.

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Design using styles

It`s an excellent way of designing lots of reports, also recommended when using corporate style. Generally, knowledge and proficiency of using styles in reports open up endless possibilities when designing them. Having created a component style once, you can use it constantly and in any other report. There is only one thing - for each component type, its own style is created, but it`s due to the settings of designing a specific component type are individual. For reports, by the way, styles can be combined into collections, and then a collection can be applied to a report automatically. Essentially, you can create a report with various visual designs. You can save all the styles and collections you create to a separate file, which you can use in other reports. You can find more detailed information about styles in dashboards here, about styles here, and here are various videos about work with styles in a report.

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Design using conditional formatting

An interactive way to change design settings. Depending on the execution of a condition, you can change the design settings for various components of a report and elements of a dashboard. In addition, a condition can enable some action of a user (it means the choice of a parameter value in the viewer) or not enable. Conditional formatting can be used as a tool of analysis too. For example, when achieving boundary values, the design may change. By the way, you can even change style when a condition is met in a report on conditional formatting. Some lines above, we have written how it is important to have the skill of working with styles, but if you use conditional formatting in addition to this, you`re just a pro in setting the design of reports and dashboards.

Having followed this link you`ll find information about conditional formatting in dashboards, and here is a video selection on the topic.

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When you acquire the skill of customizing design, you go to a new level in creating reports and dashboards. It's quite easier to do it with Stimulsoft than it seems.

Citius, Altius, Fortius - Communiter! We have finished the Olympic Games in Tokyo analysis and collected various interesting information and statistics in one dashboard. Do you want to know how many countries are competing in Tokyo? Or how many athletes will compete in different sports and events?

Displaying data is one of the key points in creating reports. This article will show you several ways to output data, give some practical recommendations, and provide samples to show convenient ways to output data.

Specifically, we will talk about creating lists of data, but not about calculations in reports, displaying graphical data, filtering, or conditions. Today we are interested in how to create lists and the components with which they are created. Let's get started.

Report sample with different lists

Naturally, these are not the only ways to design reports. Even with the basic skills, you can build any reports practically without restrictions.Well, let's go back to the lists. We will analyze them in more detail.

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Simple list

You may create it using the Data band or the Table component. If you use a band, you should place text components with links to data columns on it, and if you select a Table, you should specify the links in its cells. Learn more about creating lists using the Data band and the Table component.

By the way, a simple list can be displayed using the Cross-Table component, but let's not go there.

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Hierarchical list

It is called so because the Hierarchical band is used to display the data hierarchy within one source. Once again - we are talking about hierarchical subordination within one data table. If you are interested in the hierarchy between tables in a report, wait for our next article. In the meantime, you can find detailed instructions on creating hierarchical lists here.

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Cross-list

It is a type of data output in which each data source entry is displayed in the report as a new column. Accordingly, a special Cross-data band is used to display cross-lists. If the list should be displayed once, it is placed on the Data band with a virtual source equal to 1. For more details, watch the related video.

Basically, this is all that we wanted to tell you about creating lists for displaying data in reports. If you have any questions or concerns, please get in touch with us. We will be happy to help.