Report Authoring Guide

Course Guide
IBM Cognos Analytics:

Author Reports Fundamentals (V11.1.x)
Course Code: B6258G ERC 2.0
IBM Cognos Analytics: Author Reports Fundamentals (V11.1.x)
January 2019
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Course information
Course overview
This course provides authors with an introduction to build reports using Cognos
Analytics. Techniques to enhance, customize, and manage reports will be explored.
Activities will illustrate and reinforce key concepts during this learning opportunity.
Intended audience
Authors
Course prerequisites
Participants should have:
• Knowledge of your business requirements
• Experience using IBM Cognos Analytics as a consumer
Course outline
• What is IBM Cognos Analytics - Reporting?
• Dimensionally modeled relational data
• Use personal data sources and data modules
• Examine list reports
• Aggregate fact data
• Multiple facts and repeated information
• Add repeated information to reports
• Create crosstab reports
• Create complex crosstab reports
• Work with crosstab data
• Create discontinuous crosstab reports
• Create visualization reports
• Focus reports using filters
• Focus reports using prompts
• Use calculations
• Customize reports with conditional formatting
• Drill-through definitions
• Enhance report layout
• Use additional report-building techniques

Additional training resources

Visit the IBM Skills Gateway (http://www.ibm.com/training/) for details on:
• Instructor-led training in a classroom or online
• Self-paced training that fits your needs and schedule
• Comprehensive curricula, skills validation with the IBM Open Badge program, and
learning journeys that help you identify the courses that are right for you
• For other resources that will enhance your success, bookmark the IBM Analytics
Skills Gateway (https://www-03.ibm.com/services/learning/ites.wss/zz-
en?pageType=page&c=C067650S63836C42)

Activity: Setting up the training environment

Before performing the activities in this course, ensure that all of the necessary products
have started. You only need to perform these tasks once, when you first use the
training environment, or if you ever restart the operating system in the training
environment. If you have closed the training environment and launched it again, it is a
best practice to review the status of the services before continuing with the activities.
Ensure all necessary services are running.
• From the desktop of the training environment, click Start, and then click
Services .
• Scroll through the services to ensure the following have a status of Running:
• Apache Directory Server - default
• DB2 -DB2COPY 1 - DB2
• DB2DAS - DB2DAS00
• IBM Cognos
• Lotus Domino Server (CProgramFilesx86IBMLotusDominodata)
• World Wide Web Publishing Service
• If any of these services are not running, right-click the service, and then click Start.
• If the Apache Directory Server or DB2 -DB2COPY 1 - DB2 service have
stopped, you must to stop the IBM Cognos service, start the stopped service(s),
and then start the IBM Cognos service once the previously stopped service(s) has
(have) started successfully.
• Note that it may take 15 minutes or more for the IBM Cognos service to start. If you
receive a message saying this service did not start in a timely fashion, then on the
Services toolbar, periodically click Refresh until the status of the service
changes from Starting to Running.
Important: The Apache Directory Server service must start before the
IBM Cognos service, otherwise you may receive an authentication error saying you
are already logged into all available namespaces. To resolve this issue if it arises,
stop the IBM Cognos Service, start the Apache Directory Server service, and then
start the IBM Cognos Service again. Make sure you stop and then start the
IBM Cognos service rather than using Restart.
• It is mandatory to use Internet Explorer as the Web browser for all activities in this
course.

What is IBM Cognos Analytics - Reporting?

IBM Cognos Analytics - Reporting is a unified environment for reporting and analysis.
Consumers can view reports to analyze data, and report authors and power users can
seamlessly move to editing reports without needing a separate authoring environment.
Search tools, and an intuitive navigation system help you to quickly find the data you
are looking for. Data visualizations let you present data in a way that makes it easier to
draw insights about the data.
Predefined templates and themes enable you to create professional looking reports
quickly, without a lot of authoring experience.
You can subscribe to reports of interest to get regular updates as your data changes.
The Welcome page
The Welcome page in IBM Cognos Analytics is organized to create a unified user
experience similar to other IBM products:
• A Home button appears in the upper-left corner of the interface. This button allows
navigation to the home page without requiring navigation through the Switcher
menu at the center of the Application bar.
• You can switch between open assets by using the Switcher menu.
Recently modified data assets are displayed as tiles in the middle of the page.

Consume report content

With appropriate access rights, users can run reports or view report output.
When you run a report, the most recent data from your data source is queried and the
results are returned in the IBM Cognos Analytics portal. You can run reports in various
formats, including HTML, PDF, Microsoft Excel, Excel Data, Run Delimited Text (CSV)
and XML. After the report renders in the portal, you have options to modify it using
operations such as filtering, sorting, and data summarizing. You can also rerun the
report either before or after modifying it in any of the available formats.
When you view report output, the data that is presented in the IBM Cognos Analytics
portal is a snapshot of the data that was saved at a point in time.
You can distribute reports by email, through the web, or you can save them on your
desktop. You would first render the report in the format that is most suitable for your
needs.
Bursting a report allows distribution of its contents to various recipients. Bursting is the
process of running a report once, and then dividing the results for users who each view
a subset of the data. For example, salespeople in different regions need a report that
shows the sales target for their country or region. You use the bursting feature to send
each salesperson only the information they need. You can distribute burst reports by
email or save them to a folder for viewing in the IBM Cognos Analytics portal. You can
learn more about bursting reports in the IBM Cognos Analytics: Author Reports
Advanced (V11.1.x) course.
Share and Embed buttons are available for content items such as reports. These
buttons create URLs that open content items directly in a web browser or embed the
content items in a custom web page.
You can create custom URLs that open or run IBM Cognos Analytics content. This
feature extends the sharing and embedding feature by giving you more control over
how the content objects are opened or run.
Interactive filtering
Report consumers can create filters directly on the report output to better understand the
report context, and modify views without needing a report author to make the changes.
In the application toolbar of the interactive viewer, a filter icon is available that opens the
filter panel. This panel shows all the filters that the report consumer created in the report
output. When a data container is selected, filters that apply to the selected data container
are highlighted. Report consumers can edit or delete filters directly within the panel.
Report consumers can resize the filter panel and pin or unpin the panel, depending on
the screen resolution.
Report authors can make a filter visible to report consumers so that they can interact
with it by using the interactive filter panel.

Working with reports

IBM Cognos Analytics includes report templates and color themes to choose when
creating a report. The templates and themes are stored in the Templates.zip
deployment file. After the file is deployed, the templates and themes are located in the
Templates folder in Team content.
You can create your own report templates and themes, and make them available to
other users. Save the templates in the Templates folder in Team content, and save
themes in the Style Reference Reports folder in the Templates folder. When you create
a new report, any report or theme that is saved in the Templates folder appears in the
list of templates or themes.
To convert a report to a template click Save > Convert to Template on the Application
bar.
You can open an existing report, make changes and then save or save as a new report
with a new name. To access existing reports, browse to them in either Team content or
My content. To edit them, click the More icon (vertical ellipsis to the right of the report
name).
As part of the report creation process, you can:
• Choose from a selection of templates.
• Choose from a selection of data containers for presenting your report, such as list,
crosstab, or visualization. You can include a combination of data containers in a
single report.
• Add metadata items from a package or a data module to the data containers by
using the Source tab of the Data pane. Data items can be added from one or more
packages in the same report and be accessed from a data module. Data items
from a package and a data module cannot be combined in the same report.
• Add data items into your report that exist in your query, by using the Data Items tab
under Insertable objects.
• Add various report objects into your report, such as Block, Text item, Table,
Prompt, and HTML item, by using the Toolbox tab.
• Use the navigation menu to browse to individual report and prompt pages by using
the Pages folder.
• Use the navigation menu browse to the queries that make up the report, by using
the Queries folder.
• Modify report objects and data item properties by using the Properties pane.

• Work in different authoring modes.

• Author by using the metadata items from the report, such as column or row labels,
in Page design mode.
Country Revenue
<Country> <Revenue>
• Author by using the actual data values in the report, in Page preview mode.
Country Revenue
Portugal $34, 675, 662.43
• Interactively view query and rendering performance on report objects in a report by

enabling the included performance details option in the run options for the report.

Activity: Create a simple list report

Create a list report that includes attribute and measure data items. The attribute data
items need to be sorted by the measure values in descending order, and the measure
values need to be displayed with a meaningful format. For example, revenue values
can be formatted as currency.
In this activity, you will:
• Create a report template.
• Add a data source.
• Add data to the list.
• View the data items in the query.
• Remove a column.
• Format and sort the data.
Choose a report template.
You should use Internet Explorer for all the Activities in this course.
• In Windows, click Start > Internet Explorer.
• If you are prompted to Set up Internet Explorer 11, click Use recommended
security and compatibility settings, and then click OK.
• In Internet Explorer, navigate to http://localhost:9300/bi/ and then log in to IBM
Cognos Analytics using the following credentials:
• Username: brettonf
• Password: Education1
The Welcome to IBM Cognos Analytics page appears. This page appears
automatically if security is not implemented.
• From the Side bar on the left, click New , and then click Report.
• From the Templates and themes page, click Blank, and then click OK.
Add a data source.
• From the Insertable objects pane on the left, click Select sources .
• On the Open file dialog window, browse in the Team content folder to Samples >
Models > GO Data warehouse (query), and then click Open.

• From the Application bar, click the Page design list , and then
from the list, click Page preview.
• In the work area, click Add .

A set of data container choices appears.
• Click List, and then click OK to accept the default query name.
Add data to the list.
• From the Insertable objects pane, expand Sales and Marketing (query) >
Sales (query) > Employee by region query subject .
• Double-click the Country query item to add it to the list report object.
The list report object now has one column.
• Double-click City to add it to the list report object.
City is automatically added to the end of the list.
• On the Insertable objects pane, right-click Last name, and then click Properties.
The Properties dialog box appears, with details about the item.
• Click Close.
• Right-click City, and then click Lineage.
Lineage information traces the metadata of a data item back through the package
and the data sources that are used by the package. Lineage displays any data item
filters that the data modeler added or defined in the data model. Viewing lineage
information ensures that you add the correct data items to a report. For example,
you can view the lineage information of a model calculation to see how it was
created.
Lineage for data items can also be viewed in the interactive viewer after running a
report. To do this you would click the data item, and then from the on-demand
toolbar, click Explore, and then click Lineage, noting that this can only be done in a
saved report.
• Click the X at the upper right of the window to close it.
• Click First name, and then Ctrl+click Last name, Employee level and
Position name.
• Right-click Position name, and then click Insert.
The items are added to the list in the order in which they are selected.

• If the Properties pane is open on the right, from the Application bar, click Show
Properties to close it and create more room on your report canvas.
The Properties icon works in toggle fashion to open and close the Properties pane.
• From Insertable objects, expand the Sales fact query subject, and then drag
Revenue to add it to the end of the list (you should see a flashing black bar inside
of a white bar, indicating the correct drop zone).
If you place the data item outside of the list, a message opens stating that IBM
Cognos Analytics - Reporting created a singleton. You want the new data item to
be added to the end of the list. If a singleton is created, undo your last action, and
then redo the previous step.
You would now like to modify the order of the columns.
• From the Application bar, click Show properties .

• In the work area, click the data for Last name (not the header) to select the column
body, then drag it to the left of the First name list column body.
Make sure that the column body is selected by clicking any one of the cells in the
column, not the column header. To check to see what element of the report is
selected, check the title bar of the Properties pane.
A flashing black bar appears when the item is over a drop zone. A section of the
results appear as follows:
You will now view the data items in the query.

View the data items in the query.
• From the Insertable objects pane, click Data items , and then click Query1.
The data items that you added to the list appear under Query1. The names of the
data items correspond to the column titles in the report layout.
• From, the navigation menu, click Report to expand the Report list menu.
• Click Query1.
The Data Items pane is displayed in the middle section.

You want to view information about a data item, including how it retrieves data from
the data source.
• From the Data Items pane, double-click Position name.
The Data item expression dialog box opens.
• Examine the Expression Definition.

The Data item expression dialog box displays the path to where the data item
exists including the query item name, query subject name, and namespace name.
• Click OK.
• From the Report navigation menu, click Pages > Page1.
This action returns you to the report.

Remove a column.
• In the list report object, click a data cell for Employee level (not the header), and
then from the on-demand toolbar, click Cut .
The column is removed from the list.
• From the navigation menu, click Report > Queries > Query1.
The Employee level data item that you cut still appears in the Data Items pane.
Although you removed it from the report layout in the Pages view, the data item is
not removed from the query. Keeping the data item in the query can be useful for
tasks such as creating a calculation. Examples of where you would keep a data
item in the query, but remove it from the report layout include: creating an
expression based on the data item, sorting, or formatting data in the list by using
the data item.
• From the navigation menu, click Report > Pages > Page1 to return to the work
area.
• From the Application bar, click Undo .

The Employee level column is added back to the list.
• Ensure that the Employee level column is still selected, and then from the
on-demand toolbar click Delete .
Employee level is once again removed from the report layout.
This time the Employee level data item is removed from the query and no longer
appears in the Data Items pane.
Format and sort the data.
• From the navigation menu, navigate back to Page1.
• In the list, click a data cell for Revenue, in the list column body (not the column title).
The Revenue cells are highlighted to show that they are selected. The Properties
pane shows the properties for this column.
• From the on-demand toolbar, click Sort , and then click Descending.
Values for each of the attributes are sorted in descending order based on the
values of the measure data item.

• With the Revenue column still selected, from the on-demand toolbar, click
Data format .
• In the Data format dialog box, in the Format type list, click Currency.
• Under Properties, in the Currency property, scroll down the list, and then click
$ (USD) - United States of America, dollar.
The values for the measure data item are displayed in American dollars. By
default, this format uses a comma as a Thousands separator, and two decimal
places. The specific format that you choose should be based on the nature of the
measure data item that is used in the report. For example, a measure such as
revenue would be formatted as currency. A measure such as percentage of gross
revenue would be formatted as a percentage.
• Click OK to close the Data format dialog box.
• From the Application bar, click Run options , and then click Run HTML.
A new browser tab opens with the list report rendered and the measure data items
are sorted in descending order, and are formatted in currency.
• At the bottom of the page, click Page down several times to browse to some of the
additional pages of the report.
• In your browser, close the rendered New report tab.
• Click the Country column header, from the on-demand toolbar, click Filters ,
and then click Edit filters.
• In the Filters - Query1 dialog box, click Add , in the Create filter dialog box,
ensure that Custom based on data item is selected, and then click OK.
• In the Find box, point to Brazil, and then click the plus sign beside Brazil to
add the item to the pane on the right.

• Repeat for Germany, ensure that the Keep these values option is selected, and
then click OK.
• Click OK to close the Filters - Query1 dialog box.
• Run the report again in HTML.
The report now only contains data for Brazil and Germany.
• From the Application bar, click Run options , and then click Run Excel data.
You are prompted to Open or Save.
• Click Open.
The report renders in Microsoft Excel format, and includes all of the formatting and
filters previously applied.
• Close Microsoft Excel, and then close the browser tab that includes the rendered
report.
• At the top of the page, in the middle of the Application bar, expand the
Switcher menu list (the down arrow next to New report*).
The result appears as follows:
• Beside New report*, click Remove , and then click Close without saving.
• Leave IBM Cognos Analytics open for the next activity.

Dimensionally modeled relational data

Dimensionally modeled relational metadata is data that is taken from a relational source
and modeled as a star schema. Hierarchies are applied to allow for drill behavior.
Dimensionally modeled relational data extends dimensional capabilities (such as drill-
down) to relational sources.
With dimensional analysis, your corporate data is organized in the way you think about
your business so that you spend more time on analysis, rather than on data retrieval.
Only dimensional models allow drill up and drill down behavior in analyses and reports.

Activity: Use a dimensionally modeled relational

data source
Most of the reports in this course use relational data sources. However this activity
demonstrates how to create a report with a dimensional data source. It provides an
overall view of the types of data sources that can be accessed in IBM Cognos
Analytics.
Explore a dimensionally modeled relational data source and create a report that
enables navigation to a lower level of detail.
• Create a blank report.
• Examine the data source.
• Add data items to the list.
• Drill up and drill down.
Create a blank report.
• Ensure you are logged into IBM Cognos Analytics (http://localhost:9300/bi) as
Frank Bretton (brettonf/Education1).
• From the Side bar, click New, and then click Report.
• Select a Blank template, and then click OK.
• From the Sources tab , click Add a source , navigate to:

Team content/Samples/Models/GO data warehouse (analysis), and then click
Open.
The Sources tab on the left displays the folders available in the package.
• On the Sources tab, click Options .

A set of actions specific to working with a dimensional data source are available.
• Click Options again to close the menu.
• In the center of the work area, click Add , click List, and then click OK to
accept the default options in the Object and query name dialog box.
• On the Sources tab, expand Sales and Marketing (analysis).
The folders in the Sales and Marketing (analysis) folder appear.

• Expand the Sales folder.

The available measure dimensions and regular dimensions are displayed

in the data tree. The presence of these objects indicates that you are working with
a dimensional data source.
Examine the data source.
• Expand the Sales fact measures query subject.
Review the measures available in the Sales fact measures query.
• Expand the Retailers dimension , and then expand the

Retailers hierarchy .
This hierarchy contains a Members folder and five levels.

• Expand the Region level.
The Members folder and the Region code query item appear in the data
tree.
• Under Region, expand the Members folder (under Region) to see the five sales
regions.
The member values are displayed within the Members folder.

