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NextSheet Sample Project

Info

Skill:
Version: 1.0.0
Author: Bojan Nikolic
Created: 2008-05-12
Updated: 2008-08-09

In this tutorial we will step by step build small application that use NextSheet and display formated data in it.

This tutorial require NextSheet 1.0 to be installed.

1. Placing component on form

Click on "Next Suite" tab/category within components palette/toolbox and select NextSheet component icon.

Click on form, and component will be placed with one cell already added, with ColCount and RowCount properties set to 1.

Now add NxSheetCell unit in uses section. This unit contain values for cell alignment, line styles...

2. Setting ColCount and RowCount properties

By increasing ColCount property new columns will be added at the end of columns array. Otherwise decreasing value of this property will delete columns beginning from last one.

Set ColCount property to 4.

Result:

RowCount property is very similar, but instead on columns it work on rows.

Set RowCount property to 3.

Now we have matrix of 4 x 3 cells where every cell may have own value and be formated in own style.

3. Merging cells in first row

Cell's may be merged by calling MergeCells method. This method merge all cells in square between starting and end cell.

Next code will merge cells from cell 0, 0 to the cell 3, 0:

NextSheet1.MergeCells(0, 0, 3, 0);

Now, we will set Text property and Alignment property for first cell. Since this is first cell in merged cells region, this cell will occupy space of whole region.

NextSheet1.Cell[0, 0].Alignment := caCenter;
NextSheet1.Cell[0, 0].Text := 'Sales Data';
NextSheet1.Cell[0, 0].Color := clSkyBlue;

Result:

Now we will draw one black line bellow first row.

Since cells in first row are merged, we will only set border for top-left cell in merged area:

NextSheet1.Cell[0, 0].BorderBottom.LineStyle := lsSolid;
NextSheet1.Cell[0, 0].BorderBottom.Color := clBlack;

After cells are un-merged (by calling Split method), again visible cells will have borders set

4. Setting cells in second row

We will merge cells in 2nd row, but not as one cell but 2:

NextSheet1.MergeCells(0, 1, 1, 1, caCenter);
NextSheet1.MergeCells(2, 1, 3, 1, caCenter);

And place text in them

NextSheet1.Cell[0, 1].Text := 'First Half';
NextSheet1.Cell[2, 1].Text := 'Second Half';

NextSheet1.Cell[0, 1].SetBorder(bpBottom, lsDouble, clBlack);
NextSheet1.Cell[2, 1].SetBorder(bpBottom, lsDouble, clBlack);

5. Place text in third row

Also, we will place text in 3rd row:

NextSheet1.Cell[0, 2].Text := 'Q1';
NextSheet1.Cell[1, 2].Text := 'Q2';
NextSheet1.Cell[2, 2].Text := 'Q3';
NextSheet1.Cell[3, 2].Text := 'Q4';

6. Add sample data

Now we will set RowCount property to 10.

and add sample data with AddCells method. This method add cells from array beginning from one cell.

  NextSheet1.AddCells(['435', '335', '23', '46', '94', '256',
    '334', '24', '134', '920', '23', '1', '567', '753', '13', '88'], 0, 3);

We will add thin line between data and remaining rows:

  NextSheet1.Cell[0, 7].BorderTop.SetBorder(clBlack, lsThinLine);
  NextSheet1.Cell[1, 7].BorderTop.SetBorder(clBlack, lsThinLine);
  NextSheet1.Cell[2, 7].BorderTop.SetBorder(clBlack, lsThinLine);
  NextSheet1.Cell[3, 7].BorderTop.SetBorder(clBlack, lsThinLine);

7. Sumarize columns

Now we will sumarize sample data within last row:

  NextSheet1.Cell[0, 7].Text := '=SUM(A4:A7)';
  NextSheet1.Cell[1, 7].Text := '=SUM(B4:B7)';
  NextSheet1.Cell[2, 7].Text := '=SUM(C4:C7)';
  NextSheet1.Cell[3, 7].Text := '=SUM(D4:D7)';

We have use SUM built-in function and calculate sum of each column.

Final make-up

With using StylePainter object we will align and format all number cells.

  with NextSheet1.StylePainter do
  begin
    Alignment := caCenterRight;
    FormatMask := '#,##0.00';
    Kind := ckNumber;
  end;
  NextSheet1.StylePainter.Apply(0, 3, 3, 7);