Joining and Merging Data Sources
If a report requires data from two or more related data sources,
you can temporarily join the files and report from them as if they
were one. Joined files remain physically separate, but are treated
as one data source structure throughout the session or until you clear
the Join.
Using the Join tool, you can create:
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Dynamic joins. These
joins are used to join two or more related data sources and create
a virtual structure for reporting.
-
Conditional joins (WHERE-based). These
joins use expressions to specify joins based on conditional criteria,
not just on equality between fields.
-
Joins based on virtual fields (DEFINE-based). These
joins use virtual host fields that you can join to real cross-referenced
fields.
-
Left outer joins. When
a report displays all matching rows plus all rows from the host
file that lack corresponding cross-referenced rows, the join is
called a left outer join.
You can also create a new file structure for reporting by joining
existing synonyms of relational tables using the Cluster Joins editor.