Add data items to the list.
Before adding data items to the list, you want to ensure that summary rows do not
automatically appear in the report.
• Under Sources, expand the Time dimension, Time hierarchy, Year level, and
Members folder.
• Drag 2011 to the list report object in the work area that displays Drop items here
to create new columns.
Notice how you can add specific members to a report, instead of adding all years
first, and then filtering to include only the desired years, as is done in relational data
sources.
• Under the Retailers dimension, Retailers hierarchy, Region level, Members
folder, expand the Americas member, and then drag the Canada member to the
end of the list report object, dropping when the flashing black bar appears.
That area of the report object indicated by the flashing black bar is known as the
drop zone.

• Expand the Products dimension, Products hierarchy, Product line level,

Members folder, Camping Equipment member, Tents member, and then drag
Star Dome to the drop zone of the list report object.
• Ensure Sales fact measures is expanded, and then drag the Quantity measure to
the list report object.
The member and measure data items are displayed in the list.
Drill up and drill down.
Because the report contains dimensionally modeled relational data, you can drill down
to a greater level of detail than in a relational model.
• From the Application bar, click Run options, and then click Run HTML.
• In the report, click 2011 in the first column (not the header), and in the on-demand
toolbar, click Explore , and then click Drill Down.
You navigated to a lower level of detail and displayed data for each quarter of
2011. In the 2011 column of data, you can click one of the values (for example,
Q3 2011), click Explore, and then click Drill Up to drill back up if you want.

• Close the rendered New report tab.

• From the Application bar, expand the Switcher menu list.
• Beside New report, click Remove, and then click Close without saving.

Use personal data sources and data modules

Upload personal data
In IBM Cognos Analytics, personal data sources like a CSV or XLS file, can be
imported into IBM Cognos. The personal data source can then be converted to a data
module, after which it can be used as a data source for a report.
The process begins with the Upload files feature that is available from the New button
on the Welcome page. The uploaded personal data source must be contained as a
data module. This process is accomplished by selecting New > Data module. Data can
be dragged from the Selected sources pane to the Data module pane to define the data
module. Once the data module is been defined, it can be renamed and saved, making it
available as a data source for report creation.
Upload custom images
Using the Image Library extension, you can upload custom images directly into your
report without the need to navigate to the file location. This function is generally thought
of as an administrative function.
Using navigation paths in a data module
View navigation paths on the Data items tab of a data module. This option allows
browsing to any level that is defined in the data module.
To use this feature, click a data item that has one or more navigation paths that are
defined. The on-demand toolbar shows the navigation icon, which allows users to go to
another level, or even to skip to a different navigation path if using dimensional data.

Activity: Use a personal data source

Create a report that is based on a Microsoft Excel file. Upload the file to IBM Cognos
Analytics, use it to create a Data module, and then use the Data module as a source for
the report.
• Upload a Microsoft Excel file.
• Create the data module.
• Create a report from the data module.
Upload a Microsoft Excel file.
• From the Side bar, click New, and then click Upload files.
• In the Choose File to Upload dialog box, browse to: C:\Training\B6258G.
• Click the Sample_Sales_Data.xlsx file to select it, and then click Open.
Wait for the file to be analyzed. Once it appears in the Recent pane, you are ready
to proceed.
• On the Side bar, click My content.

Notice that the uploaded file is currently saved in your My content folder.

Create the data module.

• From the Side bar, click New > Data module.
• Under Select sources, click My content , and then select

Samples_Sales_Data.xlsx file, and then click OK.
• Click Select tables, and then click Next.
• Select the check box next to Page 1 1, and then in the middle pane, click Refresh.
The data is displayed in the middle pane.
• In the middle pane, scroll down if necessary, and then click OK.
The new data module appears on the left pane.
• Click Page 1 1 so that the columns and data appear in the Preview data pane.
• In the Preview data pane, right-click the Retailer country column header, and
then click Create navigation path.
The Create navigation path dialog box appears.
• In the left pane, expand Page 1 1, and then drag Province Or State to the right
pane below Retailer country.

• Drag City to the right pane below Province Or State.
You can organize the columns in the right pane so that they appear in an
appropriate navigation order, such as from Country, to Province Or State, to City.
The Name box provides a default name for the path, but you can edit it if desired.
• Click OK.
• At the top of the Data module pane, click Identify navigation path members .
The columns that were added to the navigation path appear underlined in the Data
module pane.
• From the Application bar, click Save.

You want to save the data module under My content to test it before making it
available to other users.

• Click My content , in the Save as box, type Sales data module, and then
click Save.
• On the Application bar, expand the Switcher menu list and then remove all items
from the list.
Create a report from the data module.
• Create a new report that uses the Blank template.
• Under the Insertable objects pane, on the Sources tab, click Select sources
.
• Click My content , click Sales data module, and then click Open.
• In the work area, click Add , click List, and then click OK.
• In the Sources tab, expand Sales data module > Page 1 1, and then drag
Product, Retailer, and Retailer country, one at a time, to the list.
• Drag Revenue to the right of the last dimension type data item.
• Under Insertable objects, click the Data items tab.

Notice the four items you added to the report have been added to Query1.
• Click the Sources tab , scroll to the bottom of the Insertable objects pane,
and then expand Navigation paths > Retailer Country - City.
The Navigation paths that were created in the data module are visible at the
bottom of the Data items list.

The report is rendered containing data from the data module.
• Click the Retailer country column header.
• From the on-demand toolbar click Navigate .

• Click Province Or State.
The report updates to show data for Province Or State, rather than Retailer
country.
• From the Application bar, expand the Switcher menu list.
• Beside New report, click Remove, and then click OK to close without saving.

Examine list reports

Use a list data container to create a list report. List reports let you present tabular
information and show detailed data from your database.
Group data
Group on one or more columns to organize how the data is viewed in the list.
The list should preferably follow a 1:n cardinality from left to right in order to properly
display the grouping.
Spanning one group of items by a second group can be helpful if the second group
contains many items.
You can level span grouped items only by other grouped items on the report.
To group related information together, select a column and click Group/Ungroup on the
toolbar. For example, when country and city are both grouped, you can choose to show
the country name each time that the country changes (span Country by Country), each
time the city changes (span Country by City), or every time a new record (no level
spanning) is introduced.
A grouped item appears at the top of a new page regardless of level spanning. For
example, when Country is spanned by City, the Country name appears at the top of the
next page, even for records in the same City.
Grouping a column in a list generates an order by clause in the generated SQL, so your
data is returned grouped and automatically sorted ascending.
Format columns
You can format list columns at different levels based on your requirements:
• Lowest level: format the cells on a list column
• Higher level: format both cells and the title in a list column
• Highest level: format both the cells and titles in all columns in the list
Include headers and footers
Headers and footers can be placed:
• at the top or bottom of a list on each page
• at the top of the first page or bottom of the last page
• before or after a group of details
Choose where to place headers and footers based on your requirements.

Activity: Enhance a list report

Create and format a list report to highlight and sort data items based on the values of
measure data items.
• Create the list report.
• Group and span columns.
• Add headers.
• Format and sort a column.
• Format the list column body.
• Add totals and sort.
Create the list report.
• Ensure you are logged into IBM Cognos Analytics as Frank Bretton
(brettonf/Education1).
• Create a report with the Blank template, List data container, using the relational
data source Team content/Samples/Models/GO data warehouse (query).
• From the Sources pane, expand Sales and Marketing (query) > Sales (query),
and then add the following query items to the report.
• Products: Product line, Product type, Product
• Retailer type: Retailer type
• Sales fact: Quantity, Revenue
The data items are displayed in the list in the order in which they were added.
• Click Bottom to view the final rows of the report, noting that no summary data is
available.

Group and span columns.

• In the List data container, click the <Product line> list column body (not the
header), Ctrl+click the <Product type> and <Product> list column bodies, and
then from the List toolbar, click Group / Ungroup .
The data items are displayed based on the applied grouping.

You want to control how often the Product type appears in the report. You want the
Product type to appear every time there is a new Product.
• Click the <Product type> list column body.
• If the properties pane on the right is not visible, then from the Application bar, click
Show properties to open the Properties pane, and then in the DATA
section, click Group span.
• In the list, click Product, and then click Show properties to close the Properties
pane.
• From the Side bar, click Toolbox , and then drag a Block to the left of and
above the list.
Note: Drop the block outside the list and not inside the list.
The block appears above the list.
• From the Toolbox, drag a Text item and drop it inside the Block.
• In the Text dialog box, type Product type Sales and Revenue by Product, and
then click OK.
• From the on-demand toolbar, click Font, and then under Family, click Arial.
• In the Size list, click 16pt, under Effects, select Underline, and then click OK.

• Run the report in HTML.
In this example, Product type is spanned by Product. Every time the value for
Product changes the value for Product type is repeated.
Add headers.
Add a page header for the report and an overall header to add additional information to
the report.
• In the upper left corner of the List, click container selector .

This ensures that the entire List is selected, and not just a part of the list.
• From the on-demand toolbar, click More.
• Point to Headers & footers, and then click List headers & footers.
• Select the List page header and Overall header check boxes, and then click OK.
• In the List, double-click List page header.
• In the Text box, delete the existing text, type Revenue by Retailer type, and then
click OK.
• With the page header still selected, from the on-demand toolbar, click Font.
• In the Family list, click Arial, in the Size list, click 12 pt., and then click OK.
• In the List, double-click Overall.
• In the Text box, delete the existing text, type Attention: Sales Managers, and
then click OK.
• In the List, click the <Product line> list column body, and then from the on-
demand toolbar, click More.

• Point to Headers & footers, and then click Create header.

• With the list column body still selected, from the on-demand toolbar, click
Delete to remove the redundant column.
The report is displayed with the specified headers and groupings.

Format and sort a column.
• In the List, click <Revenue>.
• From the on-demand toolbar, click Sort, and then click Descending.
When a column is sorted, the Sort icon appears in the cell that contains the column
title:
• With the list column body still selected, from the on-demand toolbar, click
Data format .

• In the Data format dialog box, in the Format type list, click Currency.
• Under Properties, click Currency, in the list, select
$ (USD) United States of America, dollar, and then click OK.
Format the list column body.
• Click the <Retailer type> list column body, and then from the on-demand toolbar,
click Font.
• In the Family list, click Arial, and then in the Style list, click Italic.
• Click Foreground color, and then under Basic colors, click Purple.
• Click OK, and then click OK again.
The font properties are applied to the body cells in the column.
• With Retailer type still selected, from the on-demand toolbar, click
Select ancestor , and then click List column.
• From the on-demand toolbar, click Font.
• In the Family list, click Arial, in the Size list, click 12pt, and then in the Weight list,
click Bold.
• Click Foreground color, and then under Custom color, click Green.
The color property is applied only to the column title because the column body
formatting overrides the column formatting. However, because you have not set
the size or weight for the column body, the value in the cells now appears in 12pt
bold font.
Add totals and sort.
• Click the <Revenue> column body.
• From the on-demand toolbar click Summarize, and then click Total.
• Click the container selector to select the entire list, and ensure that the
Properties pane shows List at the top.

• In the Properties pane, under DATA, double-click Grouping & sorting.
The data items that were previously grouped appear under the Groups folder.
• In the Groups pane, expand Product line, and then from the Data items pane,
drag Revenue to the Sort list folder.
The affected portion of the Groups pane appears as follows:
The Product line column will now be sorted in ascending order based on the
revenue generated by each product line. The product line that generated the least
revenue will appear at the beginning of the report.

• Click OK, and then from the Application bar, run the report in HTML.
In the example above, the report displays Quantity and Revenue for each Retailer
type, for each Product, Product type, and Product line. Because you sorted the
Revenue column in descending order, Retailers with the highest revenue appear
first. Because you sorted Product line by Revenue in ascending order, the Product
line with the lowest revenue (in this case Outdoor Protection) appears first in the
list.
• Take a few moments if you like to Page down and scroll through the list and
examine the report.
• When you are finished examining the list, close the rendered New report tab.
• From the Application bar, click Show properties to close the Properties pane.
• From the Application bar, open the Switcher menu list and remove the new
report without saving.

Aggregate fact data

You can aggregate fact data to show trends or summaries.
This example shows revenue for each product line for each employee, as well as the
total for all product lines for each employee. Depending on the type of measure that is
used in your report, you can also show minimum, maximum, average, total, count, or
calculated data.
In Framework Manager, used to create data models for Cognos Analytics - Reporting,
default data item properties can be set. Two of these properties are Rollup Aggregate
function and Aggregate function.
Rollup Aggregate Function specifies the type of aggregation to apply to summary
values. These values appear at the higher levels of lists and crosstabs. The default
setting is Automatic. The setting of Automatic indicates that the aggregation that is
applied is based on the data type of the query item. Therefore, an integer data type with
Rollup Aggregate set to automatic provides total aggregation. In the example, the
Rollup Aggregate function is set to Total on the Revenue data item.
The Aggregate function specifies the type of aggregation to apply to individual values
that appear as detail rows in lists or crosstabs.
Identify differences in aggregation
Data items that are selected from the source tab are calculated and summarized before
aggregation. Data items that are selected from the Data Items tab will be calculated and
summarized after aggregation.
Fact data items should be selected from the Data items tab if they are to be used
multiple times in a report or calculation, since they would not be re-aggregated based
on the entire query. This process prevents any double counting of the fact data item
and provides predictable results.

Activity: Explore data aggregation

Create a report that compares key performance indicators across different data items.
This report should display values for individual totals and averages. Examine the
underlying query model at various stages.
• Examine the query model.
• View individual records.
• Group the query items.
Examine the query model.
• Create a new report that uses the Blank template, a List data container, and the
• Expand Sales and Marketing (query) and Sales (query) and then add the
following query items to the new List template:
• Products: Product line
• Order method: Order method type
• Sales fact: Revenue
• From the navigational menu at the top , click Report > Queries >
Query1.
The three data items in the Data Items pane each correspond to an item in a
column in the list.
• In the Data Items pane, click Revenue, and then from the Application bar, click
Show properties (if the properties pane is not already visible for Revenue).
The Properties pane shows that the Detail aggregation property is set to Total.
Data in the query is grouped and summarized at the lowest level of detail, by
calculating the total revenue generated at that level. In the report, the lowest level
of detail is the last attribute item before the measure data item was added.

The report shows the revenue that is generated by each order method for each
product line.
View individual records.
You want to review the individual records that make up the summary level totals. To
achieve this result, set the Auto Group & Summarize property for this query to No.
• In the navigation menu, click Query1 > Query 1.
• From the Properties pane, under DATA, click the Auto group & summarize
property, and then in the list, click No.
• Run the report in HTML again.
The report no longer displays a single row for the totals. In this example, the report
shows rows containing the individual measure values that make up the summary
totals that were previously displayed.


• Set the Auto group & summarize property for Query1 back to Yes.
Group the query items.
You want to group the data at the highest level and add aggregate data to display an
average.
• From the navigation menu, click Report > Pages > Page1.
• In the List, click the Revenue column body, and then from the on-demand toolbar,
Data format .
Hint: You may have to close the Properties pane in order to see the Data format
icon.
• In the Format type list, click Currency.
• Under Properties, click Currency, in the list, select USD - United States of
America, dollar, and then click OK.
• In the List, click the Product line column body (this is the highest level attribute
type data item), and then from the on-demand toolbar, click Group / Ungroup.
• In the List, click the Revenue column body.
• From the on-demand toolbar, click Summarize, and then click Average.
Examine how the specified aggregation changed the Summary property for the
measure type data item in this query.
• In the Data Items pane, click Average(Revenue), and then if necessary, on the
Application bar, click Show properties.
The Properties pane shows that the Summary property is now set to Average. The
specified measure for grouped items in the report is aggregated to display the
average.

In this example, the data is grouped by the Product line (highest level data item).
For each Camping Equipment value at this level, there is a displayed aggregate
row showing the average value of all values for the Order method type.
• On the Application bar, expand the Switcher menu list and remove the
New report without saving.

Multiple facts and repeated information

Use shared dimensions to create multi-fact queries
When authoring reports with multiple facts across the business, it is necessary to use at
least one shared dimension item to ensure correlated and predictable results.
A shared dimension is created by the data modeler to provide consistent results
throughout the company's different business units. When business units report with
these shared query items, they communicate more efficiently as a whole by providing
the same base of information.
Shared dimensions are also known as conformed dimensions.
Results of multiple-fact queries can vary if the level of granularity differs and you use a
non-conformed dimension. For example, in a package that contains a Time dimension,
the granularity for time would differ between Sales target and Revenue. Sales targets
could be recorded monthly, whereas, the Revenue could be recorded daily. This is not
an issue when reporting and will not cause confusing results if you report at a common
level of granularity, such as in this case, the month level. If you report at the day level,
inventory levels display repeating values, the month total for every day of the month in
the report. These values will not be double-counted.
Present repeated information
You can use either repeaters or repeater tables to present repeated information.
Use repeaters to duplicate individual item(s) across a single row without a particular
structure.
Use repeater tables to repeat items in a table structure, such as mailing label
information.

Activity: Create a multi-fact query

Create a list report that includes measure type data items that have values at different
levels of granularity, and a non-conformed dimension. Identify how the multi-fact query,
with a non-conformed dimension, returns unexpected results (repeating values).
Replace the non-conformed dimension with a conformed dimension, and identify how
results become accurate (no repeating values).
• Add two facts from different query subjects.
• Add context.
• Add a query item from a conformed dimension.
• Delete a data item.
Add two facts from different query subjects.
• Create a report with the Blank template, List data container, using the relational
• From the Sales and Marketing (query) folder, add the following items to the list:
• Sales (query)/Sales fact: Revenue
• Sales target (query)/Sales target fact: Sales target
In this example, these are two distinct aggregated totals, and were returned as a
result of two separate Select statements.

