How to get consistent field width in Note field 1

[GCL2007]

Hi, I'm using CR 2013 with Oracle database. Trying to report a VARCHAR2 Notes text field and get consistent widths on my output in Crystal. Note field has text then an underline for user to hand write on form a value and initials.
Field1 ______________________________________
Field2 ______________________________________
Something like the above. My issue is depending on the length of characters in the FIELD NAME, it is giving me inconsistent results on the output. If I view it within the application the ending of the underline section all line up. When running it from the report in CR, the ending of the underline varies, I think depending on the number of characters in the text portion. I am not able to do any formatting of the characters within the application. I would like to get it to line up with vertical lines within the report form, but I need to get consistent formatting from row to row.
Any ideas?
Thanks!

 

[lbass]

Are you saying you can't change the font for the text?

If you can't change the font to a nonproportional one like Courier New, you could place the field in a text box that is NOT formatted to "can grow" so you can control the width of the field regardless of font. Assuming you can also then control the width of the underline, if it too is in a text box.

Not sure what flexibility you have. Do you now how the underline is entered? If you look in design mode, what do you see? Is the underline in a separate text box? Or is it an inserted line?

If you can change to a nonproportional font, you could also control the width of the field through a formula which checks the length of the field and then trims it or pads it.

-LB

 

[GCL2007]

LB,
As always, thanks for the response!!
I hope to play with it today. Within the application, I have no capability to format it with font, size, etc. In Crystal, it can be a large multi-line text field, I believe up to 255 characters. I have tried in Crystal to change the font of the field to something like Courier New which hasn't helped me with the line length (not yet anyway). In this text box within the application, with very limited formatting, it is entered as multiple underscore characters (shift hyphen). Within the application, the ends of the underscores line up

OTHER TEXT ejrjrjjrjrjrjrjrjrj
FIELD1 ___________________________________________
FIELD_NO_2 _______________________________________
OTHER TEXT jdddjdjdjdjdj

But when printed from crystal, FIELD_NO_2 line extends a few characters longer. Trying to get this to fit into a box in the Crystal Report, need to have the right side line up.

I believe I need the field to set to CAN GROW because it could be one line or 30 - I have it set to CAN GROW so it will only print the lines with text on my form...

Thanks again- I will continue to play with your suggestions, but that's where I am right now..
Thanks!

 

[lbass]

So the underline would follow the last line of any wrapped text and would be of various lengths based on the length of the last line's text?

-LB

 

[GCL2007]

Yes, that's how they have entered the text now.

 

[lbass]

Sorry i don't think I can help. I spent hours trying to work out a way to do it with arrays and it's just too complicated. Maybe someone else can help. It seems like there should be a simpler solution.

-LB

 

[GCL2007]

AS always, Thanks LB!!!

 

[IdoMillet]

I'd like to test a possible solution.
Please provide a sample report with saved data available for download.

view, export, burst, email, and schedule Crystal Reports.

http://www.MilletSoftware.com