Maintaining Cards, Labels & Rosters

Note that this information applies labels and other label-style reports. i.e., reports where each record is displayed on multiple lines, like a mailing label, directory, roster, ID card, etc.

This procedure assumes that you have already started the report. If not, please see Working with Cards and Labels to get started.

This maintenance window for cards and labels is divided into two tabs, "Define Fields" and "Preview." As you might expect, you must defined the fields on the report before you can preview what it will look like. Therefore, the Define Fields tab must be completed and changes applied before the Preview tab is enabled. If you have opened an existing report, the Preview tab is available immediately, but if you make any changes on the Define Fields tab, they must be saved before the Preview can be accessed again.

1	If you are creating a new report, enter a name for it in the Report Name field. This is the name that will appear in the dropdown of available reports on the Reports window.

Note: After the report has been saved this name can only be changed from the List window.

If you are creating a Membership card (rather than a Photo ID card) choose the Logo File. This file is expected to be 144x144 pixels square. Type the full path and file name for the file, or click the browse button to find it. The file must be one of the allowed types (.bmp, .gif, .jpg, .jpeg, .wmf, .rle). If your logo is not square, just create a 144x144 pixel square graphic with a white background, and place your logo in the middle of it, leaving the extra white space untouched.

Note: After saving, the logo file name will display something like, Stored ID: 36 instead of the original filename.

Select fields for each line of the report. Fields must be selected for a specific line. Use the "View/Edit Fields on Line ##" dropdown to choose a line to work with, then use the left and right arrow buttons to move fields back and forth between the Available Fields list and the Selected Fields list.

Note: Some fields are smarter than others! See Smart Fields for information about fields that make their own decisions.

When all fields have been added to one line, change the dropdown to the next line and continue adding fields. To see all the fields that have been added to entire report, choose the All Lines option. The value in the Line Number column indicates which field is on which line.

Note: The top-to-bottom order of fields in the Selected Fields list represents the left-to-right order the columns will take on the report for a given line. In other words, the first (top-most) field in the Selected Fields list for Line 1 will appear as the left-most field on Line 1 of the finished report.

4	If you want to adjust attributes for a field in the Selected Fields list, select the field you want to change and click Open to open the Field Properties window. See Changing Field Properties for complete details. Make the desired changes, then click OK to save the new properties.

5	Adjust fields up and down in the Selected Fields list to put them in the correct left-to-right order. The top of the list is the left-most column of the line being edited, and the bottom of the list is the right-most column.

The Preview tab enables you to see what the new report will look like, and to make changes to the widths of columns, and even adjust the column order again. Like the Define Fields tab, all column editing (width or position) must be done for a specific line.

1	The Limit to ## Records field below the list can be used to prevent the preview window from returning an unnecessarily large number of records for viewing. This setting has no effect on the way the report will work when opened from the Reports window -- it only applies to the Preview.

Click the Adjust Column Widths button to shift the preview into editing mode. Unlike editing mode for a View or User Report, cards and labels must be edited one line at a time. By default, the line shown will be Line 1. The blue rectangle displayed on top of the data represents the approximate usable width of the label, or of the card to the right of the logo or photo (don't worry about the height of the box, only the width matters). Be sure that all fields on a given line fit within the width of the blue box.

To work with a line other than Line 1, use the "Adjust Fields On" dropdown to change the displayed line number. Be sure to check the fields on each line.

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Drag the border between column headings to resize them. To do this, press and hold the left mouse button on the borderline between columns (or at the edge of a column, as above) the icon shown appears. Then while continuing to hold down the left button, drag the column border to resize it as appropriate. When the size is correct, release the left mouse button.

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Drag an entire column by its heading to change its position. To do this, press and hold the left mouse button on the column heading until the icon shown appears. Then while continuing to hold down the left button, drag the column left or right as appropriate. When you have it in the desired position, release the left mouse button. (Note that it is much easier to move columns by using the arrow buttons to adjust them up and down on the Define Fields tab.)

Tip: To adjust the width of the right-most column of a line, drag the whole column to the left one column as described above, then adjust the width. When the width is correct, drag the whole column back to the right where it belongs.

When you're finished editing all lines, click Return to Preview and save the changes.

Note: Printing from the Preview tab is not the same as printing from the Reports window. The printing option on this tab is for testing purposes only -- it will not include settings for margins, fonts, etc. Printing for distribution should always be done on the Reports window.

4	Once you have the report the way you like it, close the window and then close the Maintain User Reports & Labels window to return to the Reports window. You can run the report "for real" by selecting it in the Available Reports dropdown like any other report.