Section 8: Reports > Custom Reports

Custom Reports Overview

There are many possible reasons for wanting to customize reports. Some of the more common reasons are discussed under the following headings.

Letterhead on Reports

Certain reports are not for internal company use only and are therefore sent out to customers or business colleagues (see, for example, Customer Statements (Ledger), Customer Statements (Open Item), and Repair Status Listing). A standard textual heading is normally printed at the top of each report, and in the case of the Customer Statements reports, which are treated like forms, a full textual business letterhead is printed with the option of a configured business logo being included (see Letterhead and Business Logos on Forms). However, if your company standard is to print correspondence letterhead with a particular font or textual layout then a custom report may be required. Similarly, if your business logo is in a file format other than .JPG (e.g. .TIF or .PNG) or if your company standard is to print the logo in a particular position and size then a custom report may be required.

(See also Letterhead on Forms.)

Adding Fields, Bar Codes, or Graphics to Existing Reports

Existing standard reports have been designed to meet the needs of most users. However sometimes your business needs may require the addition or removal of certain fields on a particular report. Or if a custom field detail line is entered on repair order, sales invoice, or credit note records then the entered value associated with the custom field can be added to a custom report (see Adding Custom Detail Line Fields).

Regular data fields may be printed as bar codes for easy scanning, perhaps for quick and accurate data entry into another system (see Using a Bar Code Reader).

And digital photographs or electronic signatures that are added as record attachments may need to be printed (see Attaching a Digital Photograph, and Attaching an Electronic Signature). The printing of digital photographs and electronics signatures may require additional system programming and therefore typically requires that the customizations be done by At Your Service Software, Inc., not by yourself.

(See also Adding Fields, Bar Codes, or Graphics to Existing Forms, Adding Fields, Bar Codes, or Graphics to Existing Labels, and Customizations.)

Adding Report Options to Existing Reports

Existing standard reports typically include a number of report options that allow the user to limit the report to only include data that meets certain criteria (e.g. a date range, a particular customer account). Additional report options can be added that allow data to be filtered according to your business needs. The addition of report options can only be done by At Your Service Software, Inc., not by yourself.

(See also Customizations.)

Reports in Another Language

While all reports are available in English, only certain reports are available in French and Spanish (see Language of Communication). If additional reports are required in French or Spanish, or if any report is required in another language, then a custom report may be required.

(See also Forms in Another Language, and Labels in Another Language.)

Reports with Sequential Number Series

A sequential number series can be added to a report so that each time a report is printed the number increments by one.

Reports for Business-Specific Requirements

Sometimes there is no existing standard report that meets the specific needs of your business or your repair industry. New custom reports can be prepared that integrate into the At Your Service program reports window and reports menus (see Reports Window, and Context Reports) together with custom report options (see Adding Report Options to Existing Reports).

(See also Forms for Business-Specific Requirements, Labels for Business-Specific Requirements, and Customizations.)

Updating the Database While Printing a Report

A custom report can be configured to automatically update data on selected records in the AYS database as the report prints.

More:

Standard Report Options