Chapter 24: WebIntelligence Version 6.0

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At the time of this writing, BusinessObjects and WebIntelligence (WebI) version 6.0 were in Beta 2. WebI version 6.0 narrows the functionality gap between the two platforms, providing improved graphics, a more intuitive interface, simpler workflow, multitab and multiblock reports, and report variables and formulas. Web-based reports have never been so rich! Whereas users previously had to sacrifice functionality for thin-client computing, WebI version 6.0 removes many of those barriers and offers even more enhancements.

This chapter assumes you have worked with either BusinessObjects or WebI 2.x and focuses on the version differences or new steps for completing a task covered in other chapters in Part III of this book. There may be slight differences between the Beta 2 product and released product.

Two Interfaces

WebI version 6.0 comes in two different interfaces:

• Java Report Panel

• HTML Report Panel

The Java Report Panel uses an applet that gets downloaded to your browser the first time you launch the Java Report Panel, either by editing a document or choosing to create a new one. The Java Report Panel allows for the most complex and robust web-based reporting and analysis. BusinessObjects full-client or three-tier mode users will find the Java Report Panel familiar.

The HTML Report Panel uses dynamic HTML to provide a zero-footprint client. As a zero-footprint client, it’s ideal for extranet deployments or slow networks. New users also may prefer a more basic interface that guides you through the process of creating a new document. The HTML Report Panel has a different interface, but also only a subset of the WebI functionality. Table 24-1 highlights some of the main differences between BusinessObjects, WebI version 2, and the different interfaces of version 6.0.

Figure 24-1: InfoView home page

Table 24-1: Differences in the Versions and WebI Interfaces

Topic	Functionality	Business Objects	WebI 2.x	WebI 6.0 Java Report Panel	WebI 6.0 HTML Report Panel
Query	List of values chunking and search within	No	No	Yes	No
Query	Hierarchical view of objects in query	Yes	No	Yes	No
Query	Control prompt order	Workaround is to modify prompt text to include numbers	Workaround	Yes, via up arrow /down arrow keys	No
Query	Advanced query filters for subqueries	Yes	No	Yes	No
Query	Multiple data providers	Yes	No	No	No
Query	Custom Scope of Analysis	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
Query	User-defined objects	Yes	No	No	No
Report	Suppress empty values	No	No	Yes	No
Report	Multiblock creation	Yes	No	Yes	No
Report	Multireport creation	Yes	No	Yes	No
Report	Complex calculations and local variables	Yes	No	Yes	No
Report	Format report in structure view	Yes	No	Yes	No
Report	Relative positioning for multiblock reports	Yes	NA	Yes	NA
Report	Save as Excel	New in 6.0	No	Yes	Yes
Report	Alternate row colors in tables	No	No	Yes	No
Drill	Skip level within Scope of Analysis	Yes	No	Yes	No
Drill	Contextual drill bar	Yes	No	Yes	Yes
Drill	Drill by	Yes	No	Yes	Yes
Drill	Drill snapshot	Yes	No	Yes	No
Drill	Synchronized multiblock drilling	No	No	Yes	No

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