Preserving Leading and Internal Blanks in Report Output

How to:

By default, HTML browsers and Excel remove leading and trailing blanks from text and compress multiple internal blanks to a single blank.

If you want to preserve leading and internal blanks in HTML and EXL2K report output, you can issue the SET SHOWBLANKS=ON command.

Even if you issue this command, trailing blanks will not be preserved except in heading, subheading, footing, and subfooting lines that use the default heading or footing alignment.

Syntax: How to Preserve Leading and Internal Blanks in HTML and EXL2K Reports

In a FOCEXEC or in a profile, use the following syntax: 

SET SHOWBLANKS = {OFF|ON}

In a request, use the following syntax

ON TABLE SET SHOWBLANKS {OFF|ON}

where:

OFF
Removes leading blanks and compresses internal blanks in HTML and EXL2K report output.
ON

Preserves leading blanks and internal blanks in HTML and EXL2K report output. Also preserves trailing blanks in heading, subheading, footing, and subfooting lines that use the default heading or footing alignment.

Example: Preserving Leading and Internal Blanks in HTML and EXL2K Report Output

The following request creates a virtual field that adds leading blanks to the value ACTION and both leading and internal blanks to the values TRAIN/EX and SCI/FI in the CATEGORY field. It also adds trailing blanks to the value COMEDY: 

SET SHOWBLANKS = OFF
DEFINE FILE MOVIES
NEWCAT/A30 = IF CATEGORY EQ 'ACTION' THEN '  ACTION'
        ELSE IF CATEGORY EQ 'SCI/FI' THEN 'SCIENCE   FICTION'
        ELSE IF CATEGORY EQ 'TRAIN/EX' THEN '   TRAINING    EXERCISE'
        ELSE IF CATEGORY EQ 'COMEDY' THEN 'COMEDY     '
        ELSE                'GENERAL';
END
TABLE FILE MOVIES
SUM CATEGORY LISTPR/D12.2 COPIES
BY NEWCAT

ON TABLE SET STYLE *
GRID=OFF,$
TYPE=REPORT, FONT=COURIER NEW,$
ENDSTYLE
END

With SHOWBLANKS OFF, these additional blanks are removed:

With SHOWBLANKS ON, the additional leading and internal blanks are preserved. Note that trailing blanks are not preserved: