From Winmag®
Crystal Reports has been the favorite reporting tool among programmers because it's powerful, flexible and feature-rich. The latest beta version I tested, Crystal Reports 7, adds some nice touches for end-users.Ease-of-use improvements include a new wizard that helps you add running totals. In addition, you can now add labels and totals to crosstabs, suppress empty rows and columns, and assign highlighter colors based on field value. Parameter fields let you filter values before generating a report.
When you export to Excel, Crystal Reports now uses formulas (rather than field values) for subtotals and totals. In addition, the revised formula editor consolidates functions into groups, making functions easier to find. Chart options are grouped into galleries, with simpler option selection.
You can now import an existing text-based report into Crystal Reports. The program creates a Crystal report and a new Access database with values extracted from the imported report. Unfortunately, you must identify-either as fields or as large chunks-all portions of text you want to be ignored. Monarch, a specialized reporting product, is much easier to use in this regard.
Version 7's new Field Mapping lets you link one report to different databases. Crystal Reports also provides a programmable JavaBean viewer that allows Java developers to incorporate report viewing with Java-based clients-it looks exactly like any other viewer. You can convert Visual Basic 6's Data Report Designer reports into Crystal Reports; Delphi's VSL (Visual Component Library) is also included.
Crystal Reports keeps getting more powerful, without adding unnecessary complexity. That's why it remains on our WinList.