We are welcoming the summer season by giving away a free FastReport Business Graphics with every purchase of FastReport .NET Enterprise Team.
FastReport Business Graphics is a library for vivid visualization of your data stored in reports. It uses several types of charts to turn the dry numbers into illustrative infographics for optimal decision-making. It will supplement your FastReport .NET to get the most out of your data.
Until July 1, 2022, you will have a chance to try its full capabilities for free when buying FastReport .NET Enterprise Team and save $1199.
To use the offer reach out to our sales team through the support system, a chat on our website, or by emailing sales@fast-report.com
Now you can save a report with random data
The file menu in the report designer has a new item "Save with random data...". When you save the report in this way, all data sources will be saved in the report and the data in them will be replaced by random data.
Highlighting intersecting objects in the designer
Now when placing objects on the report page, overlapping objects and objects beyond the bounds of the bands and the page are highlighted by color. There should not be such objects in the correct report. Failure to comply with this recommendation, can lead to a number of problems in the preparation and exporting of reports. By default, this option is disabled.
You can enable it in the designer's settings File->Options.
Ruler with guides in the RichObject editor
The new tool allows you to conveniently adjust indentation and tab positions when editing RichObject. Read more in article.
Added console utility to convert from RTF
Using it, you can easily convert RTF files into report templates.
Now you can use XLSX files as data sources
You can now retrieve data from Excel 2007 files as from a database and use it in a report. Read more in article.
"Pinned cells" option when exporting to Excel 2007
This feature, allows you to define an area of the sheet that will always be visible when you scroll. You can lock: the first row, the first column, a certain number of rows and columns.
Also added export of number and date format to Excel 97 format (BIFF8).
In the HTML export now has the option "High quality SVG" - when you enable this setting, the quality of SVG images will be significantly higher. However, you should keep in mind that the memory consumption will be higher.
In Word documents, export bookmarks and internal links has been added. In PDF, Word, HTML and RTF now have export tabs width.
In SVG export we added a new property PrefixStyle - it allows you to set a prefix for all styles.
We also improved the documentation and added the ability to switch the localization in the FastReport for DBA settings.
Full list of changes in version 2022.2
[Engine]
+ added ability to save report with random data;
* the ExportBand method now uses the BandBase argument instead of Base;
- fixed bugs with double calling events AfterData, BeforePrint and AfterPrint of ContainerObject;
- fixed a bug leading to System.NullReferenceException when running reports with dialog forms;
- fixed a bug with not working VisibleExpression property of subreports and pages;
- fixed a bug with vertical shift of non-intersecting objects when converting RTF;
- fixed a bug with right anchor on pages with unlimited width and landscape orientation;
- fixed translation of lists when converting RTF;
- fixed a bug with not working RichObject.AllowExpressions property;
- fixed a bug leading to System.OverflowException when drawing unlimited page without preparing;
[Designer]
+ added Backlight of intersecting objects;
+ added ruler with guides in RichObject editor;
+ replaced password symbols on dots in object inspector;
+ added warning about possible stack overflow when putting Matrix or AdvMatrix on repeated bands;
- removed error message when text of barcode consist expression;
- fixed a bug with disable hot keys option;
- fixed dropdown menu when click on LineStyle and LineWidth button;
- fixed a bug with viewing data in designer;
- fixed bugs leading to System.NullReferenceException when dragging objects into AdvMatrix;
- fixed a bug with incorrect showing settings of shadow in border editor;
[Preview]
- fixed a bug leading to System.NullReferenceException when clicking on editable TextObject;
- fixed a bug with not working hyperlinks in report with multi-column databands;
- fixed a bug when exporting a report resulted to saving the prepared report;
- fixed a bug with setting lists of available exports and exports to clouds in PreviewControl;
[Exports]
+ added export to ZPL II;
+ added option "High Quality SVG" in export to HTML;
+ added option "Pinned cells" in export to Excel 2007;
+ added ability to scale print in export to Excel 2007;
+ added export of bookmarks and inner hyperlinks to Word;
+ added export of numbers and dates format to Excel 97;
+ added encryption of personal data in Email-export;
+ added indent of RichObject in export to RTF;
+ added line break of RichObject in export to RTF;
+ added indent of TextObject when exporting to Word;
+ added export of tab width in PDF, Word, HTML and RTF exports;
+ added property PrefixStyle to SVG-export, which allows to set a prefix for all styles;
* improved export of RichObject to Excel 2007;
* removed FastReport Cloud and XMPP exports;
- fixed incorrect rotation of landscape orientation of pages when printing HTML if they used styles from previous pages;
- fixed a bug with font scale when export to PDF;
- fixed a memory lose when export SVG objects to HTML with option "High Quality SVG";
- fixed a bug with embedding fonts for which packing is prohibited in PDF-export;
- fixed a bug with exporting tab symbols to Word;
- fixed fill background picture and property of line-height in export to HTML;
- fixed a bug with exporting custom dash line of SVGObject to PDF;
- fixed a bug with exporting borders of spanned cells to SVG.
