Category Archives: Report Writer

Review of Developing Microsoft Dynamics GP Business Applications – Part 1

Posted on 4th February 2013 by Ian Grieve

At the end of December, Developing Microsoft Dynamics GP Business Applications, written by Leslie Vail and published by Packt Publishing was released.

Developing Microsoft Dynamics GP Business Applications by Leslie Vail

I got a copy of the book in order to do a review and have decided to break the review down into multiple parts. The reason for this is that the book includes some practical examples which I have decided to do and then include the results of this in the review; after all if it is a book on developing how can you accurately review the book if you don’t use what you learn to build something?

The book is aimed at developers new to working with Microsoft Dynamics GP, so bear in mind that I am not a developer when reading my reviews. Quick synopsis of my background: I started my career as a trainee developer and moved through a variety of roles such as developer and support analyst before moving to my current position as consultant and project manager.

I oversee development teams working on additions or amendments to Microsoft Dynamics GP as well as personally undertaking some modifications using Report Writer or Modifier with VBA. So despite not being a developer, I am used to working with them and did, once upon a time, be one myself.

The first chapter of the book covers the Microsoft Dynamics GP Architecture from a high level perspective.

It covers the history of the GP interface from it’s origins with Great Plains Software, an overview of Dexterity and the development environment. There is a detailed explanation of the launch file (Dynamics.set), which included a couple of points of which I wasn’t aware, and the configuration/preferences file (Dex.ini).

The explanation of the Dex.ini file included the ExportOneLineBody switch which I didn’t know about, but for which I have an immediate use.

Leslie then goes on to explain about the structure of the tables in the SQL Database which always strikes newcomers as arcane and overly complex. Leslie explains this well with plenty of detail on both the structure, including both the physical and technical names, and how transactions move between tables as their state changes.

Chapter 1 wraps up with a detailed explanation of the UI covering how forms are constructed, how the scrolling windows work and the common buttons used on forms, scrolling windows and individual buttons.

The second chapter of the book focuses on the fundamentals of integrating applications with Microsoft Dynamics GP.

Continue reading →

Posted in Dynamics, eConnect, GP, Integration Manager, Microsoft, Modifier with VBA, Packt Publishing, Report Writer, Software Development Kit, Visual Studio Tools For MDGP | Tagged Books, Dexterity, eConnect, GP, Integration Manager, Leslie Vail, Microsoft, Microsoft Dynamics, Modifier with VBA, Packt Publishing, sanScript, VBA, Visual Studio Tools for Dynamics GP | 3 Comments

How To Realign Trial Balance Summary Modified Report Columns

Posted on 30th November 2012 by Ian Grieve

I was recently asked to assist the Support team to look into an issue with the Trail Balance Summary modified report. The problem was that when sent to screen or printer the report was fine, but when exported to Tab Delimited file, the columns didn;t match up with the totals at the bottom.

Trial Balance Summary on Screen shows as aligned;

Continue reading →

Posted in Dynamics, GP, Microsoft, Report Writer | Tagged Customisations, Financials, General Ledger, GP, Microsoft, Microsoft Dynamics, Microsoft Dynamics GP 2010, Microsoft Dynamics GP 2010 R2, Modified Reports, Report Writer, Reports | 3 Comments

MDGP 2013 Feature of the Day: Additional Word Templates

Posted on 3rd August 2012 by Ian Grieve

Microsoft have started the Microsoft Dynamics GP 2013 Feature of the Day series on the Inside Microsoft Dynamics GP Blog.

The twelfth feature they’ve announced is Additional Word Templates.

Microsoft Dynamics GP 2010 introduced the Word Templates as alternatives to the standard Modified Reports but the selection available was limited. In Microsoft Dynamics GP 2013, users can now use Word Templates for all Sales Order Processing document types (such as Back Orders) as well as Packing Slips and Picking Tickets;

Continue reading →

Posted in Dynamics, GP, Microsoft, Report Writer | Tagged GP, MDGP 2013 Feature of the Day, Microsoft, Microsoft Dynamics, Microsoft Dynamics GP 2013, Modified Reports, Sales, Sales Order Processing, Word Templates | 3 Comments

Problem With SOP Word Templates

Posted on 9th December 2011 by Ian Grieve

I’ve recently been working on a Microsoft Dynamics GP 2010 implementation project for a client.

We created custom Word templates (Reports >> Template Maintenance) for POP Purchase Order Blank Form, SOP Blank Quote Form, SOP Blank Order Form and SOP Blank Invoice Form without problems and granted access to the relevant companies.

To test the new Word templates we printed the documents to screen so we could quickly see the result. The POP Purchase Order Blank Form worked fine but when it came to the SOP documents we had a problem. When printing any of the SOP documents as Word Templates, instead GP printed the Standard Report Writer reports. Continue reading →

Posted in Dynamics, GP, Microsoft, Report Writer | Tagged GP, Microsoft Dynamics GP 2010, Purchase Order Processing, Purchasing, Report Writer, Reports, Sales, Sales Order Processing, Word Templates | 5 Comments

Error When Switching Back To Microsoft Dynamics GP From Report Writer

Posted on 14th November 2011 by Ian Grieve

I installed Microsoft Dynamics GP 2010 R2 onto my work laptop a few weeks ago, just after I started working for this company.

I needed a demo environment and so installed the most recent version. I’ve been getting an error since that time whenever I switched back from Report Writer to GP itself;