Add context.
You want to include an attribute type data item to give context and meaning to the
measure type data items. For example, if the report contained Revenue and Sales
target, you could add the year in which the orders closed as a point in time to compare
Revenue to Sales target.
• From the Sales (query) namespace, add the following query item to the beginning
of the report:
• Time (close day): Year (close date)
The Revenue values change with each year, but the Sales target values do not.
This is because the Time (close day) is not a conformed dimension. This
dimension is not shared by both the two facts: Sales fact and Sales target. The
Sales target fact has no relationship to Time (close day).
Add a query item from a conformed dimension.
You will add a shared dimension to the report. This dimension will have a relationship to
both Revenue and Sales target.
• Examine the time-related query subjects under Sales (query) and
Sales target (query).
The Time (close day) query subject exists in the Sales (query) namespace, but not
in the Sales target (query) namespace. This tells you that Time (close day) is not
shared across the facts, and therefore is not a shared dimension.
The Time query subject exists in both the Sales (query) and Sales target (query)
namespaces; therefore, it is a shared dimension.

• Under Sales (query), expand Time, and then drag Year to the beginning of the
list.
The Sales target numbers now change from year to year. In 2010, there was
7,060,666.21 worth of orders that were placed in that year, but did not close until
2011. The orders that were placed in 2010 and closed in that same year totaled
907,292,137.51. Because Sales target has no relationship to the non-conformed
dimension, Year (close date), it just repeats the value it knows for 2010. This is an
example of the inaccurate results that can occur when using non-conformed query
items with multi-fact reports. Therefore, it is best to use conformed query items.

Delete a data item.

Delete the data item that represents the non-conformed dimension from the list.
• In the List, click the Year (close date) list column body, and then from the on-
demand toolbar, click Delete .
The values for the measure type data items now make sense and there are no
repeating values.
• On the Application bar, expand the Switcher menu list, and then remove the

Activity: Create a mailing list report

Create a mailing list report that uses location information. Your data source must
include location data such as Region, Country, City, Address, Province or State.
Address information must be listed alphabetically by country with the country name
appearing at the top. For easy readability, each page must contain no more than three
addresses across and four down.
• Create a repeater table.
• Add items to the table.
• Sort data items apply style.
• Change the frequency and positioning of the tables.
Create a repeater table.
• Create a new report that uses the Blank template, and the Team
content/Samples/Models/GO data warehouse (query) package.
• Under Insertable objects, click the Toolbox tab , and then expand DATA
CONTAINER.
• Drag a Repeater table object to the report, and then click OK to accept the default
options.
• In the Toolbox pane, drag a Table object to the drop zone in the Repeater table
object, in the report.
• In the Insert table dialog box, change the number of columns to 1, the number of
rows to 7, and then click OK.
The work area now contains a two-column, three-row repeater table containing six
tables, each having one column and seven rows.
Add items to the table.
• Under Insertable objects, click Sources .

• From the Sources tab, expand Sales and Marketing (query) > Sales (query).
• Expand Employee by region, and then drag Country to the Data Items pane.

• One at a time, drag Address 1, Address 2, City, Province or State, Postal zone,
and again, Country into the Data Items pane.
When you add multiple instances of the same query item, subsequent items will be
numbered to show that it is a duplicate entry. Then they can be treated as two
separate data items. In the example above, the Country query item has been
added twice. The first instance appears as Country, while the second instance
appears as Country1.
• Under Insertable objects, click Data items .

• From the Data items pane, drag Country into the first cell of the first 1x7 table.
The value is repeated in the other 5 tables.
• Drag Address 1, Address 2, City, Province or State, Postal zone, and again
Country2 into the remaining table cells.
A portion of the results appear as follows;
Notice that there are six identical tables.

Sort data items and apply style.

• Click the <Country> data item at the top of one of the tables, ensuring you select
only the item and not the entire cell.
You can use the Properties pane to verify that only a Text item is selected, and not
a Table cell.
All of the <Country> data items at the top of each table are selected.
• From the on-demand toolbar, click Sort, and then click Ascending.
A Sort Ascending icon appears beside the data item that represents country in the
first table.
• From the on-demand toolbar, click Font, and then in the Size list, click 12 pt.
• In the Weight list, click Bold, and then click OK.
Change the frequency and positioning of the tables.
• In the upper left corner of the Repeater table, click the container selector to
select the entire container.
• From the Application bar, click Show properties, if necessary.
• In the Properties pane, under GENERAL, change value for the Across property
to 3, change the value of the down property to 4, and then press Enter.
• In the Properties pane, under POSITIONING, double-click Table properties,
select the Fixed size check box, and then click OK.
• In the upper left corner of the first table, click the container selector to select all
of the tables.
You should only see the individual tables selected, not the Repeater table.
• In the Properties pane, under BOX, double-click Margin.
• In the Right margin and Top margin boxes, type 10, and then click OK.
This adds the appropriate space for the printed labels.

• From the Application toolbar, click Run options, and then click Run PDF.
The report is displayed in PDF format. PDF would be the appropriate run output for
mailing labels. Notice that the sort is in ascending order within each column of
tables.

Create crosstab reports

A crosstab report is a tabular display of data with data items appearing on rows and
columns, and is useful for analyzing and comparing summary data.
Use a crosstab data container to add data items to rows and columns, and measures to
the body of the crosstab.
This image shows the location of data items and measures in a crosstab format.
Crosstab edge cells have four drop zones: one on each side, one at the top of the cell,
and one at the bottom of the cell. Use the crosstab drop zones to add items as parents,
peers, or children of other items in the crosstab. Using crosstab drop zones, you can
quickly create crosstabs using drag-and-drop functionality.
Add measures to a crosstab
Any data item that can be aggregated can be added to the crosstab as the measure.
The measure defines the data in the report, such as revenue, quantity, or profit margin.
You can add measures to the body of the report or to either the row or column edges. A
measure added to the body of the report is known as the default measure. It is used in
cells where the measure is not defined on the row or column edge.
Regardless of where a measure is added, the crosstab fact cells contain the measure
values.
In crosstabs, you can show values as a percentage of a summary instead of the actual
values. For example, you can show the revenue that was generated by each product
line as a percentage of the total revenue.

Data sources for a crosstab

Relational models have a basic metadata structure that looks like tables and columns in
a database.
Dimensionally Modeled Relational (DMR) models are built from relational data sources,
but are modeled with a dimensional structure (like OLAP) consisting of measures and
dimensions.
Because crosstabs use rows and columns to define the basic structure and determine
cell values, they are better suited to dimensional reporting.
Best practices to keep in mind when using crosstab reporting objects include the
following:
• Crosstabs are, by design, a dimensional reporting object.
• Insert the data items you wish to view in the rows and columns to focus the report,
rather than using filters.
• Filters in a crosstab may cause unpredictable results and should be used only
when necessary.
• Crosstabs can be used in relational data reporting, but take care to maintain
predictable results.

Activity: Create a simple crosstab report

Create and format a crosstab report that uses data items from your data source.
• Create a crosstab.
• Nest and sort data item.
Create a crosstab.
• Ensure you are logged into IBM Cognos Analytics (localhost:9300/bi) as
• Create a new report using a Blank template, a Crosstab container, and the
Team content/Samples/Models/GO data warehouse (query) package.
• From the Source tab, expand Sales and Marketing (query), and then from the
Sales (query) namespace, drag the following query items to the new crosstab data
container object:
Rows:
Columns:
Measures:

The report shows the revenue generated for each product line by each order
method. You want to add relevancy to the revenue items by adding years to the
report to compare revenue generated in each year.

Nest and sort data items.

• Expand the Time query subject, and then drag Year to the Columns, nested
under <#Order method type#> as a child (or nested) cell.
The report displays the nested data item.

• Click the <#Year#> column title of the nested data item.
• From the on-demand toolbar, click Sort, and then click Ascending.
The report shows yearly revenue for each order method on columns. If your report
contains numerous data item values on the rows or the columns, you can swap the
rows and columns to make it easier for consumers to read the report.
• Click the container selector to select the entire crosstab.
• From the on-demand toolbar, click Swap Rows and Columns .

The data item values on columns and rows are swapped.


Create complex crosstab reports

Crosstab drop zones let you create a wide variety of crosstab layouts to meet your
business requirements.
Add items as peers
To add a second item as a peer below an existing item, drop the new item below the
bottom instance of the item on the row edge. To add a second item as a peer above the
existing item, drop the new item above either instance of the item on the row edge.
To add a second item as a peer to the right of the existing item, drop the new item to
the right of the far right instance of the item on the column edge. To add a second item
as a peer to the left of the existing item, drop the new item to the left of either instance
of the item on the column edge.
Create crosstab nodes and crosstab members
The row and column edges of a crosstab are composed of sets of crosstab nodes. A
crosstab node contains one crosstab node member, as well as any crosstab node
members nested under it.
Each crosstab node member refers to a data item.
Crosstab nodes and crosstab node members let you easily create and modify complex
crosstabs.

Activity: Create a complex crosstab report

Add data items to Rows, Columns, and Measures drop zones to create a crosstab
report. Add additional data items to explore the flexibility of layout options using the
crosstab drop zones.
• Create a crosstab report.
• Nest child items on a crosstab edge.
• Add an item as a row peer.
• Add an item as a column peer.
Create a crosstab report.
• Create a new report that uses the Blank template, the Crosstab data container,
and the Team content/Samples/Models/GO data warehouse (query) package.
• From the Source tab, expand Sales and Marketing (query) and Sales (query)
and then add the following query items to the crosstab report object:
Rows:
Columns:

Nest child items on a crosstab edge.

• From the Sources tab, expand Sales fact, and then drag Revenue to the Rows
area as a child of <#Product line#>.
The correct drop zone appears as follows:
Next, you will nest Quantity in the Product line rows.

• From the Sources tab, from Sales fact, drag Quantity to the Rows area as a peer
of <#Revenue#>.
The correct drop zone appears at the bottom as follows:
Both measure data items are now nested in the rows of the crosstab.

Add an item as a row peer.

Next, you will add a data item as a peer in the rows of the report.
• From the Sources tab, expand Employee by region, and then drag Country to
the Rows area, as a peer of <#Product line#>.
Country has no measure associated with it, since Revenue and Quantity are
children of Product line only.
• Under Insertable objects, click Data items .

• From the Data Items tab, drag Revenue to the Rows area as a child of
<#Country#>.

Both revenue and quantity appear for each Product line, while only revenue
appears for each country, as expected. You can examine the values for the nested
child measure data items for two different peer data items on the crosstab rows
edge.
Add an item as a column peer.
• Under Insertable objects, click Sources , expand Time, and then drag Year
to the left of <#Order method type#> in the Columns area of the crosstab.
A <#Year#> column now appears to the left of the <#Order method type#> column.
• Click the <#Year#> column header, and from the on-demand toolbar click Sort,
and then click Ascending.

You can examine revenue generated and quantity sold for your product lines as
well as by different order methods. You can also examine the revenue generated in
different countries by different order methods. For example, you can see that no
Mountaineering Equipment was sold in 2010.

Work with crosstab data

Format, sort, and aggregate a crosstab
You can specify formatting for cells displaying data for a specific row or column edge
item.
In a crosstab, you can sort by values in the rows or columns. You can also perform
advanced sorting to sort a row or column by values in the measures.
In a crosstab, you can add summaries such as Total, Count, Average, Minimum, and
Maximum that summarize the values in the measures.

Activity: Work with data in a crosstab

Create a crosstab report that includes sorted, formatted, and aggregated data.
• Sort a crosstab.
• Format the crosstab.
• Add aggregate data.
Sort a crosstab.
• Under Insertable objects, from the Sources tab, expand Sales and Marketing
(query) and Sales (query), and then add the following query items to the crosstab
report object:
Rows:
• Employee by region: Branch region as a peer of <#Product line#>.
Columns:
• Time: Year
Measures:
• Click <#Year#> and from the on-demand toolbar, click Sort, and then click
Ascending.
• Click <#Product line#> and from the on-demand toolbar, click Sort, and then click
Ascending.

Format the crosstab.
• With <#Product line#> still selected, from the on-demand toolbar click More ,
and then click Select Member Fact Cells. (Hint: You may need to click Show
properties to hide the properties pane in order to see the More icon.)
• From the on-demand toolbar, click Font, click Foreground Color, and then
click Blue.
• Click OK to close the Foreground color dialog box, and then click OK again to
close the Font dialog box.
• Click <#Branch region#>, and then from the Application bar, click
Show properties.
• In the Properties pane, under DATA, double-click the Sorting property.
• In the Sorting dialog box, from the Data items pane, drag Revenue to the
Sort list pane.
• In the Sort List pane, double-click Revenue to change the sort order from
ascending to descending (arrow pointing down).
• Click OK.
Add aggregate data.
• Click <#Year#>, and from the on-demand toolbar, click Summarize, and then click
Total.
• From the Source tab, under Products, drag Product type to the Rows as a child
of <#Product line#>.
Product type appears to the right of Product line.
• Click <#Product type#>, from the on-demand toolbar, click Summarize, and then
click Total.
• In the list report, under <#Product type#>, click Total.
• Ensure the Total row header is selected, in the Properties pane, under
TEXT SOURCE, click the Source type property, and then from the list, click
Data item value.

The report shows:

• the crosstab column headers (year) are sorted in ascending order
• values in the member fact cells are formatted in blue font (revenue)
• summary totals are added in the rows for each column (on the far right)
• summary totals are added in the columns for each nested row

• Click Page down to view the rest of the report.
The report shows that for Branch region, added to the Rows as a peer of Product
line, revenue is sorted in descending order.

Create discontinuous crosstab reports

You can create discontinuous crosstabs that have unrelated data in the row and column
edges.
Creating discontinuous crosstabs lets you present a wide variety of information in one
report and customize the way it is displayed.

Activity: Create a discontinuous crosstab

Create a discontinuous crosstab report that presents values for unrelated items. Include
two measures nested as children of a data item on the columns. Add two unrelated
data items as peers on the rows. Add a related data item as a child to one of the data
items on the rows. Add formatting to the measure values that helps distinguish them.
• Create a discontinuous crosstab.
• Apply formatting to the fact cells.
Create a discontinuous crosstab.
• From the Sources tab, expand Sales and Marketing (query) and Sales (query)
and then add the following query items to the crosstab report object:
• Add Products > Product line to rows.
• Add Employee by region > Branch region to columns.
• Add Time > Year to the rows as a peer of <#Product line#>.
• Add Time > Quarter to the rows as a child of <#Year#>.
• Add Sales fact > Revenue as a nested column under <#Branch region#>.
• Add Sales fact > Quantity to the columns as a peer of <#Revenue#>.
• Use the on-demand toolbar to perform the following:
• Sort the <#Branch region#> column ascending.
• Sort the <#Product line#> row ascending.
• Sort the <#Year#> row descending.

Apply formatting to the fact cells.

• Click <#Revenue#>, from the on-demand toolbar, click More, and then click
Select Member Fact Cells.
• From the on-demand toolbar, click Font, click Foreground color, and then
click Blue.
• Click <#Quantity#>, from the on-demand toolbar, click More, and then click
Select Member Fact Cells.
• From the on-demand toolbar, click Font, click Foreground color, and then
click Red.
You have created a report that shows the nested formatted measures by the data
items on the columns and rows edges. The rows edge also includes unrelated data
items.
• From the Switcher menu list, remove the current report without saving it.

Create visualization reports

Data can be displayed graphically to effectively show comparisons, relationships, and
trends using one or more of the available visualization types. IBM Cognos Analytics -
Reporting provides many rich, visually appealing visualizations with additional options
to enhance them.
Visualization categories
Authors can choose from the following:
• 11.1 visualizations
• 11.0 visualizations
• Legacy visualizations
• Charts
11.1, 11.0, and Charts categories of visualizations are included with the installation of
IBM Cognos Analytics. The Legacy visualizations can be imported into the Visualization
library through the IBM_Cognos_Samples.zip deployment archive. As well, additional
visualizations can be authored, or existing ones can be modified, and then imported
into the Visualization library.
The 11.1 visualizations category is the default for this version of the product.
The four categories of visualizations, have different visualization types, each of which
emphasize different things. To choose a type, consider what you want the chart to
illustrate. For example, if you want to show contributions of parts to a whole, then you
would choose a Pie type visualization. If you want to emphasize the magnitude of
change over time, then you would choose an Area type visualization.
The features and benefits of each visualization type are displayed to the right of the
Visualization gallery dialog box when you click the visualization type.
Customize visualizations
As described, different categories of visualizations will have different properties
available for modification.
Some properties are common to all types. For example, color schemes, rescaling of
axes numbers, renaming axes, and displaying details can enhance reports. Fills and
Background customization can greatly enhance the visual appeal of charts. Tool tips
are available by default, and provide additional information while adding a level of
interaction to the visualization.
As a report, dashboard, or story author, you can create custom color palettes while you
work on the canvas. You can create two types of custom palettes:

• Categorical palettes are used for visualizations that support discrete colors, like pie
or bar charts.
• Continuous palettes are used for visualizations that support color transitions, like a
map or a heat map.
Visualizations use percentage size, so they resize based on-screen resolution.
See the Cognos Analytics Reporting documentation for more information on how to
create custom color palettes.
Client side visualizations
All 11.1 visualizations have client-side rendering capability. The visualizations can use
and interact with data stored on the browser side. Report authors can include extra data
to be stored on the browser side when you create visualizations. Report consumers can
filter visualizations directly on the report output using data that is already retrieved from
the database. For more information, see Visualizations version 11.x in the online
product documentation on www.ibm.com.
Enhanced Map visualizations
The Map visualization has been updated to allow adding multiple location categories to
a map to reduce or eliminate ambiguous location names. A point location option is also
available to show data for two location measures in two layers, one filled by regions,
and one by points. Latitude and Longitude option is available with zoom and focus
capabilities.
Report consumers can interact with different map layers to customize how a map is
displayed. Map clustering lets you group points on a map to help users better analyze
data at different zoom levels. Also, you can visualize data by location using a heatmap
layer on a map. For more information regarding enhanced mapping support, see the
Adding custom points or regions to a map in the product documentation.

