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Formula Editor

This editor appears when you do either of the following:

• In the Catalog Manager, right-click the Formulas node, select New Formula from the shortcut menu, input a name for the new formula and then click OK, or right-click a formula and click Edit Formula on its shortcut menu.
• In the Data panel of the JReport Designer main window, or in the Resources box of the report wizard, expand the Dynamic Resources > Formulas node, click <New Formula…>.
• Click the Settings button in the General tab of the New View Element dialog or Edit View Element dialog.
• Click the <New Formula...> or <Edit Expression...> item in the value drop-down list of some properties.

It helps you to write a formula using the available resources, which may be used generally in JReport, as a dynamic resource in the current web report or library component or page report based on business view, or as a custom aggregation in a business view, or edit an expression using the available resources to control the value of a property.

The following lists all the options that are provided in the editor. Some of them are not available depending on where the editor is opened.

Menu

• File
  • New Formula
    Creates a new formula.
  • New Summary
    Opens the New Summary dialog to create a new summary.
  • New Parameter
    Opens the New Parameter dialog to create a new parameter.
  • Import UDF Classes
    Opens the UDF Classes dialog to import user defined formula classes.
  • Save
    Saves the formula.
  • Save As
    Saves the formula with a different name.
  • Close
    Closes the window.
• Edit
  • Undo
    Undoes an action.
  • Redo
    Redoes an action.
  • Cut
    Cuts the selected text in the editing panel.
  • Copy
    Copies the selected text in the editing panel.
  • Paste
    Pastes the text that was previously cut or copied in the editing panel.
  • Delete
    Deletes the selected text in the editing panel.
  • Search
    Brings out the Find/Replace dialog. You can then search for text in the editing panel, and replace the found text with different text.
• View
  • Fields Panel
    Specifies whether to show the Fields panel.
  • Functions Panel
    Specifies whether to show the Functions panel.
  • Operators Panel
    Specifies whether to show the Operators panel.
  • Sort Tree
    Sorts functions in the Functions panel and fields in the Fields panel by names.
• Formula
  • Check
    Tests the syntax of your formula. If the syntax is incorrect, JReport gives the opportunity to correct the errors.
  • Add Bookmark
    Adds a bookmark to a specific position.
  • Go to Previous Bookmark
    Goes to the previous bookmark.
  • Go to Next Bookmark
    Goes to the next bookmark.
  • Clear all Bookmarks
    Clears all of the bookmarks.
  • Comment/Uncomment
    Adds or removes comments.
  • Add Operators
    Specifies a general operator to be used in the editing panel.
  • Color Converter
    A color palette is provided for you to insert the HEX code of a color.
  • Auto Finish
    Enables the automatic input of the other part of a sign pair right after you type in the first part when editing formula.
  • Formula References
    Shows the formulas that reference the selected UDF function in the Functions panel.
  • Properties
    Shows properties of the formula in the Formula Properties dialog.
    • Data Type
      The data type of the returned value of the formula.
    • Precision
      The precision of the returned value of the formula. If the precision is set to 0, all characters of the returned value will be displayed; if it is set to N, only the first N characters will be displayed.
    • Scale
      The number of digits to the right of the decimal point for the returned value of the formula.
• Help
  Displays the help document about this feature.

Toolbar

Lists the commands on the toolbar.

• New Formula
  Creates a new formula.
• New Summary
  Creates a new summary.
• New Parameter
  Creates a new parameter.
• Save
  Saves the formula.
• Save As
  Saves the formula with a different name.
• Properties
  Specifies the precision and scale properties of the formula.
• Sort Tree
  Sorts functions in the Functions panel and fields in the Fields panel by names.
• Fields Panel
  Specifies whether to show the Fields panel.
• Functions Panel
  Specifies whether to show the Functions panel.
• Operators Panel
  Specifies whether to show the Operators panel.
• Help
  Displays the help document about this feature.
• Use As
  Available when it is a dynamic formula. It specifies to use the formula as one of the following view element types: Group, Detail, or Aggregation. When you are creating a dynamic formula, the default value is blank which means that JReport will decide whether the formula can be used as an aggregation object, and if not, the formula will be used as a detail object.
• Cut
  Cuts the selected text in the editing panel.
• Copy
  Copies the selected text in the editing panel.
• Paste
  Pastes the text that was previously cut or copied in the editing panel.
• Delete
  Deletes the selected text in the editing panel.
• Undo
  Undoes an action.
• Redo
  Cancels undoing an action.
• Search
  Searches for text in the editing panel, and replace the found text with different text.
• Check
  Tests the syntax of your formula. If the syntax is incorrect, JReport gives the opportunity to correct the errors.
• Add Bookmark
  Adds a bookmark to a specific position.
• Go to Previous Bookmark
  Goes to the previous bookmark.
• Go to Next Bookmark
  Goes to the next bookmark.
• Clear All Bookmarks
  Clears all of the bookmarks.
• Comment/Uncomment
  Adds or removes comments.
• Add Operators
  Selects a general operator to be used in the editing panel.
• Color Converter
  A color palette is provided for you to insert the HEX code of a color.

Fields panel

Displays a list of those fields that are available for formulas. Those fields may contain table columns, formulas, summaries, parameters and special fields. Select one field and double-click it to insert it into the editing panel at the insertion point.

Functions panel

Displays a list of JReport functions and imported user defined formula functions that are available for formulas. When you select one function and double-click it, JReport will insert the selected function into the editing panel at the insertion point completely with its required syntax items (parentheses, commas, and so on). For the usage of these functions, refer to section Built-in Functions and User-defined Formula Functions.

Operators panel

Displays a list of operators that are available for formulas. Select one operator and double-click it to insert the selected operator into the editing panel at the insertion point. For the usage of these operators, refer to section Operators.

Formula text panel

In this panel, you can build and edit your formula. There are several ways to work with formula:

• Select formula components from the Fields, Functions and Operators panels on the top of Formula Editor, and then double-click the components, JReport will then insert them in the formula;
• Type your formula in the editing panel directly;
• Use the above two methods together;
• Paste formula text from the text document of other programs.

The line numbers of the formula are marked in the left of the panel to help you check it easily.

Related topics:

Creating a Formula

Creating and Using Uynamic Formulas

Adding a View Element

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