BusinessObjects Polestar
Information Space Creation
Guidelines Whitepaper
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BusinessObjects Polestar Information Space Creation Guidelines Whitepaper
What is a Polestar Information Space?
What is a Polestar Information Space?
An Information Space is the root of Polestar and the search functionality
provided to you. For example, you have a Universe containing a vast pool
of report data but have little idea how to pinpoint the information represented
by the data, how do you access this information? This is where Spaces play
their part, each Space can be considered as a snapshot of the Universe but
ensures that the underlying data has a contextual meaning. A meaning is
derived from a collection of objects that are within the Universe. For example,
there are data objects representing sales, country, revenue, and product line
- therefore you could receive data about sales revenue, or number of sales
by country, or product lines that make the most revenue in the UK.
Once an Information Space has been created, you can use Polestar for
navigation, and then visualize your information via a chart or data table.
The following diagram shows how Information Spaces are distributed via a
Universe:
BusinessObjects Polestar Information Space Creation Guidelines Whitepaper 3
BusinessObjects Polestar Information Space Creation Guidelines Whitepaper
Overview of the Information Space Creation Guidelines Whitepaper
There are various characteristics of an Information Space:
• only one Universe can be used
• it can share the same entities of another Space
• it cannot share the same entities of another Space from another Universe
Overview of the Information Space
Creation Guidelines Whitepaper
This technical brief discusses the guidelines to creating Information Spaces
within BusinessObjects Polestar. It provides information on the necessary
steps on how to create an efficient Space according to your needs.
It is for Space creators of Polestar. Some sections are aimed for
administrators who deploy the product.
4 BusinessObjects Polestar Information Space Creation Guidelines Whitepaper
BusinessObjects Polestar Information Space Creation Guidelines Whitepaper
Introduction to this BusinessObjects Polestar technical brief
Introduction to this BusinessObjects
Polestar technical brief
Creating Information Spaces with BusinessObjects Polestar is as important
as exploring them. If the Space is not efficient, badly sized, or contains the
wrong objects, it is not useful for the Space explorer.
This technical brief introduces the basic steps to ensure that your Spaces
generate answers to business questions quickly and efficiently.
Before you start
Before reading this technical brief, please ensure the following:
• If you are a Space creator, ensure that you understand how to create a
Space within Polestar. See the BusinessObjects Polestar Online Help,
for further details.
• You have access to the BusinessObjects Polestar documentation.
Additionally, it is necessary that you are aware of Space sizing constraints
based upon your Polestar installation. If you are not an administrator and
are unsure on this information, speak with your administrator.
Identifying functional requirements and user needs
Before creating Information Spaces, make sure that you understand the
functional requirements and user needs. Gathering these requirements and
needs ensures that any Spaces you create are useful, efficient, and accurate.
For example, identify the following when designing a Space:
• What exactly is the business need of the Space?
If you know what the Space is going to be used for, then you can simply
identify the related Universe objects. For example, the business need is
for knowing the sales revenue last year for all of your European stores.
You could select the Sales Revenue measure, the Country, City, and
Store dimensions, and finally, the Last Year filter.
BusinessObjects Polestar Information Space Creation Guidelines Whitepaper 5
BusinessObjects Polestar Information Space Creation Guidelines Whitepaper
What is the correct size for your Information Space?
• How many users are expected to access and explore the Space?
If you know that the Space is for several users, select only necessary
objects. If you select too many objects that can have little use for the user,
exploration and indexing can be impacted (due to a large datasource). It
can also cause confusion to users.
• What are the sizing limits?
Be aware of the sizing limits of your installation. Ask your administrator
for further information.
• What are the security expectations?
Ensure that you select objects that are only meant to be in the Space.
• Is a single Space the best option?
Several small Spaces can often be better than a single Space. Ask your
administrator for sizing information.
• What is the best Universe to use?
Depending on the business need and user demand, choose a Universe
that is the most efficient and most accurate.
• What is the context of the Space?
While choosing your Universe objects, ensure that you know if any
contexts are required. A context makes certain that the Space represents
the desired perspective. For example: Sales or Reservations.
• Is the definition you want valid?