Activity: Use an 11.0 visualization

Create a combination visualization to show data items on two different axes plotted
against the same measure data item. Then customize aspects of the visualization.
• Create a combination visualization.
• Customize properties of the visualization
Create a combination visualization.
• Create a new report that uses the Blank template, and the
• From the report area, click Add, and then click Visualization.
• In the upper right corner of the Visualization gallery dialog box, click the filter list
drop down and ensure that 11.0 visualizations is selected.
• In the left pane, click Composite, in the right pane, click Simple line and column,
and then click OK two times.
• In the Sources tab of the Insertable objects pane, navigate to the Sales and
Marketing (query) > Sales (query) folder.
You might want to click Show properties to close the properties pane.
You want to compare quantity sold by product line and by region.
• Add the following data items to the visualization:
• Line value: Sales fact > Quantity
• Column value: Sales fact/Quantity (it will appear as Quantity1)
• X axis: Products/Product line
• Color line: Retailers/Region


The result appears as shown below:
The report shows that quantity sold is lowest for Golf Equipment, both for overall
sales as shown in the columns, and for all regions as shown in the line chart.
You want to customize the visualization to make it easier to read.
Customize visualization properties.
You want to make the chart larger and change the color palette.
• In the work area, click the image of the chart, and then click Show properties.
The Properties pane appears showing data for the Simple line and column
visualization.
• Under COMMON, change the Width to 900 and the Height to 800.
• Under COMMON, click Column color palette, and then from the list, select the
fourth palette from the top.


The visualization now appears larger. All of the regions are visible in the legend.
The columns now appear gold which provides a better contrast against the colors
of the lines.
• From the Application bar, remove the New report without saving.

Activity: Use an 11.1 Map visualization

Create a report that uses a Map visualization to highlight data geographically against a
map, and quickly identify areas of interest.
• Specify the Map visualization.
• Set the visualization properties.
Specify the Map visualization.
• Create a new report that uses the Blank template, the Team
content/Samples/Models/GO data warehouse (query), and the Visualization
data container.
• In the Visualization gallery dialog box, in the upper right corner, select
11.1 visualizations from the Filter list.
• In the Visualization gallery, from the list on the left, select Map, and then click
OK.
Map visualizations have three layers to display data: Region, Point, and
Latitude/Longitude. By default, the drop zones automatically appear.
• If the drop zones are not visible, click the background of the visualization to display
them.
This background click serves as a toggle to display and hide the drop zones.
• Ensure that Regions is selected in the drop-down list, and then in the Sources
tab, expand Sales and Marketing (query) > Sales (query) > Employee by
region.
• Add Country to the Locations drop zone.

• Add Sales fact > Revenue to the Location color drop zone.
• Click the arrow beside Regions to open the list, and then select Points.
• Add Employee by region > City to the Locations drop zone.
• Add Sales fact > Revenue to the Point size drop zone.
• Add Sales fact > Quantity to the Point color drop zone.

If you had Latitude and Longitude data, you would select Latitude/Longitude from
the list and populate the appropriate fields:
Set the visualization properties.

• Click the visualization background, and then, if necessary, on the Application bar,
click Show properties.
• In the Properties pane, under VISUALIZATION, set the Size to 1000 x 1000.
• In the Properties pane, under MAP, set Hide Location Warnings to Yes.
• In the Properties pane, under COLOR PALETTE, click Regions > More .
• In the System list, scroll down and click the last palette, Red-blue inverse
divergent, and then click Back.
• In the Properties pane, under MAP, click Style, and then in the list,
click Outdoors.

• Run the report in HTML, and then move the cursor over the regions and points on
the map to view interactive messages.
The report is displayed with the Map visualization.


Activity: Use a Legacy visualization

Create a report that combines a Crosstab data container to show data numerically, with
a Visualization data container to show data graphically.
• Create the Crosstab data container.
• Create the Visualization data container.
• Add filters to focus the data.
• Add a microchart.
Create the Crosstab data container.
• Create a new report that uses the Blank template, the
Team content/Samples/Models/GO data warehouse (query) package, and a
Crosstab data container.
• Expand Sales and Marketing (query) > Sales (query).
• Add Order method > Order method type to the Rows, and then add
Time > Year to the Columns.
• Under the <#Year#> column data item, add Sales fact > Revenue and
Sales fact > Quantity, nested as peers.
Order method type appears on rows, and Revenue and Quantity appear nested
under Year on columns.

Create the Visualization data container.
• Under Insertable objects, click Toolbox , expand DATA CONTAINER, and

then drag a Visualization data container to the left of the crosstab.
• In the upper right corner of the Visualization gallery dialog box, click the filter icon,
and then click Legacy visualizations.
• In the left pane, click Line, in the middle pane, click Combination chart, and then
click OK.
• Click OK to accept the default settings.
• Click the Combination chart: Clustered column data container to select it, and
then from the Application bar, click Show properties.
• In the Properties pane, under DATA, click the Query property, and then in the list,
click Query1.
• Repeat for the Combination chart: Line data container.
• Under Insertable objects, click Data items , and then ensure Query1 is
expanded.
• Drag Year to the Combination chart: Clustered column data > Categories >
Categories (x-axis) drop zone.
• Drag Year to the Combination chart: Line data > Categories > Categories (x-
axis) drop zone
• Drag Order method type to the Combination chart: Clustered column data >
Categories > Series drop zone.
• Drag Order method type to the Combination chart: Line data > Categories >
Series drop zone.
• Drag Revenue to the Combination chart: Clustered column data > Values >
Size drop zone.
• Drag Quantity to the Combination chart: Line data > Values > Size drop zone.


A combination chart appears next to the crosstab, both showing the same data.
Add filters to focus the data.
• Click the Combination chart visualization to select it, from the on-demand toolbar,
click Filters , and then click Edit Filters.
• Click Add, ensure that Custom based on data item is selected, and that
Order method type is selected in the list.
• Click OK.
The Filter condition dialog box appears.
• Under Find, click Email, and then click the plus sign , being careful not to click
the green Add button.
• Repeat for Sales visit, Special, Telephone, and then click OK.
• In the Filters dialog box, under Application, ensure that
Before auto aggregation is selected, and then click OK.


Both the visualization and the crosstab are filtered to only show data for four order
method types because each are using the same query.
Add a microchart.
• In the crosstab, click <#Order method type#>, from the on-demand toolbar, click
More, and then click Insert chart for Row Data. (Hint: You may need to close the
properties pane to see the More icon.)
The Insert chart dialog box appears.
• In the left pane, verify that Microchart is selected, and then click OK to accept the
default Line microchart.
• In the Categories (x-axis) section of the microchart, drag Revenue to the
Default Measure (y-axis).
• In the Categories (x-axis) section of the microchart, click <#Quantity#>, and then
press Delete.
The entire section may disappear. If it does, click the chart background again to
see the results of your Delete action just performed.
The microchart is populated to show Revenue by Order method type by Year.


A section of the results appears as follows:
You added a microchart to the crosstab for a quick overview of measure values for
the filtered data items on Columns.

Focus reports using filters

Create filters to narrow the focus
To narrow the focus of your report, you can create a filter expression in three different
ways:
• Custom based on data item - expression built by using the drag and drop method
of adding data item(s)
• Combined - combining two or more expressions
• Advanced - custom filter based on an expression
When you create a filter, you define conditions around query items to report on a
specific subset of data.
Use advanced detail filters
A detail filter will be applied to all rows in the report.
For detail filters, filter any item in the package that uses the Source tab, or filter items in
the report that uses the Data Items tab or Queries tab. Use the Functions tab to create
filter calculations. Use the Parameters tab to use existing filters.
Apply a filter with aggregation
Aggregated data can show totals, averages, or other formats of summarized data.
Save time and effort by applying filters published with your source package rather than
creating your own.
Use summary filters
To add a filter that will apply to groups in the report, click the Summary Filters tab in the
Filters dialog box.
When you use a summary filter, you can specify the group on which you want to filter.
When you combine detail and summary filters, be aware that the detail filter will affect
the summarized numbers that you are filtering on. Be sure to check that the results are
as expected.

Activity: Apply filters to a report

Create a report that will be filtered on a specified data query item and a year query item.
In this activity, you will accomplish the following:
• Create the list.
• Add a filter for Year.
• Filter on Country.
Create the list.
content/Samples/Models/GO data warehouse (query) package, and a List data
container.
• Add the following query items to the list:
• Employee by region: Country, City, First name, Last name, Position name
• Click the <Country> column body, Ctrl+click the <City> column body, and then
from the on-demand toolbar, click Group / Ungroup.
• Click the <Country> grouped column body, from the on-demand toolbar, click
More, point to Headers & footers, and then click Create header.
• With the <Country> column still selected, press the Delete key to remove the
redundant column.
• Click the <Revenue> list column body, from the on-demand toolbar, click
Summarize, and then click Total.
• Click the <Revenue> list column body, from the on-demand toolbar, click Sort, and
then click Descending.

• From the Application bar, run the report in HTML.
The report is grouped on Country and City, with Country appearing as a header.
The report is sorted in descending order by revenue so that representatives with
the highest revenue appear first. Revenue is summarized by Total showing
grouped summaries at the City and Country levels.
Add a filter for Year.
• Select the entire list data container.
• From the on-demand toolbar, click Filters, and then click Edit Filters.
The Filters - Query1 dialog box appears. There are two tabs: one for creating filters
at the detail level, and one for creating filters at the summary level.
• With the Detail Filters tab selected, click Add , click Advanced, and then click
OK.
• Under Available Components, ensure the Source tab is selected at the

bottom of the pane, navigate to Sales and Marketing (query) > Sales (query),
and then expand Time.

• From the Time query subject, drag Year into the Expression Definition pane.
The x appears as [Sales (query)].[Time].[Year]. You want to show data for the year
2012 only.
• Click the end of the expression to place your cursor after [Year], and then type
=2012.
• Click Validate to ensure the expression contains no errors.

A section of the result appears as follows:
The expression [Sales (query)].[Time].[Year]=2012 validated with no errors.

There are different ways of creating filters to achieve the same result. For example
you could achieve the same result using any of these methods:
• Drag Year into the Expression Definition pane and then type =2012
• create the expression [Sales (query)].[Time].[Date] between 2012-01-01 and
2012-12-31
• create filters by adding operators and conditions to query items using SQL
syntax
• Click OK to close the Detail filter expression dialog box, and then click OK to
close the Filters - Query1 dialog box.
The report layout remains the same but the Revenue values are lower than before
because the report only contains data for 2012 instead of all years.

Filter on Country.
You want the report to only include data for Austria and Italy.
• Select the entire list data container, from the on-demand toolbar, click Filters, and
then click Edit Filters.
The Filters - Query 1 dialog box appears showing the detail filter you just created.
You will create another detail filter.
• Click Add, ensure that Country (the header) is selected under
Custom based on data item, and then click OK.
Advanced search options are also available.
• Under the Find list, click Austria, and then Ctrl+click Italy.
Below the Find list, a message appears indicating that two values have been
selected.
• To the right of 2 Selected message, click Add to add the values to the
right pane.
• Click OK to close the Filter condition dialog box, and then click OK to close the
Filters - Query1 dialog box.

This report now only contains data for Austria and Italy for the year 2012.

Activity: Apply a detail filter on fact data

Create a report that displays total values in order to identify the top performing items. To
create this report, add several filters and examine how they affect the query.
• Create a list.
• Apply a detail filter before auto aggregation.
• Group and summarize the data.
• Apply a detail filter after auto aggregation.
• Examine the effects of the filters.
Create a list.
• Create a new report that uses the Blank template, the
List data container.
• Products: Product line, Product type
• Click the Product line list column body, and then from the on-demand toolbar,
click Group / Ungroup.
• Click the Revenue list column body, from the on-demand toolbar, click

The data is grouped and an aggregate row displays the total value generated for
each Product type. Take note of one of the first grouped summarized totals, such
as Cooking Gear, which is $272,835,984.18. You will compare this number with
the values generated later.
• On the navigation menu, click Report > Queries > Query1.
• In the Data Items pane, click Revenue, and then, from the Application bar, click
Show properties.
In the Properties pane, notice that the Detail property for Revenue is set to
Automatic.
• In the Data Items pane, click the Total(Revenue) query item.
In the Properties pane, notice that the Summary property is set to Total. This is
because, in the layout, you added an aggregate row displaying total revenue for
grouped items in the report.
• In the navigation menu, click Report > Queries, and then in the work area, click
Query1.
In the Properties pane, notice that the Auto group & summarize property for the
query is set to Yes. You want to view each individual data record, so you will
change this property to No.

• From the navigation menu, click Report > Queries > Query1 list, select Query1.
• On the properties pane, click the Auto group & summarize property, and then
select No from the list.
The report now displays each individual record rather than a summary value for
each Product type.
Note: Do not click the Bottom navigation button because this report could return a
large amount of data and it will take a considerable amount of time to render the
last page. The order you see displayed in the results may vary because no sorting
has been applied.

Apply a detail filter before auto aggregation.

You want this report to include only individual sales of product types that generated
more than $100,000 in revenue. You will create a detail filter and apply it before auto
aggregation.
• From the navigation menu, click Report > Pages > Page1, and then select the
You can verify that the list is selected by looking at the on-demand toolbar just
above properties pane.
• From the on-demand toolbar, click Filters, click Edit Filters, and then ensure the
Detail Filters tab is selected in the Filters dialog box.
• Click Add, from the Custom based on data item list select Revenue, and then
click OK.
• Ensure that the Operator is >, and then in the Value text box, type 100000 (100
thousand).
• Click OK, and then in the Application area, click Before auto aggregation.
• Click OK to close the Filters dialog box.
The report now displays only data for individual sales of product types that
generated more than $100,000 in revenue.
• In the report, click Bottom.
The total revenue generated by product type orders of over $100,000 is
$496,713,003.20.
The filter that you created appears in the Detail Filters pane.

• In the Detail Filters pane, click the Revenue>100000 filter.

In the Properties pane, the properties specified for the filter display as follows:
• Definition: displays the expression you created for this filter
• Usage: is set to Required
• Application: is set to Before Auto Aggregation
Group and summarize the data.
You want to see only one row of values for each item, so you will set the Auto Group &
Summarize property for the query back to Yes.
• On the navigation menu, click Report > Queries > Query1, and from the list,
select Query1.
• In the Properties pane, under DATA, change the Auto group & summarize
property to Yes.
There is only one row for each product type because the query will group and
summarize the data at the lowest level of detail.
The revenue generated by Cooking Gear is $1,863,445.82. When you ran this
report without the filter, the revenue generated by Cooking Gear was
$272,835,984.18. The value is different because it no longer includes individual
orders that generated less than one hundred thousand dollars in revenue.
The total revenue generated by all product lines is $496,713,003.20, which is the
same as when you ran the report with the Auto group & summarize property for the
query set to No.

Since you specified that the filter was to be applied before the query will group and
summarize retrieved data, the filter will exclude the same data regardless of
whether the query retrieves data that is summarized or not summarized.
Apply a detail filter after auto aggregation.
You want the report to display only items for which the total value is greater than the
indicated value. To achieve this, you will create a detail filter and apply it after auto
aggregation.
• On the navigation menu, click Report > Pages > Page1.
• Select the List data container, from the on-demand toolbar click Filters, and then
click Edit Filters.
• Click Add, select Revenue from the Custom based on data item list, and then
click OK.
• Ensure that the Operator is >, and then in the Value text box, type 10000000 (10
million).
• Click OK, and then ensure that under the Application section,
After auto aggregation is selected.
Examine the effects of the filters.
Only the five product types that generated total revenue greater than ten million
display in the report.
You have decided to include items in the report even if the aggregated revenue
generated is less than 10 million. However, in case you may want to use this filter
in the future, you will disable this filter instead of deleting it.
• Select the List data container.
• Click Revenue > 10000000, and then in the Usage area, click Disabled.

All product types that generated over $100,000 in revenue (in at least one order),
again appear in the report, which indicates that the second filter you added has
been disabled.
• On the navigation menu, click Report > Queries > Query1.
Notice that the Revenue > 10000000 filter still appears in the query, though the
icon beside it is grayed out, indicating that it is unavailable to the query.
• In the Detail Filters pane, click the Revenue > 10000000 filter.
In the Properties pane notice that, as specified, the Usage property for the filter is
set to Disabled.

