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Cognos 8 BI Transformer:
Designing OLAP Models
(version 8.3)
Instructor Guide - Volume 1
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
C88382 - Production
IP-2
INSTRUCTOR
PREFACE
Contents
PREFACE....................................................................................................... IP-1
CONTENTS ...................................................................................................... IP-3
COURSE OVERVIEW ..................................................................................... IP-17
IMPORTANT COURSE CHANGES ................................................................... IP-19
COURSE OUTLINE ........................................................................................ IP-23
INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS ....................................................................... IP-34
GENERAL SETUP AND INSTRUCTOR PREPARATION ...................................... IP-39
DOCUMENT CONVENTIONS .......................................................................... IP-41
POWERPOINT TIPS ....................................................................................... IP-42
VMWARE KEYBOARD SHORTCUTS .............................................................. IP-43
GET THE CLASS STARTED ............................................................................ IP-45
POST-CLASS AGENDA .................................................................................. IP-46
SUBMIT FEEDBACK AND LOCATE ADDITIONAL PRODUCT INFORMATION ... IP-47
COGNOS PRODUCT HELP.............................................................................. IP-49
SETUP INSTRUCTIONS ............................................................................. SI-1
IMPORTANT SETUP INSTRUCTIONS FOR THIS COURSE ................................... SI-3
INSTALL MICROSOFT SQL SERVER 2000....................................................... SI-5
INSTALL MICROSOFT SQL SERVER 2000 SP3 ............................................. SI-10
INSTALL MICROSOFT SQL SERVER KB815495 ........................................... SI-12
ENSURE THAT THE PROPER PATCHES FOR SQL SERVER 2000 ARE
INSTALLED .................................................................................................. SI-13
ENSURE YOU HAVE INTERNET INFORMATION SERVICES INSTALLED ......... SI-14
CREATE THE COGNOS 8 CONTENT STORE .................................................... SI-15
RESTORE THE SAMPLE DATABASES ............................................................. SI-16
SET UP WEB ALIASES................................................................................... SI-18
CONFIGURE COGNOS 8................................................................................. SI-20
CREATE USERS IN THIRD-PARTY AUTHENTICATION PROVIDERS ................ SI-22
DEPLOY AND IMPORT COGNOS 8 SAMPLES.................................................. SI-23
IMPORT THE DEPLOYMENT ARCHIVES ......................................................... SI-24
IP-3
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
IP-4
INSTRUCTOR
PREFACE
IP-5
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
BUILDING A MODEL....................................................................................5-1
OBJECTIVES .....................................................................................................5-3
CREATE MODEL STRUCTURES .........................................................................5-4
DIMENSION PROPERTY SHEET .........................................................................5-5
LEVEL PROPERTY SHEET .................................................................................5-6
DEMO 1: BUILD A MODEL ................................................................................5-7
IMPORT DIMENSIONS FROM PACKAGES .........................................................5-11
GENERATE CATEGORIES AND CATEGORY COUNTS .......................................5-12
DIMENSION DIAGRAM....................................................................................5-13
CATEGORY PROPERTY SHEET ........................................................................5-14
VERIFY THE MODEL .......................................................................................5-15
DEMO 2: WORK WITH ITEMS IN THE DIMENSION MAP AND DIMENSION
DIAGRAM ......................................................................................................5-16
CREATE A POWERCUBE .................................................................................5-19
PUBLISH AS A DATA SOURCE AND PACKAGE IN COGNOS CONNECTION .......5-20
DEMO 3: CREATE THE POWERCUBE AND VIEW IN ANALYSIS STUDIO ..........5-21
SUMMARY ......................................................................................................5-25
WORKSHOP 1: CREATE A MODEL MANUALLY..............................................5-26
THE TIME DIMENSION ...............................................................................6-1
OBJECTIVES .....................................................................................................6-3
WHAT IS A TIME DIMENSION ...........................................................................6-4
TYPES OF TIME DIMENSIONS ...........................................................................6-5
CALENDARS .....................................................................................................6-6
DEFINE DATE FORMATS...................................................................................6-7
LIMIT THE RANGE OF DATES INCLUDED IN THE MODEL..................................6-8
SET UP FISCAL YEARS, QUARTERS, AND MONTHS ..........................................6-9
DEMO 1: SET UP THE FISCAL YEAR ...............................................................6-10
CREATE A TIME DIMENSION USING THE DATE WIZARD ...............................6-14
IP-6
INSTRUCTOR
PREFACE
IP-7
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
IP-8
INSTRUCTOR
PREFACE
IP-9
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
CURRENCY CONVERSION.......................................................................12-1
OBJECTIVES ...................................................................................................12-3
CURRENCY CONVERSION ...............................................................................12-4
HOW IS CURRENCY CONVERTED?..................................................................12-5
DEFAULT CURRENCY SETTINGS ....................................................................12-6
DEMO 1: IMPORT CURRENCY DATA USING A DATA SOURCE ........................12-7
SUMMARY ....................................................................................................12-12
WORKSHOP 1: CURRENCY CONVERSION .....................................................12-13
ALTERNATE HIERARCHIES WITHIN A DIMENSION ......................13-1
OBJECTIVES ...................................................................................................13-3
WHAT IS AN ALTERNATE HIERARCHY? .........................................................13-4
WHY DO WE USE ALTERNATE HIERARCHIES?..............................................13-5
DIRECT ACCESS .............................................................................................13-6
REORGANIZE THE LEVELS..............................................................................13-7
INTRODUCE A NEW LEVEL .............................................................................13-8
CONVERGENCE LEVELS .................................................................................13-9
DEFINE THE CONVERGENCE LEVEL AS UNIQUE ..........................................13-10
AN ALTERNATE HIERARCHY IN A TIME DIMENSION ...................................13-11
DEMO 1: CREATE ALTERNATE HEIRARCHIES ..............................................13-12
DEMO 2: CREATE AN ALTERNATE HIERARCHY IN THE TIME DIMENSION ...13-19
SUMMARY ....................................................................................................13-23
ADVANCED DIMENSIONAL MODELING .............................................14-1
OBJECTIVES ...................................................................................................14-3
ADD A NEW SOURCE LEVEL ..........................................................................14-5
WHAT ARE MANUAL LEVELS?.......................................................................14-6
POPULATE MANUAL LEVELS .........................................................................14-7
CREATE ORPHAN CATEGORIES ......................................................................14-8
DEMO 1: ADD A MANUAL LEVEL, AND MANUAL CATEGORIES.....................14-9
IP-10
INSTRUCTOR
PREFACE
IP-11
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
IP-12
INSTRUCTOR
PREFACE
IP-13
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
IP-14
INSTRUCTOR
PREFACE
IP-15
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
IP-16
INSTRUCTOR
PREFACE
Course Overview
Course Overview
Cognos 8 BI Transformer: Designing OLAP Models (version 8.3) is a
four-day, instructor-led course that teaches OLAP modelers how to
design, build, and maintain PowerCubes for use with Cognos 8 BI.
