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Using the Column Direction Property for Multi-Column Lists in Report Designer

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Written by Tim Sublette

The articles in this section of the Knowledge Base involve working with Columns for display in multi-column reports. To learn more about Columns and how to access the Report Designer, see Creating Multi-Column Reports in Report Designer. This article involves working with the Column Direction property.


Fig. 01 – Across then Down Mode

Across then Down Mode

Change the Column Direction property to Across Then Down. Across then Down mode is used to render strings from left to right, across columns, on the Data Band. When all of the columns on the Data Band have been generated, a new Data Band will be formed and again, fill the columns across the page before going on to the next Data Row. The data takes up as much space in the report as is necessary. See Figure 02 for a visual representation. Note the number sequence.


Fig. 02 – Across then Down Example


There is no limit to the number of columns in a report.

Down then Across Mode


Fig. 03 – Down then Across Mode


Across then Down mode can be confusing to read. Down then Across mode is often easier to read. In this mode, the data populates down the first column before it moves on to the next column. Figure 04 features a visual representation. Note the number sequence.


Fig. 04 – Down the Across Example

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