Activity: Apply a summary filter

You will create a report that focuses on items that have generated values that are
considered very successful. You will use a summary filter to focus on this data.
• Apply a summary filter.
• Navigate to the query explorer.
Apply a summary filter.
container.
• Click the <Product line> list column body, and then from the on-demand toolbar,
click Group / Ungroup.
• Click the <Revenue> list column body, from the on-demand toolbar, click
• Select the List data container, from the on-demand toolbar, click Filters, and then
click Edit Filters.
The Filters dialog box appears.
• Click the Summary Filters tab, click Add, click Advanced, and then click OK.
The Summary filter expression dialog box appears.
You want to only show product lines that generated total revenues of greater than
1,000,000,000 (1 billion).
• From the Available Components pane, drag Total(Revenue) to the
Expression Definition pane, and then type >1000000000.
The expression reads: Total(Revenue)>1000000000

• Click Validate.
The expression validates with no errors.
• Click OK.
• In the Filters dialog box, to the right of the Scope text field, click the ellipsis.
• Select Product line, click OK to close the Scope dialog box, and then click OK to
close the Filters dialog box.
Only two product lines generated total revenues greater than $1,000,000,000:
Camping Equipment and Personal Accessories.
Navigate to the query explorer.
The summary filter you added appears in the Summary Filters pane.
• If the properties pane is not visible, click Show Properties.
• In the Summary Filters pane, click the filter.
In the Properties pane, the Scope property for this filter is set to Product line.

Focus reports using prompts

Examine parameters and prompts
Prompts ask the user to provide the value for the parameter that filters the report on
specific data values. They function as dynamic filters.
There are three ways to prompt for report specifications:
• create a parameter for an item on the report
• add a prompt page to the report containing one or more prompt items
• add a prompt item to a report
Parameters are placeholders that require a value to determine what data to report on.
Parameterized filters consist of a query item and operator. The operator you choose
determines some of the default properties of the prompt. For example, if you choose
the = operator the user will only be able to select a single option from the prompt (Multi-
Select - No). If you choose the ‘in’ operator, the user will be able to select multiple
options from the prompt.
Create a parameter for a report item
Reporting can automatically generate prompted reports based on parameters you
create. If you create a parameter for an item on a report, when you run the report you
will be prompted to specify a value for that item. The report displays the information
according to the value given in the prompt. The prompt is created automatically and
must be answered in order to view the report.
Add a prompt page
You can create a prompt page to control how prompts appear in the report. A prompt
page can be built by dragging prompt tools from the Tool box tab.
You can also create a blank prompt page by adding a new page to the Prompt Pages
section in Page Explorer. Once on the new prompt page, you can drag prompt items
onto the work area.
A date item will automatically generate a Calendar prompt, a number item generates a
Text Box prompt, and a value item will generate a Value prompt.
Add a prompt item to a report
When a prompt item is dragged onto a report, a prompt wizard walks the report author
through the prompt building process.

The wizard will add a prompt control and a parameterized filter to the report by
performing the following tasks:
• Create a parameter.
• Add a filter to the data container with the parameter.
• Create a query for the prompt.
• Add the query and the parameter to the prompt.
If you add a prompt directly onto a report page, you will either need to set the prompt to
automatically submit the selection, or add a Finish prompt button to the report so that
the report will regenerate that uses the new criteria.
Identify a prompt type
Choose the appropriate prompt type for your reporting requirements. If you add prompt
items to a report or prompt page, you can choose from the different types of prompts
available in the Toolbox tab according to your needs. If you select items on a report and
then create a prompt page, Reporting will choose an appropriate prompt type for you.
Similarly, a generated prompt acts as a placeholder in the work area, but when the
report is run, Reporting selects the appropriate prompt type for that report.
If there are a large number of choices available (such as sales rep name), then Select &
Search is a good option. This saves time in scrolling to look for the desired option. If the
exact name or spelling of an item is unknown, then avoid using the Text Box prompt as
the value must be typed in exactly as it appears in the report.
Interval prompts are valuable for reporting on very specific time frames as they let you
choose lowest to highest time intervals in days, hours, and minutes.
Create a cascading prompt
You can use values from a previous prompt to filter the values in the current prompt or
picklist.
The selection that the user makes in one prompt determines what is populated in
another prompt.
When you create a series of prompts that have a hierarchical relationship, you can
define them as cascading, so that a prompt selection is determined by the choice of the
user in the previous prompt.

Activity: Add a parameter to create a prompt

Create a report showing items by date to determine the values generated. Because the
report contains detailed information, filter the report to show values after a specified
time period. Create a parameter to prompt a user for a date and the report will return all
dates greater than the one specified.
• Add a date parameter.
Create the list.
• Open a new report that uses the Blank template, the Team content/Samples/
Models/GO data warehouse (query) package, and a List data container.
• On the Sources tab, expand Sales and Marketing (query) > Sales (query).
• Sales order: Order number
• Time: Date
• Products: Product
• Click the <Date> list column body, from the on-demand toolbar, click Sort, and
then click Ascending.
The report appears showing the revenue generate by each product in each sales
order, including the date for each order.
Notice that the earliest date shown at the top of the report is Jan 12, 2010.

• Click Bottom to see the last page of the report.

Notice that the last date returned is Jul 20, 2013.
Add a date parameter.
You want users to be able to filter the report to only include orders that occurred after a
specific date.
• Select the List data container.
• Click Add, click Advanced, and then click OK.
The Detail filter expression dialog box appears.
• Create and validate the following expression:
• [Date]>?Date?
Hint:
• drag Date from the Data Items tab (second tab at the bottom of the
Available Components pane), and then type >?Date?
• validate for 2013-Jan-1
The report will only retrieve data where the order date is greater than the date
specified by the user.
You are prompted to select a date and time.

• Select 2013-Jan-1, accept the default time, and then click OK.
The first order in the report occurred on Jan 8, 2013.

• Click Bottom to see the last page of the report.
The last order in the report occurred on July 20, 2013. All orders in the report
occurred after Jan 1, 2013, as expected.

Activity: Add a value prompt

Create a report to help reduce costs. Because there are many query items, a prompt is
added so that users can view specific data.
• Add a value prompt.
• Add a prompt button and set the properties.
• Customize the prompt.
• Run the report.
Create the list.
• Create a new report that uses the 1 column template, the Team
container.
• Products: Product line, Product type, Product
• Sales fact: Unit cost
• Gross margin (calculated fact under Sales (query)).
• In the report, click <Product line>, Ctrl+click <Product type>, and then from the
on-demand toolbar, click Group / Ungroup.
• Delete the Double-click to edit text from the page header block at the top of the
report.
• Under Insertable objects, click Toolbox , and then drag a Table object into the
page header block.
• On the Insert table dialog box, clear the Maximize width checkbox, and then click
OK to accept the default size of 2 columns and 1 row.

• Click the page header block (not the table), and then from the on-demand toolbar,
click Horizontal alignment , select Left .
The table header appears as follows:
Notice that there are two table cells in the header that represent your two columns
and one row.
Add a value prompt.
• From the Toolbox tab, expand PROMPTING, and then drag a Value prompt into
the left table cell.
You want the prompt to filter on product line code to make the query more efficient.
However, the prompt will display product line names, not codes, to make selections
easier.
• In the Prompt Wizard - Value prompt dialog box, change the parameter name to
ProductLineCode, and then click Next.
• On the Create Filter page, ensure that Create a parameterized filter is selected,
and then beside Package item, click the ellipsis.
• Expand the Sales and Marketing (query) folder, Sales (query) namespace,
Products, and then the Codes folder.
Product line code is used because it is an indexed field. Querying on an indexed
field is much faster and more efficient.
• Click Product line code, and then click OK.
• Select Make the filter optional.
• Click Next, and then beside Values to display, click the ellipsis.
• Expand the Sales and Marketing (query) folder, expand the Sales (query)
namespace, and then expand Products.
• Click Product line, click OK, and then click Finish.

Add a prompt button and set the properties.

• From the Toolbox tab, in the PROMPTING section, drag a Prompt button into the
right table cell.
• If the properties pane is not visible, on the Applications bar, click Show
Properties.
• On the Properties pane, under GENERAL, click Type, and then from the list,
select Finish.
The report opens in the browser, displaying data for all the items. The report can
run because the parameterized filter is defined as optional.
• From the Product line prompt list, select Golf Equipment, and then click Finish.
Only information for the chosen value is displayed.
• From the navigation menu, click Report > Pages > Page1 to return to the report
design.
• Click the Finish prompt button, and then press Delete.
• Click the Value prompt, to select it.
• In the Properties pane, under GENERAL, click Auto-submit, and then change
the property to Yes.
Setting Auto-submit to Yes means the user will not need to click Finish after
selecting a prompt.
Customize the prompt.
You want to customize the prompt header to provide instructions on how to use the
prompt.
• With the Value prompt selected, in the Properties pane, under PROMPT TEXT,
click Header Text, and then click the ellipsis.
• Select Specified text, and then click the ellipsis to the right of the text box.
To control the usage of your prompt between required or optional, make the
change directly on your filter through your filter's Usage property instead of
changing this setting on your prompt. The filter's Usage property overrides the
prompts Required property.

• Type the following in the Default text box: Select the desired Product line:.
You can also add information here as well for localization.
• Click OK to close the Localized Text dialog box, and then OK to close the
Header Text dialog box.
Run the report.
The report opens in the browser displaying data for all items. The Value prompt list
now displays the instruction to select the desired Product line.
• In the list, select Golf Equipment.
The report now displays data for Golf Equipment only. With the Auto-submit
property set to Yes, you can use the list to select the item data you want to display
without having to click an additional button to submit your selection.
• From the Application bar, click Save , navigate to My content , and then
save the report as Prompt report.
• Keep this report open for the next activity.

Activity: Add a Select & search prompt

Change your current report to allow users to select multiple values to show in the
report. To do this delete the current value prompt and replace it with the Select &
search prompt.
Note: Before starting this activity, the previous activity needs to be completed (Add a
value prompt to a report), as the report (Prompt report) is used for this activity.
• Run an existing report.
• Add a Select & search prompt.
• Run the report.
Run an existing report.
• With the report from the previous activity opened (My Content > Prompt report),
run the report in HTML.
• In the list, select Golf Equipment.
The report only includes information on Golf Equipment. You will now modify the
prompt to let users search and select one or more product lines.
Add a Select & search prompt.
• In the report header, click the Value prompt, and then delete it.
• Select the List data container, from the on-demand toolbar, click Filters, and then
click Edit Filters.
Notice that the prompt filter remained even when the Value prompt was deleted.
• Select the filter, press Delete on your keyboard, and then click OK.
• From the navigation menu, click Report, and then click Prompt pages.
• From the Toolbox, drag a Page object to the Prompt pages pane (the adjacent
pane beside the Toolbox pane).
• Double-click Prompt page1 to open the prompt page, expand PROMPTING, and
then drag a Select & search prompt object onto the prompt page.
The Prompt Wizard – Select & search prompt dialog box appears.
• On the Choose Parameter page, change the parameter name to Productnames,
and then click Next.

• On the Create Filter page, ensure that Create a parameterized filter is selected,
and then beside Package item, click the ellipsis.
• Expand the Sales and Marketing (query) folder, Sales (query) namespace,
Products query subject, click Product, and then click OK.
• Select Make the filter optional.
• In the Operator list, select in, click Next, and then click Finish.
The Select & search prompt appears on the prompt page.
The in operator is used to allow for multiple selections. If the '=' operator is
selected, the prompt would allow for only a single selection.
Run the report.
• On the prompt page, click Finish to accept the default of all product lines.
The report appears containing data for all Product lines. The report ran because
you made the prompt optional. Next, you will run the report again and search for a
specific value.
• Click Run to run the report again.

• In the Keywords text box, type Firefly (no other text should appear in the text
box), and then expand the options drop-down list below the results pane that says
Starts with any of these keywords.
The list of search options allows you to refine your search.

• Select Contains any of these keywords, and then click Search .

All product lines with Firefly in the title appear in the Results box.
• Below the Keywords search box, click the Select all check box, and then click
Add (blue arrow) to add the selected items to the Choices pane.
• Repeat the above steps with the keywords Butane Kerosene in a single search,
Select all of the results, and then add them to the Choices pane.

• Click Finish to see the results.
The report runs and is filtered to display only the data associated with the items
that you selected based on your search.

Activity: Create a cascading prompt

Create a report that enables users to focus on specific query items and the hierarchal
relationship within. Create a cover page for a more professional look.
You will accomplish the following:
• Create a prompt page with a cascading prompt.
• Set prompt behavior patterns.
• Create a static value to select all values.
• Create a cover page.
• Run the report and view specific values.
Create a prompt page with a cascading prompt.
container.
• Expand Sales and Marketing (query) > Sales (query) and
Returned items (query).
• Sales (query) > Products: Product line and Product type
• Sales (query) > Order method: Order method type
• Returned items (query) > Returned items fact: Return quantity
Returned quantity works in this query because the Returned items (query)
namespace has the same query items as the Sales (query) namespace. Returned
quantity is a conformed value.
• In the Text field at the top of the report, change the title to Product type by
Product line for all Order methods, and then click OK.
• With the title text still selected, change the font to Arial, 14pt.
• Select the Block containing the header text, and then from the on-demand menu,
click Horizontal alignment, and then left justify the text.
• Ctrl+click <Product line> and <Product type>, and then from the on-demand
toolbar, click Group / Ungroup.

• Click <Product line>, and then Ctrl+click <Product type>, and

<Order method type>.
• From the on-demand toolbar, click More, and then click Build prompt page.
You may need to hide the properties pane in order to view the More icon.
Set prompt behavior patterns.
• In the Prompt page work area, click the Product type value prompt.
• From the Application bar, click Show properties.
• In the Properties pane, under GENERAL, double-click Cascade source, and
then from the list, select Product line.
The values that will be shown in the second prompt are dependent upon the choice
made in the first prompt when the prompt submits.
• Click OK.
• In the Properties pane, under GENERAL, ensure that Multi-select is set to Yes,
and that Auto-submit is set to No.
• In the work area, click the Product line value prompt.
• In the Properties pane, under GENERAL, in the Multi-select list, select No, and
then, in the Auto-submit list, select Yes.
The user can only select one option from the Product line prompt, and the selection
will be submitted automatically.
• In the work area, click the Order method type value prompt.
• In the Properties pane, under GENERAL, in the Multi-select list, click No, and
then ensure that Auto-submit is set to No.
The user can select multiple options from the Product type and Order method type
prompts, but the selections will not submit automatically. Once all of the selections
for these prompts are complete, the user must submit the request by clicking
Finish.
Create a static value to select all values.
• With the Order method type prompt still selected, under DATA, double-click
Static choices, and then click Add .

• Type ALL for both the Use and Display values, click OK to close the Edit dialog
box, and then click OK to close the Static choices dialog box.
The value entered for static choices is case sensitive and should be entered the
exact same way in your filter expression.
You will specify what values to return when ALL is selected in the Order method
type prompt.
• On the navigation menu, click Report > Pages > Page1.
• Click anywhere in the list, from the on-demand toolbar, click Filters, and then click
Edit Filters.
• Click the Order method type filter, and then click Edit .
• Replace and validate the existing expression with the following:
if (?Order method type?='ALL') then ([Order method type]=[Order method
type]) else([Sales (query)].[Order method].[Order method type] = ?Order
method type?)
Hint: Drag [Order method type] from the Data items tab, and drag [Sales
(query)].[Order method].[Order method type] from the Source tab.
• When prompted, choose Camping Equipment, Lanterns, and Web, and then
click OK to close the validation box.
close the Filters - Query1 dialog box.
Create a cover page.
• On the navigation menu, click Report > Pages .

• From the Toolbox tab, drag a Page to the Report pages section, placing it above
Page1.
The results appear as follows:

• If necessary, click Show properties so that the properties pane is visible, and
under MISCELLANEOUS, in the Name box, change the name from Page2 to
CoverPage, and then press Enter.
• In the Report pages pane, double-click CoverPage to open it.
• In the work area, click Add, click Table, and then click OK to accept the default
size of 2 columns and 1 row.
• Click the left table cell, and then Ctrl+click the right table cell.
• From the on-demand table toolbar, click the down arrow to the right of the
Horizontal alignment icon, and then click Center.
• Click anywhere on the page below the table, and then from the on-demand toolbar,
click Vertical alignment , and then click Middle.
Next you want to create a title for the cover page.
• In the left table cell, click Add, and then click Text item.
• In the Text dialog box, type GO Data Warehouse - Revenue Generated, and
then click OK.
• With the text item still selected, change the font to Arial, 16 pt.
• From Toolbox pane, expand LAYOUT, and then drag an Image object into the
right table cell.
• From the on-demand toolbar, click More, and then click Edit Image URL, ignoring
any messages that may appear.
• In the Image Picker dialog box, in the URL path beside the Browse button, delete
the existing path, and then type http://localhost:88/images/background3.png.
• Click OK to close the Image Picker dialog box.
If the OK button does not become active, try clearing the URL path and re-entering
the http address.
• With the image selected, in the Properties pane, under POSITIONING, double-
click the Size & overflow property.
• Set the Width to 75 pixels, the Height to 75 pixels, and then click OK.

Run the report and view specific values.

The Prompt page appears showing three value prompts. The second prompt is
dependent upon the first prompt. The star icon indicates that this selection is
mandatory.
• In the Product line prompt, click Golf Equipment.
The Product type prompt changes to only include product types in the Golf
Equipment product line.
• Under Product type, click Irons, and then Ctrl+click Woods.
• In the Order method type prompt, click ALL, and then click Finish.
The report cover page appears.
• Click Page down.
The report renders, filtered by the values selected in the prompts and with a title at
the top.