Attendees will participate in hands-on demos and workshops that
illustrate key concepts while learning how to use the product.
Intended Audience
OLAP Modelers who will build PowerCubes for use in Cognos 8 BI
Topics Covered
Topics covered in this course include:
Overview of Cognos 8 BI
Discuss the fundamentals of OLAP modeling
Plan, design, and work with the model plan
Work with data sources and build a model
Examine the time dimension and relative time
Use multiple data sources and address uniqueness
Work with measures and currency conversion
IP-17
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Course Prerequisites
Participants should have:
Understand the business need for ad hoc queries and analysis
Cognos 8 BI: Reporting and Analyzing Data for Business Authors
(version 8.3) (recommended)
Experience using basic Windows functionality
IP-18
INSTRUCTOR
PREFACE
IP-19
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
IP-20
INSTRUCTOR
PREFACE
IP-21
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
IP-22
INSTRUCTOR
PREFACE
Course Outline
The following table outlines the high-level topics for each module, and the
number of slides, demos and workshops included, as well as the
estimated teaching time.
Overview of Cognos 8 BI
Topics
Slides
Demos
Workshops
Est. Time
15 -30
mins
Slides
Demos
Workshops
Est. Time
16
1 hr.
Transformer Fundamentals
Topics
IP-23
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Slides
Demos
Workshops
Est. Time
12
1 hr
Slides
Demos
Workshops
Est. Time
20
1.5 hr
IP-24
INSTRUCTOR
PREFACE
Building a Model
Topics
Slides
Demos
Workshops
Est. Time
17
1.5 hr
Slides
Demos
Workshops
Est. Time
16
1.5 hr
IP-25
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Relative Time
Topics
Slides
Demos
Workshops
Est. Time
17
1 hr
Slides
Demos
Workshops
Est. Time
1 hr
Slides
Demos
Workshops
Est. Time
14
1 hr
IP-26
INSTRUCTOR
PREFACE
Slides
Demos
Workshops
Est. Time
17
1.5 hr
Slides
Demos
Workshops
Est. Time
11
1 hr
of measures
calculated measures
IP-27
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Currency Conversion
Topics
Slides
Demos
Workshops
Est. Time
45
mins
Slides
Demos
Workshops
Est. Time
13
1 hr
IP-28
INSTRUCTOR
PREFACE
Slides
Demos
Workshops
Est. Time
22
2 hr
Slides
Demos
Workshops
Est. Time
13
1.5 hr
IP-29
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Slides
Demos
Workshops
Est. Time
11
45
mins
Slides
Demos
Workshops
Est. Time
13
1 hr
define authentication in
Cognos 8 BI
define authorization in
Cognos 8 BI
IP-30
INSTRUCTOR
PREFACE
Optimizing PowerCubes
Topics
Slides
Demos
Workshops
Est. Time
26
1 hr
Slides
Demos
Workshops
Est. Time
14
1.5 hrs
Partition a PowerCube
Topics
understand multifile
PowerCubes
IP-31
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Slides
Demos
Workshops
Est. Time
28
2 hrs
Slides
Demos
Workshops
Est. Time
13
1 hr
identify drill-through
combinations
IP-32
INSTRUCTOR
PREFACE
Slides
Demos
Workshops
Est. Time
20
1 hrs
IP-33
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Instructional Materials
Student Guide
The Student Guide contains material that helps to explain features of the
product, along with the presentation slides that are presented by the
instructor. Student demos and workshops are incorporated in the course
to enrich the learning experience through hands-on practice.
Demos
Demos appear after covering one or more topics or features of the
application. While not every product function is demonstrated,
participants work with the more important and complex features through a
series of tasks. Demo tasks contain a number of steps related to a
specific action or feature of the product.
Workshops
In most of the modules, a supplementary workshop is included. If
participants followed the concepts in class without difficulties, they can
probably complete the workshop with no additional information. The
second section for each workshop contains a task table that identifies
each task, where to work in the application, and any applicable hints to
help the participants. The third section of the workshop contains screen
captures of the expected results. The fourth section contains a step-bystep solution to the workshop. Participants may want to follow these
instructions if they are not able to complete the workshop or if they
require a little more practice with the application.
IP-34
INSTRUCTOR
PREFACE
Instructor Guide
The Instructor Guide contains the same content presented in the Student
Guide, along with additional notes to supplement and add value to the
lecture. The information can be generic, non-technical information, such
as multiple ways to perform the same command or a more in-depth
discussion of a topic. It may also be used to address more technical
questions from participants or as supplementary technical discussion, at
the discretion of the instructor. It helps to provide the appropriate level of
information to a specific audience.
C8T-01-Overview_of_Cognos8_BI.ppt
C8T-02-Transformer_Fundamentals.ppt
C8T-03-The_Transformer_Developement_Process.ppt
C8T-04-Data_Sources_In_Transformer.ppt
C8T-05-Building_A_Model.ppt
C8T-06-The_Time_Dimension.ppt
C8T-07-Relative_Time.ppt
C8T-08-Use_Multiple_Data_Sources.ppt
C8T-09-Uniqueness.ppt
IP-35
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
C8T-10-Working_With_Measures.ppt
C8T-11-Allocated_Measures.ppt
C8T-12-Currency_Conversion.ppt
C8T-13-Alternate_Hierarchies_within_a_Dimension.ppt
C8T-14-Advanced_Dimensional_Modeling.ppt
C8T-15-Customize_Cube_Content.ppt
C8T-16-Examine_Cognos_8_Security.ppt
C8T-17-Applying_Security.ppt
C8T-18-Optimizing_PowerCubes.ppt
C8T-19-Partition_a_PowerCube.ppt
C8T-20-Maintain_Models_and_PowerCubes.ppt
C8T-21-Model_for_Drill-Through.ppt
C8T-A-Blank_Model_Plans.ppt
C8T-B-Identify_Common_Data_Structures.ppt
8.3)
IP-36
INSTRUCTOR
PREFACE
Student Data
The EXE contains the files that are necessary to complete the demos and
workshops. By inserting the EXE into the student PCs and allowing the
auto install to run, these files will be installed to the C:\Edcognos\C88382
directory. The EXE contains the following folders and files:
C88382 (root)
o Basic Measures.csv
o go_sales_scenario.csv
o Product Profit.csv
o Regions.csv
PPT-Alternate_Hierarchies_within_a_Dimension (folder)
o Demo 1_Start.pyj
PPT-Uniqueness (folder)
o Demo 1_Start.pyj
IP-37
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Instructor Files
The C:\Edcognos\C88382\Instructor Files folder contains a .zip file
(OLAP reports.zip) needed to set up the student and instructor machines.
