Displaying Parameter Fields on the Report

One of the other major benefits of using parameter fields is that you can place them on your report just like database or formula fields. Whatever value the viewer placed in them before the report ran will appear on the report. By creatively using parameter fields, you can have a customized report that changes record selection and shows the values used in record selection on the report.

To place a parameter field on the report, drag and drop it from the Field Explorer just as you would a database or formula field. Depending on the value type of the parameter field, you can format it using the usual Format toolbar or Format Editor features discussed elsewhere in this book. You can also combine parameter fields with other fields and literal text inside text objects (as discussed in Chapter 2). A text object combining a parameter field looks like this in the Design tab:

and will use the value supplied by the viewer when the report runs:

Tip  

Only single (discrete) parameters are effectively displayed this way. To display multiple values or ranged values, you must create a formula that extracts the whole set or range of values the user has entered. Solutions for these cases are discussed in the Special Parameter Field Features discussion later in this chapter.