Add custom object to Cognos 10 Toolbox

Question

I wanted to add a custom object into the Cognos Toolbox (in Report Studio).

The object I want to create is a table that has a background and be able to drag this object into the report and insert any other type of object like textbox, dateprompt, etc...

I know I'll need to update the toolbox.html but what/where is the actual xml file that stores the attributes of the objects?

Answer 1

I'd suggest you use layout components reference for applying common object formatting patterns. A good approach is to create a single report with reusable layout components and reference them in reports. Therefore all changes in the layout components report will propagate to all linked ones. Some links on the topic:

• Report studio user guide

• Ironside blog post

Changing toolbox.html will cause you grief with future upgrades.

Another option would be to use Report classes for applying formatting, they can also be centrally changed.

Answer 2

I agree with ykud - use a central report with formatting and reference it.

Alternatively here is a guide for custom toolbox objects in version 8.3

http://www.ibm.com/developerworks/data/library/cognos/page294.html

This indicates that you need to add your custom control definition to ToolboxControls.XML found in ..\c8\webcontent\pat\res

It has good workshop on doing exactly what you need.