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Layout

Report elements can be displayed using two different mechanisms : using fixed, absolute layouting (default) or as part of flow chain (one element after another). When element is drawn using fixed-positioning, it is painted exactly where set during design-time. Those elements always appear on the same place across pages. This is the default element behaviuor, if not set as a part of flow layout.

Flow layouting enables displaying report elements in linear order, ie. one after another. This means that report element is not painted until it's "parent" has not finished displaying. Flow layout is defined by populating flow list that defines the exact order that list memebers should be displayed. When processing this list, display engine automaticly shift elements downward and to the next page to ensure that requested display order is established.

You can have both absolute and flow positioned elements within a section, however, a single element is always displayed in either first or second mode, defined in design mode.

Flow list can be populated by clicking Flow Layout button in Stampa Designer. Layout Dialog opens, where you can declare which elements will be the part of flow chain, and in what order. In design mode, elements contained in flow list are attached to each other by gray dotted line.

Report elements that are part of flow chain can be shifted to the next page, depending of previous content. In that case, their new position is calculated with respect to the top margin of the page. Report engine makes sure that the element does not flip out of bottom page margin, as well. In other words, top and bottom margins define the area where flow elements are confined ! You can adjust the display area for flow layout elements by setting page margins.

All elements, except StyledTable, feature a Layout property. This property defines if element is displayed on every section page, first section page only or last section page only.

Report Engine suports transparency and overlapping. Every report element makes a logical layer itself, and the z-order is resolved according to it's position in section declaration (top elements comes first in document .xml file). Semi-transparency is not supported : objects are drawn either opaque or fully transparent.

Note : when selected in design mode, elements become semi-transparent, in order to ease the positioning relative to other objects. Nevertheless, when creating report or previewing, objects are displayed opaque.