Some consider the library of reports provided as part of the standard NAV product distribution from Microsoft, to be relatively simple in design and limited in its features. Others feel that the provided reports satisfy most needs because they are simple. Their basic structure is easy to use. They are made much more powerful and flexible by taking advantage of of NAV's native filtering and SIFT capabilities. Some say that the simplicity of the standard product provides more opportunities for creative enhancement by users and professional NAV developers.
The fact remains that NAV's standard reports are basic. In order to obtain more complex or more sophisticated reports, we must use the features that are part of the product or feed processed data to external reporting tools. Through creative use of these features, many different types of complex report logic may be implemented.
First, we will review different types of reports and the components that make up reports. We'll look in detail...