Web Intelligence Rich Client User's
Guide
BusinessObjects Web Intelligence Rich Client XI 3.0
Copyright
© 2008 Business Objects, an SAP company. All rights reserved. Business Objects
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2008-09-03
Contents
About Web Intelligence 11Chapter 1
How Web Intelligence performs business intelligence over the web.........12
How Web Intelligence performs business intelligence offline....................12
Interacting with Web Intelligence reports...................................................12
Creating and editing Web Intelligence documents....................................14
Installing Web Intelligence Rich Client 17Chapter 2
To install Web Intelligence Rich Client from the BusinessObjects Enterprise
CD..............................................................................................................18
To install Web Intelligence Rich Client from InfoView................................18
Using silent install for large-scale deployments.........................................19
Viewing and printing Web Intelligence reports.....................................13
Drilling on Web Intelligence reports......................................................13
Performing on-report analysis..............................................................13
Web Intelligence Query - HTML...........................................................14
Web Intelligence Java Report Panel....................................................15
Web Intelligence Rich Client................................................................15
Web Intelligence HTML Report Panel..................................................16
Silent install parameters.......................................................................19
Web Intelligence Rich Client working modes 25Chapter 3
Web Intelligence Rich Client Connected mode.........................................26
Web Intelligence Rich Client Offline mode................................................27
Web Intelligence Rich Client Standalone mode........................................28
Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide 3
Contents
Launching Web Intelligence Rich Client 29Chapter 4
To launch Web Intelligence Rich Client in Connected mode from
InfoView.....................................................................................................30
To launch Web Intelligence Rich Client in Connected mode locally..........31
To launch Web Intelligence Rich Client in Offline mode............................32
To launch Web Intelligence Rich Client in Standalone mode....................33
To log into Web Intelligence Rich Client as a different user.......................34
To set user preferences in Web Intelligence Rich Client 35Chapter 5
Web Intelligence Rich Client general preferences.....................................36
Web Intelligence Rich Client viewing preferences.....................................37
Web Intelligence Rich Client locale preferences.......................................38
Web Intelligence Rich Client drill preferences...........................................38
To change your password..........................................................................39
Working with documents 41Chapter 6
To create a new document in Web Intelligence Rich Client.......................42
To select a universe in Web Intelligence Rich Client............................42
To import documents from the CMS..........................................................42
To select document instances to import from the CMS........................43
To import document instances from the CMS......................................43
To open a document in Web Intelligence Rich Client................................44
To work with open documents in Web Intelligence Rich Client.................44
To export a document to the CMS.............................................................45
To save documents locally.........................................................................45
To save a document locally as a Web Intelligence document..............46
To save a document locally as an Excel file.........................................46
To save a document locally as a PDF file............................................47
To save a document locally as a CSV file............................................48
4 Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide
Contents
To print a document in Web Intelligence Rich Client.................................48
To send a document by E-mail attachment...............................................49
Working with universes in Web Intelligence Rich Client 51Chapter 7
Universe security in Web Intelligence Rich Client.....................................52
To import a universe from the CMS in Web Intelligence Rich Client.........53
Accessing Web Intelligence from InfoView 55Chapter 8
To log in to InfoView...................................................................................56
To log out of InfoView................................................................................57
Web Intelligence InfoView options.............................................................57
Web Intelligence document creation and viewing options...................57
To set Web Intelligence drill options.....................................................60
Web Intelligence locale options............................................................62
Working with queries in Web Intelligence Rich Client 67Chapter 9
How universe objects map to data............................................................68
Classes and subclasses.......................................................................68
Dimension object..................................................................................68
Detail object..........................................................................................68
Measure object.....................................................................................69
Building and using queries........................................................................69
To build and run a query in Web Intelligence Rich Client.....................69
To set query properties.........................................................................70
To interrupt a query..............................................................................71
To remove a query................................................................................72
To duplicate a query.............................................................................72
Multiple queries....................................................................................73
To refresh queries.................................................................................74
Controlling access to queries....................................................................74
Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide 5
Contents
Allow other users to edit all data providers query property..................74
Controlling how queries retrieve data........................................................75
Max retrieval time query property.........................................................75
Max rows retrieved query property.......................................................75
Retrieve duplicate rows query property................................................75
Setting the scope of analysis.....................................................................76
Scope of analysis.................................................................................76
Levels of scope of analysis..................................................................76
To set the scope of analysis.................................................................77
Query contexts...........................................................................................78
What is an ambiguous query?..............................................................78
What is a context?................................................................................78
Choosing a context when you run a query...........................................79
Defining how contexts are used...........................................................79
Using combined queries............................................................................80
Combined queries defined...................................................................80
Types of combined query.....................................................................80
What can you do with combined queries?...........................................81
How does Web Intelligence generate combined queries?...................82
To build a combined query...................................................................82
Combined query structure....................................................................83
Combined query precedence...............................................................84
Merging dimensions from multiple data providers.....................................87
Merged dimensions defined.................................................................87
When to merge dimensions..................................................................87
Choosing which dimensions to merge.................................................88
Merged dimension example.................................................................88
Forcing merged calculations with the ForceMerge function.................90
Creating, editing and deleting merged dimensions..............................92
Understanding the effects of merged dimensions................................94
Filtering queries.......................................................................................102
6 Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide
Contents
Query filters defined...........................................................................102
Query filters and report filters compared............................................103
Types of query filter............................................................................104
Filtering data with subqueries..................................................................111
What is a subquery?...........................................................................111
What can you do with subqueries?....................................................111
How do subqueries work?..................................................................111
To build a subquery............................................................................112
Subquery parameters.........................................................................114
Ranking data using database ranking.....................................................116
What is database ranking?.................................................................116
Database ranking parameters............................................................117
To create a database ranking.............................................................118
Filtering data using prompts....................................................................120
What is a prompt?..............................................................................120
Cascading prompts............................................................................121
Hierarchical lists of values..................................................................122
Query filter and prompt operators......................................................122
To create a prompt.............................................................................125
To remove a prompt...........................................................................126
Defining how prompts display............................................................126
Combining prompts............................................................................128
To change the order of prompts.........................................................128
Working with reports 129Chapter 10
The Java Report Panel reporting interface..............................................130
Web Intelligence viewing modes.............................................................131
To switch between viewing modes.....................................................131
Answering prompts..................................................................................134
To enter values to answer a prompt...................................................134
To enter dates to answer a prompt.....................................................135
Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide 7
Contents
Using alerters to highlight results............................................................136
Alerters defined..................................................................................136
To add, edit, duplicate, prioritize or activate alerters..........................137
To build an alerter...............................................................................138
To set the format of an alerter............................................................139
Using formulas to create advanced alerters.......................................140
Merging dimensions from multiple data providers...................................141
Merged dimensions defined...............................................................141
When to merge dimensions................................................................142
Choosing which dimensions to merge...............................................142
Merged dimension example...............................................................143
Forcing merged calculations with the ForceMerge function...............144
Creating, editing and deleting merged dimensions............................147
Understanding the effects of merged dimensions..............................149
Ranking data in Web Intelligence reports................................................156
Ranking data......................................................................................156
Rankings and sorts.............................................................................157
Tied rankings......................................................................................157
Ranking parameters...........................................................................160
Ranking and data order......................................................................163
Ranking workflows.............................................................................163
Ranking examples..............................................................................164
Tracking changes in data.........................................................................168
Tracking changes in your data...........................................................168
Types of data change.........................................................................169
Data tracking modes..........................................................................169
To activate data tracking.....................................................................170
To change the reference data.............................................................170
Displaying changed data....................................................................171
Data tracking limitations.....................................................................178
Using the Web Intelligence formula language to track changed data.179
8 Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide
Contents
Changed data and the calculation context.........................................181
Organizing data with sections, breaks and sorts.....................................182
Using sections to group data..............................................................182
Using breaks......................................................................................189
Using sorts to organize data...............................................................192
Calculations, formulas and variables.......................................................194
Calculations, formulas and variables.................................................194
Working with standard calculations....................................................195
Working with formulas........................................................................196
Working with variables.......................................................................197
Filtering reports........................................................................................199
Report filters defined..........................................................................199
Types of report filter............................................................................199
Query filters and report filters compared............................................200
Report filter operators.........................................................................200
Creating, editing and deleting report filters........................................203
Drilling on report data..............................................................................206
What is drill?.......................................................................................206
To switch to drill mode........................................................................211
Retrieving more levels of data to the report.......................................211
To choose a drill path when more than one is available.....................212
Drilling on dimensions in tables and sections....................................213
Drilling on measures in tables and sections.......................................218
Synchronizing drill across multiple tables and charts.........................219
Drilling on charts.................................................................................220
Using filters when you drill..................................................................224
Saving reports with drill filters.............................................................226
Refreshing data in a drilled report with prompts.................................226
Drilling with query drill........................................................................226
Displaying data in tables..........................................................................229
Tables in Web Intelligence..................................................................229
Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide 9
Contents
Table types in Web Intelligence..........................................................230
Structure View and Results View.......................................................233
Creating and editing tables.................................................................233
Formatting tables and table cells.......................................................238
Modifying tables to create crosstabs..................................................244
Controlling data display in tables.......................................................244
Copying tables....................................................................................246
Displaying data in free-standing cells......................................................247
Free-standing cells defined................................................................247
To copy a free-standing cell................................................................249
To copy a free-standing cell to another application as text................249
Displaying data in charts..........................................................................250
Creating charts...................................................................................250
Chart types in Web Intelligence..........................................................250
Adding, copying and removing charts................................................254
Changing the chart type.....................................................................255
Positioning and sizing charts..............................................................257
Formatting charts...............................................................................258
Formatting numbers and dates................................................................263
Predefined and custom formats.........................................................263
Get More Help 271Appendix A
Index 275
10 Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide
About Web Intelligence
1
About Web Intelligence
1
How Web Intelligence performs business intelligence over the web
How Web Intelligence performs business
intelligence over the web
Web Intelligence provides business users an easy to use interactive and
flexible user interface for building and analyzing reports on corporate data
over the web, on secured intranets and extranets. The Web Intelligence
software is installed by your administrator on a web server on your corporate
network.
To use Web Intelligence from your local computer, you log into the business
intelligence portal InfoView via your Internet browser. Then, depending on
your security profile, you can interact with the reports in corporate documents
or edit or build your own documents using a Web Intelligence report panel
or query panel.
How Web Intelligence performs business intelligence offline
Web Intelligence can be used offline as Web Intelligence Rich Client, a
standalone Microsoft Windows application, equivalent to the Java Report
Panel, that you can install on your computer. Web Intelligence Rich Client
lets you continue to work with Web Intelligence (WID) documents when you
are unable to connect to a CMS, when you want to perform calculations
locally rather than on the server, and when you want to work with Web
Intelligence documents without installing a CMS or application server.
Web Intelligence Rich Client can also be used when connected to a CMS.
Interacting with Web Intelligence reports
Depending on your security profile and on how Web Intelligence is deployed
across your organization, you can view, analyze, or enhance and modify the
data displayed on reports.
12 Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide
About Web Intelligence
Interacting with Web Intelligence reports
Viewing and printing Web Intelligence reports
Once logged into the business intelligence portal InfoView, you can access
Web Intelligence documents and view reports. Onscreen navigation is made
easy with page-to-page navigation buttons and a document map that allows
you to jump from section to section or report to report.
The same document can provide the information adapted to each user due
to prompts that request each user, who opens the document, to specify the
data they want to return to the reports.
When you print reports, Web Intelligence automatically generates a copy of
reports in Portable Document Format (PDF) format for optimum print quality.