It is referenced in Setup_InstructionsC88382.doc.
Demos, Workshops, and Workshop Solutions
The course is designed to be easily customized for on-site training with
customer data. The files contain Microsoft Word files that you can use to
modify the demonstrations and workshops as required.
IP-38
INSTRUCTOR
PREFACE
IP-39
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Prepare to Teach
After you have configured the instructor and student computers, consider
the following:
Run through at least one module in a classroom with a PC viewer.
Run through the full course at least once on a computer.
Make sure you complete each of the demos before teaching the
course so that you become familiar with each step required.
Have a set of product reference manuals in the classroom.
Make sure that there is a Student Guide for each participant.
IP-40
INSTRUCTOR
PREFACE
Document Conventions
Conventions used in this guide follow Microsoft Windows application
standards, where applicable. As well, the following conventions are
observed:
Bold
Italic
CAPITALIZATION
IP-41
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
PowerPoint Tips
Here are valuable keyboard commands you can use to improve your
presentation.
Command
Key(s)
Right-click/Pen or Ctrl+P
Help
INSTRUCTOR
PREFACE
Action
Ctrl-B
Power on.
Ctrl-E
Power off.
Ctrl-R
Ctrl-Z
Suspend.
Ctrl-N
Ctrl-O
Ctrl-F4
Ctrl-D
Ctrl-G
Ctrl-P
Edit preferences.
Ctrl-Alt-Tab
Ctrl-Tab
IP-43
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Shortcut
Action
Ctrl-ShiftTab
Ctrl-Alt-Fx
IP-44
INSTRUCTOR
PREFACE
Student Introductions
Name
Company
Position
Product Experience
Personal objective(s)
for this course
Administrative Items
Sign-in sheet
Smoking
Messages
Telephones
Washrooms
Emergency exits
Refreshments
Turn off cell
phones and pagers
Class Format
Lecture with slides
Student guides as
reference material
Hands-on demos to
learn and practice
IP-45
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Post-Class Agenda
Have participants complete the Course Evaluation forms.
Hand out certificates.
Leave the classroom clean.
If you brought any hardware or course media, take them with you
when you leave. Erase any files copied to the hard disks of the
computers in the classroom. Change the Preferences back to their
initial settings.
Complete the Instructor Feedback form, and return it to the
Education Coordinator. Ensure that the Coordinator receives the
Course Evaluation forms.
If you are at a customer site, thank the course administrator by
letter.
List any outstanding questions, and ensure that participants receive
answers in writing.
Report any sales leads to your sales representative.
Make notes for yourself about what went well during the course and
what needs improvement. When you are preparing for your next
teach, you can refer to these.
IP-46
INSTRUCTOR
PREFACE
IP-47
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
IP-48
INSTRUCTOR
PREFACE
When to use
Location
Taskoriented
Books for
Printing
(.pdf)
Start/Programs/Cognos
Product/Documentation
http://support.cognos.com
Online support
http://support.cognos.com
http://www.cognos.com
IP-49
COGNOS
IP-50
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
SI
Setup Instructions
Cognos 8 BI
COGNOS
SI-2
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
SETUP
INSTRUCTIONS
Page
SI-5
SI-10
SI-12
SI-13
2 mins
5 mins
5 mins
5 mins
2 mins
SI-14
2 mins
15 mins
SI-3
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
Setup
MODELS
Page
(VERSION
8.3)
SI-4
SI-15
SI-16
SI-18
SI-20
SI-22
2 mins
10 mins
2 mins
10 mins
2 mins
SI-23
SI-24
SI-25
SI-26
SI-27
3 mins
3 mins
2 mins
2 mins
SI-28
SI-29
1 min
96
minutes
SETUP
INSTRUCTIONS
Note: If SQL Server 2000 is already installed, go to the section Ensure that the proper
patches for SQL Server 2000 are installed.
1.
2.
3.
4.
SI-5
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Click Create a new instance of SQL Server, and then click Next.
Edit the Name, Co., etc., and then click Next.
Accept the License Agreement.
Enter the 25-digit CD Key.
SI-6
SETUP
INSTRUCTIONS
10. Click Server and Client Tools, and then click Next.
11. Select Default as the Instance Name, and then click Next.
SI-7
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
SI-8
SETUP
INSTRUCTIONS
15. For Authentication Mode, click Mixed Mode, and type Education1! in the
Enter password and Confirm password boxes.
16. Click Next.
17. Click Next again.
The installation continues, and the Microsoft Data Access Components are
installed. The complete installation may take a few minutes.
18. Once the install is complete, click Finish.
SI-9
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
SI-10
SETUP
INSTRUCTIONS
6.
Check Upgrade Microsoft Search and apply SQL Server 2000 SP3
(required), and then click Continue.
7.
8.
9.
SI-11
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
SI-12
You have to install the next patch if you are inside the Cognos network.
This patch is required to eliminate the problem with a virus.
Start the program. The name of the file is SQL2000-KB815495-8.00.0818ENU.exe.
Click Next on the page Hotfix Installer.
Accept the Licensing agreement.
Select the Instance that you want to upgrade. The program usually selects the
local machine.
Click SQL Server Authentication on the page Authentication Mode and type
Education1! as the password in the text box.
Click Install.
Click Finish.
SETUP
INSTRUCTIONS
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
SI-13
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
6.
SI-14
Open the Control Panel, and then double-click Add or Remove Programs.
Click Add/Remove Windows Components.
Ensure the Internet Information Services (IIS) check box is selected.
Highlight Internet Information Services (IIS), and then click Details.
Ensure all of the check boxes for the subcomponents are selected.
If any of the check boxes are grayed out, highlight the subcomponent, click
Details, and then select all of the check boxes.
When you are finished, close all of the dialog boxes, and then close the Control
Panel.
SETUP
INSTRUCTIONS
From the Start menu, point to All Programs, Microsoft SQL Server, and
then click Enterprise Manager.
Expand Microsoft SQL Servers and SQL Server Group. (If SQL Server
Group has nothing within it, right-click it and click Register SQL Server.)
Expand <servername>, and then expand Databases.
Right-click Databases, and then click New Database.
The Database Properties dialog box appears.
In the Name box, type cm.
In the Collation name list, select Latin1_General_CI_AS, and then
click OK.
Leave Enterprise Manager open for the next step.
SI-15
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
6.
7.
8.
SI-16
Rightclick the GOSALESDW database, point to All Tasks, and then click
Restore Database.
In the Restore database dialog box, click From device.
Under Parameters, click Select Devices.
In the Choose Restore Devices dialog box, click Add.
In the Choose Restore Destination dialog box under File name, click the
Ellipsis and browse to <Cognos 8 install location>\webcontent\
samples\datasources\sqlserver\ GOSALESDW, and then click OK.
Click OK, and then click OK again.