Use calculations
What are calculations?
Calculations let you derive additional information from the data source. Create a layout
calculation to add information to your report. Create calculated columns based on
existing items in the model that uses query calculations.
Calculations can be added to a list, crosstab, or chart report, as well as to the body,
headers, and footers. Layout calculations can include run-time information such as
current date, current time, and user name.
Including calculated columns can help provide further insight into your data. You can
create a query or layout calculation by inserting a calculation in to your report and then
creating the expression in the Expression Editor.
Create a calculated column to make a report more meaningful by deriving additional
information from the data source. For example, you create an invoice report, and you
want to see the total sale amount for each product ordered. Create a calculated column
that multiplies the product price by the quantity ordered.
If an expression is used in multiple reports, or used by different report authors, ask your
modeler to create the expression as a standalone object in the model and include it in
the relevant package.
Add Date and Time functions
Use date and time functions in calculations and filters to query on specific dates and
times in your report. Date and Time functions can be used to build dates, modify
existing dates or to filter the report for specific dates.
A useful date/time function is the extract() function which returns an integer
representing the value of datepart (year, month, day, hour, minute, second).
Not all data sources support functions the same way. The data modeler can set a
quality of service indicator (icon appearing beside some functions) on functions to give
a visual clue about the behavior of the functions. Report authors can use the quality of
service indicators to determine which functions to use in a report.

Add string functions

Use string functions in calculations and filters in your report to manipulate text data..
Some examples of string functions include:
• substring(): A function to return part of a string
• trim(): A function that removes specific characters from the beginning or end of a
specific text data item
• upper(): A function that changes the text returned to be in uppercase
• lower(): A function that changes the text returned to be in lowercase
String functions can be found under the Common Functions folder, or Vendor Specific
Functions folder. For example, if a user entered ‘Golf Equipment ‘(with a space at the
end) into the database, the report author would get unexpected results if they queried
the database and was doing a comparison against ‘Golf Equipment’ (without a space at
the end). This is a real world example where the trim() function should be used to
remove trailing spaces before doing a comparison.
Display prompt selections in report titles
To display the selected prompt option in the report title, add a layout calculation to the
report title that returns a different value depending on the prompt option a user selects.

Activity: Add calculations to a report

Create a report that will return values for a specified date. In addition to looking at actual
values versus planned values, users want to see a percentage for how much of the
planned values was met. The report should also display the date that the report is run.
• Create a calculated column.
• Add a detail filter.
• Format the list data.
• Add runtime information.
• Overwrite a query expression.
Create a calculated column.
container.
• Time: Date
• Sales fact: Revenue, Planned revenue
• From the Toolbox tab, expand TEXTUAL, and then drag a Query calculation to
the list to make it the last column.
The Data item expression dialog box appears.
• In the Name field, type Percent of Goal, and then create and validate the following
expression:
[Revenue]/[Planned revenue]
Hint: Drag Revenue and Planned Revenue from the Data items tab.
• Click OK to close the Data item expression dialog box.
This column will show the percentage of revenue achieved for each product line on
each day.

Add a detail filter.

You want the report to only contain data for the first quarter of 2010, which in this
example is January through March.
• Ensure the List is selected, from the on-demand toolbar, click
Filters > Edit Filters, and then click Add.
• Click Advanced, and then OK.
• Create the following expression:
[Date] between _first_of_month(2010-01-01) and _last_of_month
(2010-03-31)
Hint:
• Drag Date from the Data items tab (the second tab at the bottom of the
Available Components pane).
• Drag _first_of_month and _last_of_month functions from the
Business Date/Time Functions folder in the Functions tab.

Data items selected from the Source tab will be calculated and summarized after
aggregation, whereas data items selected from the Data Items tab will be
calculated and summarized before aggregation.
This filter will return dates between January 1 2010 and March 31 2010 (First
quarter of 2010). The _first_of_month() function returns the first day of the month in
the date expression, while the _last_of_month() function returns the last day of the
month in the date expression. You can use any date for the expression as long as
it is in the proper format and it contains data. Make sure that there is a space
between each function.
• Click Validate (the check mark in the green box).
Format the list data.
• In the work area, click the <Date> list column body, from the on-demand toolbar,
click Sort, and then click Ascending.
• Click the <Percent of Goal> list column body.
• From the on-demand toolbar, click Data format .

• In the Format type list, select Percent, for Percentage symbol click the percent
symbol %, and then click OK.
• With the column still selected, from the on-demand toolbar click Summarize, and
then click Calculated.
Calculated is applied if the data item expression:

• contains a summary function
• is an if-then-else or case expression that contains a reference to at least a
modeled measure in its condition
• contains a reference to a model calculation or to a measure that has the
Regular Aggregate property set to a value other than Unsupported
• contains a reference to at least one data item that has the Rollup Aggregate
Function property set to a value other than None
Add runtime information.
Display the run date of the report under the title of the report.
• Delete the Double-click to edit text placeholder text in the report header block.
• From the Toolbox tab, drag a Table, with 1 column and 2 rows, into the block.
• In the top cell, click Add and then click Text item.
• In the Text field, type 2010-First Quarter Sales Figures and Overall Calculated
Percent of Goal, and then click OK.
• From the on-demand toolbar, set the font size to 14pt.
• In the bottom cell, click Add and then click Text item.
• In the Text field, type Report run date:, press the spacebar, and then click OK.
• From the Toolbox tab, under TEXTUAL, drag a Layout calculation to the right of
the text item.

• Create and validate an AsOfDate () expression.

Hint: Drag AsOfDate from the Report Functions folder in the Functions tab.
• Click OK.
The report header block appears as follows:

The report appears with revenue data sorted by date, including a header at the top
that displays the date when the report was run.
• Click Bottom to confirm that the report includes all of the months of the first
quarter, and the overall calculated percent of goal.

Overwrite a query expression.

• Double-click the <Percent of Goal> list column body to open the
Data item expression dialog box.
• Overwrite the current expression by using query items from the Source tab to set
the aggregation to that of the original query as follows:
[Sales (query)].[Sales fact].[Revenue] / [Sales (query)].[Sales fact].[Planned
revenue]
Hint: From the Source tab, expand
Sales and Marketing (query) > Sales (query).
• Validate, and then click OK.
The Percent of Goal calculation does not match the values from the initial report
because the timing of the aggregation is different.
• With the <Percent of Goal> list column body still selected, in the Properties pane,
under the DATA ITEM section near the bottom of the pane, change the
Detail aggregation function to Calculated.
Now the expression returns the same results as the previous expression, when
you first ran the report.

Activity: Display prompt selections in report

titles
Create a report that displays values for each year. You also need to display certain
items in uppercase. The report will contain an optional prompt. Add a report title that
indicates which option users select in the prompt. It should also indicate if they do not
select an option as well. You will use a layout calculation to display the report title.
• Edit an expression.
• Add an optional parameter.
• Display the parameter value in the report title.
• Test the prompt.
Edit an expression.
content/Samples/Models/GO data warehouse (query) package, and a
Crosstab data container.
• Add the following query items to the crosstab:
Rows area:
• Products: Product line, Product type (nested to the right of Product line)
Columns area:
• Time: Year
Measures area:
• Sales fact: Quantity
• Click a <#Product type#> crosstab node member on rows, from the on-demand
toolbar, click Summarize, and then click Total.
• On the crosstab, click Total.
• On the Application bar, click Show properties.
• In the Properties pane, under TEXT SOURCE, change Source type to
Data item value.

• In the Properties pane, under TEXT SOURCE, change Data item value to
Product line.
• In the crosstab, double-click <#Product line#>.
• Update and validate the existing expression to capitalize the query item as follows:
upper([Sales (query)].[Products].[Product line])
• Click OK.
Add an optional parameter.

Add an optional filter containing a parameter that lets users specify the query item for
which they want to view data.
• Select the entire crosstab, from the on-demand toolbar, click Filters, and then
Edit Filters.
The Filters dialog box appears.
• Ensure the Detail Filters tab is selected, click Add, click Advanced, and then
click OK.
• From the Available Components pane, expand Sales and Marketing (query),
Sales (query), and then expand Employee by region.
• Create and validate the following expression (validate using Americas):
[Sales (query)].[Employee by region].[Branch region]=?Region?
• Click OK to close the validation dialog box, and then OK to close the
Detail filter expression dialog box.
• In the Filters dialog box, with the filter you just added selected, click Optional, and
then click OK.
You will run this report to test the prompt.


• At the prompt, select Americas, and then click OK.
The report displays data only for the region selected in the prompt.
Notice that the Total line caption now reflects the data item that it summarizes and
that all of the Product line names are uppercase.
Display the parameter value in the report title.
To give this report some context, you want the selected region to appear in the report
title. If no region is selected, you want the report title to indicate that the data displayed
represents quantity sold in all regions.
• On the report page, double-click the report title text, type Quantity Sold in, press
the spacebar, and then click OK.
• Left justify the report title within the block.
Next, create a layout calculation to display the prompt option selected in the report
title.
• Click Toolbox, expand TEXTUAL, and then drag a Layout calculation object to
the end of the report title.
You will create an expression that specifies that if a parameter value is selected,
the layout calculation should show the display value for the selected parameter
value. Otherwise, the layout calculation should show All Regions.

• Create and validate the following expression:

if(ParamDisplayValue('Region') <> ' ') then (ParamDisplayValue('Region'))
else 'All Regions'
Hint: ParamDisplayValue('Region') is created from the Parameter tab by

dragging Region to the Expression Definition.
The empty quotes represent no display value. This will be the case when the
prompt is optional and the user does not select anything.
• Click OK to close the dialog box.
Test the prompt.
• On the prompt page, in the Branch region list, click Branch region, and then click
OK to run the report.
The report title explains that this report contains data about the quantity sold in all
regions.
• Close the rendered report tab, and then run the report in HTML.
• On the prompt page, select Central Europe, and then click OK.
The report title explains that this report contains data about the quantity sold in
Central Europe.
• From the Application bar, run the report again and choose a different prompt
option.
The report title changes to indicate the prompt value chosen.

Customize reports with conditional formatting

Conditional formatting can highlight exceptional data, and format areas of the report
based on one or more string values, a report condition, or data values. Conditional
formatting can help the report author create a single report that end users can
customize, through prompts, to provide information specific to their needs. This lets the
end user quickly and effectively isolate critical information necessary for timely business
decisions.
Three steps for conditional formatting
There are three steps in creating conditional formatting in a report:
• Create a variable
• Assign the variable to a report object
• Apply formatting to object based on conditional value
Create a variable
Create variables and values to decide what element of the report will determine the
change and the possible outcomes.
• Boolean variables are used if there are only two possible outcomes, where the
values will be Yes or No. With this variable, you must define the condition.
• String variables are used if there is more than one outcome, based on string values
you will specify.
• Language variables are used when the values are different languages.
The string variable's condition does not need to test all possible cases of the language
variable to hold all the possible languages. The expression will automatically create an
Other category to identify all other values.
The variable determines what will change in the report. For example, the report will vary
depending on revenue, product line or the language in which the report is run. If you
create a language variable, you do not need to define the condition, but you must
choose the languages you want to support.

Assign the variable to a report object

Start by selecting a reporting object in the report layout that you want to add conditional
formatting to, such as a column, column header, or report title. This step is performed in
Conditional explorer.
After you have created your variable, you must define how the report will appear for
each value. To do this, select the text or part of the report that will vary, and then apply
the variable to it using the Properties pane.
• Conditional Styles: Add conditional styles to highlight data in you report, based on
set ranges.
• Style Variable: Specifies a variable based on which the object can be conditionally
styled.
• Text Source Variable: Specifies a variable based on which the text can be
chosen.
• Render Variable: Specifies a variable based on which the object can be
conditionally rendered.
When you apply the variable, the values for which you can perform conditional report
authoring appear. By default, Reporting selects all the values assuming you will format
all of them. If you wish to create conditional formatting for only some values, you can
deselect the others.
If you apply a language variable, an additional value called Other appears by default.
When you create a string or report language variable, and create or choose variables
for it, an additional value called Other also appears by default.
Format based on conditional value
Once the report element has been designated as conditional, set the display for that
value by modifying the report to appear the way you want it to look if that condition is
satisfied.
This step is performed in Conditional explorer.
This step does not apply when working with a Render Variable.
When you select a value in the Condition explorer, the A green outlined message
appears stating the variable is set to undefined. This means that conditional formatting
is turned on and that all changes you make to the report only apply to the variable you
selected.
After you have set the display for each value, turn the conditional formatting off by
double-clicking (No variable) from the Condition explorer.

Conditionally render report objects

If objects are not rendered, they do not take up space in the report when it is run.
Conditional rendering is useful when your report contains sensitive data or data that
may be relevant for some users but not for others.
When conditional rendering is applied to a column in a list report, the conditional
rendering applies to all portions of the column including the title, the body cells, and
header and footer cells.
A report can contain explicit data for some users and exclude that data for others.
You can also conditionally format one crosstab fact based on another crosstab fact that
uses the Conditional Styles dialog box. This allows a fact column to be highlighted
based upon the value found in another fact column.
You can conditionally format one crosstab measure based on another crosstab
measure that uses the Conditional Styles dialog box.

Activity: Create a multilingual report

Examine the values for all products to promote those that are the most profitable. This
report will be distributed to offices in different countries and will be run in different
languages.
• Create a basic list report.
• Create a language variable.
• Define the title as conditional text.
• Set the display for each value.
• Run the report in various languages.
Create a basic list report.
container.
• Under Insertable objects, on the Sources tab, expand Sales and Marketing
(query) > Sales (query).
• Group the <Product line> column, and then summarize the <Revenue> column
by Total.
• Save the report in My content as Basic Report.
• Run the report in HTML to examine the report.
A simple list report appears showing totals for each product line.

Create a language variable.

Apply conditional formatting to allow the header text to appear in the report run
language.
• From the navigation menu, click Report > Variables , and then drag Report
Language Variable to the Variables pane.
The Languages dialog box appears.
• Scroll through the list to locate and select the check boxes beside all of the
English, French, and German languages (there are multiples for each language),
and then click OK.
All of the languages you selected appear in the Values pane.
• In the Values pane, click English, Shift-click English (Zimbabwe), and then
underneath the Values list, click Group Values .
• Repeat the previous step to group all French languages together.
• Repeat the previous step to group all German languages together.
There are seventeen English languages, six French, and six German. You
selected all of these languages and grouped them together. That way you only
have to format the report for three grouped values, rather than for each individual
language.
The report now has one variable with three grouped values, one for each language
in which the report will be run. Because you created a language variable, the
expression is created for you.
• In the Properties pane, under MISCELLANEOUS, in the Name box, replace
Report Language1 with Language, and then press Enter.

Define the title as conditional text.

• Double-click the Text field at the top of the report, in the Text dialog box, type
Product Report Title, and then click OK.
• Select the header block containing the report title, and then from the on-demand
toolbar, click Horizontal alignment, and then left justify the header text.
• Click the Text item in the header to select it.
• From the on-demand tool bar, click Font, and then change the font Size to 16pt.
and the Weight to Bold.
• In the Properties pane, under CONDITIONAL, double-click Text source variable.
The Text source variable dialog box appears.
• From the Variable list, select Language.
The Values pane shows the languages you chose, plus an option called Other.
The languages are selected by default so that you can use the Conditional state
icon to perform conditional authoring for any of these languages.
• Click OK.
Set the display for each value.
• From the Application bar, click the Conditional state icon , and then click
English.
• Change the title text to Product Report.
• Click the Conditional state icon , and then click French.

• Change the title text to Rapport sur les produits.
• Click the Conditional state icon again, and change the Language to German.
• Change the title text to Produktbericht.
• Click Conditional state and then click Clear Conditional state.
This turns off conditional formatting.
In order to run a report in different languages, the data source must be multilingual.
Your browser must also be able to support multilingual characters, or else the
characters will appear as boxes.
Now you can run the report in various languages.

Run the report in various languages.

Your report appears in the system language as this is your current default
language. The report title appears as you created it for the first variable, if the first
language selected matches the system language. You will now run the report in the
other languages to see the results.
• Click Run options, and then click Show run options.
You want to choose a language other than your current default.
• Under Language, scroll down to and select French (France), and then click OK.
The report appears in French, including the conditional title you created.
IBM Cognos Analytics cannot translate the data returned by the query. This must
be done as part of data modeling and must be included in the published package.

• Repeat the previous steps to run the report in German (Austria).
Notice that the order of products is different because the default sorting of the
Product lines and Product types is now sorting differently rendered names.
• Repeat the previous steps to run the report in English (Zimbabwe).
Again, notice that the default sorting causes the report names to appear in a
different order because they are translated differently. For example, what appears
as Accessoires personnels in French, now appears as Personal Accessories in
English.
• Click Run options, and then click Show run options.
• Under Language, scroll up, select (Default), and then click OK.

Activity: Highlight exceptional data and

conditionally render a column
Create a report that displays fact data in different colors depending on value to quickly
identify high and low values. Include a conditionally optional description column.
• Create a list.
• Create the conditional variables.
• Define the measure as conditional.
• Add a Boolean variable.
• Run the report.
Create a list.
• Create a new report that uses the Blank template,
• From the Application bar, ensure that Automatic group and summary behavior
for lists is cleared under Manage > Options > Report.
• Products: Product line, Product type, Product description
• Retailers: Region
• Time: Year
• Sales fact: Revenue.