Drilling on Web Intelligence reports
Drilling on Web Intelligence reports enables you to analyze the detailed data
behind the displayed results. You can turn the report you are viewing into a
drillable report or drill on a duplicate of the original report to retain a version
of the results before your drill analysis.
1
Once you have found the information you need, you can save a snapshot
of the drilled report to share the results of your analysis with other Web
Intelligence users, or save the document in Excel or Portable Document
(PDF) format to print or email to other business contacts.
Performing on-report analysis
Viewing Web Intelligence reports in Interactive view format enables you to
enhance reports and fine-tune the data reports contain, to highlight the
information that most interests you on demand.
On-Report Analysis is designed for:
• users who need to build queries and then want to build reports
• report consumers who need to manipulate the reports created by others
With On-Report Analysis you can:
Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide 13
About Web Intelligence
1
Creating and editing Web Intelligence documents
• view document metadata to understand the data behind reports and see
how reports are structured and filtered
• filter and sort results
• add new tables and charts
• add formulas and create variables
• format and change the layout of charts and tables
• slice and dice results by adding other data to charts and tables
Note:
On-report analysis of Web Intelligence reports in Interactive view format is
only available if your administrator has deployed Web Intelligence in JSP
mode.
Creating and editing Web Intelligence
documents
You can create or edit Web Intelligence documents using several tools:
•
Web Intelligence Query - HTML on page 14
•
Web Intelligence Java Report Panel on page 15
•
Web Intelligence Rich Client on page 15
•
Web Intelligence HTML Report Panel on page 16
Web Intelligence Query - HTML
Designed for users requiring a pure HTML environment to build queries,
Web Intelligence Query – HTML offers the ability to define the data content
of documents on multiple data sources. You can use Query – HTML to create
new documents from scratch or edit the queries in documents created using
any of the other Web Intelligence tools.
Used together with On-Report Analysis, Query – HTML provides a complete
solution for building queries and designing powerful reports in a pure HTML
environment. Once you have run the queries to generate a standard report,
you can leverage Web Intelligence On-Report Analysis features to format
multiple reports, add formulas, and create variables.
14 Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide
Creating and editing Web Intelligence documents
Note:
Web Intelligence Query – HTML and On-Report Analysis in Interactive view
format are only available, if your administrator has deployed Web Intelligence
in JSP mode.
Web Intelligence Java Report Panel
The Java Report Panel is designed for users who need more flexibility with
designing report layout and defining formulas and variables. A graphical
Formula Editor enables you to build formulas rapidly using drag-and-drop.
Note:
The Web Intelligence Java Report Panel is available if your administrator
has deployed Web Intelligence in ASP mode and if your administrator has
deployed Web Intelligence in JSP mode.
Web Intelligence Rich Client
About Web Intelligence
1
Web Intelligence Rich Client is a locally installed Microsoft Windows
application that lets you work with Web Intelligence (WID) documents that
are stored locally or in a CMS.
When working without a CMS connection you can work on your local machine
with either CMS-secured or unsecured documents.
Web Intelligence Rich Client is based on the Web Intelligence Java Report
Panel and provides equivalent document creation, editing, formatting, printing
and saving capabilities.
There are a number of reasons for using Web Intelligence Rich Client to
work with WID documents:
• You want to work with Web Intelligence documents but you are unable
to connect to a CMS (while traveling, for example).
• You want to improve calculation performance: Web Intelligence Rich
Client performs calculations locally, rather than on the server, and local
calculations can perform better than server calculations.
• You want to work with Web Intelligence documents without installing a
CMS or application server.
Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide 15
About Web Intelligence
1
Creating and editing Web Intelligence documents
Web Intelligence HTML Report Panel
Designed for users who need to build basic reports, the HTML Report Panel
provides query and report features in a simple wizard-like interface. Each
document is based on a single data source and can contain multiple reports,
displaying different subsets of information.
In addition, the HTML Report Panel is 508 compliant and can be customized
for specialized deployments.
Note:
The Web Intelligence HTML Report Panel is only available if your
administrator has deployed Web Intelligence in JSP mode.
16 Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide
Installing Web Intelligence Rich Client
2
Installing Web Intelligence Rich Client
2
To install Web Intelligence Rich Client from the BusinessObjects Enterprise CD
There are three to install Web Intelligence Rich Client:
• from the BusinessObjects Enterprise CD
• from InfoView
• using silent install
To install Web Intelligence Rich Client
from the BusinessObjects Enterprise CD
• See the Business Objects Enterprise XI 3.1 Installation Guide for full
installation instructions.
To install Web Intelligence Rich Client from InfoView
1. Log into InfoView.
2. Click Preferences at the top right of the InfoView screen.
3. Scroll down and click Web Intelligence Preferences.
4. Click Desktop (Web Intelligence Rich Client required) in the Select a
default creation/editing tool section.
5. Click Document List at the top left of the InfoView screen.
6. Click New > Web Intelligence Document or select an existing document
to edit.
Web Intelligence Rich Client is downloaded to your computer and launched
to create the document.
Note:
If you install Web Intelligence Rich Client from InfoView, the Web Intelligence
Rich Client online help system is not installed to your local computer. If you
work in Connected mode, Web Intelligence Rich Client displays help pages
stored on the server. If you work in Offline or Standalone mode, help pages
are not available.
Related Topics
• Web Intelligence Rich Client working modes on page 25
18 Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide
Installing Web Intelligence Rich Client
Using silent install for large-scale deployments
Using silent install for large-scale
deployments
Using silent install mode you can perform large-scale deployments of Web
Intelligence Rich Client from the command line. You do not see any dialog
boxes and you do not need to perform any actions during the install. Every
option available in the standard install mode is available in silent install mode.
Silent install parameters
The following table lists the command line parameters for a silent install. You
can set these parameters using the command line or the silent installation
file.
Note:
If you specify the same pararameter on the command line and in the file, the
installer uses the command line value.
2
Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide 19
Installing Web Intelligence Rich Client
2
Using silent install for large-scale deployments
ter
ValueDescriptionParame-
/qn
/qn+
Accept
/qnTells the install not to prompt
before or after the installation.
Note:
You must define the CLIENTLANGUAGE parameter as part
of the silent install. If you do not
define CLIENTLANGUAGE, the
language selection prompt appears even when you specify the
/qn parameter.
/qn+Tells the install to prompt when
installation is complete.
Note:
You must define the CLIENTLANGUAGE parameter as part
of the silent install. If you do not
define CLIENTLANGUAGE, the
language selection prompt appears at the beginning of the install even when you specify the
/qn+ parameter.
Accept="Yes" or Accept="No"Specifies whether or not the user
accepts the license agreement.
CLIENT
LANGUAGE
20 Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide
The language used by the installer.
Note:
If you do not specify this parameter, the installer prompts you to
select a language at the beginning of the installation even when
you have selected the /qn or /qn+
parameters.
ter
Installing Web Intelligence Rich Client
Using silent install for large-scale deployments
ValueDescriptionParame-
CLIENTLANGUAGE="<language_code>
List of language codes:
• EN=English
• ZH_CH=Simplefied Chinese
• ZH_TW=Traditional Chinese
• DE=German
• ES=Spanish
• KO=Korean
• NL=Dutch
• JA=Japanese
• PT=Portugese
• SV=Swedish
• RU=Russian
• FR=French
2
COMPANY NAME
ENABLELOGFILE
STALL.LP.<language_code>.SELECTED
INSTALLDIR
The name of the company installing the product.
Specifies if a log file is created
for the installation.
The language packs to install.IN-
The directory where the Web Intelligence Rich Client components are installed.
Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide 21
COMPANYNAME="<company_name>"
• ENABLELOGFILE="0" (log
file not enabled)
• ENABLELOGFILE="1" (log
file enabled)
INSTALL.LP.<language_code>.SELECTED="1"
Note:
The values of <language_code> are the same as
for the CLIENT LANGUAGE
parameter.
INSTALLDIR="<install_directory>"
Installing Web Intelligence Rich Client
2
Using silent install for large-scale deployments
ter
ValueDescriptionParame-
PIDKEY="<license_key>"The product license key.PIDKEY
USERNAME
ADDLOCAL
the license key.
The Web Intelligence Rich Client
features to install.
USERNAME="<user_name>"The user name associated with
ADDLOCAL="<feature_list>"
Example of ADDLOCAL:
ADDLOCAL="Jre,WebIRichClientRoot,Docs,WebIRichClient.Help,WebIRichClient.WebiOfflineApplication,Designer,BDE,DataAccess,Btrieve,CDO,dBase,FieldDefinitions,FileSystem,NTEventLog,Logs,OLAP,MyCube,SOFA,OLE_DB_Data,SymantecACT,TextDA,Universe,XML,DADataFederator,MySQL_DataAccess,GenericODBC,DANETEZZA,Microsoft,DAIBMDB2,IBM,Redbrick,DAIBMInformix,DAProgressOpenEdge,Oracle,SFORCE,SybaseASE,DASybase,SybaseIQ,NCRTeradata,LanguagePackCostingFeature,LanguagePackCostingFeatureen"
Automatically-generated parameters
The following silent install parameters are generated automatically. Do not
modify them in the XXX.ini file.
22 Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide
Parameter
INSTALL SWITCH
Privileged
ADDSOURCE
ADVERTISE
REMOVE
WDEPLOY_LANGUAGES
ApplicationUsers
ProductName
ALLUSERS
Installing Web Intelligence Rich Client
Using silent install for large-scale deployments
2
Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide 23
Installing Web Intelligence Rich Client
Using silent install for large-scale deployments
2
24 Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide
Web Intelligence Rich Client working modes
3
Web Intelligence Rich Client working modes
3
Web Intelligence Rich Client Connected mode
You can work with Web Intelligence Rich Client in three modes: Connected,
Offline, or Standalone.
Web Intelligence Rich Client Connected
mode
In Connected mode, Web Intelligence Rich Client is connected to a CMS.
You can work with documents on the CMS or with local secured or unsecured
documents. According to your security rights in the CMS, you can do the
following:
• import documents from the CMS
• import universes from the CMS
• open local documents
• create documents
• edit documents
• refresh documents
• save documents locally
• export documents to the CMS
Security in Connected mode
When you work with Web Intelligence documents in Connected mode, the
security rights of your user account are applied by the CMS.
Connecting to the CMS in Connected mode
There are two ways of launching Web Intelligence Rich Client, and each
connects to the CMS differently:
• When you launch from InfoView, Web Intelligence Rich Client connects
to the CMS within the same InfoView session, so no login is required.
Communication with the CMS goes via HTTP to an application server,
which reroutes the calls to the CMS and repository. No local middleware
is required.
• When you launch locally, by logging in to Web Intelligence Rich Client
through the Windows Start menu or by double-clicking a Web Intelligence
document, Web Intelligence Rich Client connects to the CMS in
client-server mode via the OCA/CORBA framework of the Enterprise
26 Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide
Web Intelligence Rich Client working modes
Web Intelligence Rich Client Offline mode
SDK. You need the appropriate database middleware on your local
machine.
Related Topics
• To launch Web Intelligence Rich Client in Connected mode locally on
page 31
• To launch Web Intelligence Rich Client in Connected mode from InfoView
on page 30
Web Intelligence Rich Client Offline
mode
In Offline mode, Web Intelligence Rich Client is not connected to a CMS but
applies CMS security. You can work with local documents and universes
that are secured by the CMS you select at login, or with unsecured local
documents and universes. You can do the following:
• open local documents
• create documents (requires local universe and local connection server)
• edit documents
• refresh documents (requires local universe and local connection server)
• save documents locally
3
In Offline mode, you cannot import documents from or export documents to
a CMS.
Security in Offline mode
When you connect to a CMS in Connected mode, your security rights in that
CMS are downloaded to your computer. Each document and universe
downloaded from a CMS contains within it an access control list identifying
groups and users that have access rights to the document. In Offline mode,
Web Intelligence Rich Client applies CMS security rights by matching the
access rights for the document or universe against the locally stored security
file. For example, if a document was downloaded from a CMS to your local
machine, and you do not have the right to open the document in the CMS
from which it was downloaded, you cannot open the document on your local
machine.
Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide 27
Web Intelligence Rich Client working modes
3
Web Intelligence Rich Client Standalone mode
Note:
Before you can work in Offline mode with documents or universes secured
by a CMS, you must first have connected to that CMS at least once in
Connected mode. This allows Web Intelligence Rich Client to download the
CMS security information to your local machine, and to display the CMS as
a choice in the System list on the login page. You can then log in in Offline
mode and work with no CMS connection because Web Intelligence Rich
Client reads the CMS security information in the local file.
Technical notes
• When working in Offline mode, you must have the appropriate universes
and database middleware installed on the same machine as Web
Intelligence Rich Client to be able to create or refresh documents. If you
do not, you can still open, edit, and save documents locally as long as
you have the appropriate security rights.
• The security information for a CMS is stored in a local security information
file (extension LSI) in the LocData folder under My Business Objects
Documents in the My Documents folder. One computer can store LSI
files for several CMSs.
Web Intelligence Rich Client Standalone
mode
In Standalone mode, Web Intelligence Rich Client is not connected to a CMS
and no security is enforced. You can work with local, unsecured documents
and universes only. You can do the following:
• open documents
• create documents
• edit documents
• refresh documents
• save documents locally
You cannot import documents from or export documents to a CMS.
The middleware required to create and refresh local, unsecured documents
with local, unsecured universes must be installed on the computer with Web
Intelligence Rich Client.
28 Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide
Launching Web Intelligence Rich Client
4
Launching Web Intelligence Rich Client
4
To launch Web Intelligence Rich Client in Connected mode from InfoView
You can launch Web Intelligence Rich Client in any of its three working
modes:
• Connected
• Offline
• Standalone
You can run multiple instances of Web Intelligent Rich Client simultaneously,
in any mode and connected to any available CMS.
The CMS connection status and the current Web Intelligence Rich Client
working mode are shown in the status bar on the lower right of the screen.
Related Topics
• Web Intelligence Rich Client working modes on page 25
To launch Web Intelligence Rich Client
in Connected mode from InfoView
In Connected mode, security is handled by the CMS. You work with reports
in Web Intelligence Rich Client as you do with the Java Report Panel. You
do not need database middleware on your local machine when you launch
in Connected mode from InfoView.
1. Log into InfoView.
2. Click Preferences at the top right of the InfoView screen.
3. On the Preferences page, scroll down and click Web Intelligence
Preferences.
4. In the Select a default creation/editing tool section, click Desktop (Web
Intelligence Rich Client required).
5. Click OK.
6. At the top left of the screen, click Document List.
7. Open an existing document or click New > Web Intelligence Document
to create a new document.
Web Intelligence Rich Client is launched on your computer in Connected
mode. If it is not yet installed on your computer, it is installed from
InfoView.
30 Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide
Launching Web Intelligence Rich Client
To launch Web Intelligence Rich Client in Connected mode locally
If Web Intelligence Rich Client was already running on your computer,
launching from InfoView opens a new instance of the application. The
document is not opened in the application instance that was already open.
Related Topics
• Web Intelligence Rich Client working modes on page 25
To launch Web Intelligence Rich Client
in Connected mode locally
To launch Web Intelligence Rich Client in Connected mode locally, Web
Intelligence Rich Client must be installed on your computer. You must have
already connected at least once to the CMS you want to work with using
Web Intelligence Rich Client via InfoView.
You need to have the middleware required to connect to the CMS installed
on your computer.
In Connected mode, security is handled by the CMS. You work with reports
in Web Intelligence Rich Client as you do with the Java Report Panel.
4
When you launch Web Intelligence Rich Client in Connected mode locally,
you have a client-server connection to the CMS. In this case, you can log
out and log in again within the same application session by clicking Tools
> Login As.
1. Start Web Intelligence Rich Client locally in either of two ways:
• Click Start > Programs > BusinessObjects XI 3.1 >
BusinessObjects Enterprise > Web Intelligence Rich Client
• In Windows Explorer, associate the WID file type with Web Intelligence
Rich Client, and then double-click a Web Intelligence (WID) file.
The Web Intelligence login page opens.
2. Select a CMS in the System list.
An icon shows what kind of connection was used for the last connection
with the CMS:
• An icon of a desktop computer means Web Intelligence Rich Client
last connected to this CMS in client-server mode (local launch from
the client computer). The name of the CMS is the server name.
Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide 31
Launching Web Intelligence Rich Client
4
To launch Web Intelligence Rich Client in Offline mode
• An icon of a globe means Web Intelligence Rich Client last connected
to this CMS in HTTP mode (connection via InfoView). The name of
the CMS is the full name of the connected cluster.
3. Enter a valid user name and password.
4. Select an authentication mode from the list.
Do not choose Standalone if you want to work in Connected mode. When
you choose Standalone authentication you work in Standalone mode,
with no CMS connection.
5. Make sure the Use in Offline Mode option is not selected.
6. Click Log In.
Web Intelligence Rich Client is launched in Connected mode. If Web
Intelligence Rich Client was already running on your computer, launching it
again opens a new instance of the application. If you double-clicked a Web
Intelligence document, the document will not be opened in the application
instance that was already open.
Related Topics
• Web Intelligence Rich Client working modes on page 25
To launch Web Intelligence Rich Client
in Offline mode
To launch Web Intelligence Rich Client in Offline mode, Web Intelligence
Rich Client must be installed on your computer. You must have already
connected at least once to the CMS you want to work with using Web
Intelligence Rich Client via InfoView.
In Offline mode, Web Intelligence Rich Client uses the locally stored security
file of the CMS you want to work with to authenticate documents. You cannot
import to or export from the CMS. To create or refresh documents, you need
to have a connection server installed on your computer.
1. Start Web Intelligence Rich Client in Offline mode in either of two ways:
• Click Start > Programs > BusinessObjects XI 3.1 >
BusinessObjects Enterprise > Web Intelligence Rich Client
• In Windows Explorer, associate the WID file type with Web Intelligence
Rich Client, and then double-click a Web Intelligence (WID) file.
The Web Intelligence login page opens.
32 Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide
Launching Web Intelligence Rich Client
To launch Web Intelligence Rich Client in Standalone mode
2. Select a CMS in the System list.
3. Enter a valid user name and password.
4. Select an authentication mode from the list.
Do not choose Standalone if you want to work in Connected mode. When
you choose Standalone authentication you work in Standalone mode,
with no CMS connection.
5. Select the Offline Mode option.
6. Click Log In.
Web Intelligence Rich Client is launched in Offline mode. If Web Intelligence
Rich Client was already running on your computer, launching it again opens
a new instance of the application. If you double-clicked a Web Intelligence
document, the document will not be opened in the application instance that
was already open.
Related Topics
• Web Intelligence Rich Client working modes on page 25
• Installing Web Intelligence Rich Client on page 17
4
To launch Web Intelligence Rich Client
in Standalone mode
To launch Web Intelligence Rich Client in Standalone mode, Web Intelligence
Rich Client must be installed on your computer.
Any middleware required to work with unsecured documents and universes
must be installed on your computer.
In Standalone mode, you cannot work with documents or universes that have
been secured by a CMS.
1. Start Web Intelligence Rich Client in Standalone mode in either of two
ways:
• Click Start > Programs > BusinessObjects XI 3.1 >
BusinessObjects Enterprise > Web Intelligence Rich Client
• In Windows Explorer, associate the WID file type with Web Intelligence
Rich Client, and then double-click a Web Intelligence (WID) file.
The Web Intelligence login page opens.
2. Select Standalone in the Authentication list.
Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide 33
Launching Web Intelligence Rich Client
4
To log into Web Intelligence Rich Client as a different user
The System, User Name, and Password boxes, as well as the Use in
Offline Mode option, are grayed.
3. Click Log In.
Web Intelligence Rich Client is launched in Standalone mode. If Web
Intelligence Rich Client was already running on your computer, launching it
again opens a new instance of the application. If you double-clicked a Web
Intelligence document, the document will not be opened in the application
instance that was already open.
Related Topics
• Installing Web Intelligence Rich Client on page 17
• Web Intelligence Rich Client working modes on page 25
To log into Web Intelligence Rich Client
as a different user
To log into Web Intelligence Rich Client as a different user without exiting
the application, you must have launched Web Intelligence Rich Client via
the Windows Start menu or by double-clicking a local WID file, and then
connected to the CMS in Connected mode.
1. Save any open documents.
2. Click Tools > Login As.
If any documents have not been saved, you are asked if you want to save
them.
3. When you are asked if you are sure you want to log out, click Yes.
Any open documents are closed.
4. In the User Identification box, enter your login information and click OK.
Related Topics
• To launch Web Intelligence Rich Client in Connected mode locally on
page 31
• Web Intelligence Rich Client working modes on page 25
34 Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide
To set user preferences in Web Intelligence Rich Client
5
To set user preferences in Web Intelligence Rich Client
5
Web Intelligence Rich Client general preferences
1. Click Tools > Options.
The Preferences dialog box opens.
2. Click one of the tabs:
• General: to set general preferences
• Viewing: to set document viewing preferences
• Locale: to set preferences for interface and formatting locales and
how to use them
• Drilling: to set document drill preferences
3. Set preferences and click OK.
The preferences are now applied. They are stored in a file in the LocData
folder under the BusinessObjects Enterprise 12.0 installation folder.
Web Intelligence Rich Client general
preferences
You set general preferences for Web Intelligence Rich Client by clicking
Tools > Options and clicking the General tab of the Preferences box.
General
In the General section, you choose whether to show the welcome wizard
each time Web Intelligence Rich Client is started. The welcome wizard lets
you select from a list of recently used universes or browse for more data
sources to create a new document.
Select default universe
In this section, you choose whether to select a default universe for new
documents. The default universe is pre-selected in the Universe dialog box
when you create a new document. When creating a document, you can use
the default universe or select another one.
• No default universe means that no universe in the list is pre-selected
when you open the Universe dialog box. You must select a universe from
the list when creating a document.
• The other choice shows the name of the default universe, or None if no
default universe has been selected. To choose a default universe, click
Browse, then browse to and select a universe.
36 Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide
To set user preferences in Web Intelligence Rich Client
Web Intelligence Rich Client viewing preferences
Select default folders
In this section, you choose the default folders in which to store user
documents, universes, and help files. To change the default locations, click
Browse, then browse to and select a folder.
Note:
If Web Intelligence Rich Client was downloaded and installed from InfoView,
help files are not installed locally. However, they are installed on the InfoView
server. Contact your company's Business Objects administrator to get the
URL of the help files on the server, then enter the URL here for help to be
available.
Select Microsoft Excel format
In this section you choose the format to use when you save a document in
Microsoft Excel format.
• Prioritize easy data processing in the Excel document: the Excel
document will be formatted to ensure efficient data processing.
• Prioritize the format of reports in the Excel document: the Excel
document will be formatted to ensure optimum readability.
5
Web Intelligence Rich Client viewing
preferences
You set general preferences for Web Intelligence Rich Client by clicking
Tools > Options and clicking the Viewing tab of the Preferences box.
General
In this section, you set the unit of measurement for report display: pixel, inch,
or centimeter.
Grid
In this section you set grid options:
• Show grid: When this is selected, a grid is displayed to help align page
elements.