In the Restore database dialog box, click the Options tab.
Select the Force restore over existing database check box.
SETUP
INSTRUCTIONS
9.
In the Restore database files as pane, ensure the Restore as path for both files in
the Move to physical file name column points to the location of the
GOSALESDW database.
If you chose the default location when you created the database, the path
should read, <SQL Sever location>\MSSQL\Data\ GOSALESDW.mdf for
the first file, and <SQL Sever location>\MSSQL\Data\
GOSALESDW_log.ldf for the second file.
Please note: The GOSALESDW.mdf file may be called
GOSALESDW_Data.mdf.
The data file is listed first in the logical file name column, followed by the log
file. If the positions are reversed (in other words, if the log file is listed first),
ensure that each logical file name points to the correct physical file location.
10. Click OK.
A message appears saying the restoration was successful.
11. Click OK to close the message.
12. Close SQL Server Enterprise Manager.
SI-17
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
From the Control Panel, open Administrative Tools, and then open
Internet Information Services.
In Internet Information Services, expand <servername>, and then expand
Web Sites.
Expand Default Web Site, right-click Default Web Site, point to New, and
then click Virtual Directory.
The Virtual Directory Creation Wizard appears.
Click Next.
Under Alias, type cognos8, and then click Next.
Browse to <Cognos 8 install location>\webcontent, click OK, and then
click Next.
Clear the Run scripts check box, so only Read is selected, and then click
Next.
Click Finish.
SI-18
Right-click the cognos8 virtual directory folder, point to New, and then click
Virtual Directory.
Click Next.
Under Alias, type cgi-bin, and then click Next.
Browse to <Cognos 8 install location>\cgi-bin, click OK, and then click
Next.
Select the Execute check box, deselect the Read and Run scripts check
boxes, and then click Next.
Click Finish.
SETUP
INSTRUCTIONS
Right-click the cognos8 virtual directory folder, point to New, and then click
Virtual Directory.
Click Next.
Under Alias, type help, and then click Next.
Browse to <Cognos 8 install location>\webcontent\documentation, click
OK, and then click Next.
Clear the Run scripts check box, so that only Read is selected, and then click
Next.
Click Finish.
SI-19
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Configure Cognos 8
Task 1. Configure the NTLM provider.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
From the Start menu, point to All Programs, Cognos 8, and then click
Cognos Configuration.
In the Explorer pane of Cognos Configuration, right-click Authentication,
point to New resource, and then click Namespace.
In the New Resource - Namespace dialog box, under Name, type Local NT,
and then from the drop-down list under Type, click NTLM.
Click OK.
Click the cell in the Namespace ID row and the Value column, and type Local
NT ID, and then press Enter.
In the Explorer pane under Authentication, click Cognos.
To the right of Allow anonymous access, click True in the Value column, and
then click False to change the setting.
With Anonymous access now set to False, students will need to log in to
Cognos Connection and provide a user name and password.
Leave Cognos Configuration open.
Task 2. Enable file saving and set root directory for saving
files.
1.
2.
3.
4.
SI-20
SETUP
INSTRUCTIONS
SI-21
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
From the Start menu, click Control Panel, and then double-click
Administrative Tools.
Double-click Computer Management.
3.
4.
5.
In the New User dialog box, in the User name box, type admin and then in
the password and confirm password boxes, type Education1!.
6.
Clear the User must change password at next logon check box, select the
Password never expires check box, and then click Create.
7.
8.
9.
In the left pane, click Users to ensure that the users have been added.
10. Close the Computer Management window, and then close Administrative
Tools.
SI-22
SETUP
INSTRUCTIONS
5.
SI-23
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Task 2. Import .
1.
2.
SI-24
SETUP
INSTRUCTIONS
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
In the User ID box, type sa, and in the Password and Confirm password boxes,
type Education1!, and then click Finish.
SI-25
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
2.
3.
4.
5.
SI-26
On the Set properties - System Administrators page, click the Members tab.
Click Add, select the Show users in the list check box, and then click Local
NT.
Select the Admin Person (admin) check box, click the green arrow and then
click OK.
You may need to click Next Page
6.
7.
Select the Everyone check box, click Remove, and then click OK.
Leave Cognos Connection open.
SETUP
INSTRUCTIONS
SI-27
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
2.
3.
Click New.
In the Name box, type Output Reports.
This is the name that users will see in Cognos 8, when they save a file.
In the File system location box, type csv files, and then click Finish.
Click Close.
4.
5.
SI-28
SETUP
INSTRUCTIONS
SI-29
COGNOS
SI-30
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Intro
Introduction
Cognos 8 BI
COGNOS
Intro-2
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
INTRODUCTION
Course Objectives
At the end of this course, you should be able to:
discuss the fundamentals of OLAP modeling
work with data sources and build a model
use multiple data sources and address uniqueness
work with measures and currency conversion
customize cube content
apply Cognos 8 security
maintain and optimize models and PowerCubes
model for drill-through access
identify common data structures
Intro-3
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Overview of Cognos 8 BI
Transformer Fundamentals
The Transformer Development Process
Data Sources in Transformer
Building a Model
The Time Dimension
Relative Time
Use Multiple Data Sources
Cognos 8 BI Transformer: Designing
OLAP Models (version 8.3)
Intro-4
INTRODUCTION
Uniqueness
Working with Measures
Allocated Measures
Currency Conversion
Alternate Hierarchies within a Dimension
Advanced Dimensional Modeling
Customize Cube Content
Examine Cognos 8 Security
Applying Security
Cognos 8 BI Transformer: Designing
OLAP Models (version 8.3)
Intro-5
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Optimizing PowerCubes
Partition a PowerCube
Maintain Models and PowerCubes
Model for Drill-Through
Identify Common Data Structures
(Optional)
Intro-6
INTRODUCTION
Additional Training
After completing this course, please visit
http://support.cognos.com/training to find more
information about:
provides
expertise
Intro-7
COGNOS
Intro-8
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Overview of Cognos 8 BI
Cognos 8 BI
COGNOS
1-2
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
OVERVIEW
OF
COGNOS
BI
Objectives
At the end of this module, you should be able to:
Instructor Notes
This module is a shared module used in several courses. The intent of this module is to help students
understand where they fit into the Cognos 8 BI infrastructure. Tailor your delivery to your audience. You
can stay high level or go into as much detail as you think is appropriate.
1-3
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Why?
1-4
OVERVIEW
OF
COGNOS
BI
Cognos 8 BI Components
Cognos 8 Cognos Query Report Analysis
Viewer Studio Studio Studio
Portal
Framework Manager
Multidimensional
Relational
Event
Studio
Metric
Admin
Studio
Transformer
Files
More
Cognos 8
Content
Metric Studio helps to manage your organization's performance by monitoring and analyzing metrics at
all levels.
