7.2.2  Defining and Editing Report Parameters

In addition to defining parameters within data binding conditions (see Parameterizing a Condition), you can also define parameters at the report level within the 'Parameter Definition' dialog box. The 'Parameter Definition' dialog box also provides a single location for managing all parameters in the report, including those defined within data binding conditions.

To define a report parameter, follow the steps below:

To edit an existing parameter, select the parameter, and then skip to the appropriate step below.

1. Select Report > Parameter from the Style Studio menu. This opens the 'Parameter Definition' dialog box.

 

See Creating a New Query in Data Model­ing for information on setting query parame­ters.

The Parameters tab displays all existing report, data-binding, and query parameters. Existing data binding condition parameters and query condition parameters are shown italicized in the Parameters tab.

2. Click 'New'. Specify the name of the new parameter in the dialog box, and click 'OK'. (You can change the name later by editing the text in the 'Name' field.)

3. Click 'Set Selection List' to open the 'Selection List' dialog box. (The button's label is displayed in green if the selected parameter already has a list associated.)

4. To enter a fixed set of labels/values for the parameter, follow the steps below:

a. Click the List tab.

b. Click 'Add' to add a new label/value pair.

c. Enter the desired 'Label' and 'Value'. (The 'Label' text is displayed to the user in the interface element; the corresponding 'Value' is assigned to the parameter.)

4. To acquire parameter labels/values from a query at runtime, follow these steps:

a. Click the Query tab.

b. Select the query that contains the label/value pairs.

The data in the first column of the query are used as the parameter values; the data in the second column of the query are used as the labels. (Query conditions can reference other report parameters if those parameters possess default values.)

3. (Optional) Select 'Allow multiple selections' to permit the user to select multiple values for the parameter.

To remove values associated with a parameter, click the 'Clear' button in the 'Selection List' dia­log box.

4. Click 'OK' to close the 'Selection List' dialog box.

5. Make the following optional selections in the 'Parameter Definition' dialog box, if desired:

a. Select 'As customization parameter' to expose the parameter as a customization parameter. Customization parameters are displayed when the user clicks the 'Customize' button on the report toolbar. (See Report Toolbar in End User.)

b. Select 'Prompt User' if the user should be automatically prompted to enter a value for this parameter. (Disable this option for parameters set by script and drill-down reports.)

c. Select 'Sort Values' if you want the list to be sorted alphabetically.

d. Enter text in the 'Tooltip' field to display when the user hovers the mouse over the corresponding parameter control on the input form.

5. Click 'OK' to close the 'Parameter Definition' dialog box.

If multiple conditions use parameters with the same name, you can specify whether parameters sharing a name should be treated as the same parameter. To treat them as the same parameter (and prompt the user only once) select File > Configure from the Style Studio menu, click the General tab, and enable the 'Parameter Name Unique' option (enabled by default).

<< 7.2.1 Parameterizing a Condition © 1996-2013 InetSoft Technology Corporation (v11.4) 7.2.3 Acquiring a Parameter Value >>