• Snap to grid: When this is selected, page elements align to the grid to
enable accurate repositioning.
• Grid spacing: This defines the distance between lines on the grid.
Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide 37
To set user preferences in Web Intelligence Rich Client
5
Web Intelligence Rich Client locale preferences
Web Intelligence Rich Client locale
preferences
You set locale preferences for Web Intelligence Rich Client by clicking Tools
> Options and clicking the Locale tab of the Preferences box.
Locale
In this section, you set preferences for interface and formatting locales. A
locale is a combination of language and geographical area.
• Select interface locale: Select an available locale to set the application
interface language. If you change this setting, you must restart Web
Intelligence Rich Client for the change to be taken into account.
• Select formatting locale: Select an available locale to determine
locale-specific formatting (for example, date and time formats). If you
change this setting, any documents that are open must be closed and
reopened for the new formatting locale to be applied.
When viewing a document
In this section, you set how the formatting locale is decided:
• Use the document locale to format the data: When this is selected,
data is formatted according to the document locale. The document locale
can be saved with the document by means of the permanent regional
formatting option that you can select when saving.
• Use my formatting locale to format the data: When this is selected,
data is formatted according to your formatting locale preference. This
overrides the document locale.
Web Intelligence Rich Client drill preferences
You set drill preferences for Web Intelligence Rich Client by clicking Tools
> Options and clicking the Drilling tab of the Preferences box.
For each new drill session
In this section, you choose how to start a new drill session:
38 Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide
To set user preferences in Web Intelligence Rich Client
To change your password
• Start drill on duplicate report: When you start a new drill session, a
duplicate report is opened in the document and you drill on the duplicate.
When you end drill mode, both the original report and the drilled report
remain in the document.
• Start drill on existing report: When you start a new drill session, the
current report becomes drillable. When you end drill mode, the report
displays the drilled values.
General drill options
• Prompt if drill requires additional data: You are prompted when Web
Intelligence needs to retrieve additional data to complete the drill, and
can decide whether to go ahead. If the amount of data is large, the retrieval
can take time and you may decide not to drill. When this option is not
selected, Web Intelligence retrieves the additional data without prompting
you.
• Synchronize drill on report blocks: When this is selected, drilled values
are shown in all the report blocks in the report. When it is not selected,
drilled values are shown only in the report block selected for the drill.
• Hide drill toolbar: When this is selected, the drill toolbar that is normally
displayed at the top of drilled reports is not shown. The drill toolbar
displays the value on which you drilled. It is only useful if you want to
select filters during your drill session.
5
To change your password
You can only change your password from Web Intelligence Rich Client if you
are in client-server connection mode: you must have launched Web
Intelligence Rich Client locally rather than from InfoView.
1. Click Tools > Change Password.
2. Type your current password in the Enter Old Password box.
3. Type your new password in the Enter New Password box.
4. Type your new password again in the Confirm New Password box.
Your password is changed to the new password.
Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide 39
To set user preferences in Web Intelligence Rich Client
To change your password
5
40 Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide
Working with documents
6
Working with documents
6
To create a new document in Web Intelligence Rich Client
To create a new document in Web
Intelligence Rich Client
To create a new document in Web Intelligence Rich Client in Offline mode,
you need to have a connection server installed on your computer.
1. Click Document > New.
2. In the New Document dialog box, click Universe and then Next.
3. In the Universe dialog box, select a universe.
The query panel opens to let you build your report.
To select a universe in Web Intelligence Rich Client
1. Select a universe in the Available Universes list.
A description of the universe appears in the Help on selected universe
box.
2. Click OK.
The query panel opens, showing the universe's data in the Data tab.
You can now use the query panel to build queries in your document.
To import documents from the CMS
1. Click Document > Import from CMS.
2. Locate the files you want to import:
• To search in folders, click Folders and select the CMS folder from
which to choose one or more documents to import.
• To search in categories, click Categories and select the categories
in which you want to search.
The files that meet the criteria are displayed on the right.
3. To filter the search results, click the Search list and choose a filter:
• Search title
• Search keyword
• Search description
42 Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide
Working with documents
To import documents from the CMS
• Search comments
4. In the text box, type the text that you want to search for in the element
you selected (title, keyword, description, or comments), then press Enter.
Documents in the list that do not match the criteria are removed from the
list.
5. Select one or more documents in the list and click Add.
6. Click Overwrite imported files to have the imported file overwrite the
existing version of the file, if any.
7. Click Import.
8. Click Close.
The documents you selected are installed on your disk. If you selected Open
documents on retrieval, they will be opened. Any documents that were
already open will remain open in addition.
To select document instances to import from the CMS
When you import documents from the CMS, more than one instance of the
same document may be available. In the Import Documents dialog box, you
can see the number of instances of a document and import one or more.
1. Click Document > Import from CMS.
The Import Documents dialog box opens, in which you can locate the
CMS documents you want to import.
6
2. If a document you want to import has multiple instances, double-click in
the Instances column.
The Import document instances dialog box opens.
Related Topics
• To import document instances from the CMS on page 43
To import document instances from the CMS
Before you can import document instances from the CMS, you must open
the Import Documents dialog box (Document > Import from CMS) and
double-click in the Instances column for a report with multiple instances, to
open the "Instances" dialog box.
Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide 43
Working with documents
6
To open a document in Web Intelligence Rich Client
1. In the "Instances" dialog box, select one or more document instances
from the list.
2. Click Open on retrieval if you want the document instances to open when
they have been imported.
3. Click Import.
4. Click Close.
The document instances are imported from the CMS to your computer.
To open a document in Web Intelligence
Rich Client
In Web Intelligence Rich Client, you can open and work with more than one
document in the same session.
1. Click Document > Open.
2. In the Open a document dialog box, select a document.
When you are working in Connected mode, you cannot open local
CMS-secured documents. You can only open documents on the CMS
itself and local, unsecured documents.
3. Click Open.
Related Topics
• Web Intelligence Rich Client working modes on page 25
To work with open documents in Web Intelligence Rich Client
In Web Intelligence Rich Client, you can have more than one document open
in the same session. Open documents are displayed on separate tabs within
the document window and appear as a list in the Window menu.
• With more than one document open, choose the one you want to display
in any of three ways:
• Click the Window menu and select a document.
• Click the tab corresponding to the document.
44 Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide
Working with documents
To export a document to the CMS
• On the top right of the document tab bar, click the Show List icon to
display and select the document.
The document is displayed. Other documents remain open in the background.
To export a document to the CMS
Documents are exported to the CMS in their current state, including all
modifications made since they were created or opened. This means that in
addition to locally saved documents, you can export a document to the CMS
without saving it locally. A newly created document that is exported before
being saved will be given the name "Document X", where X is the document
creation order in the session.
1. With the document you want to export open, click Document > Export
to CMS.
2. In the Export Document dialog box, click the Folders tab, then select the
folder in which you want the document to be published.
3. To associate a category with the document, click the Categories tab and
select one or more available categories.
4. Click Export.
Once you have started the export, you cannot cancel it.
An "Export successful" message appears at the bottom if export was
successful.
6
5. Click Close.
The document is exported to the CMS, where it is available in the folder you
chose, associated with the categories you chose.
To save documents locally
You can save Web Intelligence documents locally from Web Intelligence
Rich Client in the following formats:
• Web Intelligence document format (WID)
• Excel
• PDF
• Comma-separated values (CSV)
1. Select the document format in the Files of type list in the "Save As" dialog
box.
Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide 45
Working with documents
6
To save documents locally
The dialog box displays the options associated with the format.
2. Set the options associated with the file format, then save the document.
Note:
You cannot save a document if All Files is selected in the Files of type
list.
To save a document locally as a Web Intelligence document
1. Click File > Save As > Web Intelligence Document on the main menu.
The "Save Document" dialog box appears.
2. Type the document name in the File name box.
3. Type the document description (optional) and keywords to identify the
document (optional) in the Description and Keywords boxes.
4. Set the document options.
DescriptionOption
Refresh on open
Permanent regional formatting
Save for all users
Remove document security
The data in the document is automatically refreshed
when the document is opened.
The current regional settings (locale) for formatting are
applied no matter what the locale is on the machine
where the document is opened.
The document can be opened by any user in the same
user group.
All security is removed from the document. The document is no longer associated with a CMS and can be
opened by any user.
To save a document locally as an Excel file
1. Click File > Save As > Excel on the main menu.
The "Save Document" dialog box appears.
46 Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide
Working with documents
To save documents locally
2. Select the folder where you want to save the document from the Save in
list.
3. Type the name of the Excel file in the File name box.
4. Select the reports to export in the Select reports list.
Each selected report appears as a worksheet in the Excel file. Web
Intelligence also starts a new Excel worksheet for each 65K of exported
data.
5. Select the export option.
DescriptionOption
6
Prioritize data processing
Prioritize formatting
This option avoids merging multiple Web Intelligence cells
into Excel cells as much as possible to exploit the data
processing features of Excel.
This option attemps to match the layout and formatting of
the Web Intelligence document as closely as possible in the
Excel file. As a trade-off, this option does not exploit the
data processing features of Excel to the same extent.
To save a document locally as a PDF file
1. Click File > Save As > PDF on the main menu.
The "Save Document" dialog box appears.
2. Select the folder where you want to save the document from the Save in
list.
3. Type the name of the PDF file in the File name box.
4. Select the reports to export in the Select reports list.
Each selected report appears with its own bookmark in the PDF file.
5. To export the currently-selected report only, select Current report.
6. To export all pages of the currently-selected report, select All pages.
7. To export the currently-selected page of the currently-selected report,
select Current page.
8. To export a range of pages from the currently-selected report, select
Page(s), then enter the page range in the From and To boxes.
Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide 47
Working with documents
6
To print a document in Web Intelligence Rich Client
To save a document locally as a CSV file
1. Click File > Save As > CSV (data only) on the main menu.
The "Save Document" dialog box appears.
2. Select the folder where you want to save the document from the Save in
list.
3. Type the name of the CSV file in the File name box.
4. Select the text qualifier from the Text qualifier list.
The text qualifier encloses the data in each column in the CSV file.
5. Select the column delimeter from the Column delimeter list.
The column delimeter separates the columns in the CSV file.
6. Select the character set from the Charset list, or select Enter a new
charset and type the name of the character set.
7. Select Set as default values to set the values you chose for these options
as the default values when saving to CSV.
To print a document in Web Intelligence
Rich Client
1. Click Document > Print.
2. In the Print dialog box, select a printer.
3. Select your print options.
• To print all reports in the document, click All reports.
• To print all pages of the current report, click Current Report and then
All.
• To print only the current page of the current report, click Current
Report and then Current Page.
• To print specific pages in the current report, click Current Report and
then Pages. In the Pages box, enter the pages to print. For a range
of pages, enter the first and last pages separated by a dash. Enter a
comma as a separator between pages or page ranges.
4. Select the page size from the Page Size list.
5. Select the size of the top, left, right, and bottom margins in the Margins
section.
48 Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide
Working with documents
To send a document by E-mail attachment
The unit of measurement for the margins is controlled from the Viewing
tab of the Preferences dialog box (Tools > Options.)
6. Select portrait or landscape page orientation in the Orientation section.
7. Select the number of copies to print in the Copies section.
8. Click OK.
To send a document by E-mail attachment
To send a document as an email attachment you must an email application
installed on your computer.
1. With a Web Intelligence document open, click Document > Send by
E-mail attachment.
If several documents are open, the document currently displayed on
screen is the one that is sent as an E-mail attachment.
2. Choose the format in which to send the document:
• Web Intelligence document (.WID)
• As unsecured WID
• As PDF
• As Excel
The email application opens a new E-mail message with the document
attached. The "Subject" line of the E-mail is the name of the document.
