Patent ID: 7293031

Claim:
A computer-implemented report specification generator system, comprising: a layout tool that processes on a machine and for selecting, labeling, and creating multiple dimensions, metrics, filters, and computations from a data store and placing them in a layout format, wherein a user interactively views existing objects, selects the existing objects, and creates new objects having the multiple dimensions, the metrics, the filters, and the computations and then uses grid controls of the layout tool to place the objects in desired locations within a grid; and a generator tool that processes on a machine for translating the selected multiple dimensions, metrics, filters, and computations organized from the layout format into a intermediate data format for processing to one or more secondary data formats that conform to the locations within the grid, and wherein the one or more secondary formats are instances of a report associated with the layout format, wherein the intermediate data format is Extensible Markup Language (XML) format and the generator tool is an Extensible Style Sheets Language Transformation (XSLT) application, and wherein the grid maps to print media or browser page media and the locations relative locations within the grid used to show distances between the existing and the new objects and the computations relative to one another.