So far I’ve only shown you one type of data view — the data sheet.
I can also use Panorama’s built-in graphic editor to create form views that use my own custom layout. In fact, I’ve already created a couple of these forms in this orders database. I can open a form by choosing it from the View menu (hold down the Control key to open the view in a separate window).
Here’s a typical custom form view. For this database the form view makes it much easier to digest the information.
Form views aren’t just for viewing and printing — you can also edit data right on the form. Just click and start typing. (You can also design a form to use a pop-up editing window just like the data sheet.)
To edit the layout of a form press the "T-Square" tool at the top of the tool bar. This switches the form to graphics mode. In this mode the tool bar changes from data navigation tools to graphical tools (create rectangle, create line, create button, etc.).
For example I can select the rectangle tool and add a colored rectangle to the form.
To print my invoice, I first switch from graphics mode back to data mode (again using the T-Square tool). To print just one record I use the Print This Record tool. To print multiple records I choose the Print command from the File menu.
This particular form is designed to print just one record per page, but you can easily design a layout to print virtually any kind of label, form, or report you want. Panorama can automatically take care of issues like page numbering, widow/orphan control, multi-column labels and reports, and other complex reporting necessities.
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