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Oracle APEX: Dynamic Column Headings in Classic Reports

In Oracle APEX Classic Reports, column headings are usually static — but sometimes, we need them to change dynamically based on user input.


Using the “PL/SQL Function Body” option under the Heading attribute, we can generate report column names at runtime.


This approach provides flexible and context-driven report labels without manual modification.

In this setup, a page item holds a range value (e.g., A1-A7 or H1-H7).


A PL/SQL function reads that range and constructs the column headings dynamically (like A1:A2:A3:A4:A5:A6:A7).


These values are then applied automatically to the Classic Report’s columns through the PL/SQL Function Body returning VARCHAR2 attribute.

Paste the following code in the Classic Report attributes section under the Heading property

DECLARE

    v_start   NUMBER;

    v_end     NUMBER;

    v_prefix  VARCHAR2(10);

    v_result  VARCHAR2(4000);

BEGIN

    v_prefix := SUBSTR(:P22_LABEL_VALUE, 1, 1); 

    v_start  := TO_NUMBER(SUBSTR(:P22_LABEL_VALUE, 2, INSTR(:P22_LABEL_VALUE, '-') - 2));

    v_end    := TO_NUMBER(SUBSTR(:P22_LABEL_VALUE, INSTR(:P22_LABEL_VALUE, '-') + 2));

    FOR i IN v_start .. v_end LOOP

        v_result := v_result || v_prefix || LPAD(i, 2, '0') || ':';

    END LOOP;

    RETURN RTRIM(v_result, ':');

END;

NOTE: The above code is written to accept input in the format CHR||NUM-CHR||NUM. If you need a different format, modify the code accordingly.

Demo_Application


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