The document that is attached is saved in the format you selected,
including any modifications made since it was created or opened.
6
3. In the E-mail message, fill in the "To" line, and if desired change the
"Subject" line and write a message in the body of the E-mail.
4. Send the E-mail.
Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide 49
Working with documents
To send a document by E-mail attachment
6
50 Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide
Working with universes in Web Intelligence Rich Client
7
Working with universes in Web Intelligence Rich Client
7
Universe security in Web Intelligence Rich Client
Universe security in Web Intelligence
Rich Client
Universe security in Connected mode
When you work with Web Intelligence Rich Client in Connected mode, you
access CMS universes remotely. The CMS applies the security rights directly,
exactly as if you were working with Web Intelligence through InfoView in
your browser.
In Connected mode, you cannot access local, CMS-secured universes. You
must access the CMS universes remotely.
Universe security in Offline mode
To create or refresh a report in Offline mode, you must have first connected
to the CMS in Connected mode. When you work in Connected mode with a
CMS, a local security information (LSI) file is downloaded to your computer
containing your security rights to the resources in the CMS.
When you try to create or refresh a report in Offline mode, you can use:
• locally installed universes that are not secured by the CMS
• locally installed universes which you are authorized to access, as verified
by the LSI file
You cannot access universes on the CMS remotely, because in Offline mode
you are working without a CMS connection.
Note that you need to have a Connection Server installed on your computer
with Web Intelligence Rich Client in order to create or refresh documents in
Offline mode.
Universe security in Standalone mode
In Standalone mode, you work with no security and no connection to the
CMS. You can work with unsecured, locally installed universes only.
The middleware required to create and refresh local, unsecured documents
with local, unsecured universes must be installed on the computer with Web
Intelligence Rich Client.
52 Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide
Working with universes in Web Intelligence Rich Client
To import a universe from the CMS in Web Intelligence Rich Client
Related Topics
• Launching Web Intelligence Rich Client on page 29
• Web Intelligence Rich Client working modes on page 25
To import a universe from the CMS in
Web Intelligence Rich Client
You can import a universe from the CMS in Connected mode only. Import
is automatic to provide a universe that is required to create or refresh a
document. However, you may want to import universes first to be able to
then work with them offline.
1. Click Tools > Universes.
The list of available universes appears in the Universe dialog box. These
include both local and CMS universes. Universes that have already been
imported are indicated with a green check mark.
2. Select one or more universes to import.
3. Click Import.
7
The universes you selected are imported from the CMS to your computer,
together with their dependencies (derived or core universes).
Related Topics
• To launch Web Intelligence Rich Client in Connected mode locally on
page 31
• To launch Web Intelligence Rich Client in Connected mode from InfoView
on page 30
• Web Intelligence Rich Client working modes on page 25
Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide 53
Working with universes in Web Intelligence Rich Client
To import a universe from the CMS in Web Intelligence Rich Client
7
54 Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide
Accessing Web Intelligence from InfoView
8
Accessing Web Intelligence from InfoView
8
To log in to InfoView
You access Web Intelligence reports and set global Web Intelligence options
from InfoView, the corporate business intelligence portal.
To log in to InfoView
Before you can use InfoView and Web Intelligence you need the following
information:
• a URL to the InfoView server
• the InfoView server name and port number
• your login and password
• your authentication, which controls the InfoView resources available to
you
Contact your adminstrator for these details if you do not already know them.
Note:
By default the InfoView server name and authentification method are not
displayed on the InfoView logon page. You need to supply this information
only if your administrator has made these options visible.
You access Web Intelligence by using your web browser to log into InfoView,
the corporate business intelligence portal. Once you are in InfoView, you
can analyze and enhance Web Intelligence reports.
1. Launch your web browser.
2. Point your browser to the InfoView bookmark or URL.
The InfoView login page appears.
3. If the System box is blank, type the name of the InfoView server followed
by a colon (:), and then type the port number.
4. In the Username box, type your user name.
5. In the Password box, type your password.
6. In the Authentication box, select the authentication provided to you by
your administrator.
7. Click Log On.
The InfoView home page appears.
56 Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide
Accessing Web Intelligence from InfoView
To log out of InfoView
To log out of InfoView
When you finish using InfoView or Web Intelligence you need to log out,
instead of simply closing your web browser.
Logging out of InfoView ensures that any preferences you modified during
your InfoView session are saved. It also lets your administrator track how
many users are logged into the system at any given time and thus optimize
InfoView and Web Intelligence performance.
• Click Log Out.
The login page appears. You are logged out of InfoView
Web Intelligence InfoView options
Web Intelligence document creation and viewing options
8
You can set your Web Intelligence options to determine how you create,
view and interact with documents using Web Intelligence.
You create documents using a query editor to build the query to retrieve the
document data. After the query returns the data to the document, you can
view and interact with the data.
Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide 57
Accessing Web Intelligence from InfoView
8
Web Intelligence InfoView options
Advanced
DescriptionDocument creation option
You create documents using the
Java Report Panel, a Java applet
than launches in your Web browser.
The Java Report Panel is a combined query building, report editing
and data analysis environment. If
you choose Advanced as your
document creation option, you also
use the Java Report Panel for
working with the data returned by
the query. The Select a default
view format option is not taken into
account.
The Java Report Panel provides
the richest feature set of all Web
Intelligence query building, report
editing and data analysis environments.
Interactive
Desktop
Web Accessibility
58 Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide
You build queries using Query HTML, an HTML-based query editor.
You build queries, edit reports and
analyze data using Web Intelligence Rich Client, a standalone
version of the Java Report Panel
that runs outside your web browser.
You create documents using the
HTML Report Panel, a 508-compliant
query-building and report-viewing
environment.
Accessing Web Intelligence from InfoView
Web Intelligence InfoView options
You can use the following view formats to view and interact with existing
Web Intelligence documents, or documents that you have just created using
a query editor:
DescriptionView format
Use Web (HTML) format when you
Web
Interactive
want to open reports, answer prompts,
navigate reports, and/or perform drill
analysis.
Use Interactive format when you
want to apply filters, sorts, calculations, modify formatting and data
displayed on tables and charts,
and/or perform drill analysis.
Use Interactive format if you are using Query – HTML to define queries,
and you want to format reports based
on those queries and add formulas
and variables.
8
Interactive view format is only available if your administrator has deployed Web Intelligence in JSP
mode.
PDF
Use PDF mode when you want to view
static reports.
To select the Web Intelligence query editor
1. Click the Preferences button on the InfoView toolbar.
2. Click Web Intelligence Preferences to display the Web Intelligence
options.
3. Select the query editor beneath Select a default creation/editing tool.
4. Click OK.
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Accessing Web Intelligence from InfoView
8
Web Intelligence InfoView options
To select the Web Intelligence view format
You can select different view formats for Web Intelligence documents
depending on how you want to interact with the information displayed on the
reports. You select your Web Intelligence view options in InfoView. When
you modify your view options, the new settings are implemented the next
time you open a Web Intelligence document.
1. Click the Preferences button on the InfoView toolbar.
2. Click Web Intelligence Preferences to display the Web Intelligence
options.
3. In the Select a view format section, select the view format.
To select a default universe for new documents
1. Click Preferences on the Infoview toolbar.
2. ClickWeb Intelligence Preferences to display the Web Intelligence
options.
3. Click Browse beneath Select a default universe and browse to the
universe you want to select as the default.
To set Web Intelligence drill options
Drilling on reports lets you look deeper into data to discover the details behind
a good or bad summary result displayed on a table, chart, or section. Before
you begin a drill session, you can set your drill options in InfoView to specify
how reports will change each time you drill.
1. Click Preferences on the Infoview toolbar.
2. Click Web Intelligence Preferences to display the Web Intelligence
options.
3. Select the drill options under Drill options and Start drill session.
60 Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide
Hide drill toolbar option
When you drill on a value displayed on a report, the Drill toolbar appears
and displays the value on which you drilled. The value displayed on the
toolbar filters the results displayed on the drilled report.
For example, if you drill on year 2001, the results displayed on the drilled
table are Q1, Q2, Q3, and Q4 for year 2001. This means that the quarterly
values you drilled to are filtered by 2001.
Note:
If the drilled report includes dimensions from multiple queries, a ToolTip
appears when you rest your cursor on the value displayed on the filter. The
ToolTip displays the name of the query and the dimension for the value.
The Drill toolbar allows you to select alternative values on the same level,
in order to filter the results differently. For example, if you use the Drill toolbar
illustrated above to select “2002,? the results displayed on the drilled table
would be Q1, Q2, Q3, and Q4 for year 2002.
You can opt to hide the Drill toolbar when you start drill mode. The Drill
toolbar is only useful if you want to select filters during your drill session.
Accessing Web Intelligence from InfoView
Web Intelligence InfoView options
8
Prompt when drill requires additional data option
When you drill the results displayed on a Web Intelligence report, you may
want to drill to higher- or lower-level information that isn’t included in the
scope of analysis for the document. When this is the case, Web Intelligence
needs to run a new query to retrieve the additional data from the data source.
Since queries on large selections of data may take a long time to be
completed, you can choose to be prompted with a message every time a
new query is necessary. The prompt message asks you whether you want
to run the additional query or not. In addition, the prompt lets you apply filters
to the extra dimensions you include in the new query. This means you can
restrict the size of the query to only the data necessary for your analysis.
You need permission from your administrator to drill out of the scope of
analysis during a drill session.
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8
Web Intelligence InfoView options
Synchronize drill on report blocks option
When you select the Sychronize drill on all report blocks option, the display
of all blocks changes to correspond with your drill actions. For example, if
you drill down on a block from year to quarter, and your report also contains
a chart showing data by year, the chart display also changes to display data
by quarter.
If you do not select the option, only the drilled block changes in response to
drill actions.
Start drill session option
The Start drill session option controls how Web Intelligence behaves when
you start drill mode.
Start drill session on existing report option
When you select Start drill session on existing report, the current report
becomes drillable when you start drill mode. When you end drill mode, the
report displays the drilled values.
Start drill session on a duplicate report option
When you select Start drill on a duplicate report, Web Intelligence creates
a duplicate of the current report when you start drill mode, and you drill on
the duplicate. This allows you to compare the results of the original report
with the results you discover during your drill analysis.
Web Intelligence locale options
The locale determines how a Web Intelligence document displays data. It
affects, for example, the formatting of numbers and the default sort order.
Three locale settings combine to determine how Web Intelligence displays
data:
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Accessing Web Intelligence from InfoView
Web Intelligence InfoView options
DescriptionLocale
8
Product locale
Document locale
Preferred viewing locale
Related Topics
• To permanently associate a locale with a document on page 64
The product locale
The product locale is the locale that InfoView uses by default. You set the
product locale in the Infoview General preferences.
To set the product locale
1. Click Preferences on the main InfoView toolbar.
2. Click General to display the general options.
3. Select the product locale from the Product locale list.
The locale in which InfoView displays
data by default.
The locale associated with a particular
Web Intelligence document. When you
save a document, the document locale
becomes the current product locale or
the preferred viewing locale.
You can permanently associate a locale with a document.
The locale in which you choose to view
documents
The document locale
The document locale is the locale associated with a particular document. By
default, the document takes the product locale when you save a document,
or the preferred viewing locale if this is different from the product locale and
your settings give the preferred viewing locale priority. The document retains
this locale until the next time it is saved, when it again takes either the product
locale or the preferred viewing locale.
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8
Web Intelligence InfoView options
Note:
The GetContentLocale Web Intelligence function returns the document
locale.
Related Topics
• To permanently associate a locale with a document on page 64
To display data using the document locale
1. Click Web Intelligence Preferences to display the Web Intelligence
options.
