Why paginated reports serve formal needs in Power BI - Formula Trace Breakdown

Sample Data

This data compares paginated and interactive reports, showing why paginated reports fit formal needs.

Cell	Value
A1	Report Type
B1	Purpose
C1	Format
D1	Use Case
A2	Paginated Report
B2	Formal, precise, printable
C2	Fixed layout, multi-page
D2	Invoices, official statements
A3	Interactive Report
B3	Exploratory, dynamic
C3	Flexible layout, single page
D3	Dashboards, data exploration

Formula Trace

IF(A2="Paginated Report", "Formal, precise, printable", "Not formal")

Step 1: A2="Paginated Report"

Step 2: IF(TRUE, "Formal, precise, printable", "Not formal")

Cell Reference Map

    A               B                      C                     D
1 | Report Type | Purpose              | Format             | Use Case           
2 | Paginated  | Formal, precise,     | Fixed layout,      | Invoices, official 
  | Report     | printable            | multi-page         | statements         
3 | Interactive| Exploratory, dynamic | Flexible layout,   | Dashboards, data   
  | Report     |                      | single page        | exploration        

The formula checks cell A2 to decide the report's purpose description.

Result

    A               B                      C                     D
1 | Report Type | Purpose              | Format             | Use Case           
2 | Paginated  | Formal, precise,     | Fixed layout,      | Invoices, official 
  | Report     | printable            | multi-page         | statements         

Result in E2: Formal, precise, printable

The formula result 'Formal, precise, printable' appears in cell E2, explaining why paginated reports serve formal needs.

Sheet Trace Quiz - 3 Questions

What does the formula check in cell A2?

A If the format is 'Fixed layout'

B If the report purpose is 'Formal, precise, printable'

C If the report type is 'Paginated Report'

D If the use case is 'Invoices'

Key Result

IF(condition, value_if_true, value_if_false) returns a value based on a condition check.