Adding data values and captions

Click one of the placement specification icons in the integrated toolbar to specify whether the data object being dropped is a report field or label, whether it is part of a table, or whether the Report Designer determines its role based on context.

Place data objects and let context specify the role of the dropped object

If you select the final placement specification icon (Create element based on the document context), the Report Designer determines the type of dropped object based on the context in which it is dropped.

The object type created for a field is determined by the location in the document. Consider dragging a numeric field to two different locations in a document. In the first instance, the object is dropped into the OnEveryRow stripe and it becomes a Decimal Format Box. In the second instance, the object is dropped onto a Map Chart and it becomes a chart Item element.

Table 1. Rules governing element creation based on context
Element	Condition
ITEM (“key” is set if field isn’t numeric, “value” otherwise)	Parent element is a MAPCHART
CATEGORYITEM (“key” is set if field isn’t numeric, “value” otherwise)	Parent element is a CATEGORYCHART
Same object as option “Create a table column title object”	Parent element is of class `grwTableHeader`
Same object as option “Create a table column value object”	Parent element is of class `grwTableRow`
Same object as option “Create a table column value object for a column without title”	Parent element is of class `grwHeadlessTableRow`
Same object as option “Create a form fields value object”	If none of the above are applicable.

Place data objects and specify the role of the dropped object

If the data objects being added to the report are to be fields in a report, you may click either of the first two placement specification icons before dragging and dropping the data object.

Form field value object - When selected, the dropped data object will be replaced by the value for that data object at runtime.
Form field title object - When selected, the dropped object is the caption for the data object. Click this icon when you intend to place the label for a data object on your report.

If the data objects being added to the report are to be aligned as part of a table, you may click either the third, fourth, or fifth placement specification icons.

Table column value object - When selected, the dropped data object will be replaced by the value for that data object at runtime. When this option is selected, the space allocated for the column will be the larger of the space required for the data or the title, helping to align the title and data in the columns of a table.
Table column title object - When selected, the dropped object is the caption for the data object. Click this icon when you intend to place table column headers. When this option is selected, the space allocated for the column will be the larger of the space required for the data or the title, helping to align the title and data in the columns of a table.
Table column value object for a column without a title - When selected, the dropped data object will be replaced by the value for that data object at runtime. Use this option if you are not going to have a column header, the space allocated for the column is set to the maximum required by the value only.

The default types of dropped objects

The data objects are automatically contained in a Word Box if the data type is defined as less than 30 CHAR, and in Wordwrap Boxes if the data type is defined as larger than 30 CHAR. If the data type is Numeric, the data object is contained in a Decimal Format Box. If the data type is Date, the data object is contained in a Date Format Box.

What gets printed

The text property of the Word Box or Word Wrap Box, or the value property of the Decimal Format Box, specify what prints in the report output. The value property of the Decimal Format Box can be calculated using an Expression. See Using RTL Expressions.