• Group the <Product line> column and then summarize the <Revenue> column
by Total.
Your report will contain several columns, including one measure (in this example,
Revenue). The Product description column will be the query item that will be visible
or hidden depending on the end user's choice of output, and the Revenue column
will highlight exceptionally high and low values.
Create the conditional variables.
Create a variable to define revenue as high if it is greater than 1 million, or low if it is
less than 500,000.
• From the navigation menu, click Report > Variables .

• From the Toolbox, drag a String Variable to the Variables pane.
Because you are creating a string variable, you must specify the condition on
which the measure value will change, and then create values for the possible
outcomes.
• Create and validate the following expression that will set a variable identifying high
and low values based on your data:
if ([Query1].[Revenue]>1000000) then ('high') else if
([Query1].[Revenue]<500000) then ('low')
Hint: You can double-click Revenue in the Available Components pane to add it
to the expression as you write it.
• Click OK.
• Below the Values pane, click Add .

• In the Add dialog box, type high, and then click OK.

• Click Add again, type low, and then click OK.

The values created in previous steps must be spelled exactly as they are spelled in
the expression definition for the variable.
• If the properties pane is not visible, then from the Application bar, click Show
properties.
• With the String1 variable still selected, in the properties pane, under
MISCELLANEOUS, in the Name box, change the name to Revenue_high_low,
and then press Enter.
• Navigate to Page1.
Now that you have created a variable and specified its values, you will format the
measure cells for each value.
Define the measure as conditional.
• Click the <Revenue> list column body, and then from the properties pane, under
CONDITIONAL, double-click Style variable.
The Style variable dialog box appears.
• From the Variable list, select the Revenue_high_low variable, and then click OK.
The measure cells are now conditionally formatted using the variable you just
created. You will now set the display for each value.
• From the Application bar, click Conditional state , and then click high.
• Ensure that the <Revenue> list column body is still selected, and then from the on-
demand toolbar, click Font.
• Set Foreground color to Green, set Weight to Bold, and then click OK to close
the Font dialog box.
• Click Conditional state, and then click low.
• Ensure that the <Revenue> list column body is still selected, from the on-demand
toolbar, click Font.
• Set Foreground color to Red, set Weight to Bold, and then click OK to close the
Font dialog box.
• Click Conditional state, and then click Clear conditional state to turn the
conditional formatting off.


The report runs and the conditional formatting has identified exceptionally high
values with green font, and exceptionally low values with red font.
• Click Page down several times to see additional identified critical values.
Add a Boolean variable.
A Boolean variable creates a yes or no condition. You will use a Boolean variable to
conditionally format the report so that the Product description column only appears if
the report is rendered in HTML.
• Navigate to Page 1, and then click the <Product description> list column body.
• From the on-demand toolbar, click Select Ancestor , and then click
List column at the bottom of the list.
• In the Properties pane, under CONDITIONAL, double-click the Render variable
property.
The Render variable dialog box appears.
• From the Variable list, select New boolean variable.
• In the New variable dialog box, in the Name field, type vProduct_description,
and then click OK.
The Report expression dialog box appears.
• Create and validate the following expression that sets the report output to HTML:
ReportOutput ()='HTML'
Hint: Under Available Components, click the Functions tab, expand
Report Functions, and then double-click ReportOutput to add it to the
expression.
• Click OK until all dialog boxes are closed.
You can now run the report in different formats to test the output.

Run the report.

The report includes the Product description column.

• Click the down arrow to the right of the Run button, and then click Run PDF.
When the report is rendered in PDF format, the optional column is not rendered.

Drill-through definitions
Navigate to related data
Drill-through access lets users navigate between reports to view related data to help
them answer business questions.
In IBM Cognos Analytics, using a packaged based drill-through definition, report
authors can set up drill-through access to and from reports, queries, advanced queries,
and analyses that uses dimensional and relational data sources.
It is also possible to set up drill-through access to IBM Cognos Analytics targets from
third party sources and to third party targets from Cognos sources. Setting up drill-
through access to and from third-party sources and targets can be accomplished that
uses URL requests or by using the Software Development Kit.

Enhance report layout

View the structure of the report
To view your report in a different way and see how objects are organized, view the
page structure.
View the page structure to:
• view the entire contents of a report page in a tree structure
• move objects quickly from one area of a page to another
• modify the object properties
• view a complex layout
Viewing the page as a tree structure can be useful for locating the objects in a page and
troubleshooting problems with nested objects.
A complex layout may make it difficult to select, cut, and paste objects in the layout
view. Objects are easier to locate in the page structure view. This view can also be
helpful if you want to modify an object but are not sure where the object is located
within the report structure. Once you know where an object it placed, you can select it
and modify its properties.
Objects can be changed in either view, depending on your preference.
Use Guided report layout
Guided report layout helps you create a report more quickly and dynamically by
simplifying the process of adding objects to the canvas.
The above illustration shows Guided report layout functions during the dropping of a
measure onto the report canvas. Notice that the shaded 12345 area is a visual indicator
to the user that the value being dropped onto the canvas is a measure. It also indicates
exactly where that value will be located on the canvas if the user drops it at that instant.

Some of the key features included with Guided report layout include:
• Visual indicators show where an object is going to be placed before you drop it on
to the canvas.
• When you drag a measure on to the canvas, you get a summarized text item with a
descriptive label and formatting.
• When you drag a column that is not a measure on to the canvas, you get a list with
a descriptive title.
• You can place objects on the left, center, right, top, or bottom of a container with
one gesture.
• Tables use percentage sizing which ensures that different screen resolutions are
supported.
• You can resize an object by dragging one of its grippers.
Guided report layout is enabled by default. You can disable it by accessing Manage >
Options > Report.
Guided report layout does not work with active reports.
Force page breaks
To force page breaks based on a data item, you must associate the page set with a
query and then define a grouping structure for the page set.
You can add multiple detail pages to a page set.
You can also create nested page sets, and can define a master-detail relationship
between them to see data in the nested page set that is related to the data in the parent
page set. For example, you have a page set that shows pages of product line
information. The page set contains a nested page set that shows pages of product type
information.
You can use a page set to create a report that contains detail pages displaying data for
each order method. Each order method type will begin on a new page.
A page break can also be created at the same time as a report section is created.

Create horizontal pagination

Horizontal pagination enables you to span wide reports across multiple PDF pages with
the appropriate page number.
You can only use horizontal pagination with list and crosstab reports.
There are three options for adding horizontal page numbers:
• Preset (that uses Number Style)
• Custom Number Style
• Report Layout Functions
Modify the report structure
By unlocking the cells, you can add multiple items to a single column to tailor a report to
your needs.
Unlock cells to manipulate an object’s contents. Once they are unlocked, you can
change the text and add objects inside existing objects. This feature is useful for
displaying related information in a single column, or for renaming a column. You can
add additional rows to a list report to add extra information. You can add additional rows
to a list report that uses the Structure menu.
Once a new row is added you can merge the cells by selecting one or more cells and
then click the Merge cells button.
Format objects across a report
Format reports quickly and consistently using Cascading Style Sheet (CCS) classes.
CSS classes are used in reports and templates.
To determine what class an object uses, select the object and view the Classes
property. An object also inherits the classes set for its parent objects.

Activity: Create a report structured on data items

Create a report showing data groupings on separate pages. Design a title page for the
report and make changes to the report that uses the structure view.
• Set the page breaks.
• Add a cover page.
• Add an image to the cover page.
• Modify the report using the structure view.
Set the page breaks.
• Create a new report that uses the Blank template, Team
container.
• Employee by region: Branch region, Country, Employee name
• Sales fact: Revenue.
• Click the <Branch region> list column body, Ctrl+click the <Country> list column
body, and then from the on-demand toolbar, click Group / Ungroup.
Different regions appear on the same page. You want each region to display on a
different page.
• Click the <Branch region> list column body, from the on-demand toolbar, click
Section / unsection , and then click Section / unsection from the list.
• Click the newly created <Branch region> section header, and then from the on-
demand toolbar, click Section / unsection, and then click Set page break.
A message appears stating that a new page will be displayed for each value of the
section header.

• Click OK.
• Run the report in HTML, and then page down several times to examine the data
placement.
Different regions are now on separate pages.

Add a cover page.
• From the navigation menu, click Report > Pages.
• At the right of the navigation menu, click Add .

• From the Pages menu, click Page.

Page2 appears in the structure tree.
• Drag Page2 to a location just above Page1 under Detail Pages.

• If the properties pane is not visible, then from the Application bar, click Show
properties.
• On the properties pane, under MISCELLANEOUS, change the Name property
from Page2 to Cover, and then press Enter.
• In the Report page structure, double-click Cover.
A new work area appears.
• In the center of the new work area, click Add , click Table, set it to 1 column
and 3 rows, and then click OK.
• Ctrl+click each of the table cells, and then from the on-demand toolbar, click the
arrow beside Horizontal alignment, and then click Center.
• In the top table cell, click Add, click Text item, in the Text box, type
Total Revenue by Sales Representatives, and then click OK.
• In the bottom table cell, click Add, click Text item, in the Text box, type
Sales Report, and then click OK.
• Click the text only (not the cell) of the top cell, and then Ctrl+click the text of the
bottom cell.
• From the on-demand toolbar, change the font to Arial Black, the font size to 20pt,
and the foreground color to Navy.

Add an image to the cover page.

You will now add an image to the cover page.
• From the Toolbox tab, expand LAYOUT.
• Drag an Image object to the middle table cell, and then double-click the image
icon.
• In the Image Picker dialog box, beside the Browse button, delete the existing path
and then type http://localhost:88/images/cover1.jpg.
the http address.
• Click OK to add the image and close the Image Picker dialog box.
• Click the work area below the table, and then from the toolbar, click the arrow
beside Vertical alignment and then click Middle.
The cover page for the report appears including text and an image.
• Click Page down to see the details in the report.
• Close the rendered report tab.
Modify the report using the structure view.
• On the navigation menu, click Report > Pages > Page 1.
• From the Application bar, click the Page view list .

The list appears as follows:
• From the list, click Page structure.

All of the objects of the report can be reviewed in a tree structure. Here you can
quickly move and modify objects within the page of the report.
• Expand Page - Page1.
You want to view the structure of your list and quickly modify the format of all the
list column titles in the report.

• Expand Page body, and then expand List.

• Expand List columns > List column > List column body > List, and then click
List columns title style.
• In the Properties pane, under FONT & TEXT, double-click the Font property.
• Change the font to Arial Black, 12pt, Italic, and then click OK.
• On the Application bar, click the Page view list , and then click
Page design.
The page view returns to Page design mode. The list column titles are changed to
reflect the modifications you made to the page structure.
• Run the report in HTML, and then click Page down to see the list.
The list column titles appear with the new font styles.

Activity: Create a condensed list report

Create a detailed contact information list. To reduce the number of columns in the
report, you will combine several columns of information into one column.
• Unlock the cells and condense the report data.
Create the list.
• Create a new report that uses the Blank template, Team
container.
• Employee by region: Country, City, Employee name, Position name,
Work phone, Extension, Email, Date hired.
• Click the <Country> list column body, and then from the on-demand toolbar, click
Group / Ungroup.
• With <Country> selected, from the on-demand toolbar click Section / unsection,
and then click Section / unsection from the list.
The report data spreads out across the page. You want to condense it so that
some of the data appears in a single column.

Unlock the cells and condense the report data.
• On the Application bar, click Lock Page objects to unlock the cells of the
report.
The icon displays an unlocked state.
Once cells are unlocked, query items can be added directly from the content tabs.
• From the Toolbox, drag a Table to the Work phone column, to the right of
<Work phone>.
The Insert table dialog box appear.
• Under Table size, choose 1 column and 3 rows, and then click OK.
• Within the List data container, drag <Work phone> into the first row of the table.
Be careful to drag the Text item <Work phone>, not the table cell containing it.
• Drag <Email> into the second row, and then <Date hired> into the third row.
• Drag <Extension> into the top table cell, to the right of <Work phone>.
You can add text in front of the data items, to identify them.
• From the Toolbox, drag a Text item to the left of <Work phone>.
• In the Text box, type Work phone:, press the spacebar, and then click OK.

• Repeat the previous step for Email, and Date hired.

• Drag a Text item between <Work phone> and <Extension> in the top table cell,
press the spacebar, type ext., press the spacebar, and then click OK.
• On the Application bar, click Lock Page Objects to lock the cells of the report
again.
• Click the Extension column header, Ctrl+click the Email and Date hired column
headers, and then press Delete.
The page design appears as follows:
• In the list column, click the Work phone list column title.

• On the Application bar, click Show properties, in the Properties pane, under
DATA ITEM, in the Label box, type Contact Information, and then press Enter.
The contact information is consolidated under a single column.


Use additional report-building techniques

Enhance a report design
When information runs in horizontal bands, use a block to hold the objects.
Reports may have headers and footers. Determine what objects to use when building a
report based on the kind of information you want to display and how you want it to
appear. If information applies to the entire report and you want it to appear on every
page, place it in the header or footer.
When information runs vertically, such as text beside an image, use a table to organize
the objects.
Properties applied to an object will also be applied to any child items. It is best to set
styling properties at the highest level to save time and effort. For example, if you set the
font type for a list object then all items in the list or added to the list will inherit the same
font. Property Inheritance is the passing of parent attributes to child items. Use the
Select Ancestor button on the Properties pane title bar to help determine the level at
which to apply settings.
Avoid fixed size objects because they are rigid and may not work with your overall
design.
An empty block does not add space between objects. The block must contain an
object, or you must specify the padding of the block to use the block for spacing.
If objects have borders, use margins to make the objects look spaced apart.
Add objects to reports
You can format items and objects to change their size, shape, location, and behavior
according to your needs.
You can use text items to communicate relevant information about the report to its
users.
You can add a background image to a data frame object like a list or crosstab, a cell in
a table, or to the entire page. It is important to be aware that a background image can
obscure the data in the report to some degree.
You can use tables to assist with the spatial layout of report types and layout objects.
Tables can control where objects are placed. Unlike some graphics software, Cognos
Analytics - Reporting will not let you place objects anywhere on the work area.

Convert a list to a crosstab

When you convert a list to a crosstab, the list columns you select become columns and
nested columns in the crosstab, and the unselected columns become rows and nested
rows. If you have one measure, it becomes the cells of the crosstab. If you have more
than one measure, then the measures will appear as columns.
Explore reuse
Report authors can customize any object in one location and save the customized style
for reuse in other reports. You can create and reuse styles for almost any object, other
than a visualization. For example, create a style for a header, save it, and then apply it
to other headers in your report.
To reuse a style, you define a style for one object, save it, and then apply the style to
another object of the same type. For more information, see Reusing a style from
another object in the product documentation.
If you reuse an object that contains other objects, you can replace the child objects with
a different object to customize your report. To change the contents of a reused object,
you must override the child object that uses the Properties pane.
Instead of creating new layout components (such as page headers) for each report, you
can create an object in one report and then reuse it in different reports. Reusing layout
components saves you time and lets you apply standard company formatting to
multiple reports.
By default, reused objects are automatically updated each time the report is run. This
means that when you open or run a report containing a reused object, if the object has
been changed in the source report, this change will automatically be applied in your
report.
If you want a reused object to be updated manually instead of automatically, in the
report where the object is reused, select the object, and then in the Properties pane,
change the Embed property from Reference to Copy.
When you reuse a layout object in a different report, you can override child objects
within this object (such as a text item in a page header object) if the child objects have
been named in the source report.
Shared objects are stored in the layout component cache. The cache contains the
definitions of the shared objects. When you open a report that contains layout
component reference objects, the report(s) containing the shared layout objects is
opened and the definitions are copied into the Reporting cache. Object names cannot
contain white space and must begin with a letter. When you override child objects, you
can replace the child object with any other object, not just an object of the same type.
For example, if the child object is a text item, you can replace it with an image.

Activity: Section a report and reuse objects

Create a sectioned list report and add some descriptive information to it. The report
must include a title on each page describing the contents of the report, and information
about whom to contact if users have any questions.
• Create the list report.
• Section the list and convert it to a crosstab.
• Create a page header and footer.
• Create a unique header style.
• Specify unique object names.
• Reuse the header block.
Create the list report.
• Create a new report that uses the Blank template,
• Employee by region: Country
• Time: Year
• Summarize <Revenue> by Total.
A simple list report appears. The report runs as expected. There is one Overall -
Total at the very bottom of the report.

Section the list and convert it to a crosstab.

• Click the <Country> list column body, from the on-demand toolbar, click
Section / unsection, and then click Section / unsection from the list.
The report is sectioned so that separate lists appear for each country. However, it
can be difficult to interpret. There is still only one total at the very bottom of the
report, even though the data is sectioned by Country.
• Click the <Year> list column body, from the on-demand toolbar, click More, and
then click Pivot List to Crosstab from the list. (Hint: You may want to close the
properties pane so you can view the More icon.)
Because you selected Year before you converted the list into a crosstab, years
now appears as columns. Product line appears on rows, and Revenue, because it
can be aggregated, appears as measures on the report. You can now interpret the
data more quickly.

Create a page header and footer.

