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It seems like database management systems are everywhere these days.
You can find database management systems within Fortune 500 companies, as well as smaller "mom and pop" outfits. Maybe you've heard of ERP (enterprise resource planning) packages, such as PeopleSoft, Oracle, and SAP. Such packages are all the rage today — they're essentially database management systems that handle data across various departments (such as accounting, inventory, and billing).
The reason behind this wide popularity of database systems is simple. Databases allow businesses to organize and manage their business operations effectively, handling millions of pieces of data for a company. These systems usually allow you to add, maintain, and delete data through the use of some user interface, such as a menu-driven screen that contains windows, icons, and buttons.
Unfortunately, all database systems seem to have one major flaw. That flaw is that it's usually difficult to view data from these systems, especially if one is attempting to view data in some specified format (i.e., a report). Database management systems do contain various query and analysis tools, along with some "canned reports," but these tools are often difficult to use and often do not contain the capabilities you need for your specialized data.
That's where Crystal Reports enters the picture.
Crystal Reports is a BI (business intelligence) tool that allows you to extract and format data from a database. Crystal Reports is a software package that works with over 150 leading database packages, allowing you to create custom reports with your data.
If you use a database system in some fashion within your workplace, chances are you can use Crystal Reports to make informed business decisions using your corporate data.
Crystal Reports contains a number of flexible and innovative features unrivaled in other reporting programs. The ease and quality of these features may explain why Crystal Reports has sold more than 5 million copies worldwide.
The following summarizes some of the more innovative tools that you'll find in Crystal Reports.
Crystal Reports comes stocked with a number of reporting templates (shown in Figure I-1), which you may use to create standardized formatting quickly across multiple reports. Crystal Reports allows you to create your own templates or use any of the samples provided within the software or available free from their web site at www.crystaldecisions.com.
Figure I-1: Crystal Reports' report templates
We learn more about reporting templates in Chapter 4, "Writing Reports with the Report Wizards."
Crystal Reports provides a number of exporting options (shown in Figure I-2), making it easy to transfer data to common software applications, such as Microsoft Excel or Word. With Crystal Reports, you can export only a report's data or the fully formatted report with any included images, graphs, or charts. Crystal Reports allows you to export into a number of different file formats, including PDF, HTML, and XML.
Figure I-2: Crystal Reports' exporting functionality
We learn more about Crystal Reports' exporting ability in Chapter 14, "Distributing Reports."
The Report Wizard (shown in Figure I-3 on the following page) is an intuitive interface that walks you through the process of report design. The Report Wizard allows you to quickly create reports, simplifying common reporting tasks such as selecting and grouping data.
Figure I-3: Crystal Reports' Report Wizards
We learn more about the Report Creation Wizard in Chapter 4, "Writing Reports with the Report Wizards."
Crystal Reports' Formula Workshop (shown in Figure I-4) provides a central place to develop, edit, and customize formulas used in reports. The Formula Workshop contains a number of useful tools for the report writer, including enhanced error tracking and an autocomplete feature for easier formula creation.
Figure I-4: Crystal Reports' Formula Workshop
Report formulas and the Formula Workshop are discussed in Chapter 10, "Understanding Formulas."
Whoever said "A picture is worth a thousand words" must have been a report writer. Presenting data in a graphical format is often the most effective way to present information quickly — a fact the crew at Crystal Decisions understands. As a result, you'll find a number of data charting tools within the Crystal Reports software, including support for a number of different charts and graphical formats (shown in Figure I-5).
Figure I-5: Charting capabilities in Crystal Reports
We learn more about Crystal Reports' charting capabilities in Chapter 12, "Visualizations with Charts and Maps."
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