January 28, 2005 at 3:57 pm
So, I have this annoying problem. The accounting department at my company has seen a taste of SQL Server reporting services and they now think that we can redo all of our forms to work with Reporting Services. I work at an insurance company where we have tons of policies and legalese that require precise formatting and positioning.
My skillset lies with Crystal Reports, and with this software, it's easy to exactly position columns, huge blocks of text, etc. I evaluated the 2000 version of RS a while ago and determined that it'd work for some information, but not all in the company. Basically, it'd work where huge data grids are required, but as far as complex forms, it either wouldn't work or it'd be more trouble than it's worth.
I currently don't have RS installed yet, but I need to find some ammo to back up my position. I've been scouring google, and thus far, I've come up with very few documents that actually talk about the design limitations of RS. Can any of you with more RS experience help out? Based on my evaluation about a year ago, working with RS was basically like working with an excel spreadsheet. You can't exactly position anything. Working with Crystal Reports was like an advanced version of Access reports... you can drag and drop anything anywhere you want on the page, you aren't restricted to a grid, etc.
Keep in mind, I have nothing against RS, I just feel that it's in its infancy feature / design-wise, and wasn't designed to handle very complicated forms that require craploads of formatting. It can handle part of what we want, but it's not quite where we'd like it to be yet. Thanks.
January 31, 2005 at 8:00 am
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February 1, 2005 at 3:29 pm
I came accross this same issue. I have developed in Crystal for years, and was forced to work with SRS. After two weeks I like it a lot more than Crystal for many reasons except formatting. At first I thought that there was no way in hell that you could format a report in SRS in the same way you did in Crystal. After an acclamation period of a couple of days I was recreating reports in SRS that looked the same or better than Crystal. Its really not that hard to do.
To covert the reports I used Show SQL Query in Crystal to get my view converted and then used a Table with many rows and columns to create a detailed grid to position my fields the same as I did in Crystal.
By the way...I am a consultant that could help you for a low hourly fee to convert your reports into SRS.
You will love the linked reports capabilites for drillling down to detailed transactions from a summary report. It rocks!
February 3, 2005 at 7:08 am
I have worked with Crystal Reports for the last 6 years to write reports directly versus ERP datasources. I originally felt the same way as you both. The difference is that Crystal Reports offers only one design paradigm - that of a destop publisher. In this paradigm you drag and drop objects representing data placeholders or graphic elements and visually align and manipulate them on the design surface (similar to MS Publisher, Adobe PageMaker or Adobe InDesign).
SQL reporting Services offers this and more. The key is understanding data regions in SQL Reporting Services. The Crystal-like data region equivalent would be the List data region.
The best part is that you can nest data regions AND they can each reference a different set of data (if needed).
I commonly will start with a background of a List region for precise free form layout like Crystal Reports offered, but then use the power of the Table, Matrix and Chart regions within this List region to maximize their powers (e.g. multiple groups - List regions can only have one grouping) to manipulate and display information.
The following is an excerpt from BOL that discusses these regions:
Data regions are report items that display repeated rows of data from underlying datasets. These rows can be displayed in a table, matrix, list, or chart.
Table
A table is a data region that presents data row by row. Table columns are static. Table rows expand downwards to accommodate the data. You can add groups to tables, which organize data by selected fields or expressions. For information about adding a table to a report using Report Designer, see Adding a Table.
Matrix
A matrix is also known as a crosstab. A matrix data region contains both columns and rows that expand to accommodate the data. A matrix can have dynamic columns and rows, which are repeated with groups of data; and static columns and rows, which are fixed. Columns or rows can be contained within other columns or rows, which can be used to group data. For information about adding a matrix to a report using Report Designer, see Adding a Matrix.
List
A list is a data region that presents data arranged in a freeform fashion. You can arrange report items to create a form, with text boxes, images, and other data regions placed anywhere within the list. For information about adding a list to a report using Report Designer, see Adding a List.
Chart
A chart presents data graphically. Examples of charts include bar, pie, and line charts, but many more styles are supported. For information about adding a chart to a report using Report Designer, see Adding a Chart.
Nested Data Regions
You can nest data regions within other data regions. For example, if you want to create a sales record for each sales person in a database, you can create a list with text boxes and an image to display information about the employee, and then add table and chart data regions to show the employee's sales record.
Grouping and Sorting
All data regions support grouping and sorting. Table, matrix, and list elements each have their own grouping and sorting properties. While tables and matrices provide multiple levels of grouping within a single data region, lists have only one group. To create nested groups using lists, you place a list within another list. For information about grouping and sorting using Report Designer, see Grouping Data in a Report and Sorting Data in a Report.
Additionally, don't miss the fact that SQL Reporting services has a Rectangle report item that does much much more than enhance the look of the report. <From BOL>
Rectangles can be used in two ways: as a graphical element and as a container for other report items. When you place report items within a rectangle, you can move them with the rectangle. This is useful for keeping numerous text boxes and other items together in a report.
Subreports are not allways the best solution in SQL Reporting Services for getting additional somewhat related information into the report as it was for Crystal Reports.
A subreport is an item in a report that points to another report on the report server. Because the report server processes each instance of a subreport as a separate report, performance can be an issue. Data regions provide much of the same functionality and flexibility as subreports, but with better performance.
Hope that you find this helpful in transitioning more effectively from Crystal Reports to SQL Reporting Services.
May 10, 2011 at 10:24 am
kkupchyk 4137 (5/10/2011)
“Despite my past affair with Crystal Reports, I have to report that I’ve thrown over my loyalty to Stonefield Query. The simplicity and depth of the program make it easy for me to recommend. “ Doug Wolf, Author - Crystal Reports for Dummies"In our experience, many of our SBE clients don’t want the limitations of static reports. They prefer to create and adapt reports in response to evolving business requirements. We recommend Stonefield Query for businesses who require more advanced reports because, unlike Crystal Reports, even a novice can create sophisticated reports with very little training (often less than an hour). Report wizards guide the design of charts, graphs, cross-tab, summary and detail reports." Lindsay Garrison, president of On the Verge Inc. and author of Ya' Think?
Please stop spamming. If you have something to say, say it, but merely cutting and pasting promotional quotes is not wanted here.
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