Query Studio helps you quickly answer a focused question.
Analysis Studio performs analyses of data to discover trends, risks, and opportunities.
Report Studio builds sophisticated reports, including multi-page, multiple-query reports against multiple
data sources.
Event Studio notifies users of key operational or performance-related events that may affect their
business.
1-5
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Authors,
Query Users,
Analysis Users
Consumers,
Readers
Take advantage of Cognos 8 groups and roles to secure your Cognos 8 BI environment
and content. The group or role a user belongs to will determine how much access they
have to the Cognos 8 BI environment. For example, if you are a member of only the
Consumers role, you cannot access any of the Cognos 8 studios.
Besides the default groups and roles, you can create new groups and roles that are
specific to your Cognos 8 BI needs. Simply add users from your authentication source
to specific groups and roles as required.
Instructor Notes
You can use the groups and roles defined in the Cognos Namespace as well as in your authentication
provider to control access to content.
There are many different groups and roles the administrator can use to restrict what you can see, what
you can do etc.
See the Predefined Entries section of the Administration and Security Guide for detailed information on
the predefined groups and roles as well as the anonymous user.
1-6
OVERVIEW
OF
COGNOS
BI
Extend Cognos 8 BI
Cognos provides a wide variety of ways to extend
Cognos 8 BI.
For more information, please visit www.cognos.com.
Instructor Notes
Cognos products that Extend Cognos 8 BI include:
Cognos 8 Planning (helps you plan for the future through planning, budgeting, forecasting, and
modeling)
Cognos 8 Go! Office (integrate C8 content with MS Office)
Cognos 8 Go! Mobile (C8 content on mobile devices)
Cognos 8 Go! Search (expanded and integrated search capabilities for C8 content)
Cognos 8 BI Analysis for Microsoft Excel (multidimensional analysis on Cognos 8 BI data in a
MS Excel spreadsheets)
For developers, there is also Composite, which allows for access to an even wider variety of data
sources, and the Cognos 8 SDK for customization and application development.
Cognos Now delivers highly visual, interactive, and self-service dashboards, data integration, analysis,
and reports, all prepackaged in a hardware appliance.
This would be a good time for an ad hoc demo of the Cognos 8 BI portal and the studios. For example:
Show Cognos Connection and how reports are organized. Run an RS report to view it. Open Analysis
Studio and create a quick high level analysis. Drill down, and add a function (perhaps a top count).
Open Query Studio, create a quick list report, pivot to a cross tab, and then show a chart. Then open
the Query Studio report in Report Studio, add some formatting, a quick calculation, a company logo
and run. Save the report to Cognos Connection and point it out there.
2008, Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated)
Cognos Confidential. For internal use only.
This guide contains proprietary information which is protected by copyright. No part of this document may be photocopied, reproduced,
or translated into another language without a legal license agreement from Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated).
1-7
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Summary
At the end of this module, you should be able to:
1-8
Transformer Fundamentals
Cognos 8 BI
COGNOS
2-2
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
TRANSFORMER
FUNDAMENTALS
Objectives
At the end of this module, you should be able to:
Instructor Notes
If you intend to teach this module, students should be familiar with:
SQL
the business need for ad hoc data exploration and analysis
2-3
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Business Intelligence
Business intelligence helps people to:
Organized Information
Instructor Notes
With business intelligence software, your business can:
create an information infrastructure that supports nimble decision-making to maximize the
success of your organization
look inside the data to investigate and analyze the business
make it possible for all employees to contribute their business knowledge and insights to the
factors that drive your organization's performance
take action based on the information discovered to make better business decisions.
2-4
TRANSFORMER
FUNDAMENTALS
Who?
Customers
(Channels)
What?
Product
(Type)
Where?
Location
(Region)
Result?
Indicator
(Revenue)
Combination 1
Quarter
Month
Type
Customer
Line
Brand
Number
Country
Branch
Sales Rep
Quantity
Cost
Margin
Type
Customer
Line
Brand
Number
Country
Branch
Sales Rep
Quantity
Cost
Margin
Combination 2
Quarter
Month
Dimensional analysis is a process where you selectively extract and evaluate multiple
aspects of your business against your key performance indicators for the purpose of
decision support.
Dimensional analysis increases your understanding of the data and accelerates your
ability to make decisions.
Instructor Notes
Corporate data is organized in the way you think about your business, so that you spend more time on
value added analysis, rather than on data retrieval. You can find answers to your business questions
by navigating through the data to determine successes and failures, uncover trends, discover
opportunities, and find weaknesses. For example, a comprehensive sales analysis requires you to
examine key performance indicators within your business in relation to time, products, customers,
regions, sales reps, and sales channels. The combination of views to investigate is enormous. With
multidimensional analysis, you can examine each combination while you navigate the data. You
increase your knowledge, and can make immediate decisions to impact the business performance.
2008, Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated)
Cognos Confidential. For internal use only.
This guide contains proprietary information which is protected by copyright. No part of this document may be photocopied, reproduced,
or translated into another language without a legal license agreement from Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated).
2-5
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Camping Equipment
Dimension
Golf Equipment
Cell
Fax
Outdoor Protection
Telephone
Members
Mountaineering
Equipment
Personal Accessories
E-Mail
Jan
Feb
Q1
...
Q2
2005
Web
Start
April 1
...
2006
...
Attributes
Time
Hierarchy/Levels
2005 Q1
Q2
End
June 30
Q3
Q4
2-6
TRANSFORMER
FUNDAMENTALS
Benefits of Transformer
Transformer is:
Users
OLAP
Analysis
and
Reporting
PowerCube
Transformer models help you structure data from various sources into
multidimensional PowerCubes.
Begin by assessing the data and deciding how to organize it to support the types of
business analysis that are important to you.
Transformer accepts data from Impromptu files (.iqd), flat files, and most spreadsheet
and database applications, with or without column headings, and compresses the data
into a compact PowerCube.
Instructor Notes
Additional benefits of Transformer are:
automatic aggregate creation
advanced modeling capabilities
reads multiple data sources
leverages aggregate and fact tables
2008, Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated)
Cognos Confidential. For internal use only.
This guide contains proprietary information which is protected by copyright. No part of this document may be photocopied, reproduced,
or translated into another language without a legal license agreement from Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated).
2-7
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Business Requirements
The business requirements impact every aspect of the
model and cube. By keeping these requirements at
the center of your design, you can better serve the
decision- makers in your organization.
Dimensional Technical
Modeling
Architecture
Design
Project
Physical
Planning and
Design
Business
Management
Requirements
Maintenance
Data Staging
and Growth
Design
Deployment End-User
Application
Planning
Specification
Understanding your users and the business is the cornerstone for success in
implementing a successful application.
Choose people who know the company's objectives and who can describe the
company's key performance indicators, top concerns, and expectations.