The release of version 2022.2 for FastReport for DBA took place, in which we added highlighting of intersecting objects in the designer, a ruler in the RichObject editor, fixed errors in Excel 2007, RTF, XLSX export formats and much more.
Now you can save a report with random data
The file menu in the report designer has a new item "Save with random data...". When you save the report in this way, all data sources will be saved in the report and the data in them will be replaced by random data.
Highlighting intersecting objects in the designer
Now when placing objects on the report page, overlapping objects and objects beyond the bounds of the bands and the page are highlighted by color. There should not be such objects in the correct report. Failure to comply with this recommendation, can lead to a number of problems in the preparation and exporting of reports. By default, this option is disabled.
You can enable it in the designer's settings File->Options.
Ruler with guides in the RichObject editor
The new tool allows you to conveniently adjust indentation and tab positions when editing RichObject. Read more in article.
Added console utility to convert from RTF
Using it, you can easily convert RTF files into report templates.
Now you can use XLSX files as data sources
You can now retrieve data from Excel 2007 files as from a database and use it in a report. Read more in article.
"Pinned cells" option when exporting to Excel 2007
This feature, allows you to define an area of the sheet that will always be visible when you scroll. You can lock: the first row, the first column, a certain number of rows and columns.
Also added export of number and date format to Excel 97 format (BIFF8).
In the HTML export now has the option "High quality SVG" - when you enable this setting, the quality of SVG images will be significantly higher. However, you should keep in mind that the memory consumption will be higher.
In Word documents, export bookmarks and internal links has been added. In PDF, Word, HTML and RTF now have export tabs width.
In SVG export we added a new property PrefixStyle - it allows you to set a prefix for all styles.
We also improved the documentation and added the ability to switch the localization in the FastReport for DBA settings.
Full list of changes in version 2022.2
[Engine]
+ added ability to save report with random data;
* the ExportBand method now uses the BandBase argument instead of Base;
- fixed bugs with double calling events AfterData, BeforePrint and AfterPrint of ContainerObject;
- fixed a bug leading to System.NullReferenceException when running reports with dialog forms;
- fixed a bug with not working VisibleExpression property of subreports and pages;
- fixed a bug with vertical shift of non-intersecting objects when converting RTF;
- fixed a bug with right anchor on pages with unlimited width and landscape orientation;
- fixed translation of lists when converting RTF;
- fixed a bug with not working RichObject.AllowExpressions property;
- fixed a bug leading to System.OverflowException when drawing unlimited page without preparing;
[Designer]
+ added Backlight of intersecting objects;
+ added ruler with guides in RichObject editor;
+ replaced password symbols on dots in object inspector;
+ added warning about possible stack overflow when putting Matrix or AdvMatrix on repeated bands;
- removed error message when text of barcode consist expression;
- fixed a bug with disable hot keys option;
- fixed dropdown menu when click on LineStyle and LineWidth button;
- fixed a bug with viewing data in designer;
- fixed bugs leading to System.NullReferenceException when dragging objects into AdvMatrix;
- fixed a bug with incorrect showing settings of shadow in border editor;
[Preview]
- fixed a bug leading to System.NullReferenceException when clicking on editable TextObject;
- fixed a bug with not working hyperlinks in report with multi-column databands;
- fixed a bug when exporting a report resulted to saving the prepared report;
- fixed a bug with setting lists of available exports and exports to clouds in PreviewControl;
[Exports]
+ added export to ZPL II;
+ added option "High Quality SVG" in export to HTML;
+ added option "Pinned cells" in export to Excel 2007;
+ added ability to scale print in export to Excel 2007;
+ added export of bookmarks and inner hyperlinks to Word;
+ added export of numbers and dates format to Excel 97;
+ added encryption of personal data in Email-export;
+ added indent of RichObject in export to RTF;
+ added line break of RichObject in export to RTF;
+ added indent of TextObject when exporting to Word;
+ added export of tab width in PDF, Word, HTML and RTF exports;
+ added property PrefixStyle to SVG-export, which allows to set a prefix for all styles;
* improved export of RichObject to Excel 2007;
* removed FastReport Cloud and XMPP exports;
- fixed incorrect rotation of landscape orientation of pages when printing HTML if they used styles from previous pages;
- fixed a bug with font scale when export to PDF;
- fixed a memory lose when export SVG objects to HTML with option "High Quality SVG";
- fixed a bug with embedding fonts for which packing is prohibited in PDF-export;
- fixed a bug with exporting tab symbols to Word;
- fixed fill background picture and property of line-height in export to HTML;
- fixed a bug with exporting custom dash line of SVGObject to PDF;
- fixed a bug with exporting borders of spanned cells to SVG.
