Report Wizard - Form Letter

The Form Letter is a feature in JReport that allows you to combine text and fields into a form box so that you can create a form for a document or a letter.  A good example of a form letter can be seen in formletter.cls in the Example directory. 



You will notice in the form box that both the text and field are placed together.  When this report is viewed, the field will change based on any pre-set criteria.  It is much simpler to create a form and let JReport retrieve your data, then for you to spend hours trying to compile the data yourself.

How to create a Form Letter:

First, select the Form Letter icon in the New tab, under the Choose Report window.  The following window should appear:

 


Complete all the necessary information in the Data, Query, Display, Group/Sort, and Summary tabs. 

The Form Letter window consists of the following:

• Sections drop down menu: You may select from Report Header, Page Header, or Details as the section you would like to place your form in.
  
  
• Lower box:  You may type and place whatever text or field in this area.    
  
  
• Add and Delete: If you would like to add a field, select one from the upper left menu and click on the Add button.  If you would like to delete your field, highlight the field and click Delete.
  
  
• Import Text: Click here to import *.txt and *.rtf files.
  
  
• Detail box: If you have selected a field and have placed it in the Lower Box, you can view this field's properties by highlighting it.  You can also do this with your text by highlighting the text.  Here are definitions for each property:
  
  
  • Document Format
    
        -Default Tab: Number of spaces of each tab.
        -Left, Right, Top and Bottom Margin: Adjusts the margins in the form box.
        -Text Vertical Alignment: Places fields and text on either the top, center, or bottom.
    
       
  • Paragraph Format
    
       -Para Alignment: Left, center, or right justification.
       -Left and Right Indent: Indents text and fields.
    
       
  • Character Format:
    
        -Bold: Bolds fields and text.
        -All Capitals: Puts letters in capital format.
        -Font: Changes font style.
        -Font Size: Changes font size.
        -Italic: Italicizes font.
        -Strikeout: Adds a line through the middle of text or field.
        -Underline: Underlines text or field.
        -Foreground Color: Changes the color of font.
        -Background Color: Changes the background of the form box.