Book Image

Microsoft Dynamics GP 2010 Reporting

Book Image

Microsoft Dynamics GP 2010 Reporting

Overview of this book

Resources such as the book you now hold in your hand are critical to taking the extra step in uncovering the trends locked deep within your data. Not only will this book offer insight into the many reporting tools currently available for GP, it will also offer a unique perspective on how each reporting tool can be used to meet specific challenges faced by your organization" - Errol Schoenfish, a member of the Microsoft Dynamics community for over 24 years Microsoft Dynamics GP 2010 is a sophisticated Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system with a multitude of features and options. Microsoft Dynamics GP enables you to create and manage a variety of reports that help small and mid-size businesses effectively manage their financial and operational data. This book will show you how to create and manage reports, know what tools to use and when, how to use them and where to find the data based on how it's being entered into the system with Dynamics GP. This book will empower you with the tools and reports necessary to use Dynamics GP data in making key business decisions. The book addresses the many challenges and frustrations a company may face when preparing to build new reports. Then it moves on to explain how to find your data in the GP system and company databases. The book then dives deep into topics such as SmartLists, SL Builder and Excel Report Builder, Report Writer, SSRS Report Library, and Analysis Cubes Design and Management Reporter amongst others. With this knowledge in hand, you will be capable of selecting the most effective tool for the current reporting environment.
Table of Contents (21 chapters)
Microsoft Dynamics GP 2010 Reporting
Credits
Foreword
About the Authors
Acknowledgement
Acknowledgement
About the Reviewers
www.PacktPub.com
Preface
Index

Tools for reducing building block sprawl


One of the challenges of using an enterprise-wide reporting tool such as Management Reporter is that multiple users can access the application and each user can create his or her own building blocks. As we've seen, building blocks are extremely portable and can be used in multiple Report Definitions. Hopefully, through good training and careful report design, our users will first seek to utilize existing building blocks to assist in the creation of new reports before creating a brand new set of building blocks.

Inevitably, however, we encounter building block sprawl. This is especially common in multi-company and multi-user environments. The symptoms of building block sprawl usually make this a pretty easy disease to diagnose:

  • Selecting Row or Column Definition in the Navigation Pane reveals a seemingly unorganized collection of building blocks that, in some cases, may extend past the bottom of the screen.

  • Multiple building blocks exist that share similar...