Interactive Reports in ABAP
Question 5: What is an interactive report?
Question 6: What is the difference of an interactive report compared with a classical type of report?
If you write ABAP programs, you mostly write report programs. The first type of reports programs are read-only classical report programs that show the data once. But then users say that “I want to run the report then I want to expand the result by clicking these items on result screen.” So it is time write interactive reports. Interactive means report results are clickable.
Reports (lists) are displayed in a special container screen. On a normal screen, a user action triggers the PAI event. In the screen flow logic, you code a processing block that calls ABAP dialog modules in this event. In list processing, the event is intercepted by the list processor and processed. Instead of calling dialog modules, one of the three following list events mat be called depending on the function code triggered by the user.
- AT PF<nn>
- AT LINE-SELECTION
- AT USER-COMMAND
If you have written the corresponding event blocks in your program, they are executed. You can access the function code in the system field SY-UCOMM.
The output from any list statements that you write in these event blocks is written to detail lists. This is important that with one ABAP program, you can maintain one basic list (firs report) and up to 19 detail list; so total is 20. It is kind of restriction, so you should know this. But I don’t think so you would need to write a report that drills down up to 19 detail reports.
The ABAP system field SY-LSIND contains the index of the list currently being created. While the basic list is being created, SY-LSIND is zero.
By default, the basic list has a standard list status and standard page header. The TOP-OF-PAGE and END-OF-PAGE events can occur while the basic list is being created. All output in these events is placed in the page header and footer of the basic list. In executable programs, the basic list is automatically sent to the list processor and displayed at the end of the END-OF-SELECTION event. Otherwise, it is displayed after the PAI processing block on the screen from which the LEAVE TO LIST-PROCESSING statement occurred.
- The list produced by classical report doesn’t allow user to interact with the system.
- The list produced by interactive report allows the user to interact with the system.
- Once a classical report executed user losses control.
- When the user uses interactive reports, the user has control on it.
References:
- SAP Library, ABAP Programming (BC-ABA)