Format a field Use the Property Inspector to add white space

10-6 Oracle Reports Users Guide to Building Reports Figure 10–5 Salaries formatted

10.2.3 Use the Property Inspector to add white space

If you examine your report output in the Paper Design view, you will notice that it can be difficult to distinguish where one departments data ends and the next departments data begins. To make the report more readable, you want to add some white space between the departments, but you want to retain the same spacing between employee rows. For this report, you will change a repeating frame property for the master repeating frame to create some white space between the department records. To create white space between the departments:

1. In the Paper Design view, click the first number value underneath the Department

Id label. Notice that all of the department numbers are immediately selected.

2. Click the Select Parent Frame button in the toolbar. Notice how the border of the

repeating frame that contains the Department Id field is now highlighted.

3. Choose Tools Property Inspector to display the Property Inspector, and set the

following properties: ■ Under Repeating Frame, set the Vert. Space Between Frames property to 0.25. Building a Single-Query Group Report 10-7 Figure 10–6 Property Inspector for master repeating frame 4. Click the title bar of the Report Editor to make it the active window again. 5. Save your report. Figure 10–7 Paper Design view after white space is added 10-8 Oracle Reports Users Guide to Building Reports

10.3 Group Report with Two Break Columns

Figure 10–8 Group left report output with two break columns The report above looks similar to the group left report you built in Section 10.2, Group Report with One Break Column . However, notice that DEPARTMENT_ID values sometimes print more frequently than they did in the previous report. The DEPARTMENT_ID value repeats for each unique value of JOB_ID within the department. This behavior occurs because DEPARTMENT_ID is now grouped with JOB_ID and must print with JOB_ID. While DEPARTMENT_ID values may repeat several times, not until the position of PU_CLERK in department 30 does a job repeat, and not until that point can the break group actually break. Concepts ■ You can specify that your report break on certain combinations of information by varying the columns you include in the break group. ■ You can modify your previous report by moving JOB_ID into the break group, so that your report has two break columns instead of one. ■ After changing the data model, redefault the layout to incorporate your changes, then specify the format mask again. To see a sample group left report with two break columns, open the examples folder named break, then open the Oracle Reports example named grp2col_lft1.rdf. For details on how to access it, see Accessing the Example Reports in the Preface.

10.3.1 Modify the data model

The first task in changing your previous report is to modify the data model by placing an additional column in the break group. To add a column to the break group: 1. Open the report you created in the previous section. Building a Single-Query Group Report 10-9

2. In the Object Navigator, double-click the view icon next to the Data Model node

to display the Data Model view.

3. In the Data Model view, click the break group, G_DEPARTMENT_ID, then click

and drag the handle on the bottom center of the G_DEPARTMENT_ID group box down about 0.25 inches 0.5 centimeters to resize it.

4. Click and drag the JOB_ID column in the G_EMPLOYEE_ID group and move it

into the G_DEPARTMENT_ID group, underneath the DEPARTMENT_ID column. Figure 10–9 Data model with two break columns

10.3.2 Redefault the layout

In order for your data model change to be reflected in your output, you need to redefault the layout for your report using the Report Wizard. To redefault the layout with the Report Wizard: 1. Click the title bar of the Report Editor to make it the active window. The Report Editor must be the active window for you to access the Report Wizard.

2. Choose Tools Report Wizard.

3. Select Create Paper Layout only.

4. Click Finish. Notice the changes to the output in the Paper Design view. Also note

how the formatting of the Salary field and the additional spacing between records is retained. When possible, Reports Builder will retain your manual modifications between uses of the Report Wizard. 5. Save your report.