The new version of the FastReport Business Graphics library has the ability to build interactive hierarchical Bubble Charts.
The `Bubble` chart helps to visualize hierarchical data as circles that have the area proportional to the value of the displayed record. Inside the circles of parent records, the circles of child records can be nested. The arrangement of the circles is formed using a packing algorithm based on the Grokker algorithm, modified for better display of hierarchical data. The general principle of the chart is largely similar to the TreeMap chart.
The depth of visualization of hierarchical data can be easily adjusted.
The appearance of the chart can be changed both from the code and directly in the chart style editor.
The library also contains predefined color palettes that can be used to form the desired color design for charts.
In addition, we have improved the demo application - it became more graphic and convenient.
The bugs were also fixed and the product documentation was updated.
Full list of changes:
+ added Bubble chart;
- bugfixes;
* improved MainDemo (interface, new dataset with Planets);
* updated documentation.
In FastReport VCL 2022.2, we have focused on adding new features so you could reduce the effort required to develop and improve your reports.
Report Designer
The report designer has expanded the possibilities of editing and searching for errors in reports. The new object intersection highlighting mode allows you to locate problem areas in the report template and prepare the report for correct output in tabular exports (RTF, XLS, and others). Just turn on the new mode to see all overlapping objects.
The new "Auto Guides" mode allows you to quickly fix identified problems in the report by automatically creating guide lines for all objects (it works in three modes: all lines, only vertical, only horizontal).
You can move leader lines from Auto Guides mode to normal page guides.
Expanded interactive functionality
A new interactive editor has been added for the CellularText object in the report preview. Create interactive, fillable documents right from the preview. This will allow you to develop new forms for your reports.
New objects "List" (TfrxListBoxView) and "Drop-down list" (TfrxComboBoxView) were also added for the report page. These objects allow you to create interactive forms right on the report page*.
*Support for interactive PDF forms will be integrated later.
Report engine and objects
The object for displaying HTML in a report (TfrxHTMLView) now has the ability to cache and save images received via external links (file or web protocol). They will be sent immediately to the rendered report, through the EmbeddedObjects property. This increases independence and speeds up the loading of such reports.
This new QR-code settings class allows you to quickly and easily create an EPC (European Payments Council) barcode and connect it to your data.
In addition, many changes have been made to improve the overall quality of the product.
Full changelog
----------------------------
+ A new mode of highlighting objects when they intersect in the report designer has been added;
+ Support for EPC standard settings for QR code has been added;
+ An interactive editor of the CellularText object to edit the object in the preview has been added;
+ A new mode of guide lines - Auto guides have been added in the report designer;
+ A new object of the report - drop-down list TfrxComboBoxVIew has been added;
+ A new report object list TfrxListBoxVIew has been added;
+ The possibility to embed external images of an HTMLView object for arendered report as an internal or external cache (EmbeddedObjects [edExternal, edInternal] property) has been added;
- An issue with scrolling in preview under Linux has now been fixed;
- An issue with calling the MouseLeave event before rebuilding the report has been fixed;
- An issue with processing hot keys in the report designer, on Combobox and Edit elements has been fixed;
- An issue when the HeaderMaxSize property is not defined in the server config has been fixed;
- An issue with copying table content in the preview has been fixed;
- An issue with data tree resizing in Lazarus has been fixed;
- An issue with PDF export to Lazarus with the last line in the text has been fixed;
- An issue with filling in the user-agent field in the http header (processing external links) has been fixed;
- PDF export size during EMF conversion has been optimized;
- An issue with page switching has been fixed;
- An issue with scrolling in report designer under Linux has been fixed;
- An issue with the Chart object in Lazarus 2.2.0 has been fixed;
- An issue with TfrxHTML5DivExport export with MultiPage enabled on Linux has been fixed;
- An issue with printing the Table object in print scaling mode has been fixed;
- An issue with displaying barcodes with a rotation angle other than 0 has been fixed;
- An issue with CC, BCC fields when sending emails via Outlook has been fixed;
- An issue with hpp generation error for C++Builder 2012 has been fixed;
- An issue with PDF export in long text lines and line styles has been fixed;
- An issue with recompilation of resources with Japanese localization has been fixed;
- An issue with working with duplex from the default printer in the collate mode has been fixed;
- FireDAC adapter packages (AnyDAC) have been updated;
- Preview toolbar display error in RAD Studio 11 has been fixed;
- An issue in naming report objects when dragging fields with Unicode names from the data tree has been fixed;
- An issue with aggregate functions inside a static table has been fixed;
- An issue with the handle leak in HTMLView object has been fixed.