2. Click Use the document locale to format the data beneath When
viewing a document.
The preferred viewing locale
The preferred viewing locale is the locale that you choose to dislay data. The
preferred viewing locale overrides the product locale if it is different from the
product locale and your settings give the preferred viewing locale priority.
To set the preferred viewing locale
1. Click Preferences on the main InfoView toolbar.
2. Click General to display the general options.
3. Select the preferred viewing locale from the Preferred viewing locale
list.
4. Click Web Intelligence Preferences to display the Web Intelligence
options.
5. If you want data to be formatted using the preferred viewing locale, click
Use my Preferred Viewing Locale to format the data beneath When
viewing a document.
To permanently associate a locale with a document
1. In Web Intelligence Interactive, select Document > Properties from the
menu to display the" Document Properties" dialog box.
2. Select Permanent regional formatting.
3. Save the document.
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Web Intelligence InfoView options
The current document locale is associated permanently with the document
and overrides the product locale and the preferred viewing locale.
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Web Intelligence InfoView options
8
66 Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide
Working with queries in Web Intelligence Rich Client
9
Working with queries in Web Intelligence Rich Client
9
How universe objects map to data
How universe objects map to data
Classes and subclasses
Objects are grouped into folders called classes. Each class can also contain
one or more subclasses. Subclasses contain objects that are a further
subcategory of the objects in the upper level of the class.
The role of classes is to organize the objects into logical groups. When you
create queries on the universe, classes help you to find the objects that
represent the information that you want to use in a query.
Dimension object
A dimension object represents data that provides the basis for analysis in a
report. Dimension objects typically retrieve character-type data, for example;
customer names, resort names, or dates.
Dimension objects appear as follows in the Web Intelligence query panel:
Detail object
A detail obect provides descriptive data about a dimension. A detail is always
attached to the dimension for which it provides additional information. For
example, [Age] is a detail object that is associated with the (Customer]
dimension.
Detail objects appear as follows in the Web Intelligence query panel:
68 Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide
Measure object
The measure object retrieves numeric data that is the result of calculations
on data in the database. For example, [Revenue] is the calculation of the
number of items sold multiplied by item price. Measure objects are often
located in a Measures class.
Measure objects appear as follows in the Web Intelligence query panel:
There are two types of measure:
• classic measures - calculated by Web Intelligence
• smart measures - calculated by the database on which the universe is
based
Working with queries in Web Intelligence Rich Client
Building and using queries
9
In certain situations, smart measures impact the way in which Web
Intelligence displays calculations. For more information on smart measures,
see the Using Functions, Formulas and Calculations in Web Intelligence
guide.
Building and using queries
To build and run a query in Web Intelligence Rich Client
1. How you add a query depends on whether you are creating the first query
in a document or adding a query to an existing document:
• To create a new document and its first query, click Document > New
• To add a query to a document that already contains at least one query,
open the document and click Edit Query in the top toolbar, then Add
Query in the Query Panel.
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9
Building and using queries
2. In the Add Query box, choose a data source:
• Universe
• Local data source
3. In the Universe box or Local data source box, depending on what you
selected, select the data source for your query.
4. In the Data tab, open a class.
5. Select the objects you want to include in the query and drag them to the
Result Objects pane.
Note:
To add all the objects in the class, drag the class to the Result Objects
pane.
6. Repeat the previous step until the query contains all the objects you want
to include.
7. Select the objects on which you want to define query filters and drag them
to the Query Filters pane.
8. Set the scope of analysis and other query properties.
9. Click Run Query to run the query.
10. If the query you are building is not the first query in the document, you
need to specify in the New Query box how its data will be displayed.
Insert a table in a new report
Insert a table in the current
report
Include the result objects in
the document without generating a table
To set query properties
1. Click the Properties tab in the Query Panel.
70 Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide
DescriptionOption
Display the data on a new report in the document
Display the data on the currently selected
report in a new table
Include the data in the document without
displaying the data on a report. (You can
add the objects returned by the query to the
report later.)
2. Click the Fold/Unfold arrows at the top right of each section of the options
to expand or close the property groups.
3. Select or type query property options.
To interrupt a query
You can interrupt a query before Web Intelligence has returned all the data
to the document.
When you interrupt a query, only partial data is returned to the document.
The values displayed in the document do not accurately reflect the definition
in the query.
Before returning the data to the document, Web Intelligence requests you
to choose which version of the data you want retrieved
1. On the "Waiting - Refresh Data" dialog box, click Cancel.
The "Interrupt Data Retrieval" dialog box appears.
2. Select one of the options on the "Interrupt Data Retrieval" dialog box.
Working with queries in Web Intelligence Rich Client
Building and using queries
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Working with queries in Web Intelligence Rich Client
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Building and using queries
DescriptionOption
Restore the results from
the previous data retrieval
Purge all data from the
document
Return the partial results
To remove a query
1. Select a the query you want to remove by right-clicking the appropriate
Query tab.
2. Click Remove.
Web Intelligence restores the values to the
document that were retrieved the last time
the query was run. The values displayed will
not be the most up to data information available on the database. You can run the query
later to return the up to date values from the
database
Web Intelligence displays the document
empty of values. The structure and formatting
of the document is retained. You can run the
query later to return the up to date values
from the database
Web Intelligence displays the new values
retrieved so far in the appropriate parts of the
document. The rest of the document will display the values retrieved the last time the
query was run
To duplicate a query
If you want to build a different query on a universe already included in the
document, you can duplicate the existing query on that universe and then
modify it, instead of starting from scratch.
1. Select the query you want to duplicate by right-clicking the appropriate
Query tab at the bottom of the report panel.
2. Select Duplicate
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Multiple queries
You can include one or multiple queries in a Web Intelligence document.
When you include multiple queries, those queries can be based on a single
universe or on multiple universes available in InfoView.
For example, you can include product sales data and customer data in the
same document. In this case, your corporate data for product line sales is
available on one universe and data on customers is available on another
universe. You want to present product line sales results and information on
customer age groups in the same report. To do this, you create a single
document that includes two queries; one query on each universe. You can
then include and format results from both queries on the same report.
Defining multiple queries in a single document is necessary when the data
you want to include in a document is available on multiple universes, or when
you want to create several differently-focused queries on the same universe.
You can define multiple queries when you build a new document or add more
queries to an existing document. You can present the information from all
of the queries on a single report or on multiple reports in the same document.
Working with queries in Web Intelligence Rich Client
Building and using queries
9
Multiple queries, combined queries and synchronized queries compared
It is important to understand the relationship between multiple data providers,
combined queries and synchronized data providers .
• A single data provider, or query, can contain multiple queries, called
combined queries.
• A document can be based on multiple data providers (each one of which
can contain multiple queries). These data providers do not need to be
synchronized. If they are not synchronized, the document contains multiple
sources of unrelated data.
• Multiple data providers can be synchronized if they have common
dimensions around which they can be linked. You synchronize data
providers by merging these common dimensions.
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9
Controlling access to queries
To refresh queries
1. If the report contains one query only, click Refresh Data on the main
toolbar.
2. If the report contains multiple queries, click Refresh All to refresh all
queries, or click the arrow to the right of Refresh All and select the query
from the menu.
Note:
If a query is based on a personal data provider, Web Intelligence Rich Client
searches for the data provider in the following locations:
• The folder where the local data file was stored when the data provider
was created
• The same folder as the Web Intelligence document
• The default user document folder (C:\Documents and
Settings\%currentUser%\My Documents\My Business Objects
Documents\userDocs)
If the file is not found in any of these folders, Web Intelligence Rich Client
displays an error.
Controlling access to queries
Allow other users to edit all data providers query property
When selected, other users who have the appropriate editing rights can
access Query View and modify the data providers in the document. When
cleared, only the report creator can modify the data providers. This option
is selected by default. Unlike the other query properties, which only apply to
the selected query, this option applies to all of the data providers in the
document.
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Controlling how queries retrieve data
Controlling how queries retrieve data
Max retrieval time query property
Maximum time that a query can run before the query is stopped. This can
be useful when a query is taking too long due to an excess of data, or network
problems. You can set a time limit so a query can stop within a reasonable
time.
Max rows retrieved query property
The Max rows retrieved query property determines the maximum number
of rows of data that are displayed when a query is run. If you only need a
certain amount of data, you can set this value to limit the number of rows of
data in your document.
Max rows retrieved does not operate at the database level. If you set Max
rows retrieved to 1000, and your query returns 5000 rows, Web Intelligence
initially retrieves all 5000 rows, before discarding 4000 and retaining only
the first 1000 rows.
9
The Sample result set query property also applies a restriction on the
number of rows in the query, but at the database level. If you set Max rows
retrieved to 2000 and Sample result set to 1000, the query retrieves a
maximum of 1000 rows only.
This setting can be overridden by the limits set by your administrator in your
security profile. For example, if you set the Max rows retrieved setting to
400 rows, but your security profile limits you to 200 rows, only 200 rows of
data will be retrieved when you run the query.
Retrieve duplicate rows query property
In a database, the same data may be repeated over many rows. You can
choose to have these repeated rows returned in a query, or to have only
unique rows returned.
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9
Setting the scope of analysis
Setting the scope of analysis
Scope of analysis
The scope of analysis for a query is extra data that you can retrieve from the
database to give more details on the results returned by each of the objects
in a query. This extra data does not appear in the initial result report, but it
remains available in the data cube, so you can pull this data in to the report
to allow you to access more detail at any time. This process of refining the
data to lower levels of detail is called drilling down on an object.
In the universe, the scope of analysis corresponds to the hierarchical levels
below the object selected for a query. For example, a scope of analysis of
one level down for the object Year, would include the object Quarter, which
appears immediately under Year.
You can set this level when you build a query. It allows objects lower down
the hierarchy to be included in the query, without them appearing in the
Results Objects pane. The hierarchies in a universe allow you to choose
your scope of analysis, and correspondingly the level of drill available.
In Web Intelligence Rich Client, as in the Java Report Panel, you can also
create a custom scope of analysis by selecting specific dimensions for the
Scope of Analysis pane.
Note:
You cannot set the scope of analysis when working in query drill mode
because this drill mode causes Web Intelligence to modify the scope
dynamically in response to drill actions.
Related Topics
• Query drill defined on page 226
Levels of scope of analysis
You can set the following levels for scope of analysis:
76 Web Intelligence Rich Client User's Guide
None
• One level down
• Two levels down
• Three levels down
Custom
Working with queries in Web Intelligence Rich Client
Setting the scope of analysis
DescriptionLevel
Only the objects that appear in the
Results Objects pane are included in
the query.
For each object in the Result Objects
pane, one, two, or three objects lower
down the hierarchy tree are included
in the query. The data from these objects is stored in the cube until you add
them to the document.
9
Note:
This option is available in the Java
Report Panel and in Web Intelligence
Rich Client only.
Including a scope of analysis in a document increases the document size
significantly. This is because the data necessary for the scope you specify
is saved with the document, even though it is not visible in the reports unless
you start drill mode and drill down to the data to display the corresponding
values.
In order to minimize the size of documents and optimize performance, we
recommend that you only include a scope of analysis in documents where
you are certain that users will need to drill.
We suggest the following method because it will be easier for you to set the
scope of analysis seeing the hierarchy of the classes and objects.
To set the scope of analysis
1. Click the Show/Hide Scope of Analysis Pane button so that it appears
pressed in.
The Scope of Analysis panel appears at the bottom of the Result Objects
pane. The default scope of analysis is None. Each dimension in the Result
Objects pane appears in the Scope of Analysis pane.
All objects added manually to the
Scope of Analysis panel are included
in the query.
