Summary

In this chapter, we saw that Pentaho Report Designer (PRD) is a very powerful tool for report editing and that it is licensed under the GNU LGPL. We also saw that it has a Java-based report engine and that the editor's UI is implemented with Swing widgets.

We saw that it can be embedded in Java projects in desktop and web applications, and that it can publish reports to the Pentaho BA Server.

We discussed the different types of reports, such as Transactional Reports and Tactical Reports, and their principal characteristics. We also discussed that what makes each of these reports different from others is their data source, their granularity, and their final goal.

We detailed the principal characteristics of PRD through which we were able to show its robustness, flexibility, and interactivity.

We listed each landmark in the development of PRD, following its evolution with each new contribution and functionality. We also showed in a small graph how PRD versions advanced over time.

By the end of this chapter, we are able to appreciate the quantity and variety of reports that PRD lets us create.

In the next chapter we will look at the system requirements to be able to execute PRD. We will download, install, and configure PRD 5.0. Furthermore, we will download and install a database sample.