Free Type Report Queries

Previous examples demonstrated how to use Argos tools to visually create SQL queries. There are times when you already have an SQL query that you would like to enter into Argos without having to type in the query manually. This is possible using the Free Type SQL Editor which exists under the Report Query Tab. In the figure below the free type icon on the lower right is used to launch the Free Type SQL Editor.

Entering the Free Type Query

Clicking the Free Type icon launches the Free Type Editor shown below. Either type-in your query or paste it into the right hand window shown below.

Free Type Query under the Report Query - Free Type tab. A query for most of the fields in the Employees table is in the query pane.

Validating the Query

Click the Save button to save the query. After saving, you will be prompted to validate the query by Refreshing the Fields. Click the Refresh Fields icon to create the fields. Argos will populate the window on the left with the fields that it found in the SQL (see figure below). This step is required for Argos to validate that the query matches the database that it is connected to. Click the test button to run the query and verify that it works properly in Argos.
The result of the query validation. The database table fields are now in the pane to the left of the query pane.

A few tips:

Below the fields list, in the lower left corner of the free type tab, is the Type drop-down. This allows you to highlight a field and change the data type by selecting a new type from the drop-down.

Clicking the user-defined variable icon displays a list of System Variables that can be added to your query.

The operators at the bottom of the window allow you to add logical operations to your query.

You can use Ctrl-F to find text or Ctrl-H to do a find/replace within the query text.