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9
Query contexts
2. Click the down arrow in the Scope of Analysis drop-down list box.
3. Select a level for the scope of analysis.
The level appears in the list box and the dimensions that are hierarchically
below each dimension in the Result Objects pane appear in the Scope
of Analysis pane.
4. If you want to add selected dimensions to the scope of analysis or create
a custom scope of analysis, select dimensions in the Query Manager and
drag them across to the Scope of Analysis panel.
Query contexts
What is an ambiguous query?
An ambiguous query is a query that contains one or more objects that can
potentially return two different types of information.
In a universe, certain dimensions may have values that are used for two
different purposes in the database. For example, the [Country] dimension in
the query below can return two types of information:
• Customers and the country in which they spent their vacation.
• Customers and the country for which they have made their reservation.
The role that Country plays in this query is ambiguous. A country can be
either the country where a vacation was sold, or a country where a vacation
is reserved. One is existing information (sales), and the other is future
information (reservations).
To avoid ambiguities in a query, the universe designer identifies the different
ways that objects can be used in the universe, and implements restrictions
on how these objects can be combined. These restrictions are called contexts.
What is a context?
A context is a defined group of objects that share a common business
purpose. This business purpose is usually the type of information that these
related objects represent. For example, a sales context is a grouping of all
the objects that can be used to create sales queries. A reservations context
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Working with queries in Web Intelligence Rich Client
is a grouping of all the objects that can be used in reservation queries.
Contexts are defined in a universe by the universe designer.
You can combine any object within the same context to create a query. You
can also combine objects in different contexts. If you use an object that is
common to both contexts, Web Intelligence will try to determine the context
that best fits the other objects in the query.
If it cannot determine a context, you are prompted to choose the context that
you want to apply to the query.
Choosing a context when you run a query
When you create a query or refresh a report, you may be asked to choose
a context before the query can run. Contexts are set up in a universe to avoid
ambiguous queries.
To choose a context when you run a query
Query contexts
9
1. Run the query containing multiple contexts.
The "Select a Context" dialog box appears.
2. Select the context in the "Select a Context" dialog box.
Defining how contexts are used
Reset contexts on refresh query property
When selected, you are prompted to choose a context each time a query
requiring a context is run. When unselected, Web Intelligence retains the
context specified the first time you run the query.
To reset contexts on query refresh
1. Make sure you are in Query View.
2. Click the Properties tab to display the query properties.
3. Select Reset contexts on refresh.
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Using combined queries
Clear contexts query property
When this property is selected, Web Intelligence clears the contexts listed
in the list when you next run the query or refresh the data.
To clear contexts
1. Make sure you are in Query View.
2. Click the Properties tab to display the query properties.
3. Click Clear Contexts
Using combined queries
Combined queries defined
A combined query is a group of queries that work together to return a single
result. All queries in the group must be based on the same universe.
Types of combined query
You can combine queries in three relationships:
• union
• intersection
• minus
In a union combination, Web Intelligence takes the all the data from both
queries, eliminates duplicate rows, and builds a combined data set.
In an intersection combination, Web Intelligence returns the data that is
common to both queries.
In a minus combination, Web Intelligence returns the data in the first query
that does not appear in the second.
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Using combined queries
Example: Union, intersect and minus queries
In this example you have two queries that return lists of countries as shown
in the following table:
ValuesQuery
US; UK; Germany; FranceQuery 1
US; SpainQuery 2
Depending on the type of combined query, Web Intelligence returns the
following values:
ValuesCombination type
US; UK; Germany; France;SpainUNION
US;INTERSECTION
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UK; Germany; FranceMINUS
What can you do with combined queries?
Combined queries allow you to answer questions that are otherwise difficult
or impossible to frame in a single Web Intelligence query.
Example: Return a data set using a combined query
The Island Resorts Marketing sample universe contains the dimension
Year, which returns guests who have already stayed in a resort, and
Reservation Year, which returns guests who have reserved to stay in the
future. Because of the structure of the database and universe, these objects
are incompatible, which means that you cannot include them in the same
block in a report.
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Using combined queries
What if you want to return a single list of years that includes those years
where more than n guests stayed in a resort and those years where more
than n guests reserved to stay in a resort? You can do this using a combined
query, as follows:
ReturnsQuery
Query 1
UNION
Query 2
The union between these two queries returns the list of years that you want.
Years where more than n guests
stayed in a resort
Years where more than n guests reserved to stay in a resort
How does Web Intelligence generate combined queries?
If your database supports the type of combination in your query, combined
queries work at the database level: they alter the query that Web Intelligence
submits to the database. They do so by generating SQL (Structured Query
Language) queries containing UNION, INTERSECT and MINUS operators.
Note:
SQL is the standard query language of relational databases, although each
database has its own dialect.
If your database does not support the type of combination in your query,
Web Intelligence performs the query at the report level by generating multiple
SQL queries whose data it resolves after retrieval from the database.
To build a combined query
1. Create an initial query in the Query Panel.
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Using combined queries
2. Click Add a combined query (to the right of the SQL button) on the
toolbar.
Web Intelligence adds a copy of the initial query to the data provider. The
second query has the following characteristics:
• It contains the same report objects as the original query.
• It does not contain the filters defined on the original query.
• It is combined with the original query in a UNION relationship.
3. To switch to a query, click Combined Query n in the bottom left pane of
the Query Panel.
The individual queries in the combined queries are named Combined
Query n.
4. To delete a query, right-click the Combined Query n you want to delete,
then select Remove on the menu.
5. To change the combination type, double-click on the operator. The
operator moves through the sequence UNION, INTERSECTION, MINUS.
6. Build each query within the combined query as you build any normal Web
Intelligence query.
7. Click Run Query.
9
Combined query structure
The queries within a combined query must return the same number of objects
of the same data type and the objects must be in the same order. You cannot
combine queries when the number of objects in the query results and the
data types of those objects are not identical. For example, you cannot
combine a query than returns Year with a query that returns Year and
Revenue, and you cannot combine a query that returns Year with a query
that returns Revenue.
You must also pay attention to the semantics of your combined queries.
While it is possible to combine a query that returns Year with a query that
returns Region if both dimensions are of the same data type, the result - a
mixed list of years and regions - is unlikely to be meaningful. Typically, if
your first query contains a Year dimension, your second query also contains
a dimension that returns a list of years.
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Using combined queries
To return a list of years and reservation years based on the number of guests
This example describes the workflow for the query described in the example
Return a data set using a combined query. You want to build a query that
returns a list of years consisting of years where more than n guests stayed
in a resort and years where more than n guests reserved to stay in a resort.
1. Select the Island Resorts Marketing universe in the list of universes to
open the Query Panel.
2. Drag the Year object to the Result Objects pane.
3. Drag the Number of Guests object to the Query Filters pane and create
a report filter that restricts Number of Guests to greater than n.
4. Click Combined Query.
The Combined Query pane appears in the bottom left of the Query panel
with the two queries joined by UNION.
5. Click on the second query and remove the Year and Number of Guests
objects.
6. Drag the Reservation Year object to the Result Objects pane.
7. Drag the Future Guests object to the Query Filters pane and create a
report filter that restricts the future guests to greater than n.
8. Click Run Query.
The query returns the combined list of years and reservation years.
Related Topics
• Return a data set using a combined query on page 81
Combined query precedence
The order in which Web Intelligence executes query combinations in a
combined query is crucial in determining the final result.
In the simplest form of combined query you combine two or more queries in
a relationship as follows:
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Query 1
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Using combined queries
Query 2INTERSECTION
Query 3
In such a case, Web Intelligence first finds the set of data that represents
the union/intersection/minus between Combined Query n and Combined
Query n + 1, then finds the union/intersection/minus between that data set
and the data returned by Combined Query n + 2. Web Intelligence continues
in this way through all the queries in the relationship. This gives the following
result for the above example:
DataQuery
US; UK; France; GermanyQuery 1
US; France; FinlandQuery 2
US; FranceINTERSECTION of 1 and 2
US; SpainQuery 3
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Multiple combined queries
You can combine multiple queries in complex relationships to determine the
order of execution, as in the following example:
MINUS
INTERSEC
TION
Combined
Query 3
USFinal INTERSECTION
Combined Query 1
Combined Query 2
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Using combined queries
Web Intelligence processes query groups from right to left as they appear
in the Query Panel, and from top to bottom within each group.
(Higher-precedence groups, such as the MINUS group in the above example,
appear indented to the right in the Query Panel.) In the above query Web
Intelligence first determines the result of the minus combination then finds
the intersection of this result with the result of Combined Query 3 as shown
in the following table:
(Query 1 MINUS Query 2)
ResultQuery
US; UK; Spain; GermanyQuery 1
GermanyQuery 2
US; UK; SpainQuery 1 MINUS Query 2
US; Spain; FinlandQuery 3
INTERSECTION
Query 3
Note:
If your database directly supports the type of combined query you wish to
execute, Web Intelligence generates SQL containing combination operators.
In this case the order of precedence depends on the order of precedence
defined in the database. See your Web Intelligence administrator for more
details.
US; Spain
To set the order of precedence of combined queries in the Java Report Panel
1. Build the first query in the Query Panel.
2. Click Combined Query.
3. Repeat these steps until you have built all the component queries.
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Merging dimensions from multiple data providers
4. To increase the precedence of a pair of queries, drag and drop a query
on to the query with which you want to associate it in the
higher-precedence pair.
Web Intelligence indents the source and target queries in the
drag-and-drop operation and combines them by default in a UNION.
5. Continue adding queries to the higher-precedence group by dragging
and dropping them on to the space between any two queries already in
the group.
6. To create further higher-precedence groups within an existing
higher-precedence group, repeat the previous two steps.
7. Double-click the combination operators of all the groups in the query to
change them as required.
8. Click Run Query.
Merging dimensions from multiple data
providers
9
Merged dimensions defined
You can include multiple data providers in a Web Intelligence document.
You often need to synchronize the data returned by these data providers.
You do this by incorporating common dimensions into a merged dimension.
Merged dimensions and data synchronization were introduced in Web
Intelligence XI R2. They enormously increase the power and flexibility of
Web Intelligence by allowing you to synthesise data from different sources
in the same report, rather than simply including the data.
For example, if you have one database that contains detailed customer
information and another database that contains sales data, you can
synchronize the two data sources around the customer.
When to merge dimensions
You merge dimensions when your report draws related data from different
data providers. For example, you have a report showing revenue and sales
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Merging dimensions from multiple data providers
targets. The report contains sections based on the year, and each section
shows revenue and sales targets. If revenue and sales target data comes
from two different data providers, Web Intelligence does not know that it is
related. You tell Web Intelligence that the data is related by merging the two
data providers on the common dimension, year.
When you merge dimensions, Web Intelligence creates a new dimension
that contains all the values from the original dimensions that make up the
merged dimension. You use this dimension in reports as you use any other
report object. You can add report objects from all the data providers
synchronized through the merged dimension in the same block as the merged
dimension.
Choosing which dimensions to merge
The only restriction that Web Intelligence imposes on merged dimensions
is that they must be of the same data type: for example, character data. But
it does not make sense to merge unrelated dimensions even when their data
types are the same. For example, it does not make sense to merge a
dimension containing customer names with a dimension containing sales
regions.
Merged dimensions often have the same name in both data sources, but
this is not obligatory. It can make sense to merge dimensions with different
names if they contain related data.
To merge dimensions correctly you need to be aware of the semantics of
the data (what the data refers to) in the different data sources. The dimension
data types and names are an approximate guide only to dimensions’ suitability
for merging.
