How do I design a custom report?

When designing your custom report, you get to determine what data will be included in the report. You also get to determine every aspect of report layout including sort order, column header names, and even font formatting.

The process for designing a custom report is divided into four parts for documentation purposes. First, we'll discuss how to get to the custom report design module. Second, we'll discuss the selection and ordering of the fields that will appear in the custom report. Next, we'll discuss how to further design the visual layout of the report. And lastly,we'll discuss the naming and saving of the custom report.

Getting Started

To get to the custom report design module:

  1. Access the record summary view that matches the type of report that you want to design. For example, select View|Counseling Sessions if you want to design a custom counseling sessions report.
  2. Click the Report button, and open the Custom Reports tab.
  3. Double-click the "--Create/Edit Custom Report--" line item that displays at the top of the custom report listing, as shown in the next graphic. This opens the Custom Report Merlin.


  4. You've made it to the design module!—now you're ready to start designing, as discussed in the following sections.

Selecting and Ordering Fields

Follow these steps to design a custom report in WebCATS:

  1. From the first screen of the Custom Report Merlin, indicate whether you will be creating the report from scratch, basing it on a previously-created custom report, or basing it on a Softshare sample template.
  2. If you're creating a custom report for counseling session records, you'll need to decide how you want to handle counseling sessions that are associated with clients and/or counselors. Choose one of the four organization options found under the "Split Counseling Sessions" heading.
  3. Click the Next button.
  4. At the next Merlin screen, select which fields you want included in your custom report and click the Next button.

    5. Note: If you based your report on an existing custom report in step 1, this screen is initially restricted to just those fields that are part of that report. To view and select other fields for inclusion in your new custom report, deselect the Show only selected fields? option.

  5. At the next Merlin screen, the fields you selected are listed in the order that they appeared on the previous screen. To change order, highlight a field and click the up/down arrow icons to move it to its desired position in the report output, as shown in the next graphic. When the fields are ordered to your satisfaction, click the Next button.


  6. That's it for selecting and ordering the fields in your custom report! If you want to establish additional record grouping and sorting options, rename column headers, or further refine the report layout, proceed to the next section. If you're content with the custom report as is, skip directly to Naming and Saving the Report.

Perfecting the Visual Layout of the Report

Once you have chosen and ordered the fields for your custom report, WebCATS displays the Report Layout screen, shown in the next graphic. If you designed the custom report from scratch, WebCATS, by default, initially formats the report in a very basic columnar format, with column headings listed across the "RH 1" row, which stands for report header 1 and the corresponding fields listed across the "D 1" row, which stands for detail 1. Each heading/field pair gets its own column.

Note: If you based your custom report on a Softshare sample template or a previously-created custom report, a more advanced layout could already be in place here.

It's entirely feasible that WebCATS' default layout is perfectly acceptable to you and you have no need to alter any aspect of your newly-created custom report (in which case you should skip directly to Naming and Saving the Report). However, if you want to specify record grouping and sorting, edit column names, or take advantage of a large number of other formatting options, you can do so from this  Report Layout screen, as described in the following sections:

Note: Not every formatting option that is available to you is documented here. In addition to the formatting options discussed in the next five sections, you can also adjust font styles, field alignment, text wrapping, and many other aspects of your report's layout. We encourage you to experiment with all of these powerful features. A great way to do this is to review one of Softshare sample templates to see how more advanced formatting is accomplished.

Record Grouping and Sorting

WebCATS allows you to group records in ascending or descending order according to one of the fields that is included in your custom report. In addition to providing organization to the report, record grouping also lets you see summary totals per grouping as well as one grand total for the entire report. When you select a record grouping from the Group records by field's drop-down menu, several changes are automatically made to your custom report's layout, as shown in the next graphic.

In addition to grouping records, you can also set primary, secondary, and even tertiary sort orders for the records that display in your custom report output. These sort orders can be used regardless of whether a record grouping is established.

Editing of WebCATS' Default Column Header Names

Every field that you select for inclusion in your custom report has a default column header associated with it. You can leave these default column header names in place or you can edit one or more of them. To edit a column header, perform the following set of steps:

  1. From the report layout, click the column header you would like to edit. This displays the Edit Header options, as shown in the next graphic.


  2. Edit the value in the Column name field. If the value you are entering into the Column name field is lengthy and you don't want it to take up so much horizontal space, you can force a break in the header by adding a "\n" where the break should be, as shown in the next graphic.


  3. Click the OK button when you have finished editing the header name.    

Deleting Column Headers and Fields

To delete a column header or field from your custom report, highlight it from the report layout. This displays your editing options for that column header or field. Then, simply click the Remove Field button. It's important to note that the deletion of a column header or field does not cause WebCATS to automatically delete its associated field or column header. For example, if you remove the "[Center ID]" field from the detail row of your custom report, the associated "Center" header will remain in place. If your goal is to delete the entire header/field pair, you'll have to delete each component individually. 

Moving Column Headers and Fields

To change the position of a column header or field, perform the following set of steps:

  1. From the report layout, click the column header or field you would like to move. This displays the Edit Header or Edit Field options.
  2. In the Row and Column fields, enter the desired position for the header or field highlighted. You can only move headers and fields around within their current sections. For example, if you are moving a header that currently resides in the group header section, the row you specify in the Row field will correspond to a GH row, as illustrated in the next graphic. Note: You're not limited to specifying rows or columns that currently exist; you can create new rows or columns within the section, also shown in the next graphic.


  3. Click the OK button.

It's important to note that changing the position of a column header or field does not cause WebCATS to automatically move its associated field or column header along with it. For example, as you can see in the previous illustration, moving the "Center" header did not cause the "[Center]" field to move. If your goal is to move the header/field pair, you'll have to move each one individually.

Inserting Horizontal Lines Between Rows

By default, WebCATS inserts gray horizontal lines into your report output after the header and before the footer, as shown in the next graphic.

Using the "Include Horizontal Lines" options found at the bottom of the Report Layout screen, you can remove these default gray lines or add more or of them. For example, you can insert lines between detail rows, as shown in the next graphic.

Naming and Saving the Report

When you're all done setting the design specifications of your custom report, assign it a name in the Report Title field that is found on the Report Layout screen and click the Next button. WebCATS takes you to the final Merlin screen where you need to click the Finish button in order to save it. Once saved, it's available to you for generation at any time from the Custom Reports tab (assuming you're working under the same center that was active when you originally designed the report). In addition, you can choose to share your new custom report with others, as discussed in the FAQ titled I’ve created and saved a custom report. How do I share it with others?.



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