StrataFrame Forum » Updates and Information » StrataFrame Users Contributed Samples » Reporting: Create a typed dataset from Business Objects that can be bound at design time to reports, etc

Reporting: Create a typed dataset from Business Objects that can be bound at design time to reports, etc

Jerome Barnett — Mon, 26 Nov 2007 09:45:32 GMT

I needed to create some reports which need data from multiple tables. Originally I was creating Business Objects based off of views..but that's just ugly to me so.....

I created a dataset that I could bind Crystal Reports to at design time.

First I created a class that would output an .xsd file with the dataset schema.

[quote][codesnippet]Imports System.Data
Imports MicroFour.StrataFrame.Business

Public Class CreatePICDataset

Private Shared GenderBO As New PICData.Gender
Private Shared InsuranceCardBO As New PICData.InsuranceCard
Private Shared InsuranceTypeBO As New PICData.InsuranceType
Private Shared LanguageBO As New PICData.Language
Private Shared PatientBO As New PICData.Patient
Private Shared PatientHistoryBO As New PICData.PatientHistory
Private Shared RaceBO As New PICData.Race
Private Shared VoterRegBO As New PICData.VoterReg
Private Shared PICDS As New DataSet

Public Shared Sub CreateDataset()
PICDS.DataSetName = "PICDataSet"
AddBOTableToDataset(GenderBO)
AddBOTableToDataset(InsuranceCardBO)
AddBOTableToDataset(InsuranceTypeBO)
AddBOTableToDataset(LanguageBO)
AddBOTableToDataset(PatientBO)
AddBOTableToDataset(PatientHistoryBO)
AddBOTableToDataset(RaceBO)
AddBOTableToDataset(VoterRegBO)
PICDS.WriteXmlSchema("C:\PICDataSet.xsd")
End Sub

Private Shared Sub AddBOTableToDataset(ByVal myBO As BusinessLayer)
myBO.FillDataTable("Select * from " & myBO.TableName & " where 1 = 0")
PICDS.Tables.Add(myBO.CurrentDataTable)
End Sub

End Class
[/codesnippet][/quote]

I call the CreateDataSet method of this class anytime I change my BO's /DB structure. I then copy the output file to my project and set it as an embedded resource.

I then created a class which inherits from dataset and reads it's schema from the embedded .xsd file in the project

[quote][codesnippet]Imports System.Data

Public Class PICDataset
Inherits DataSet

Private AppAssembly As Reflection.Assembly = Reflection.Assembly.GetExecutingAssembly()
Private AppAssemblyPath As String = Me.AppAssembly.GetName().Name().Replace(" ", "_")

Public Sub New()
Try
Me.ReadXmlSchema(GetResource("PICDataSet.xsd"))
Catch ex As Exception
MsgBox(ex.Message)
End Try
End Sub

Private Function GetResource(ByVal FileName As String) As System.IO.Stream
Try
Return Me.AppAssembly.GetManifestResourceStream(Me.AppAssemblyPath & "." & FileName)
Catch ex As Exception
MessageBox.Show("Error returning resource: " & ex.ToString(), "GetResource!", MessageBoxButtons.OK, MessageBoxIcon.Error)
Return Nothing
End Try
End Function

End Class[/codesnippet][/quote]

At design time I can now bind a report to a Typed Dataset (you could go a step further and add the relationships in code, but I do this in Crystal)

At runtime to populate my dataset for a report, I create an instance of the dataset class and add tables using the currentdatatable from my business objects

[codesnippet][quote] Dim ds As New PICDataset
ds.Tables(PatientBO.TableName).Load(PatientBO.CurrentView.ToTable.CreateDataReader)
ds.Tables(GenderBO.TableName).Load(GenderBO.CurrentDataTable.CreateDataReader)
ds.Tables(LanguageBO.TableName).Load(LanguageBO.CurrentDataTable.CreateDataReader)
ds.Tables(RaceBO.TableName).Load(RaceBO.CurrentDataTable.CreateDataReader)
ds.Tables(InsuranceCardBO.TableName).Load(InsuranceCardBO.CurrentDataTable.CreateDataReader)
rptPIF_English.SetDataSource(ds)[/quote][/codesnippet]

Hopefully this helps someone.

Jerome

RE: Reporting: Create a typed dataset from Business Objects that can be bound at design time to reports, etc

Charles Thomas Blankenship — Mon, 26 Nov 2007 09:45:32 GMT

Hi Jerome:

You wouldn't mind if I added this to my examples project would you?

I believe I'll put this in the Chapter 10 slot.

Thanks,

C. T. Blankenship

RE: Reporting: Create a typed dataset from Business Objects that can be bound at design time to reports, etc

Greg McGuffey — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 16:30:05 GMT

Ben,

You should probably delete my link to it then. No need to have it here twice.

(I didn't know you could move stuff...that's cool :w00t: )

RE: Reporting: Create a typed dataset from Business Objects that can be bound at design time to reports, etc

StrataFrame Team — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 12:51:51 GMT

There, it's now in the samples :)

RE: Reporting: Create a typed dataset from Business Objects that can be bound at design time to reports, etc

StrataFrame Team — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 12:50:51 GMT

Yeah, I might need to move this post... just have to remember how to do it.

RE: Reporting: Create a typed dataset from Business Objects that can be bound at design time to reports, etc

Greg McGuffey — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 11:06:32 GMT

Jerome,

Thanks for this very nice sample. There is a forum for just this sort of thing, the [b]StrataFrame Users Contributed Samples[/b] ([url]http://forum.strataframe.net/Forum26-1.aspx[/url]) forum, and I posted there, linking back to this post. It could get lost here :D

Thanks!

RE: Reporting: Create a typed dataset from Business Objects that can be bound at design time to reports, etc

Ralph Rutschmann — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 06:59:51 GMT

Thank you very much, Jerome! :-)

I don't know if it helped someone other so far, but it helped me a lot!

Thanks again and friendly greetings,

Ralph