Create labels: the report application (Java)

A common use of reports is to create a page of labels, such as address labels. Creating labels requires you to create a report design document representing a single label and a report application that prints multiple labels on a page.

Create the report design document

The report design document (.4rp) contains the design for a single label. You can put anything you wish on the label, as long as it fits onto the page.

See Design labels for details on creating the single-label report design document (.4rp).

Create the Label report Java application

To create a Java application that creates labels, you use a LabelMapper object. The LabelMapper class is for configuring label output. It allows a logical to physical page mapping. The label report defines the layout of a single label, which is then placed multiple times onto a larger page. The labels are arranged in a grid with a specifiable amount of rows and columns.

The application requires a FourRpProcessor object (conversion of an XML data stream to a PXML document) and a PXMLLayouter object (conversion of a PXML data stream to a layouted PXML document).

The application then calls specific configurations APIs to set:

The number of labels per row and per column.
The paper width and height.
The paper margins.

Example code snippet

This code snippet is taken from the report demo file OrderReportJava.java. It prints the labels on a physical page, two labels per row and six labels per column.

PXMLConsumer layout = new PXMLLayouter(renderer);

if ("OrderLabels".equals(filename))
{
    LabelMapper labelMapper = new LabelMapper(layout);
    labelMapper.setPaperTopMargin("5mm");
    labelMapper.setPaperBottomMargin("5mm");
    labelMapper.setPaperLeftMargin("4mm");
    labelMapper.setPaperRightMargin("4mm");
    labelMapper.setPaperWidth("a4width");
    labelMapper.setPaperHeight("a4length");
    labelMapper.setLabelsPerRow(2);
    labelMapper.setLabelsPerColumn(6);
    layout = labelMapper;
}

FourRpProcessor report = new FourRpProcessor(fourRpfilepath, layout);

//Run the report 
report.setDebugLevel(9);

// some code omitted - view full source in demo

report.runFromJAXBObject(data);
    
// open the generated file:
File result = new File(outputFilename);
Desktop desktop = Desktop.getDesktop();
desktop.open(result);

// stop code snippet

Note:

For LabelMaker, you must use the FourRpProcessor; you cannot use the shortcut.

This figure shows an example of output from a report configured to create Labels. — Figure: Output of labels on a physical page