My wife was reading something called “deal news” and told me that there was a free download for something from SAP.   It turned out to be Xcelsius (under its new name).   I downloaded it  just to have it but I probably won’t have time to play with it for a while since CR consulting is keeping me very busy.  But if any of you are interested in playing with Xcelsius you can try it out for free.  Note that it is no longer called Xcelsius, but is now known as “SAP Crystal Presentation Design”.  Also note that a promotion like this usually indicates a new version of the software in the wings.

In general, I think interactive dashboards Continue Reading »
Free download of Xcelsius

I have struggled many times while helping customers create fixed length text files from Crystal Reports. These files are standardized files used to transfer data from remote systems into centralized systems. Banks, insurance companies and government agencies often require certain business to submit data in fixed length files so they can be imported into legacy applications. The challenge has always been Crystal Reports wanting to truncate the data based on the defined page width, even though the export doesn’t actually go to a physical printer.  I recently did days of research to write an article on how to get the widest possible text export from different versions of CR.  This is published in my Expert Techniques volume 4.  Exporting to text with this method is limited in CR 2008 to 367 or 377 characters depending on your version of the export dll.  Some older versions of CR can go up to 1500 characters if you get all the right pieces in place.

But I was talking with Ido Millet about scheduling these exports when I realized that another of his tools has a very simple solution to the problem. Millet Software produces a DLL called Continue Reading »
Fixed length text exports using Cut Light

Have you ever wanted to:
1) Find all the reports that use a particular table, field or calculation?
2) Compare two versions of a report to see what was changed?
3) Make the same change to a group of reports?

The more reports you have, the more likely that you will face these challenges, and you can solve problems like these with the tools in this article. All of these tools can be found in the LINKS page of my site under RPT Management Utilities.

Below is a brief rundown on the core features of each product as well as what sets each product apart. I have also posted a more detailed Continue Reading »
RPT management utilities

I just read a blog post by Blair Wheadon of SAP.  They want to encourage migration from Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services to Crystal Reports so they have introduced a way to run SSRS reports from within the CR Server environment.  This is intended to cushion the transition and means that you can get your reports and dashboards accessible from one system.  Note that this does NOT import the SSRS reports or convert them.  It just links to them so the run in the SQL Server environment.

What I found interesting is Blair’s explanation of how CR Server is a better solution – even going so far as to claim a lower TCO.  That is an interesting claim when you consider that SSRS is free for most users who are already paying for their SQL Server license.   If anyone would like to weigh in on either side of this issue, let me know.

I have divided the dozen or so scheduling tools into two groups – desktop and server. Most people who need to schedule reports will be fine using a desktop scheduler, even if they have to deliver reports to many recipients.  You can read my previous blog post for a comparison of desktop schedulers. But in some environments there will be many people scheduling reports and in those cases it might make sense to upgrade to a server-based scheduler.  This post will compare the server-based scheduling tools and should help narrow down your search.  So below is a brief introduction to each product and a link to the vendor’s website.

I have also created a detailed feature matrix (PDF) that compares roughly 70 characteristics. It includes prices and the install base of each product. And with so many complex features I decided to also write a feature glossary to define some of the key features so the comparisons were clearer. What has emerged is a short course in Crystal Reports scheduling technology. If you Continue Reading »
Server-based scheduling engines

Bar Codes are everywhere. The UPC code you see at the store is the most common example.  Every consumer product is assigned an ID number by the Uniform Code Council in Dayton, OH.  That number is converted into machine readable form so it they can be scanned.  But now you will see it checking materials in and out of inventory; patients in some hospitals; even my local library uses a scanner when checking books in and out.

Crystal Reports can even be used to print barcodes on forms or adhesive labels. In most versions of CR you need to write a formula to convert your number into a string. Then you need to Continue Reading »
Crystal Reports and barcodes

How would you like your reports to be automatically run, exported to a PDF and delivered to your Email InBox every Monday morning at 6am?  The Crystal Reports designer doesn’t provide a way to do this (unless you upgrade to CR Server or BO Enterprise).  But if you look at third party products like those on my LINKS page you will find several reasonably priced (or even free) tools that are designed to help you do this.  Some do even more.

So this post will compare desktop scheduling tools, providing you with their core features and prices so that you can narrow down your search.  I am working on another post covering server based scheduling tools that I hope to have ready in a few weeks.  If you think one person can manage all the scheduling you are probably fine with one of the desktop tools – regardless of the number of recipients.  If you plan to have multiple people scheduling reports then you will want to look at the server based tools.

Below is a brief introduction to each product and what sets that product apart. I have also created a detailed Continue Reading »
Desktop Based Scheduling Engines

Last week a customer called me after they did an upgrade of PeachTree Accounting.  It seems that the records in the report that used to sort were now appearing in random order.  As soon as I added the sort back in and refreshed the report, all the records disappeared.  Fortunately I had seen this before because I work quite a bit with PeachTree and PeachTree uses Btrieve as a database engine.

This week I had another Btrieve customer (not PeachTree) who wanted to add a parameter to select a part number.  We added the rule in the selection formula and, again, all the records disappeared.  Same problem same solution.

Apparently when Crystal sends a query to a Btrieve engine, Btrieve tries to ‘help out’ by Continue Reading »
Vanishing data in Btrieve

There are many ways to deploy Crystal Reports to users.  I normally lean toward the simpler and less expensive options, like locally installed viewers.  But there are environments where a server based option is necessary.  The ‘official’ options from SAP are Crystal Reports Server and BO Enterprise.  You can read about these on the SAP website under the heading “SAP Business Objects portfolio”.  But there are other products out there that most users never see. These are third party products that also allow you to centrally manage your report deployment from your server.  The list includes:

Ripplestone – Traditional portal
rePORTAL - Traditional portal
ReCrystallize Pro – Web Launch page generator.
Universal Report Server (URS) – Server-based scheduling engine
Report Launch – Bridge between BO server products and server based applications.

The products vary widely and are aimed at Continue Reading »
Server based options for Deploying Crystal Reports

There is a link on my library page that explains how to enhance the mapping feature in Crystal reports to include maps by zip code or county.  Unfortunately, adding these features isn’t free.  You have to purchase additional map ‘layers’ for the MapInfo module in CR.  MapInfo is now part of Pitney Bowes.

One of my readers, Robert Meyer, just let me know that he called Pitney Bowes and found that my pricing information was out of date. They used to sell zip codes and county maps one state at a time.  A zip code map for a single state was $395 for one user.  Now you can get a zip code map for all 50 states for $2,250 (still one user).  Not that this is cheap but it is much better than before.   A county map used to be $125 per state per user and it is now $495 for all 50 states.