Involve people who know the technical infrastructure and the data sources, and who
will be involved in prototypes, production, and ongoing maintenance.
Find out what users need to do with the data, how they use the data, and what types of
reports they create with the data.
Instructor Notes
The slide discusses the importance of determining the business requirements. In some cases, this
information may help to determine the project scope and possible schedules. The business
requirements will impact several areas in your organization. Make sure you talk to people before you
start with the tools.
2-8
TRANSFORMER
FUNDAMENTALS
What is a Model?
Instructor Notes
Transformer compiles the following components into a model:
Source Files: Source files are data sources. Data sources can be structural (text) or
transactional (numeric). Refer to the module titled, "Data Sources in Transformer".
Dimension Map: A dimension map is a table that displays all the dimensions in the model and
the levels they contain. Refer the module titled, "Building a Model".
Measures: A measure is a value to be used as a key performance indicator for the business.
Custom Views: You can add custom views to a cube
2-9
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Model Types
Transformer can save models as the following two
types of files:
An .mdl file can be opened in Transformer or any text editor. It will never be larger
than necessary as it replaces, rather than appends, and rarely corrupts.
We recommend that you periodically save the .pyj model file as an .mdl file, open the
file in Transformer, and then save it again as the default .pyj file to eliminate the
fragmentation associated with the .pyj file.
Instructor Notes
.mdl files: can also be a script to automate Transformer, contain only definitions of objects, files, are
upwardly compatible between versions, are backwards compatible within the same version, are slow to
open since the file is not compiled.
.pyj files: are not upwardly compatible between versions, are not backwards compatible within the
same version, are quick to open since the file is already compiled, can become excessively large, and
sometimes corrupt, with frequent modifications, actually contain the objects.
2-10
TRANSFORMER
FUNDAMENTALS
Instructor Notes
Tips for model creation:
Avoid redundant processing with incremental builds.
Choose the right PowerCube creation process.
Perform regular model maintenance.
2-11
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
What is a PowerCube?
a structure that stores data dimensionally and
provides:
From well-designed cubes, you can create reports in minutes (rather than days, weeks,
or months) that you can use to analyze your business to capitalize on the opportunities
presented.
PowerCubes are static, which means they must be updated periodically. PowerCubes
store data at summarized levels.
Instructor Notes
Example: a spreadsheet contains transaction data records. A cube contains the summary statistics
based on the transaction data records from the spreadsheet.
Traditional relational databases present data as a series of two-dimensional tables that show the
relationships among variables. A PowerCube structure expands the number of dimensions from two, to
three, or more. It is possible to store more detailed information in the PowerCubes. However, this is not
recommended because it increases the size of the PowerCubes considerably. As an alternative, drillthrough functionality is available. When you create a default or standard PowerCube, the resulting .mdc
file contains all the cube data.
2-12
TRANSFORMER
FUNDAMENTALS
Measures
A measure can:
You must have at least one defined measure to build a PowerCube. Measures play a
valuable role in extending the use of the application because they:
represent the key performance indicators used to gauge the success of your
business
help you to view the performance of the business from a different perspective
typically come from Fact table data in a database
Instructor Notes
A regular measure is numeric data available in a corporate transaction file. A calculated measure is
new numeric data that is derived from other measures, functions, and constants. You can add
additional measures to the model, that are not included as part of the user requirements, to enhance
data analysis. For example, if a user requested measure values for revenue, quantity, and cost, you
might consider adding measure values for average cost and profit margin. This means that users can
analyze data in different ways.
2008, Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated)
Cognos Confidential. For internal use only.
This guide contains proprietary information which is protected by copyright. No part of this document may be photocopied, reproduced,
or translated into another language without a legal license agreement from Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated).
2-13
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Question to
be answered
Dimensions
Levels
When
What
Where
Who
How
Dim 1
Dim 2
Dim 3
Dim 4
Dim 5
Time
Products
Regions
Years
Product line
Region
Country
Months
Product name
City
Employee
Dimensions are the highest levels of descriptive data. Common dimensions tend to
deal with the major aspects of the business, such as date, products, and regions. They
typically address the questions of when, what, where, who, and how.
Dimensions are made up of levels. Each subordinate level provides increasingly
detailed data that relates to the dimension.
Levels represent the hierarchy established by the organizational structures and data
models that your organization uses.
2-14
TRANSFORMER
FUNDAMENTALS
Additional Dimensions
Dimension
Levels
When
What
Where
Dim 1
Dim 2
Time
Years
2 Quarters
3
Months
Who
How
Dim 3
Dim 4
Dim 5
Products
Regions
Retailer
types
Margin
Ranges
Product
line
Regions
Retailer
type
Margin
Range
Product
type
Product
Name
Country
City
Employee
After you define the initial dimensions and their levels, you can determine whether
other descriptive data can be added to enhance the analysis of your application.
You can create exception dimensions, or new ways of slicing and dicing the data based
on a calculation from existing source columns. For example, you can use Margin Range
to track critical success factors that constitute an exception in the business.
Instructor Notes
Exception Dimensions are created using calculated columns. Calculated columns are expressions that
use other columns, functions, and constants to derive new data for the model. Calculated columns can
be used in a dimension structure to create new ways of slicing and dicing data.
If (Margin < .30) then (LOW) else if (Margin > .70) then (HIGH) else (MEDIUM)
When you add a new exception dimension in the sales analysis model, you can address how many
products are sold within a given margin range and in what margin range different products are selling.
Exception dimensions are created either in the source data or within Transformer by using a
calculation.
2008, Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated)
Cognos Confidential. For internal use only.
This guide contains proprietary information which is protected by copyright. No part of this document may be photocopied, reproduced,
or translated into another language without a legal license agreement from Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated).
2-15
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Categories/Members
In Transformer, categories are individual data items
that populate a level in a dimension.
In Cognos 8, these items are called members.
Level:
Region
Level:
Country
Level:
City
Category/
Member:
Categories/
Members:
Category/
Member:
Norway
Northern
Europe
Sweden
Denmark
Kista
Finland
Categories/Members are the individual data elements that describe or classify details of
your organization. Each level in a dimension has its own set of categories/members.
Instructor Notes
IMPORTANT: Member is the C8 terminology. However the Transformer 8.3 product uses the term
"category" inside the product. Have a small discussion that a category and member are different names
for the same object. When working inside the C8 studios, you will often see the terminology of
"member" but when working inside the Transformer product - the terminology will be "category".
Categories can be different levels of information within a dimension or can be grouped into more
general categories. For example, a set of dates could be grouped into a month, months into quarters,
and quarters into years.
2-16
TRANSFORMER
FUNDAMENTALS
Summary
At the end of this module, you should be able to:
2-17
COGNOS
2-18
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Instructor Notes
Unless specified otherwise in demo or workshop steps, instructors and students will always log on to
Cognos 8 in the Local NT namespace using the following credentials:
User ID: admin
Password: Education1!
