Published August 18, 2016

USXS Reports... easy as 1, 2, 3!

Simple steps provided to create a custom report via Detail Report option

Reports were rewritten to be more user-friendly in the new Vaadin style so they say. I’m here to tell you it’s true with just a better understanding of the Detail option. The detail option is broken down into 3 tabs to generate a New Detail report. 1. Select Properties 2. Configure filters 3. Generate Report.

The Detail option allows for dynamic reporting of all data objects. What are data objects you may ask? They are the type of data you want to report on. The key to Report success, and being less stressful, is to know where you need to start. For example if I want a report similar to classic’s PODETL I will have to start at a detail object – PurchaseOrderCharge instead of PurchaseOrder. I think of it like classic where you have header/summary vs detail/line item reports, POSUMM vs PODETL.

1. Select Properties

After selecting the object from the drop down. The next step is to select your properties. These are the columns you want to see on the report. The properties are represented in an expandable tree format. The properties shown with an arrow are indirectly related to the object chosen. If you aren’t sure what something is or where it is coming from, hover over it and a tool-tip will appear with the path. Properties are moved over by drag and drop or double click.

Once all the properties are selected you now have to decide what you want this to look like, columns included, order of the columns, sort, control breaks and page breaks with totals. You can drag and drop properties up and down to change the column order, select sorts/functions by the drop downs, suppress, control and page break by check marking the boxes.

• Suppressed: the property will not appear on the report. This is useful if the user selects a property for control break purposes but does not want it to appear on each detail line of the report.
• Sort Priority: the order in which the report will be sorted
• Sort Order: sort the property in ascending (lowest to highest) or descending order
• Control Break: if the property changes, it will bold the change. For example if you run a budget report and sort/control break on the fund every time there is a new fund, it will bold the fund number.
• Page Break: advance to the next page when the property value changes
• Function: available on a numeric property which will allow the user to get subtotals, average, min or max
• Remove: If you no longer want a selected property to appear on your report, click on the 'x' to remove it.

2. Configure Filters

This tab is where you control what is included in the report. To compare to Classic, this would be your account code wildcards, include/exclude vendor etc. Queries can be saved and loaded in at a later time. Any saved queries would also appear in the Advanced search for that object and vice versa. Any query (previously saved) selected from the Load Saved Query drop-down will be applied immediately upon selection.

3. Generate Report

You made it to the end, producing your report! You now choose the format, size and orientation of your report. Keep in mind if you have a lot of columns you will probably want to choose an orientation of landscape to reduce the amount of wrapping on the report. The best part after a report definition is created... you don’t have to create the same report twice if you don’t want to.  How, do you ask? You can save report definitions by typing in a report name under 'Save As' and click on 'Save Report'.  Once a report is saved, it will appear under the Restore drop-down menu as well as in 'Report Manager'.  If the report definition is selected from the Restore drop-down, all report criteria is restored as defaults and from there, can be overwritten as needed before generating a report.  'Import Report' will allow you to import report definitions shared from a different user.. how cool is that.. no work on your part except to tweak it and click 'Generate Report'!  The next article will discuss what all can be done under the 'Report Manger' option.  Just to prove how easy this really is, I’ve attached two report definitions for you to import and play around with. You can click on the report names in blue (below) and save the file to your desktop and then use the Import option of the Detail menu. One is an Outstanding Purchase Order Report (Hint Hint…Outstanding PODETL) and the other is Calendar Earnings Report (Hint…..ERNREG). Go ahead, try it, I think you are going to like it!!

Report Manager.. one-stop shop

Report Manager is currently available in the Detail option (above) and  and is also available from the main Report menu.  Please note Report Manager is available on the latest release of USAS-R and is a planned enhancement on the next release of USPS-R.  Report Manager is a 'one-stop shop' of all of your saved report definitions, shared reports from a specific role, or shared reports from a specific user.  A grid displays all saved report definitions.   

From here you can 'view' (and generate), 'delete', 'download' and 'share' report definitions.  Any report definitions you saved (albeit one of your creations or imported from someone else) can be selected by clicking on 'view' which will immediately take you to the 'Detail' interface with all options chosen for that saved report.  Make any changes and generate the report.  Clicking on delete for any saved report definition will remove the saved report definition from your grid.  Download report definitions will allow you to choose a saved report definitions in a file on your PC.  Then you can  email that file to someone else so they can import the file into the Detail option and generate the report themselves.  You can even go one extra step and click on 'share' a saved report definition to everyone with a certain role.  A window will open listing all the roles your currently have.  Checkmark the desired role(s) to allow anyone else with the same role access to this report.