Designer - hiding unused columns and assign specific column names
Posted: Tue Aug 24, 2010 8:22 am
Hiya,
I am writing am application in c# which will allow our customers to design and run their own reports. I pass objects into the Report Designer and the items available within the datasource are the properties in the object - exactly as I would expect.
However our customers can assign different meanings to certain columns and sometimes decide not to use them at all
For example we have 50 free format columns and customer1 may use FreeFormatColumn1 to store a card holders date of birth and
FreeFormatColumn2 to store a card holders Mothers Maiden Name and not use the other 48 columns. Another customer may use 20 of
the 50 columns. Obviously the "column uses" i.e the names the customer has assigned to each column are available to me.
We want to provide the ability for our customers to design their own reports but they would only expect to see the
columns they use and to see the actual meanings they assign to each column, like "Mothers Maiden Name" and not FreeFormatColumn2.
Have you any ideas if this is possible and how I would achieve this. I know I can use aliases to give columns alternative names
but this is not what they want. This also does not allow me to "hide" un-used columns.
Best regards
Robin
I am writing am application in c# which will allow our customers to design and run their own reports. I pass objects into the Report Designer and the items available within the datasource are the properties in the object - exactly as I would expect.
However our customers can assign different meanings to certain columns and sometimes decide not to use them at all
For example we have 50 free format columns and customer1 may use FreeFormatColumn1 to store a card holders date of birth and
FreeFormatColumn2 to store a card holders Mothers Maiden Name and not use the other 48 columns. Another customer may use 20 of
the 50 columns. Obviously the "column uses" i.e the names the customer has assigned to each column are available to me.
We want to provide the ability for our customers to design their own reports but they would only expect to see the
columns they use and to see the actual meanings they assign to each column, like "Mothers Maiden Name" and not FreeFormatColumn2.
Have you any ideas if this is possible and how I would achieve this. I know I can use aliases to give columns alternative names
but this is not what they want. This also does not allow me to "hide" un-used columns.
Best regards
Robin