FastReport 2.2
for Delphi 2/3/4


CONTENTS

1. Introduction.
2. Capabilities.
3. Installing.
4. Designer features.
5. Preview commands.
6. Notes.


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1. INTRODUCTION.
   FastReport is reporting tool component. It consists of report engine,
designer and preview. Its capabilities are as in QuickReport 3,
ReportBuilder 3.52.
   FR is freeware.


2. CAPABILITIES.
> new features in v2.2

  - Built-in designer
  - Preview a-la MS Word
  - Fast!  (40-60% faster than QR2,3)
  - Compact code. Demo (D4) is ~50 biggest than QR3.0
    (w/o designer - ~200 smallest). D2 demo w/o designer is ~50K
    smallest than QR1.0!!!
> - Multilanguage
  - Unlimited number of pages in prepared report
  - Design-time preview, report building/editing
  - Report templates
  - 3 levels of detail (Master/Detail/SubDetail)
  - Subreports
> - Groups
  - Cross-tab reports
  - Multi-page reports
  - Composite reports a-la QRCompositeReport
  - Full printer control
  - Built-in math parser
  - Expanded by add-in components, wizards, function libraries, etc
  - Export filters (now available ASCII Text filter)
  - Two-pass reports
  - Text search in prepared report


3. INSTALLING.
- file FR_xxx.lng (where xxx - RUS, ENG) rename to FR.lng and put in
  Windows directory.
- in D2 - Install component, file FR_Reg.pas.
- in D3,D4 - Install component, choose 'Into new package' (recommended),
  type 'Fastrep' ('Fastrep3' in D3) as package name, file FR_Reg.pas.


4. DESIGNER FEATURES.
   FastReport designer has same principes as Delphi designer. Here's
differences listed:

 - For several selected objects scaling, drag a red square on right bottom
   edge of group to the new position. Scale factor showed on status panel.
 - Enter,  Double click, context menu - object editing.
   If object is not "Rectangle", called its native editor. Memo editor
   available by Ctrl+Enter hit or from Object Inspector.
 - In memo editor Ctrl+Enter hitting is analog to OK button.
 - If two neighbour objects are selected, you can split them.
 - If band moved with mouse, his child objects moved too. If you don't want
   it, move band with Alt key pressed.



5. PREVIEW COMMANDS.
 - Open file
     Ctrl+L, toolbar button;
 - Save file
     Ctrl+S, toolbar button;
     If export filters are available, in "File type" list
     properly file types appeared;
 - Print report
     Ctrl+P, toolbar button;
 - Text search
     Ctrl+F, toolbar button;
 - Scale changing
     Spacebar, toolbar button, context menu;
 - Navigating
     Arrows - window scrolling (smooth);
     PageUp, PageDown - window scrolling, big;
     Ctrl+PageUp,PageDown, buttons on right-bottom edge of window -
       pages up/down;
     Home/End - works depending of active scrollbar.



7. NOTES.
   All the units are written by author, except:
 - RichEdit editor taken from \DEMOS\RICHEDIT.
 - Printer manipulating (unit FR_Prntr) partially copied from
   QuickReport 2, ReportBuilder 3.52.
 - txt export based on QR2 export filter.
 - Floating toolbars components (units FR_Dock, FR_Ctrls) written under
   impression of components Office97 by ITA Software.
 - Menu with bitmaps based on D4 sources.
 - Delphi version determining taken from RX 2.50.

   Button bitmaps - MS Word, ReportBuilder, QuickReport, Delphi\Images.
   Ideology - ReportBuilder, QuickReport, 1C-壠 6.0.


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Sorry for bad english :)

Author:

Tzyganenko Alexander
FidoNet: 2:5061/70.0
e-mail: Tzyganenko.Alexander@f70.n5061.z2.fidonet.org