• Click to the right of the crosstab data container.
• From the on-demand toolbar, click More, point to Headers & footers, and then
click Page header & footer.
The Page header & footer dialog box appears.
• Select the Header and Footer check boxes, and then click OK.
• In the Header, click Add, and then click Block.
• From the Toolbox, drag a Text item into the Block object in the Page header.
• In the Text dialog box, type Product Line Sales by Year, and then click OK.
Create a unique header style.
You will format the objects that you added to the header.
• With the header text still selected, from the on-demand toolbar, click Font.
• Change the font to Arial, 16pt, Bold, and then a Foreground color of White.
• Click OK to close all open dialog boxes.
• Select the entire header block, from the on-demand toolbar, click the down arrow
next to Background color, and then from the Basic colors tab, click Teal.
The report contains a header with the title that you specified. It has been formatted
according to the properties you have set.
You now want to reuse the objects that you created and formatted to avoid
repeating steps in building the footer.
Specify unique object names.
• Ensure the header block is selected, in the Properties pane, under
MISCELLANEOUS, in the Name property, type Title Block, and then
press Enter.
• Click the header Text item, in the Properties pane, under MISCELLANEOUS, in
the Name property, type Title Text, and then press Enter.
If you try to assign a name that is not unique, Reporting displays a warning
message informing you that the name must be unique.
If you select an element of the report, such as a column in a list, and want to
deselect it, press the Esc key on your keyboard.

Reuse the header block.

• From the Toolbox, expand the ADVANCED section, and then drag a
Layout component reference object into the footer.
The Component reference dialog box appears.
To reuse an object in the footer, you need to specify the object to be referenced.
You can choose from the two objects to which you have previously assigned
names, as well as the list containing the crosstab. In this case, you will select the
block object because it also contains the text item object.
• Under Available components to reference, click Title Block, and then click OK.
The footer now contains the same object and formatting as the header.
• Click the text in the footer.
In the Properties pane, you can only select the layout component reference object
and not the block or text item objects individually. This is because it is referencing
the block object in the header. Remember, the block object in the header also
contains the text item object.
You want to change the text in the footer to contain contact information.
• In the Properties pane, click Overrides, and then click the ellipsis.
• In the Overrides dialog box, select the Title Text check box, and then click OK.
The layout component reference object in the footer no longer contains text. Only
the referenced block object remains.
• Drag a Text item object into the component override area of the footer block, type
Please contact the Sales Manager for more details, and then click OK.
• Click the Text item object in the footer, and then change the font to Arial 12pt,
Bold, and Foreground color of White.

• Click OK to close the Foreground Color dialog box, and then click OK to close the
Font dialog box.
• Run the report in HTML, and then scroll to the bottom of the page to view the
footer.
Both the header and footer contain a teal block with white font.
This is a simplified example of reusing report objects. This technique might be best
for reusing an object with numerous format properties applied.
You can also reuse objects between different reports.

Activity: Reuse layout components in a different

report
To save time when creating new reports, create one report containing a standard page
header that can be used in many reports, and then, create one report that will reuse this
page header.
• Create a header to be reused in other reports.
• Add additional details to the header.
• Reuse the standard page header.
• Add data and format the report.
• Modify the shared page header.
• Manually update the shared page header.
Create a header to be reused in other reports.
• Create a new report that uses the Blank template, and the
• In the work area, click Add, and then click Table
• Create a table with 3 columns and 1 row.
Because you want to reuse this table as a page header in other reports, you will
name the table object.
• Click the Container selector in the upper left cell, to select the entire table.
• On the Application bar, click Show properties if necessary to display the
properties.
• In the properties pane, under MISCELLANEOUS, in the Name property, type
StandardPageHeader, and then press Enter.
You want to add your company logo to the left side of the page header.
• Under Insertable objects, click Toolbox, expand LAYOUT, and then drag an
Image object to the left cell of the table.
• With the image selected, in the Properties pane, under URL SOURCE, double-
click the URL property.

• In the Image Picker dialog box, beside the Browse button, delete the existing
path, type http://localhost:88/images/go_logo_small.jpg, and then click OK.
the http address.
A graphic now appears in the first table cell.
You want to add a text item in the middle of the page header that can be used to
add a report title.
• From the Toolbox tab, drag a Text item to the center cell of the table, and then
click OK to close the Text dialog box without adding any text.
You will not specify the text to be used yet, because this will be different for each
report. You will name this text object so that it can be overridden when the page
header is reused in other reports.
• With the new Text item selected, in the Properties pane, under
MISCELLANEOUS, for the Name property type ReportTitle, and then press
Enter.
Add details to the header.
You want to add date and time information to the report header.
• In the right table cell, click Add, and then click Table.
• Set Number of columns to 1, Number of rows to 2, and then click OK.
• From the Toolbox, from the TEXTUAL section, drag a Layout calculation object
to the top cell of the table you added in the previous step.
• In the Report expression dialog box, click the Functions tab, expand
Report Functions, and then drag AsOfDate to the Expression Definition pane.
• Validate the expression, and then click OK to close the Report expression dialog
box.
You want to add a time stamp, to appear in the bottom-right corner of the page
header.
• From the Toolbox, drag a second Layout calculation object to the bottom cell of
the table you added previously.
• Click the Functions tab, expand Report Functions, and then drag AsOfTime to
the Expression Definition pane.
• Validate the expression, and then click OK to close the Report expression
dialog box.

• On the Application bar, click Save.

• Navigate to My content, in the Save as box type Layout Library, and then
click Save.
• From the Switcher menu list, leave the current report open, and click the
Welcome page to return to it.
Reuse the standard page header.
container.
• Under Insertable objects, click the Toolbox, and then drag a Block above the
list header area.
The block appears above the list.
• From Toolbox/ADVANCED section, drag a Layout component reference object

to the Block.
• In the Component reference dialog box, select the Another report radio button,
click the ellipsis, and then navigate to My content.
• Click Layout Library, and then click Open.
• Under Available components to reference, click StandardPageHeader, and
then click OK.
The page header from the Layout Library report appears. You will customize the
report.
• In the header, click the Layout Component Reference object.
• From the Application bar, click Show properties.
• In the Properties pane, under GENERAL, double-click the Overrides property.
The Overrides dialog box appears. Because you gave the report title text object a
distinct name, you can now override its contents in the shared page header.

• Select the ReportTitle check box, and then click OK.

• From the Toolbox, drag a Text item to the component override area of the
center cell of the header.
• In the Text dialog box, Quantity by Order Method, and then click OK.
• With the Text item still selected, from the on-demand toolbar, change the font to
Arial, and the size to 22 pt.
• Click OK.
Add data and format the report.

• Select the list, to put it in focus.
• From the Sources tab, expand the Sales and Marketing (query) folder, and then
expand the Sales (query) namespace.
• Sales fact: Quantity
• Save the report to the My content folder as Quantity by Order Method.

The header you created in the Layout Library report displays the title that you
added to this report.
Modify the shared page header.
• In the Page header of the list report, click the Layout component reference
object (the entire block).
In the Properties pane, the Embed property is set to Reference. This means any
changes made to the shared page header in the Layout Library source report will
be automatically applied in this report. You will now modify the shared page header
in the source report.
• On the Application bar, expand the Switcher menu list.
• Click the Layout Library report to open it.
• In the Page header, click <%AsOfTime()%>, and then press Delete.
• On the Application bar, click Save.
• Expand the Switcher menu list.
• Click the Quantity by Order Method report to open it, and then run the report in
HTML.
The change that you made to the page header in the source report has
automatically been applied to this shared page header, as seen in the top right
corner. The AsOfTime is no longer there.

Manually update the shared page header.

You decide you do not want changes to the page header in this report to be applied
automatically when the header changes in the source (Layout Library) report.
• In the current Quantity by Order Method report, in the page header, click the
Layout component reference object.
• In the Properties pane, under GENERAL, change the Embed property to Copy.
• Save the report.
To ensure that the changes you make to the reports are applied properly, you will
close and reopen the reports.
• Remove the Layout Library report from the Switcher menu list.
• On the Applications bar, click the Edit button to take the report out of edit mode.
• From the Side bar, click My content, and then beside the Layout Library report,
click More, and then click Edit report.
The Page header appears as follows:
• In the left cell of the Page header, drag the Image object to the right of the center
cell that contains the Text item so that they switch places.

• Remove the Quantity by Order Method report from the Switcher menu list, and
then open it from My content on the Welcome page.
Although you switched the order of the image and text objects in the source report,
this change is not reflected in the page header in this report because you changed
the Embed property to Copy. To make the page header in the target report
consistent with the standard page header you created in the Layout Library report,
you will now manually update the shared page header.
• Ensure the report is in Edit mode. (Hint: The Insertable objects are either visible
or its tab appears in the side bar.) If it is not in Edit mode, then on the
Applications bar, click Edit .
• In the Page header, click the Layout component reference object, from the on-
demand toolbar click More, and then Update Component Copy.
The header is updated to reflect the changes made in the Layout Library source
report, with the title on the left and the graphic in the middle.
• Remove all reports from the Switcher menu list.

Activity: Explore reports that contain no data

Create a report with three pages showing different methods of handling no data being
returned. The first page shows default data handling, the second page will not display
when the list is empty, and the third page will generate a custom message to replace
the empty container.
• Create a list and a crosstab.
• Modify the layout.
• Add filters.
• Create additional pages.
• Configure a page to not display when the list is empty.
• Configure a page with a custom No Data Handler.
• Add a prompt page.
• Test the report configurations.
Create a list and a crosstab.
• Create a new report that uses the 1 column template, Team
container.
• Time: Year
• Click the work area (anywhere outside the list), from the on-demand tool bar, click
the arrow beside Vertical alignment, and then click Top.
• Under Insertable objects, click the Toolbox, and then drag a Crosstab reporting
object to the right of the list.

• On the Object and Query name dialog box, from the Query Name list, click
Query1, and then click OK.
This allows the crosstab to use the same query items as the list.
• Under Insertable objects, click the Data items tab , and then add the
following query items and measure to the crosstab:
• Rows: Year
• Columns: Product line
• Measures: Revenue
• Under Insertable objects, click the Toolbox, and then drag a Table on to the
work area below the crosstab.
• Clear the Maximize width checkbox, and then click OK to accept the default size
of 2 columns and 1 row.
• Click inside the left table cell (but not the Add icon).
• On the Application bar, click Show properties, and then in the properties pane,
under BOX, double-click Padding.
• In the Right padding box, type 10, and then click OK.
The report layout contains an empty header, a list and a crosstab containing the
same data, a table, and a footer.

Modify the layout.

• Click the List Container Selector, and then drag the list into the left table cell.
• Click the Crosstab Container Selector, and then drag the crosstab into the right
table cell.
• Click inside the now empty container on the left where the list used to reside, but
do not click the Add icon.
The empty container is now selected.
• Press Delete to delete this container, and on the Delete cell dialog box, ensure
that Delete the entire column is selected, and then click OK.
• From the Toolbox tab, drag a Text item to the left of the list, but within the left
table cell.
• Type List: and then click OK.
• From the Toolbox tab, drag a Text Item to the left of the crosstab, within the right
table cell.
• Type Crosstab: and then click OK.
• Click below the crosstab within the right table cell, from the on-demand toolbar,
click the arrow beside Vertical Alignment, and then click Top.

• Double-click the text in the header, type Page 1 - Default Behavior, and then
click OK.
• Select the Block containing the header text, and then left justify the text.
Add filters.
Both reporting objects are linked to Query1, so only one set of filters is needed.
• Click anywhere in the list, from the on-demand toolbar, click Filters, and then click
Edit Filters.
• Click Add, click Advanced, and then click OK.
• Create the following expression:
[Year] =?pyear?
• Validate the expression using 2011.
• Click OK to close the Detail filter expression dialog box.
• Create another detail filter expression as follows:
[Product line]=?ppline?
• Validate the expression using Camping Equipment.
• Click OK to close the Detail filter expression dialog box.

Create additional pages.

• On the navigation menu, click Report > Pages, and in the middle pane, right-click
Page1, and then click Copy.
• In the same pane, right-click below Page1, and then click Paste to create Page2.
• Repeat the previous step to create Page3.
Configure a page to not display when the list is empty.

You do not want Page2 to render when the list is empty.
• Double-click Page2, and then double-click the text in the Page header to edit the
text.
• Type Page 2 - Do Not Render Page if No Data is Returned in the List, and then
click OK.
• Click the List Container Selector to select the entire list.

• From the properties pane, under GENERAL, set the Render page when empty
property to No.
Configure a page with a custom No Data Handler.
You want to display a custom message when the list or crosstab is empty.
• On the navigation menu, click Report > Pages, and in the Pages pane,
double-click Page 3.
• Double-click the text in the Page header, and then update the text to:
Page 3 - Show Custom Message When No Data is Returned.
• Click OK.

• Click the List Container Selector to select the entire list.

• From the properties pane, under CONDITIONAL, double-click the
No data contents property.
• Select Content specified in the No data tab, and then click OK.
The No Data Contents property specifies whether to show the No Data Contents
tab for the selected query frame. When set to Yes, you can specify on this tab what
to show when there is no data. When set to No, the tab is hidden and the query
frame reverts to the default behavior.
The list now appears with a new No Contents Data tab. No Data Available is the
default message that appears if the list has no content. You want to customize this
message.
• Double-click the object showing No Data Available, update the text to
List contains no data., and then click OK.
• Select the Text item, and then change the font to Arial Black, 12pt, with a
Foreground Color of Blue.
• Click the Crosstab Container Selector to select the entire crosstab.

• From the Property pane, under CONDITIONAL, double-click the
No data contents property.
• Select Content specified in the No data tab, and then click OK.
• In the Crosstab, double-click the object showing No Data Available, update the
text to Crosstab contains no data., and then click OK.
• Select the Text item, and then change the font to Arial Black, 12pt, with a
Foreground Color of Blue.

Add a prompt page.

• On the navigation menu, click Report > Prompt pages.
• From the Toolbox, drag a Page object to the center Prompt pages pane, and then
double-click Prompt page1.
• Add a Table with 2 columns and 2 rows to the work area.
• Add a Text item to the top left cell, type Select a Product Line:, press the space
bar, and then click OK.
• Add a Text item to the bottom left cell, type Select a Year:, press the space bar,
and then click OK.
• Expand PROMPTING, and then insert a Value prompt in the top right cell.
• Select Use existing parameter, select ppline from the list, click Next, and then
click Finish.
• Insert a Value prompt in the bottom right cell.
• Select Use existing parameter, select pyear from the list, click Next, and then
click Finish.
• Click the top left cell.
• In the Properties window, under POSITIONING, double-click Size & overflow.
• Set the Width to 150, and then click OK.
Test the report configurations.
• When prompted, next to Select a Product Line, select Camping Equipment,
next to Select a Year, select 2010, and then click Finish.
Since all of the queries in this report are filtered by the same parameters, all lists
and crosstabs on the three report pages should look the same when data is
returned. The page numbers refer to the pages in Page Explorer and not in the
HTML view.

• Click Page down to see the Page 2 - Do Not Render Page if No Data is page.
The report appears the same as Page 1 except for the header which is customized
for Page 2.
• Click Page down to see the Page 3 - Show Custom Message When No Data is
Returned page.
The report appears the same as Pages 1 and 2 except for the header which is
customized for Page 3.
With the current prompt selections, all three pages appear with a list and crosstab.
• On the Application bar, click Run to run the report again.
• When prompted, select Mountaineering Equipment, select 2010, and then
click Finish.
Notice how the individual pages are affected in the report since there is no data for
2010 for the product line Mountaineering Equipment.
The first page shows default behavior for the list and crosstab when there is no
data returned. Both the list and crosstab are replaced with the default message of
No Data Available.

Notice that the Page 2 - Do Not Render Page if No Data is Returned in the List
page did not display at all. This list contains no data and the list property Render
page when empty is set to No, so the page did not render.
You are taken directly to the Page 3 - Show Custom Message When No Data is
Returned page. Both the list and crosstab are showing the custom message you
created when no data is returned.

• On the Application bar, sign out without saving any report.
• Close the Web browser.



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Course Guide

IBM Cognos Analytics:

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2003, 2019 2

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2003, 2019 3

Additional training resources

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2003, 2019 4

Activity: Setting up the training environment

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2003, 2019 5

What is IBM Cognos Analytics - Reporting?

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2003, 2019 6

Consume report content

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2003, 2019 7

Working with reports

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2003, 2019 8

• Work in different authoring modes.

Portugal $34, 675, 662.43

• Interactively view query and rendering performance on report objects in a report by

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2003, 2019 9

Activity: Create a simple list report

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2003, 2019 10

• In the work area, click Add .

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2003, 2019 11

• From the Application bar, click Show properties .

You will now view the data items in the query.

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2003, 2019 12

View the data items in the query.

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2003, 2019 13

• Examine the Expression Definition.

This action returns you to the report.

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2003, 2019 14

• From the Application bar, click Undo .

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2003, 2019 15

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2003, 2019 16

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2003, 2019 17

Dimensionally modeled relational data

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2003, 2019 18

Activity: Use a dimensionally modeled relational

• From the Sources tab , click Add a source , navigate to:

• On the Sources tab, click Options .

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2003, 2019 19

• Expand the Sales folder.

The available measure dimensions and regular dimensions are displayed

Review the measures available in the Sales fact measures query.

• Expand the Retailers dimension , and then expand the

This hierarchy contains a Members folder and five levels.

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2003, 2019 20

• Expand the Region level.

The member values are displayed within the Members folder.

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2003, 2019 21

• Expand the Products dimension, Products hierarchy, Product line level,

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2003, 2019 22

• Close the rendered New report tab.

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2003, 2019 23

Use personal data sources and data modules

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2003, 2019 24

Activity: Use a personal data source

• On the Side bar, click My content.

© Copyright IBM Corp. 2003, 2019 25

Create the data module.