COGNOS
3-2
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
THE
TRANSFORMER
DEVELOPMENT
PROCESS
Objectives
At the end of this module, you should be able to:
Instructor notes:
Students should be familiar with:
Transformer model concepts
Multidimensional analysis
3-3
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Model Requirements
Us
er
Re
qu
ire
m
en
ts
P
el
od
lan
PowerCube
r
po
e
R
ir
qu
e
tR
em
Ad
di
Re tion
qu al R
ir e
me epor
n ts t
ts
en
Before you create a model plan, you should complete these tasks:
1. Meet with users to gather requirements.
2. Translate user requirements into report requirements.
3. Consider adding report requirements that were not requested by users but
would enhance analysis of the overall application.
4. Transfer the report requirements onto a model plan.
Instructor Notes
Identifying and confirming user requirements is critical to user satisfaction and the success of a project.
Before you develop the model, you should give users the opportunity to approve the final design phase
of the model plan. The model plan should be consulted and updated at regular intervals throughout
your development phase, particularly when modifications are made to the information being included in
the model.
3-4
THE
TRANSFORMER
DEVELOPMENT
PROCESS
Model Plan
helps identify required data
helps assess required work
proposes the model design
guides the creation of the model
The model plan outlines the design and data requirements of the Transformer model. It
is the starting point in the development of any Transformer model and is created and
controlled by the administrator.
3-5
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Instructor Notes
Q. Why is including more information into a model not necessarily better? A. It may not improve the
quality of the analysis. An application that contains less data provides increased performance.
Q. Why do you recommend approximately seven or less dimensions in the model? A. Fewer
dimensions make an application easier to use.
Q. Why do you recommend five to seven levels in a dimension? A. the application will be faster and
easier to navigate.
Q. Why do you recommend a Drill Ratio 1:10 from level to level? A. Better design. When the ratio is
large, consider introducing an intermediary level to accommodate the unbalanced dimension.
3-6
THE
TRANSFORMER
DEVELOPMENT
PROCESS
When
What
Where
Who
How
Dim 1
Dim 2
Dim 3
Dim 4
Dim 5
Dimension
Name:
Time
Products
Regions
Retailers
Margin
Range
Levels:
Year
Product
Line
Region
Retailer
Type
Margin
Range
Quarter
Product
Type
Country
Retailer
Name
Month
Product
Name
City
Measures:
3-7
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Dimension
Map
Measures List
PowerCubes List
You create or modify a Transformer model by applying the values outlined in the
model plan. By adhering to the model plan, you can make sure that the application
design meets the user's needs.
Instructor Notes
Discuss the four main components of the model and how the model plan relates to each of the
components.
The Dimension Map is used to build and display the model dimensions and their level structure based
on the data source. Use the model plan, along with the data from the Data Sources list, to build the
dimension map. The dimension map is a table that shows:
dimensions located in its top row.
levels in a vertical hierarchy for each dimension (the hierarchy of levels represents the drill path,
and each level contains attributes for all its member categories).
3-8
THE
TRANSFORMER
DEVELOPMENT
PROCESS
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Start Transformer.
From the File menu, click Preferences.
Click the Directories tab.
All the files you need are located in folders in C:\Edcognos\C88382;
therefore, you want to set this location as your default for models, data sources,
PowerCubes, and log files.
Under Models, click Browse.
Navigate to C:\Edcognos\C88382, and then click OK.
Under Data source, change the path to C:\Edcognos\C88382.
Under PowerCubes, change the path to C:\Edcognos\C88382.
Under Log files, change the path to C:\Edcognos\C88382.
Close the Preferences dialog box, and leave Transformer open.
Results:
You started Transformer and set the directory preferences to
C:\Edcognos\C88382.
Instructor Notes
Point out that the Temporary file location specifies the name of the directory to create a temporary file
while you work on the model. The temporary file is also used to recover a suspended model at strategic
checkpoints should a fatal error occur.
3-9
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
2.
3.
3-10
THE
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
TRANSFORMER
DEVELOPMENT
PROCESS
3.
Maximize the dimension diagram window, click in the dimension diagram, and
then press Home.
This is one method to fit the dimension diagram in your window.
3-11
COGNOS
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Locate the Product line label, which has a light blue label color.
The categories for Product Line are Camping Equipment, Personal Accessories,
Outdoor Protection, Golf Equipment, and Mountaineering Equipment.
Expand Personal Accessories.
The Product type categories for Personal Accessories are Watches, Eyewear,
Knives, Binoculars, and Navigation.
Expand Knives.
The categories are Single Edge, Double Edge, Edge Extreme, Bear Edge, Bear
Survival Edge, and so on.
Close the dimension diagram.
From the View menu, click Default View.
You would typically create a PowerCube based on the model.
By default, the PowerCube generation process generates categories and a
PowerCube called Sales and Marketing is added to the PowerCubes list. You
can publish this PowerCube directly to Cognos Connection for consumption
within the studios.
Close the model without saving.
Results:
You identified the four main components of Transformer and
identified dimensions, levels, measures, and categories.
3-12
THE
TRANSFORMER
DEVELOPMENT
PROCESS
Summary
At the end of this module, you should be able to:
3-13
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Instructor Notes
Following the workshop slide in the PowerPoint presentation is an additional slide called "Example
Model Plan Results". This slide can be shown after Students have completed the workshop.
3-14
THE
TRANSFORMER
DEVELOPMENT
PROCESS
The company analyzes their business and makes decisions based on several factors:
Factor
Description
Dates
Dates are organized in three levels - Year, Quarters, and Months based on a fiscal year of March to February.
Products are analyzed by Product line. For Product line analysis, the
company sells multiple product lines; each product line has more than
one Product type, and each type has more than one Product name.
The company sells to different geographic regions worldwide. Within
each region are countries and cities, in which employees are based.
Products
Regions
Retailer
Types
% Late
Shipment
Ranges
3-15
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
To define the reporting objectives, the Finance and Inventory Control organizations
provided the following user requirements.
User
Requirements
Finance
Inventory
Control
3-16
THE
TRANSFORMER
DEVELOPMENT
PROCESS
Discussion Questions
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
3-17
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
When
Dim 1
Dimension
Name
Time
Levels
1
2
3
4
What
Dim 2
Where
Dim 3
Who
Dim 4
How
Dim 5
5
6
7
8
10
Measures
3-18
Cognos 8 BI
Instructor Notes
Unless specified otherwise in demo or workshop steps, instructors and students will always log on to
Cognos 8 in the Local NT namespace using the following credentials:
User ID: admin
Password: Education1!
