Inserting Formatting Instructions

In a template, you can insert instructions to format the associated generated report file.

You can:

Change the page format of the generated report file.
Change the page format of a specific section.
Add page breaks.
Display the content of sections in columns.

This task shows you how to:

Define the Orientation and the Paper Size
Insert Page Breaks
Inserting Multicolumn Sections

Define the Orientation and the Paper Size

You can modify the orientation and the paper size of the generated document or of a specific section. To do so, insert a page format instruction in the template or in a section. The following scenario describes how to insert a page format instruction in a template. The scenario is identical if you insert the instruction in a section.

From the Structures list, drag a Page Format into the template.
A <PAGE> instruction is added to the template structure.
Note: If the template only contains one <PAGE> instruction, the instruction is activated until the end of the template.
Select the page format instruction.
To define the orientation of the page, select portrait or landscape in the Orientation field of the Properties tab.
The value is inserted in the <PAGE> instruction.
Tip: To get back to the default page orientation, insert another page format instruction with the portrait value.
To define the page size of the page, select a value in the Paper Size field of the Properties tab.
The value is inserted in the same <PAGE> instruction.
Tip: To get back to the default page size, insert another page format instruction with the A4 value.
Optional: To format and filter the element, more options are available in the form. For more information, see Data, Structure Elements, and Instructions.

If you have the Report Producer role, you can generate a report file where the orientation and the page size of the corresponding pages or sections will be modified. For more information, see Report Generation: Managing and Generating Reports: Generating Report Files.

Insert Page Breaks

You can insert page breaks instructions in the template to arrange the content of the generated report file in several pages. To do so, add a page format instruction, which inserts a page break inside a loop.

From the Structures list, drag a Page Format into the template.
A <PAGE> instruction is added to the template structure.
Select the page format instruction.
To define a page break for a loop except for its first iteration, enter EACHINDEX > 1 in the Condition field of the Properties tab.
Optional: To format and filter the element, more options are available in the form. For more information, see Data, Structure Elements, and Instructions.

If you have the Report Producer role, you can generate a report file where the elements generated from the loop will be written on new pages. For more information, see Report Generation: Managing and Generating Reports: Generating Report Files.

Inserting Multicolumn Sections

You can present sections of the generated report file in columns. To do so, insert a multicolumn instruction in the template or in a section. The following scenario describes how to insert a multicolumn instruction in a template. The scenario is identical if you insert the instruction in a section.

Important: The multicolumn generation is only available for the RTF output format.

From the Structures list, drag a Multicolumn into the template.
A <MULTICOLUMN 1> instruction is added to the template structure.
Note: If the template contains only one multicolumn instruction, the Multicolumn instruction is activated until the end of the template.
Select the multicolumn instruction.
To define the number of columns of the section, select a value between 1 and 4 in the Count field of the Properties tab.
The selected value replaces the value 1 in the multicolumn instruction.
Tip: To define the end of the multicolumn section, insert another multicolumn instruction, and then select 1 in the Count field of the Properties tab.
Optional: To format and filter the element, more options are available in the form. For more information, see Data, Structure Elements, and Instructions.

If you have the Report Producer role, you can generate a report file where the defined section will be generated in several columns. For more information, see Report Generation: Managing and Generating Reports: Generating Report Files.