Can't select Word or Excel report type in Report Generation any more

[GS]

Now that I've loaded LV 8.5 I can't select Word or Excel for the report type in Report Generation any more. I just reloaded the Toolkit so I don't think that's the problem. Also all the Word and Excel interface VIs no longer appear in the Report Generation menus. What happened?

George

[GS]

I solved it. I uninstalled the toolkit and made sure it was gone from all previous LV versions.

[Ozfarmboy]

Hi George,

I am having this problem right now!!!

So did you re-install the toolkit after you'd removed all traces from it?

Thanks

[GS]

Yep, after the reinstall everything was fine.

[Bob_Schor]

I am also having this problem!  There is a Tutorial (a 4-part Simple Test Station - Design 1,2,3, and 4) that has a LV 6.1 and LV 7 version.  I have both 8.5 and 8.6 on my machine -- I tried porting the LV7 code to LV 8.6, and was largely successful.  The Report object changes significantly in RPG 1.1.3 -- instead of looking like a green wire, it looks like a green chain.  But I got most (but not all) of the sub-VIs to work.  In particular, New Report has all 4 report types represented, including Word and Excel.

However, when I tried to do the same thing with LV 8.5, and RPG 1.1.2, things were seriously "broken".  In particular, New Report only has Standard Report and HTML as Report Types.  As per this thread, I tried uninstalling RPG 1.1.2 -- it wasn't (at first) clear how to do this.  What I ended up doing was going to Control Panel and choosing Add/Remove Programs, finding National Instruments Software, selecting Modify, and then uninstalling RPG 1.1.2.  I then reinstalled this toolkit from the 8.5.1 full distribution set.  [Hmm -- I know I rebooted after the uninstall, but am not sure if I rebooted after the install).  Anyway, I still don't have Excel or Word as acceptable report types for New Report.

I just now fired up LV 8.6, made a blank VI, and made sure that the New Report is, in fact, the "new style" VI (with additional inputs) and allows the Word and Excel types (which it does).  I then closed this blank VI, and noticed that LV was asking me to save 24 VIs that had names suggesting they were part of the RPG Toolkit.  I chose "Don't Save", as I'm unsure what's going on.

Bottom line -- if I open and run LV 8.6 (and use RPG 1.1.3 which was installed when I installed 8.6), most of the Excel functionality is present.  However, if I try to do the same thing opening LV 8.5, the Excel functionality appears to be missing.  Note that I'm not trying to open an existing VI written in either 8.5 or 8.6, but to create a VI "from scratch".

Most of my current development work has been in 8.5 -- I'd like to continue with this version (among other things, it's what my students are using).  I was trying 8.6 to decide when to "upgrade", but would like to not be "forced" to do so now.  But I'm having difficulty getting the Report Generation Toolkit to work.  Suggestions greatly appreciated.

Bob Schor

[Bob_Schor]

I've now done a "clean install".  On a PC running WinXP SP2 that has never had LabVIEW installed, I just installed LabVIEW 8.5.1 (Professional Development Suite).  I then installed Report Generation Toolkit for MS Office 1.1.2.  That's all, no other pieces, but shouldn't that be enough to generate Excel spreadsheets and charts?  Well, when I put a New Report VI on my block diagram and wire a constant to the Type input, it (still) only gives me Standard Report and HTML.

How do I get the Excel/Word support in LabVIEW 8.5.1?  It seems to be "missing in action"!  Is there another toolkit or something that I need to install to enable this feature?

Bob Schor

[Kevin_S]

Hi Bob,

You need to have installed the following software in this order:

1) Microsoft Office 2000 or higher

2) LabVIEW 8.5.1

3) Report Generation Toolkit 1.1.2

If you already did this, did you installed the Report Generation Toolkit to the default location (of the LabVIEW 8.5 directory), or did you direct the installation to a different location?

Kevin S.

Applications Engineer

National Instruments

[Bob_Schor]

Kevin,

     I started with a WinXP system that had OfficeXP already installed (like 2 years ago).  I installed LabVIEW 8.5.1, doing a "minimal install" (just the Professional Development System, no CVI, no DIAdem, no Signal Express, no hardware drivers).  I then installed Report Generation Toolkit 1.1.2 (the default Install option on that CD, the External Development Suite CD, had a number of default installs that I turned off, turning on only RPG).  I don't recall directing the installation to any particular place -- I assume that it went, not into the LabVIEW 8.5 directory, but into a folder in the National Instruments directory (i.e. one level up).  However, I'm at work and that PC is at home ... I'll check and post the location here later today.

Bob Schor 

[Bob_Schor]

With the help of Claire, an NI Support Engineer, we fixed the problem!  The answer (which I had done, and had even done with Claire on the line) was to "uninstall and reinstall".  But the Method is in the Details!

When I originally tried to install LabVIEW 8.5 and Report Generation Toolkit for Microsoft Office 1.1.2, the VIs that were present in the Report Generation pallette were largely turquoise in color, and did not have Word and Excel capabilities.  Here's how I fixed it:

1)  Open Control Panel, choose Add/Remove Programs, find National Instruments Software, click Change/Remove.  Find Report Generation Toolkit for Microsoft Office 1.1.2, highlight it, and click Remove.

2)  Look for a Report Generation Toolkit folder in C:\Program Files\National Instruments -- delete it and all of its contents.

3)  Reboot your PC.

4)  Reinstall Report Generation Toolkit for Microsoft Office 1.1.2.  During the installation, it will ask you where to put the Report Generation Toolkit folder -- put it "inside" the LabVIEW 8.5 folder (i.e. in C:\Program Files\National Instruments\LabVIEW 8.5).

5)  Start LabVIEW 8.5.  Open a new VI (Ctrl-N), go to the Block Diagram (Ctrl-E), and put a New Report VI on the diagram from the Report Generation pallette.  You should find that now the icons in the pallette are mostly white, not turquoise.  Also, the New Report VI has more than 2 inputs now, and the Report Type input now accepts Word and Excel as valid choices.

6)  Reboot once more, just for good luck.

Bob Schor

P.S. -- I've tried this on my "8.5-only" machine, as well as on at least one machine with 8.5 and 8.6 -- seems to work on both.  Not sure why this was so cantankerous earlier, nor why the straight-forward installations that I (and others!) did failed ...