Portable Analytics

WebFOCUS Active Reports for Information on the Go

WebFOCUS Active Reports provide robust business intelligence (BI) to users’ computers as well as their mobile device – including iPhones, Treos, Dell PDAs, HP PDAs, Samsung devices, and any other device running the Opera Mobile browser.

Active Reports – whether delivered to a user’s desktop or mobile device – consist of data and interactive capabilities bound together in a single file. They are easily distributed to large numbers of users who can then perform common analytic functions such as sorting, filtering, calculating, and charting. There’s no need for access to specific personal computers, proprietary applications, or network conduits. The unsurpassed, easy-to-use interface requires no training. What’s more, significant network cost savings are achieved when users work in disconnected mode.

Report consumers can manipulate the contents into diverse permutations on their own and forward these reports to other users without any network or device constraints, which improves efficiency and facilitates collaborative decision-making.

Integration With Adobe Flash, Flex, and PDF

Information Builders recognizes the value of rich internet applications (RIAs) and engaging interfaces, which are now the norm rather than the exception. The analytic capabilities within Active Dashboards can be combined with the RIA technologies in Adobe Flex to produce an unparalleled user experience. Active Reports delivered as self-contained Adobe Flash files or as Adobe Flash content embedded in Adobe PDF become user-friendly applications that are engaging and fully interactive.

Features and Benefits

WebFOCUS Active Reports can:

• Minimize the backlog of report requests in the IT queue by delivering a single report that can be transformed again and again, without repeated connections to the data
• Simplify distribution of sophisticated reports, using the same delivery vehicle for users inside and outside the enterprise
• Give field workers access to information at the exact moment they need it on their mobile device
• Reduce network costs by enabling users to work in disconnected mode
• Solve the dilemma of how to provide enterprise data to outside users
• Eliminate dependence on third-party software that may not be available to users outside the enterprise
• Offer an intuitive user interface, enabling data analysis for report consumers not highly skilled with spreadsheets

Active Reports functionality can be applied to just about any report type, including detail reports, reports with multiple levels of summary, and expandable (Accordion) reports. They can be enabled in an existing WebFOCUS application by simply changing the output type. Active Reports also offer extensive manipulations of data via a pull-down menu from each report column. The options include:

• Sort – arrange any field in ascending or descending order
• Filter/highlight – select any column(s) for complex record selection tests; tests can be on multiple fields with various operators, including equalities, inequalities, and substrings; rows in the answer set of the search can be highlighted or displayed alone
• Calculate – apply math functions to the column, such as the sum, the minimum or maximum value of a field, the count of instances, and each value as a percentage of the column total
• Chart – create line, bar, and pie graphs displayed in a pop-up window
• Rollup – aggregate the values in a column in groups by another designated column, displaying the results in a pop-up window
• Pivot – aggregate values in one column and display the results in a cross tab grouped by two or more columns
• Visualize – compare column values visually with the bar chart integrated in the report
• Freeze – designate a section of a wide report as stationary and the adjoining section as moveable for easy viewing
• Paginate – designate the number of records per logical page
• Export – extract records’ rows into an external file that can be imported into other environments
• Tabbed view – view reports on a mobile device easily with each chart and roll-up displayed in separate tabs

* PDF file. (Download Adobe Acrobat Reader.)