Writing Formulas with the Formula Workshop

Formulas are referenced in different ways depending upon which part of the report is using them. But they all share the same editor. The Formula Workshop is the command center for entering and editing formulas. Getting a solid understanding of how to use the Formula Workshop is essential before getting into the details of writing formulas. The Formula Workshop is shown in Figure 5-2.

Figure 5-2. The Formula Workshop window.

The Formula Workshop consists of five separate windows. The left window along the side is the Workshop Tree. It shows every formula being used in the report and is categorized by the type of formula. The three windows along the top present the library of fields and functions used for writing formulas. Within these three windows is every available database field, built-in function, and operator. The bottom window is the Definition area where you write and edit formulas. It is like a fancy Notepad editor where you enter text and it highlights different keywords.