Validate the definition of your Space (by clicking Test Universe object
compatibility within the Manage Spaces tab) before indexing.
What is the correct size for your
Information Space?
After designing your Space it is good practice to size it correctly. Sizing a
Space correctly improves performance, efficiency, and indexing. Sizing also
prevents misuse of the hard disk available.
To size the Space correctly:
• Use restrictive filters where possible.
6 BusinessObjects Polestar Information Space Creation Guidelines Whitepaper
BusinessObjects Polestar Information Space Creation Guidelines Whitepaper
Creating, indexing, and scheduling your Information Space
By using Universe filters, only data necessary to the Space is included.
For example, by choosing the Last Year filter, only data from the previous
year is provided.
A restrictive filter allows you to define your Space gradually. Amend your
filter incrementally to ensure that your Space is efficient. Refer to existing
BusinessObjects Enterprise documents that are using the filter for an
idea on what is proficient.
•
Follow the sizing guidelines within the BusinessObjects Polestar
Performance whitepaper.
It is often necessary to size your Space depending upon your environment
(hardware and deployment).
Creating, indexing, and scheduling your
Information Space
Once you have designed your Space, create it within the Manage Spaces
tab. After creation index the Space before it is available for exploration.
Indexing is achieved via Index Now located beside the Space or by
scheduling it via the Scheduling tab.
Index Now
Index Now causes the indexing to occur immediately. The duration of
indexing depends on size of the Space and your environment (for example,
your deployment of Polestar servers). Once the indexing is finished, it is
available for exploration.
Scheduling
Scheduling the Space allows you to index on a regular basis. It also allows
you to index the Space during a period when fewer users access Polestar.
For example, schedule the Space out of working hours.
Additionally, if your Space is large, it is practical to index overnight to be
ready for users the next working day.
Note: If you have users accessing the system constantly, try scheduling
during less busy periods.
BusinessObjects Polestar Information Space Creation Guidelines Whitepaper 7
BusinessObjects Polestar Information Space Creation Guidelines Whitepaper
Testing your Information Space
When scheduling, also decide on the user credentials to use for scheduling.
Refer to the BusinessObjects Polestar Performance Whitepaper, for further
information on best indexing and scheduling practises.
Testing your Information Space
After indexing your Space perform a test to ensure it has been indexed
correctly and it is what you expect:
• Ensure that the Space appears within the Home tab.
• Click the Space to launch it.
• Check the facets to see if they represent the objects you selected during
creation.
• Navigate through the data to ensure that the Space matches the original
business needs and user requirements.
Setting security rights to the target folder
After creating and testing an Information Space, set security rights to the
folder where the Space is located within the CMC. Security rights can prevent
any unauthorized personnel accessing, viewing, or performing operations
on the Space.
Alternatively, move the Space to a secure folder.
Get More Help
Online documentation library
Business Objects offers a full documentation set covering all products and
their deployment. The online documentation library has the most up-to-date
version of the Business Objects product documentation. You can browse
the library contents, do full-text searches, read guides on line, and download
PDF versions. The library is updated regularly with new content as it becomes
available.
http://support.businessobjects.com/documentation/product_guides/
8 BusinessObjects Polestar Information Space Creation Guidelines Whitepaper
BusinessObjects Polestar Information Space Creation Guidelines Whitepaper
Get More Help
Additional developer resources
http://devlibrary.businessobjects.com
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The Business Objects Customer Support web site contains information about
Customer Support programs and services. It also has links to a wide range
of technical information including knowledgebase articles, downloads, and
support forums.
http://www.businessobjects.com/support/
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there something you particularly like or have found useful? Drop us a line,
and we will do our best to ensure that your suggestion is included in the next
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documentation, please contact our Customer Support experts. For information
about Customer Support visit: http://www.businessobjects.com/support/.
BusinessObjects Polestar Information Space Creation Guidelines Whitepaper 9
BusinessObjects Polestar Information Space Creation Guidelines Whitepaper
Get More Help
Business Objects product information
For information about the full range of Business Objects products, visit:
http://www.businessobjects.com.
10 BusinessObjects Polestar Information Space Creation Guidelines Whitepaper
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