Bridgit in Finished Reports Designer helps you create and revise an editable report using the View’s assigned data. You can describe the layout, provide a reference and request changes while continuing to use the native Finished Reports tools.
Before You Begin
Bridgit AI must be configured with an approved OpenAI API key before you begin. See Bridgit AI Overview and Usage Guide for setup information.
- Use a VDM version that includes Ask Bridgit in Finished Reports Designer.
- Open a View with the required query, parameters and returned data. Verify those results before designing the report.
- Save a copy of an existing View before making substantial changes.
- Identify the intended output: VDM, WebReports, PDF, Excel or a combination.
- Use only reference files and report data approved for AI processing.
Open Bridgit in the Designer
- Run the View and open Finished Reports Designer.
- Select the Ask Bridgit icon in the Designer.
- Describe the report you want to build or change. Include grouping, calculations, page structure and output requirements.
Opening the Designer’s Bridgit conversation is different from selecting Analyze in a Finished Reports Viewer. Designer requests change the report design; viewer analysis discusses the displayed report.
Provide a Clear Design Request
For example:
Create a report grouped by category. Show RecordID and Quantity in the detail section, include a quantity subtotal for each category and a report total at the end. Use readable headings and keep each category together where possible. The report must work in VDM and WebReports.
Replace the example fields with fields returned by your View. State the meaning and population of each calculation. If the necessary data is not in the assigned results, resolve the query requirement before assuming the Designer can supply it.
Attach a Reference When Useful
The Finished Reports Designer attachment control supports XLSX, PDF, PNG, JPG, JPEG, GIF, TXT and CSV reference files. Select an available upload control or paste a supported image, add a message explaining how the reference should be used, then send the request.
Explain whether the reference defines appearance, calculations, wording or all three. Include requirements that are not visible in the image, such as sort order, date boundaries, subtotal scope or worksheet names. A reference is guidance; do not assume a generated report will reproduce every detail exactly.
Review the Design
Bridgit prepares and reviews native report changes before applying an accepted result. Wait for the request to finish, then use the Designer and Preview to check:
- The fields and data source used in each section.
- Group boundaries, detail rows, page breaks and blank pages.
- Subtotals, report totals and the population included in each calculation.
- Chart values, category order, labels and formatting.
- PDF or Excel output when those formats are part of the requirement.
Note: A completed Designer request is not a substitute for your acceptance of the report. Compare important calculations with the underlying query data.
Request a Follow-Up Change
Continue in the same conversation when you want to adjust the report. Refer to the section or control and describe the result, such as Keep the existing calculations and make the category headings larger.
For work that is still running, review the working and queued indicators rather than resending the original request. Ask Bridgit to undo its last applicable change when needed; a later manual edit can prevent a safe automatic undo. See Managing Long-Running Bridgit Designer Requests.
Review Saved Design Guidance
In the View’s Bridgit Settings for Finished Reports Designer, versions with retained guidance expose Design Requirements, Layout and Formatting, Calculations and Reference Files. Open the relevant text editor to review or adjust the guidance.
Changing this guidance affects later Bridgit requests; it does not immediately redesign the report. Save the View to retain the changes. Reference filenames are a reminder of the source material, not a guarantee that the original file is still available to the conversation. Attach it again if requested.
Save and Verify the Finished Report
- Review the final result and select Save.
- Reopen the saved View or Finished Report and confirm that the design is retained.
- Run or refresh the report with representative data.
- Check the required exports and, when applicable, test the report in WebReports.
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