ACT 1.1 MAC:  Report Tips on ACT! 1.x for Macintosh

By TechSupport

Support Question:  Report Tips on ACT! 1.x for Macintosh

Support for ACT! 1.1- MAC*

The contents of articles are Copyright (c) Sage Software 2007.

You can use the report function in ACT! to print reports containing a variety of information about your contacts. ACT! comes with nine pre-defined report templates covering a variety of subjects. Additionally, nine Avery label report templates are included to make it easy to generate mailing labels.

Disclaimer:
This article was written about products for which Sage Software, Inc. no longer offers support. Therefore, this article is offered “as is” and will no longer be updated. If you need assistance with issues pertaining to an unsupported product, please refer your questions to the ACT! Online Community or to an ACT! Certified Consultant. For more information regarding currently supported versions of ACT!, please see our Obsolescence Policy

Modifying Report Templates

If you would like to modify a report to better suit your needs, follow these steps:

Choose Write, Report, Edit Report.
From the Open File dialog box, double-click on the file name of the report you wish to edit.
The report template will open for you to edit.
Make your changes as necessary.
Choose File, Save As and give the report template a new name so that the original is not overwritten.

Adding Your Contact Information to a Report

You can put the My Record information in your report (in the header, for example) to indicate who generated the report by following these steps:

Open the report you wish to edit.
Place the insertion point where you would like to put your information.
Click on the My Record Field button in the Field Names dialog box.
Scroll through the field names until you find the field you desire. Double click on it.
ACT! will insert the field information. For example: <My:1Contact>

Adding Field Labels to a Report

Adding field labels to a report is a good way to remember how fields are labeled on your contact screen. Follow these steps to add field labels to a report:

Open the report you wish to edit.
Place the insertion point where you would like to put the label information.
Click on the Field Label button in the Field Names dialog box.
Scroll through the field names until you find the field you desire. Double click on it.
ACT! will insert the field information. For example: <L:0Company>

Generating Reports for a Specific Date Range

Follow these steps to generate a report for a specific date range:

Choose Write, Report, Edit Report.
From the Open File dialog box, double-click on the file name of the report you wish to add the date range option to. The report template will open.
Check the Date Range Prompt box in the Field Names dialog box.
Save and close the report.

NOTE:
When generating the report, a calendar will appear prompting you for a date range.

Generating Reports for a Specific Contact or Group of Contacts

ACT! can generate reports for a single contact, a group of contacts, or all contacts in your database. ACT! will prompt you to select Active Contact, Active Group, or All Contacts before generating the report. Follow these steps to generate a report for a specific contact or group of contacts:

Choose Write, Report, Edit Report.
From the Open File dialog box, double-click on the file name of the report you wish to add the group prompt option to. The report template will open.
Check the Group Prompt box in the Field Names dialog box.
Save and close the report.

NOTE:
When generating the report, a Prepare Report dialog box will appear prompting you for the proper group.

How to Generate a Custom Report

After creating a custom report, make sure it has been saved. Close the report and return to the contact screen, and then follow these steps to generate the custom report:

Choose Write, Report, Other.
From the Open File dialog box, double-click on the file name of the report you wish to generate.

NOTE:
If this is a report you will use often, you might want to save it in the Menu Items folder in the Reports folder. It will then appear at the bottom of the Write, Report menu and can be generated by choosing it directly from that menu.

Fields are Cut Off and Followed by Ellipses (…)

Many of the reports in ACT! have limiters placed on the fields. Limiters are a formatting tool that specifies a maximum number of characters to print from a field. This ensures that the field information does not overflow into adjacent columns and disrupt the formatting of the report. When the length of a field exceeds the limiter’s value, an ellipsis is placed in the report in place of the extra characters. A field that has been limited in a report might appear as <M:n:0Company>, where M activates the limiter, n is the maximum number of characters to print, and 0Company is the field.

Follow these steps to remove limiters in a report:

Choose Write, Report, Edit Report.
From the Open File dialog box, double-click on the file name of the report you wish to remove the limiters from.
The report template will open for you to edit. Locate the field(s) with the limiter(s) you wish to remove.
Highlight the M:n: (n will be a number) in the report and hit the delete key. The limiter is now removed from the field.
Save and close the report.

Columns are not Straight

Fields must be aligned on tab stops for the columns to be straight. Set tabs on the ruler and use the tab key to move to the stops. Place your field names on the tab stops and they will align correctly. The width of space characters can vary from one line to the next, especially when using full justification.

All Contacts do not Print in the Report

ACT! allows you to prevent some contacts from being printed in your reports. This can be helpful if you include business contacts with your personal contacts in your database. A contact whose Access field is set to Private will not appear in reports.

Follow these steps to change the Access field for a contact:

Choose View, Layout, Contact 2. This switches to the second contact screen.
Locate the Access field. Double-click on the field label. A pop-up menu of selections will appear.
Double-click on your selection (Public or Private). Your selection will now appear in the Access field.

The Following Error Appears: "The Report Template File is not Formatted Properly" when Generating a Report

Reports must begin with <83Start_Contact> and end with <87End_Contact>. This information informs ACT! when to begin processing information about the current contact and when to finish and move on to the next contact.

Follow these steps to add the codes into your report:

Place the insertion point at the beginning of your report.
Scroll through the Field Names window until you find Start Contact.
Double-click on it. ACT! will insert <83Start_Contact> where the insertion point was.
Place the insertion point at the end of your report.
Scroll through the Field Names window until you find End Contact.
Double-click on it. ACT! will insert <87End_Contact> where the insertion point was.

NOTE:
The report will now generate correctly. If problems persist, make sure the field information is formatted correctly. For example: <0Company>

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