kb:reporting:overview
01 Overview
This overview compares possible approaches for creating and handling PDF reports from LabVIEW. Key criteria are generation speed, template editing effort, runtime dependencies, and HSE experience.
| Runtime approach | How to edit template | Runtime dependencies | License model | Speed potential | HSE experience | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ODF Toolkit (OpenDocument Format; SSDC) | ODT (LibreOffice/OpenOffice) | ODF Toolkit runtime (no MS Word) Libreoffice as a pdf parser | Open source | 🔥 | 🔥🔥 | Supports text, tables, images at bookmarks; strong Word-free alternative |
| AsciiDoc → PDF | AsciiDoc | Asciidoctor toolchain | Open source | 🔥🔥🔥 | 🔥🔥 | Great versioning; steeper learning curve; better for technical users |
| DOCX without Word (Viewpoint DocX Toolkit) + headless DOCX→PDF | Word (.dotx/.docx) | DocX Toolkit + PDF converter (no MS Word) | ~250 € developer license, royalty-free deployment | 🔥🔥 | ⚠️ | Much faster; more bookmarks required; limited support for inserting tables exactly at bookmark positions |
| PDF-native toolkits (Carya, Simplicity AI) | PDF layout in LabVIEW / toolkit editor | PDF toolkit runtime | ~350 € developer license (varies) | 🔥🔥🔥 | ⚠️ | Fast and robust; PDF layout must be created and maintained in LabVIEW |
| HTML / CSS → PDF (wkhtmltopdf etc.) | HTML / CSS | wkhtmltopdf or similar headless renderer | Open source | 🔥🔥🔥 | ⚠️ | Excellent throughput; requires HTML/CSS skills |
| Word automation via NI Report Generation Toolkit | Word (.dotx/.docx) | MS Word (COM/ActiveX) | NI RGT license + MS Word | ⚠️ | 🔥 | Minimal change; slow and fragile; Word must be installed and running |
kb/reporting/overview.txt · Last modified: 2026/01/23 13:40 by joerg.hampel