can grow / can shrink , control position conflict

  • Thread starter Thread starter Mark Kubicki
  • Start date Start date
M

Mark Kubicki

I've got a report with several text boxes and/or sub-reports in the detail
section, and I'm having trouble keeping their horizontal alignments as
needed. Maybe someone can clue me into the "caviats" (or to a usefull
source that goes into the details and work-arounds...)

Many thanks in advance,
Mark


Here's the conditions I've got...
- the detail section is organized in three (3) columns (these are purly
graphic, and comply with the "format" of the report)
- in each column are 1 to seveal text boxes and/or sub-reports,
- currently the first control in each columnis a text box with a height of
..2" and can grow
- addtional controls (below the 1st textbox) have a height of .0", can grow,
and are seperated from the control above by a short space

my conflict is:
- the columns are completely independent in thier horizontal alignment (and
the growth of a control in column 1 should not affect the positon of a
control in column 2. The control in each column should be positioned
directly below the control above it (in the same column...)
- however; what is happening is that as a control in one column "grows", it
pushes the vertical position of controls in adjacent columns downward (to a
vertical position below itself.) This results in occasssional large and
undesirable gaps in the content of the column.
 
Mark said:
I've got a report with several text boxes and/or sub-reports in the detail
section, and I'm having trouble keeping their horizontal alignments as
needed. Maybe someone can clue me into the "caviats" (or to a usefull
source that goes into the details and work-arounds...)

Here's the conditions I've got...
- the detail section is organized in three (3) columns (these are purly
graphic, and comply with the "format" of the report)
- in each column are 1 to seveal text boxes and/or sub-reports,
- currently the first control in each columnis a text box with a height of
.2" and can grow
- addtional controls (below the 1st textbox) have a height of .0", can grow,
and are seperated from the control above by a short space

my conflict is:
- the columns are completely independent in thier horizontal alignment (and
the growth of a control in column 1 should not affect the positon of a
control in column 2. The control in each column should be positioned
directly below the control above it (in the same column...)
- however; what is happening is that as a control in one column "grows", it
pushes the vertical position of controls in adjacent columns downward (to a
vertical position below itself.) This results in occasssional large and
undesirable gaps in the content of the column.
Click to expand...

I believe you mean vertical alignment. Horizontal alignment
refers to how the controls are spaced across the page.

The general rule is that all controls with their Top below
the bottom of a growing control will be pushed down the
page.

That may very well put your report in a category of a
circular argument. You need one column to have all its
controls above the bottom of the first growing control in
the other columns and vice versa. So, AFAICS, there is no
way to do what you want by putting all the controls in the
detail section.

It may(?) be possible to get the effect you want by using a
real 3 column report and putting each "column" worth of
controls in separate sections with their NewRowOrCol
property set to After Section.

You can get the extra sections by using Sorting and Grouping
to add a header and footer to the lowest level sort in the
report. Then move the first "column" controls to the group
header, leave the second "column" controls in the detail
section and move the third "column" controls to the group
footer section.

If that messes up the other stuff in the report beyond what
you can tolerate, then it might be useful to move all that
stuff to a subreport.
 
I'm not sure if I can provide much comfort but if you draw a horizontal line
across your section, any control above the line that can grow will push down
any control that has a top below the horizontal line.

You might be able to get around this by using narrow subreports that can
grow independently.
 
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