PDF forms generator
Joined: 14-Sep-2005
Joined: 26-Oct-2003
Jim and I work together and he pointed me to this post. Thought I might have a few comments to make here.
I have used all three systems Jim mentioned.
I really like Xtra reports. The designer is excellent and has a lot of neat features. From the time I installed the demo to the time I actually ran and tested my first report was in the neighborhood of 2.5 hours, which I found very impressive. It was not a terribly complicated report, but was a good challenge for a first time use with groupings and summaries along with the detail. I used GenPro objects directly and bound to them (using normal Databind methods! Even though they are Xtra reports own homegrown version of the method). In particular, I'm using Xtra reports on a web project and it was beyond simple to send a PDF back to the client. They actually have a method that converts the data to and properly encodes for the http response and everything - you just call that method and don't worry about anything. I recommend Xtra Reports heartily.
Active Reports isn't bad. It has some flakiness in its designer. The last version I used was unable to set the data source to anything other than an SQL statement, although now I understand that it will accept standard object binding in its latest release, which I have not upgraded to. You can't derive objects from the base reports (as of the version I was using) which was due in large part to the flakiness of its designer, from what their tech support folk told us. I was also unable to ever find a way to set the data source for a subreport in the actual report, which I have a real problem with. I had to set the data source in the parent object's class. When I tried to put it in the subreport I got no data. ActiveReport's own examples showed putting the assignment of data source into the parent report and when I did that everything worked fine. If they fixed some or all of these things in their latest release, I'd say it's a real contender.
What I have to say about SQL Reporting Services is all related to SQL Server 2000 and working with it through VisualStudio 2003. I wouldn't touch it with a 10 foot pole. They may have improved it in the latest version of SQL Server and Visual Studio, but I have not tried it yet (and probably never will). I found the designer to be fairly useful - until I started hitting all the bugs. Simple things like going in and changing the sql statement doesn't mark the editor as dirty and if you're used to closing a form and having it prompt you to save, you're SOL (this is not the case when the editor is in "New" mode, only subsequent edits, or on "dirty"). You can't change datasources on a report without changing that report for every user, as it always hits the version of the report stored in SQL Server (i.e., you're not instantiating an object but making a request of a static report definition in a database). Pointing a report to a different database was not too difficult using parameters passed in through the web service call, but forget about changing servers (there are ways to handle that kind of stuff - but you have to code your own data source [which is far from easy] and still pass in those parameters)! And last I knew, there was no way to use the built-in functionality to get headers to print on every page when a section (I think it was the List control, if I remember right - there was a flag to set it to do just that, but RS ignored it) crossed pages - it was a known bug that MS said was not going to be fixed in that version (SQL Server 2000). There were work-arounds to get that functionality, but it was a pain. Unless you need a lot of the other functionality it offers, like automatically delivered reports via email (which can be done almost as easily writing your own service anyway), I don't recommend SQL Reporting Services unless subsequent versions are substantially different and fix these issues. Any of the other products can easily create all the formats RS does.
Now, this was mostly in response to Jeff's question, as I have never actually created a PDF form before, which I imagine is a whole other topic for discussion 
Joined: 26-Oct-2003
Thanks, Mr. ...erm... Queso. 
Most of the problems you describe in ActiveReports have been resolved, including the subreport and data source issues. I'm using the last version of AR.NET before AR.NET 2 came out and the only real remaining problem is the designer flakiness. And, really, if inheritance is causing the flakiness there are workarounds for it now. However, I might have the opportunity now to either upgrade to AR.NET 2.0 or move to Xtra reports, and I was curious if it was worth moving over. Do you think that, even if all of your problems with AR were resolved that you would still recommend Xtrareports over AR?
Jeff...
Heh - the name comes from my last name (Chesebro, pronounced Cheese-bro). I guess it's just a habit that I use that on most all of the forums I belong to. Call me Queso or Larry - either one works fine
It's difficult for me know what I would do to tell the truth. Active Reports beats the hell out of Crystal Reports, for example, and is a pretty solid product, even with those problems I mentioned. With a lot of things fixed that bugged me, I might not make the switch.
However, I do like Xtra reports' designer a lot more. It has a bit more of an advanced interface which makes things easier to get to sometimes.
Without going into a huge pros and cons here, my personal feeling is that even with most of those things fixed in Active Reports, Xtra reports just feels better. I don't know that if you have a lot of time invested in Active Reports, though, that the change would be worthwhile.
I was employed at a software company where we used Active Reports, but recently quit and returned to private consulting. I was able to look at other reporting systems when a need for reports came up in my new capacity, and since I didn't work for that company any more, I didn't have any legacy issues to think about, so the move for me was just plain which one felt better.
I guess my suggestion would be to download the demo and give it a try on a report that you've already done and see what it feels like.
My 2 cents... I did a lot of report work with Ms-Access, and although it does show its age compared with other reporting tools it is still the defacto standard in ease of creating reports (sepcially its events).
Where XtraReports differ from ActiveReports is that their design does feel (for the lack of a better word) more "MODERN" than does AR. Their design is certainly inspired by Access but adds to it the .NET spin (a report is just a class that you can extend or instantiate just like a vanilla winform class).
I do agree with Queso that XR feels more intuitive than AR.
One last note, if you compare the price of both products you will defiantly notice a big difference that you should consider into your selection criteria.
Joined: 26-Oct-2003