Added support for interactivity of the "Advanced Matrix" object in WebReport:
All WebReports (.NET Framework, .NET Core, Blazor Server) now have interactivity support for the new Advanced Matrix. The collapse and sort buttons now work correctly in the browser.
Ability to save the report with random data
The file menu in the report designer has a new item "Save with random data...". When you save the report in this way, all data sources will be saved in the report and the data in them will be replaced with random values.
Backlight of intersecting objects in the designer
Now, when you place objects on the report page, the color will highlight the intersecting objects and objects outside of bands and page. In a correct report, there should not be such objects. Ignoring to comply with this recommendation, can lead to a number of problems in the preparation and exporting of reports. By default, this option is disabled.
You can enable it in the designer settings (menu View->Options).
Backlight demo below.
Exports Improvements
"Pinned cells" option when exporting to Excel 2007
This feature, allows you to define an area of the sheet that will always be visible when you scroll. You can lock: the first row, the first column, a certain number of rows and columns.
The settings look like this:
And the way this option works is:
ZPL II support when exporting to ZPL.
"High quality SVG" option in HTML export.
With this setting enabled, the quality of SVG images will be significantly higher when exporting. Note, however, that the amount of memory occupied will also be higher.
Added export of bookmarks and internal links into Word.
Implemented export tab character width in PDF, Word, HTML and RTF.
New PrefixStyle property in SVG export.
This property allows you to set a prefix for all styles when exporting to SVG.
Added export of number and date formats in Excel 97.
Export of tab character width in PDF, Word, HTML and RTF.
Complete list of changes
[Engine]
+ added ability to save report with random data;
* the ExportBand method now uses the BandBase argument instead of Base;
- fixed bugs with double calling events AfterData, BeforePrint and AfterPrint of ContainerObject;
- fixed a bug leading to System.NullReferenceException when running reports with dialog forms;
- fixed a bug with not working VisibleExpression property of subreports and pages;
- fixed a bug with vertical shift of non-intersecting objects when converting RTF;
- fixed a bug with right anchor on pages with unlimited width and landscape orientation;
- fixed translation of lists when converting RTF;
- fixed a bug with not working RichObject.AllowExpressions property;
- fixed a bug leading to System.OverflowException when drawing unlimited page without preparing;
[Designer]
+ added backlight of intersecting objects;
- removed error message when text of barcode consist expression;
- fixed a bug with disable hot keys option;
- fixed dropdown menu when click on LineStyle and LineWidth button;
- fixed a bug with viewing data in designer;
- fixed bugs leading to System.NullReferenceException when dragging objects into AdvMatrix;
[Preview]
- fixed a bug leading to System.NullReferenceException when clicking on editable TextObject;
- fixed a bug with not working hyperlinks in report with multi-column databands;
- fixed a bug when exporting a report resulted to saving the prepared report;
[Exports]
+ added export to ZPL II;
+ added option "High Quality SVG" in export to HTML;
+ added option "Pinned cells" in export to Excel 2007;
+ added ability to scale print in export to Excel 2007;
+ added export of bookmarks and inner hyperlinks to Word;
+ added export of numbers and dates format to Excel 97;
+ added encryption of personal data in Email-export;
+ added indent of RichObject in export to RTF;
+ added line break of RichObject in export to RTF;
+ added indent of TextObject when exporting to Word;
+ added export of tab width in PDF, Word, HTML and RTF exports;
+ added property PrefixStyle to SVG-export, which allows to set a prefix for all styles;
* improved export of RichObject to Excel 2007;
* removed FastReport Cloud and XMPP exports;
- fixed incorrect rotation of landscape orientation of pages when printing HTML if they used styles from previous pages;
- fixed a bug with font scale when export to PDF;
- fixed a memory lose when export SVG objects to HTML with option "High Quality SVG";
- fixed a bug with embedding fonts for which packing is prohibited in PDF-export;
- fixed a bug with exporting tab symbols to Word;
- fixed fill background picture and property of line-height in export to HTML;
- fixed a bug with exporting custom dash line of SVGObject to PDF;
- fixed a bug with exporting borders of spanned cells to SVG;
[WebReport]
+ added interactivity for advanced matrix in WebReport.