Adding maps to reports

You can display the data in a report definition by using a map, if the data supports this kind of visualization. For example, map charts are useful for reports on sales by region, activity by state, and incidents by county. You can select from a wide range of maps.

You can represent geographical data in a variety of ways in customer applications. For example, some customers might have country names that are spelled out in their databases (France), or use an abbreviation or code (FR). Because of these differences, defining map charts requires you to specify how geographic values in the database are mapped to regions on a selected map.

  1. Define how to associate known map regions, or areas with property values in a class. If these associations are not defined correctly, the data might not display, or might display and be associated with the wrong regions.
  2. Add a map to the report:
    1. Open the report definition rule form, and select the Chart tab.
    2. Click Include chart if the report does not already contain a chart.
    3. In the Chart Editor toolbar, click All chart types.
    4. Click Map.
    5. In the Map field, enter a few letters of the name of the map and select the map from the SmartPrompt options.
    6. Associate columns with the X and Y axes of the map.
  3. From the Color settings menu, create a color palette to enhance how data displays on the map. Maps use a color palette differently than other types of charts. If you define a color palette for a map, the map uses only those colors. For example, you can define a palette and a map of the United States by state so that the states for which you have no data to display all use the same color.
Note: You cannot preview charts from the Chart tab of a report definition rule form. To preview the map, run the report in Designer Studio. After you preview the map, you can adjust its settings.