Merged dimension example
The following example with two data providers illustrates the effect of merging
dimensions:
Example: Merging City dimensions
Data Provider 1:
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Data Provider 2:
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Merging dimensions from multiple data providers
CityCountry
New YorkUS
Los AngelesUS
ParisFrance
ToulouseFrance
RevenueCity
100000New York
75000Los Angeles
90000Paris
9
60000Toulouse
If you merge the City dimensions and display the Country, merged City
dimensions and Revenue measure in a table, Web Intelligence returns the
following result:
If the City dimensions are not merged, Web Intelligence displays the
following result:
RevenueCityCountry
325000New YorkUS
325000Los AngelesUS
325000ParisFrance
325000ToulouseFrance
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Merging dimensions from multiple data providers
Because there is no link between the two data providers through a merged
dimension, Web Intelligence is unable to relate the city revenues to
countries. As a result Web Intelligence displays the total revenue against
each Country/City pair.
If the City dimensions are merged, Web Intelligence displays the following
result:
RevenueCityCountry
100000New YorkUS
75000Los AngelesUS
90000ParisFrance
60000ToulouseFrance
Forcing merged calculations with the ForceMerge function
By default, Web Intelligence does not account for merged dimensions in
calculations if the merged dimensions do not explicitly appear in the
calculation context.
Example: Calculating revenue with ForceMerge
This example has two data providers as follows:
Data Provider 1:
CityCountry
New YorkUS
Los AngelesUS
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Data Provider 2:
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Merging dimensions from multiple data providers
CityCountry
ParisFrance
ToulouseFrance
RevenueCity
100000New York
75000Los Angeles
90000Paris
60000Toulouse
9
If you merge the [City] dimensions, then create a table with [Country] and
[Revenue], Web Intelligence displays the following result:
RevenueCountry
325000US
325000US
325000France
325000France
Because [City], the merged dimension, does not appear in the table, Web
Intelligence does not take the merge into account when calculating revenue.
Web Intelligence lists the total revenue in the second data provider against
each country.
To display the correct result, replace [Revenue] in the second column with
the formula ForceMerge([Revenue]):
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Merging dimensions from multiple data providers
Web Intelligence now takes the relationship between countries and cities
into account when calculating revenue.
Note:
If [Revenue] is a smart measure in the above example, ForceMerge([Rev
enue]) returns #MULTIVALUE. This is because the grouping set (Country)
does not exist for the [Revenue] measure. ForceMerge([smart_measure])
always returns #MULTIVALUE, unless by chance no aggregation is required
to calculate the measure.
RevenueCity
175000US
175000US
150000France
150000France
Creating, editing and deleting merged dimensions
To merge dimensions
1. Click Merge Dimensions on the toolbar.
The "Merge Dimensions" dialog box appears.
2. Select the dimensions you want to merge in the boxes at the top of the
dialog box.
When you select a dimension, all dimensions of different data types are
disabled because you cannot merge dimensions of different data types.
3. Click Values to view the values associated with the dimensions.
4. Click Merge.
The "Create Merged Dimension" dialog box appears. You use this dialog
box to specify the properties of the merged dimension.
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5. Select the dimension in the Source Dimension drop-down list.
The source dimension provides the default name, description and number
formats for the merged dimension.
6. Type the merged dimension name in the Merged Dimension Name box
and the merged dimension description in the Description box.
7. Click OK.
The merged dimension name appears in the "Merged Dimensions" box
and the dimensions that are part of the merged dimension appear in the
boxes alongside it. Because an original dimension can be part of one
merged dimension only, it no longer appears in the box above that lists
the original dimensions in the query.
8. Click OK to close the "Merged Dimensions" dialog box.
Web Intelligenceadds the merged dimensions to the list of merged
dimensions in the Data tab.
To define a merged dimension
You define a merged dimension in the "Create Merged Dimension" dialog
box.
1. Type the merged dimension name in the Merged Dimension Name box.
2. Type the merged dimension description in the Description box
3. To use the name and description of one of the source dimensions in the
merged dimension, select the source dimension from the Source
Dimension list.
4. Click OK.
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Merging dimensions from multiple data providers
9
To merge dimensions automatically
You can set Web Intelligence to merge dimensions automatically under the
following circumstances:
• The dimensions have the same name
• The dimensions have the same data type
• The dimensions are in the same universe
1. Right-click outside any block or chart and click Document Properties
on the popup menu.
2. Click Auto-merge dimensions.
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Merging dimensions from multiple data providers
To edit a merged dimension
1. In the Data tab, select the dimension in the Merged Dimensions folder
and click the right mouse button.
2. Select Edit Merged Dimension from the menu.
The "Merged Dimensions" dialog box appears.
3. Edit the merged dimension.
Related Topics
• To merge dimensions on page 147
To delete a merged dimension
1. Select the dimension in the Merged Dimensions folder and click the right
mouse button.
2. Select Delete Merged Dimension from the menu.
Understanding the effects of merged dimensions
Data synchronization through merged dimensions adds enormous power to
Web Intelligence. Merged dimensions also have implications for the results
that Web Intelligence displays in certain situations. You need to understand
these implications to work effectively with merged dimensions and
synchronized data.
Synchronizing data providers with different aggregation levels
You can synchronize data providers with different aggregation levels. This
can have implications for the way in which Web Intelligence calculates
measures.
Example: Synchronizing data providers with different aggregation levels
In this example you have two data providers as follows:
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Merging dimensions from multiple data providers
RevenueYearCustomer
15002004Jones
20002005Jones
12002005Smith
Number of salesCustomer
12Jones
10Smith
If you merge the two data providers and the table properties Avoid
duplicate rows aggregation and Show rows with empty dimension
values are unchecked, Web Intelligence returns the following:
9
Number of salesRevenueYearCustomer
1215002004Jones
1212002005Jones
1012002005Smith
Web Intelligence cannot determine the number of sales per year for
customer Jones because the data provider that stores the number of sales
does not break them down by year. Web Intelligence therefore reproduces
the total number of sales on each row.
Note:
Although the Number of Sales values are duplicated, if you add a standard
calculation to the bottom of the column (for example a Sum or Average
calculation), the result is correct.
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Merging dimensions from multiple data providers
One way of adressing this issue is to add the dimensions to the second
data provider that allow Web Intelligence to calculate to the appropriate
level of data. If this is not possible, you must be aware of any situations
where Web Intelligence cannot aggregate the data to the necessary level
of detail.
Detail objects and merged dimensions
Detail objects are associated with dimensions and provide additional
information about the dimension.
Web Intelligence XI R2 requires a one-to-one relationship between
dimensions and details (this means that a detail object can have one value
only for each value of its associated dimension) and does not take detail
objects into account when synchronizing data. The following example
illustrates why this is necessary.
Previous versions of Web Intelligence, as well as Desktop Intelligence and
BusinessObjects, allow a one-to-many relationship between dimensions and
details. If you migrate a report created using any of these products and the
detail object contains multiple values, Web Intelligence places the
#MULTIVALUE error in the detail cell.
Example: Synchronizing data providers with detail objects
In this example you have two data providers, and [Address] is a detail object
related to [Customer]:
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RevenueAddressCustomer
10000LondonJohn
15000LiverpoolPaul
Telephone NumberCustomer
1234John
Working with queries in Web Intelligence Rich Client
Merging dimensions from multiple data providers
Telephone NumberCustomer
5678Paul
If you create a merged Customer dimension to synchronize the data
providers, and Address can have more than one value for each customer,
the result is ambiguous because there is no common value around which
Web Intelligence can synchronize the data.
For example, Paul might have addresses in Liverpool and London, which
means that there is no unique ‘Paul’ row with which Web Intelligence can
synchronize Paul's telephone number. Paul has a different telephone
number for each address, and Web Intelligence does not know which
address to associate with the telephone number:
Telephone NumberAddressCustomer
1234LondonJohn
9
If the relationship between Customer and Address is one-to-one, Web
Intelligence can ignore Address in the synchronization. This removes the
ambiguity:
Incompatible objects and merged dimensions
As a general rule, Web Intelligence does not allow you to place dimensions
from different data providers in the same table. This is to avoid Cartesian
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5678#MULTIVALUEPaul
Telephone NumberAddressCustomer
1234LondonJohn
5678LiverpoolPaul
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Merging dimensions from multiple data providers
products (the display of all possible combinations of values from unrelated
objects) or other ambiguous results, depending on the universe structure.
You can always place measures from different data providers in a table. Web
Intelligence calculates the measure depending on what dimensions are
available. For example, if you place a measure in a table that contains no
dimensions from the same data provider as the measure, Web Intelligence
displays its total value in the table.
You can place a merged dimension in a table as long as the table contains
other dimensions from a data provider that participates in the merge. You
can also place details from different data providers in a table, as long as the
details are associated with dimensions that participate in a merged dimension.
In certain situations, it can be valid to place a dimension from another data
provider in a table, even when Web Intelligence does not permit this. This
occurs when the incompatible dimension has a one-to-one or one-to many
relationship with a dimension already in the table. The important point is that
there is only one value of the incompatible dimension associated with the
dimension in the table (one-to-one). On the other hand, the same value of
the incompatible dimension can be associated with multiple values of the
dimension in the table (one-to-many).
In the table below, the relationship between Address and Name conforms
to these rules: Address has a one-to-one or one-to-many association with
Name. There is no one-to-many association in the other direction, between
Name and Address (one name with more than one address):
In this case the universe design is incorrect - the incompatible dimension
(Address) should be defined as a detail of the dimension in the table (Name).
If you encouter this situation, see your Business Objects administrator and
ask for a redesign of the universe.
If it is not practical to change the universe, create a variable at the report
level. Define this variable as a detail, associate it with the dimension in the
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Incompatible dimension (Address)Dimension in table (Name)
LondonJohn
LondonPaul
LiverpoolGeorge
table, and supply the name of the incompatible dimension as the variable
definition. The variable simply returns the same values as the incompatible
dimension. Because it is defined as a detail of the dimension in the table,
Web Intelligence allows you to place it in the same table as the dimension.
Filtering merged dimensions
Merging dimensions has implications for the way in which Web Intelligence
applies filters.
Note:
You cannot apply a filter a on merged dimension. You apply filters on the
dimensions that make up the merged dimension.
Report filters and merged dimensions
When you apply a report filter to a dimension that is part of a merged
dimension, Web Intelligence applies the filter to all data providers that are
synchronized through the merged dimension.
Example: Filtering a merged dimension
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Merging dimensions from multiple data providers
9
In this example you have a report with the following data providers, which
are merged on the Country dimension
RevenueResortCountry
835,420French RivieraFrance
971,444Bahamas BeachUS
1,479,660Hawaiian ClubUS
Future GuestsCountry
46France
56US
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Merging dimensions from multiple data providers
If you apply the filter Country=?US? to the first block, Web Intelligence
also filters the second block to give the following result:
If the Country dimensions are not merged the second block is unaffected
by the filter.
Section filters and merged dimensions
When a dimension that is part of a merged dimension is set as a section
header, any filter applied to the section also applies to blocks from
synchronized data providers within the section.
Related Topics
• Filtering a merged dimension on page 153
Future GuestsCountry
56US
Block filters and merged dimensions
When you apply a block filter to a dimension that is part of a merged
dimension, Web Intelligence applies the filter to the block. Web Intelligence
does not apply the filter to other data providers synchronized through the
merged dimension.
Drilling on merged dimensions
When you merge dimensions, the new merged dimension belongs to the
hierarchies of all dimensions involved in the merge.
Extending the values returned by merged dimensions
Merged dimensions were a new concept in Web Intelligence XI R2.
Synchronizing data providers already existed in Desktop
Intelligence/BusinessObjects but it did not involve the creation of a new
merged dimension. BusinessObjects reports use the original dimensions
that make up a merged dimension in Web Intelligence.
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