column header names

[benualson]

I'm trying to find documentation that shows how the software should work in regards to names/labels of column headers. I skimmed the manual; but, I didn't find a direct answer. When I right-click on a column header & choose 'Edit Data Item Label...', I get this description:

Data item name represents the name of the data item in the query. It is the label seen when viewing or editing expressions.

Data item label represents the label that is seen in the report output. If no label is specified then a default label will be displayed. This may be the data item name in some cases, but not always.

From limited testing, this is what I find so far:
1. If my list item is from a query which pulls directly from a framework package, the framework's data item name shows in the report output (if a label isn't specified). Editing the data item's name in the properties does not flow to the output.

2. If my list item is from a join query or sql object, the data item name is shown in the report output (which I can edit in the properties) unless I specify a label (in which case the label would show in the output).

Is this by design?

[Lynn]

I'm trying to find documentation that shows how the software should work in regards to names/labels of column headers. I skimmed the manual; but, I didn't find a direct answer. When I right-click on a column header & choose 'Edit Data Item Label...', I get this description:

Data item name represents the name of the data item in the query. It is the label seen when viewing or editing expressions.

Data item label represents the label that is seen in the report output. If no label is specified then a default label will be displayed. This may be the data item name in some cases, but not always.

From limited testing, this is what I find so far:
1. If my list item is from a query which pulls directly from a framework package, the framework's data item name shows in the report output (if a label isn't specified). Editing the data item's name in the properties does not flow to the output.

2. If my list item is from a join query or sql object, the data item name is shown in the report output (which I can edit in the properties) unless I specify a label (in which case the label would show in the output).

Is this by design?

Although I can't claim any involvement in design, I suspect the answer to your question is yes. Having a data item name as well as a label allows the report author to ensure that query items are meaningful to developers as well as to report consumers.

Regarding item 1, you would modify the label if you want the list column header for a package-based item to reflect something other than the data item name.

In point 2 you correctly identified that query item name appears on the output and you can change as desired without having to bother with a label. If the author wanted a more descriptive technical name to aid a developer as well as a more user-friendly label for the consumer there is the opportunity to do that.

As a practical example, imagine a list report has details about transactions pertaining to a particular customer to show orders and the related shipping information. These columns might include Order Date and Order Time along with Dispatch Date and Dispatch Time along with Delivery Date and Delivery Time. As a report author I'd want these granular names for the query items so that it is clear without looking at the expression which one is which. From a consumer perspective, it might look rather cluttered to use these names so I'd set all the Date query items with a label of simply "Date" and then "Time" for the time query items. In this way I can add a list row header that is split into three columns: Order Details; Dispatch Details; Delivery Details. My individual columns would then be set beneath the appropriate heading making the report more readable and less wide than if I'd used the lengthier default names as column headings.

Lastly, I'm not sure what is meant by the explanation "may be the data item name in some cases, but not always" but I suspect it might have to do with charts and crosstabs where a member caption is created as part of rending those objects. The member caption is generally what one sees by default in these situations.