ReportLab
 | |
| Developer(s) | ReportLab Europe Ltd. |
|---|---|
| Initial release | June 20, 2000 (0.94)[1] |
| Stable release |
4.2.1.1 (May 31, 2024) [±] |
| Preview release | None [±] |
| Written in | Python |
| Operating system | Cross-platform |
| Type | Document generation |
| License(s) | Proprietary license |
| Website | ReportLab.com |
ReportLab is a free open-source document creation engine for generating PDF documents and custom vector graphics. It has been available in a free open-source version since 2000; however, the company also offers a commercial version of the product called ReportLab PLUS.
Product history
ReportLab has its origins through the creation of New York-based ReportLab, Inc. in January 2000. However, plans for ReportLab evolved before that, with an open-source project starting on Sourceforge in December 1999.[2] The founders of the company saw a need for document-generation technology that would meet the growing needs of businesses.[3] The first known stable version is 0.94, released on June 20, 2000, with a 1.0 version arriving a month later.[1]
In 2001 the company moved its operations to London and began operation as ReportLab Europe Ltd.[3] A flurry of releases were made between 2001 and 2005. As the software matured, releases of the open-source version slowed to an average of one a year. The open-source ReportLab is still developed and offered as of May 2014.
Features
The main features of the free open-source ReportLab[4]:
- graphics canvas API that "draws" PDF pages
- charts and widgets library for creating reusable data graphics
- page layout engine builds documents from elements such as headlines, paragraphs, fonts, tables and vector graphics
- automatic production
- generate multiple PDFs at the same time
- Diagra charting toolkit
Hardware/software requirements
Prerequisites include:
- Python (versions 2.5 through 2.7)
- Python Imaging Library (PIL) with Freetype support
Other prerequisites may exist, depending on the operating system you wish to install it on. Consult the ReadMe for more information.
Videos, screenshots, and other media
- A wide variety of documentation, including a user guide and tutorials, can be found here.
Entities using ReportLab
The following entities are known to have used some form of ReportLab[5]:
Allenbridge, Fidelity, Hewlett Packard, Hilton Hotels, Langham Hotels, NASA, Newcastle University, Oxfam, REIS, University College London, Wikipedia, Zhone Technologies
Further reading
External links
- ReportLab code repository
- ReportLab on SourceForge (deprecated)
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "reportlab / CHANGES.txt". ReportLab Europe Ltd. https://bitbucket.org/rptlab/reportlab/src/186f3923093a274e4912bde812d6ec50a07984c1/CHANGES.txt?at=default. Retrieved 21 May 2014.
- ↑ "ReportLab". Sourceforge. http://sourceforge.net/projects/reportlab/. Retrieved 21 May 2014.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 "About ReportLab". ReportLab Europe Ltd. http://www.reportlab.com/about/. Retrieved 21 May 2014.
- ↑ "ReportLab open-source PDF Toolkit". ReportLab Europe Ltd. http://www.reportlab.com/opensource/. Retrieved 21 May 2014.
- ↑ "Case Studies". ReportLab Europe Ltd. http://www.reportlab.com/casestudies/. Retrieved 21 May 2014.
