The Generator is a device that allows you to view your report in a specifically defined way. When you create a report you establish the criteria that determines which data gets displayed. Think of the Generator as an assistant who actively monitors your reports. The Generator enforces the criteria you have set and constantly scans the database for records which fit your criteria. The instant a record in the database is altered, the Generator will add it to, or remove it from, the open report depending upon whether or not it meets your predefined report criteria. Thus, with the Generator on, your reports will always be up-to-the-minute accurate. When you turn the Generator off, you can move and hide rows and columns, and enter data right into the report. When you turn the Generator back on any changes you have made to the appearance of your report revert back to the preset criteria you selected in the report setup. So if you want to print a report showing only particular records, you can turn off the Generator and hide, or filter data. Print that report, then turn the Generator back on to unhide, and unfilter your report data.

The key thing to remember about the Generator is that it only affects how your data is viewed. What this means is that though switching the Generator from on to off, or vice versa, may drastically alter what you see in an open report, it never affects the database itself. You can never lose data with a switch of the Generator. The Generator constantly monitors changes to the database and then automatically adds, removes, and rearranges records to match the report’s search and sort criteria.

The Generator sits between the database and reports. As information in the database changes, it compares the changed information with the report’s search and sort criteria. The Generator then updates the report accordingly:

This gives you the option of working with reports in two ways:

1. To work with the most current data, turn the Generator On—records will automatically enter, leave, and reorder as the data changes.
2. To enter, edit, hide, show, and move records in a report, turn the Generator Off—records will remain right where you put them, even though their data is changing.

Which setting is right for your situation? Keep in mind that the Generator can be set differently for each report. You can turn the Generator on in report A, off in report B, and enable Generator switching in report C.

IMPORTANT:
Changes to the data in the database are not affected by the Generator. Any change to the data in a record will appear in every report regardless of its Generator setting; however, that change will not cause the record to leave or move in the report when the Generator is turned off for that report.