COGNOS
4-2
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
DATA
SOURCES
IN
TRANSFORMER
Objectives
At the end of this module, you should be able to:
define properties
Instructor Notes
Suggested modules to reference:
Transformer_Fundamentals
The_Transformer_Development Process
4-3
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
After the model plan has been designed according to the business and user
requirements, the next step is to ensure that the data needed to develop the application
is available.
You must determine where the data is, how to access it, and what security or network
restrictions apply.
Instructor Notes
If the same piece of data is derived from multiple data sources, you must ensure that the data reflects
the same information.
Think about the following items when identifying the required data:
Data source: What is the quality of the data, and how frequently is it updated?
Business owner: Who is responsible for the data (the person that can help define what is in the data).
IS owner: Who is responsible for the system the data is stored on?
Platform: What is the operational environment where the data source is coming from?
System: Can you describe the purpose of the system and the data it produces?
Location: Where is the physical location of the system producing the data?
4-4
DATA
SOURCES
IN
TRANSFORMER
Data Types
Transformer uses three types of data:
Date
Text
Measures
Staff Name
Bill Gibbons
Jean Proulx
Akiko Odi
Quantity Revenue
85
1700
24
480
45
900
Numeric
Instructor Notes
Data sources can be either strictly structural and contain only the text data required by a dimension
structure or primarily transactional and contain the data representing the various measure values used
in the application. A data source may contain only structural data. However, a data source cannot
contain only numeric data. Numeric data must be supported by minimal context for values to be rolled
up properly. Text can contain any alphanumeric character.
4-5
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
By querying the data in the specified sources, you create the multidimensional
PowerCubes required by users of the Cognos 8 components, such as Analysis Studio.
Data source files contain the data that the model needs to build the cube. They can be
Cognos packages or reports, .iqd files, flat files, Microsoft Access tables and queries,
Microsoft Excel crosstabs and databases, and so on
.
Instructor Notes
Q. The Insert Data Source dialog box does not list Oracle Table, SQL Server Table, etc. Can
Transformer not use these as data sources? Must the cube administrator or DBA batch the data out
to one of the formats available in the drop-down?
A. Transformer is a data modeling/ transformation application. Query/extraction is performed outside of
this environment for various reasons.
Transformer supports .iqds and flat files created in other applications (such as .csv files in Excel). One
advantage of flat files is that they may be quicker to build. You are not locked into one "time-window"
for both the extract and the cube build stage. For example, you won't have to directly access a
mainframe system to build your cubes.
4-6
DATA
SOURCES
IN
TRANSFORMER
Report Studio
Package:
User ID:
admin
Password:
Education1!
2.
3.
4.
4-7
COGNOS
5.
6.
7.
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
4-8
DATA
SOURCES
IN
TRANSFORMER
8.
11. From the File menu, click Save As, and in the Save as type list select CSV
(Comma delimited) (*.csv).
12. Close Microsoft Excel, and close Windows Explorer.
Results:
In Report Studio, you created a list report, and scheduled it to save
on your file system every week. You opened the flat file to ensure
that all the items you required are included.
Instructor Notes
Step 11: You are saving at this point due to a product issue. If you didnt save it as .csv, the file would
not appear correctly as a data source in the next demo, even if you change it to Unicode. Saving the
file in the correct format is a workaround.
4-9
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Where possible, design your data so that one source provides the structural information
for each dimension.
Instructor Notes
Transformer automatically maintains levels that are associated with your source data columns and
detects the required changes when you generate categories against an updated data source. If your
source data does not have columns for higher levels, you can create them manually using Transformer.
However, you must remember to update these levels manually if your source data changes.
It is not necessary to have a time dimension For example, your model might provide point-in-time
analysis. A time dimension is irrelevant if you are looking at data from one year without further time
breakdowns or if all your data is for the same day.
4-10
DATA
SOURCES
IN
TRANSFORMER
general parameters
descriptive information
Some properties are associated with a specific source type, such as the named range for
an Excel spreadsheet.
The source type you select determines what additional settings you must specify.
Instructor Notes
If you move your data source, edit the Properties to define the new location in the Source tab or the
PowerCube will not build.
4-11
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
general parameters
date settings
array information
descriptive information
For most of the supported source data types, Transformer can automatically identify
columns in the data sources and assign default column names and properties.
Column properties are relevant during the AutoDesign process because Transformer
uses them to determine where to map the columns when performing the statistical
analysis. Properties are also useful for the process of maintaining the connection
between the data source file and the model.
Instructor Notes
General Tab - Presents the general properties of a data source column, such as name, origin, data
class, and position in the data source.
Time Tab - Format of input date values and the interval at which measure values were recorded
(degree of detail).
Array Tab - Identifies sets of monthly or quarterly summary measure values that are stored as adjacent
columns in the data source.
Description Tab - Lets the user input a text description of the data source column.
4-12
DATA
SOURCES
IN
TRANSFORMER
Instructor Notes
For .iqd source files only, expert users can modify the SQL in the Data Source Viewer to optimize,
customize, or refine queries.
After modifying SQL, the relationship between columns in your .iqd file and your model may be lost if:
there is an expression in your SQL
there is an input scale in your .iqd file
the column names of the items below the END SQL line do not match with those column names in
the SQL
4-13
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Using the Show Reference command you can view information about the
columns.
You can determine the impact a column change has on the model (for example,
if you rename a column or you want to determine whether a column can be
safely deleted without affecting any interdependencies).
Instructor Notes
If someone else designed the model, you may want to see the original name of a column, what column
in the data source the information came from, or what columns are sorted.
The slide example illustrates that Year, Quarter, and Month are referenced from the Order Date
column. Notice that Year, Quarter, and Month have been sorted in this model.
4-14
DATA
SOURCES
IN
TRANSFORMER
Transformer
User ID:
admin
Password:
Education1!
Open Transformer.
Create a new Model.
Model name: Product Sales
Data source name: Product Sales
Data source type: Delimited-field text with column titles
Data source location: C:\Edcognos\C88382\csv files
Source file: Product_Sales-en-us.csv
Hint: Do not use AutoDesign
Instructor Notes
The isolation level essentially describes how you want to lock the database tables.
4-15
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
2.
3.
4.
5.
Results:
You examined the properties of columns in a .csv data source.
4-16
DATA
SOURCES
IN
TRANSFORMER
4-17
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Query 1
Query 2
When you create the new query, it is imported as an additional query under the package
or report data source.
Each Cognos 8 package and report data source is shown in the Data Sources list as a
single data source with multiple associated queries.
Instructor Notes
Add Query from Package or Report option: Add Query from Package or Report opens the Query
Definition dialog box, where you can create the new query.
4-18
DATA
SOURCES
IN
TRANSFORMER
Transformer
Package:
User ID:
admin
Password:
Education1!
1.
2.
You can import query items from relational or dimensionally modeled relational
packages and reports, and the associated filters and prompts.
Start the New Model wizard.
Hint: File menu
Model Name: Sales
Data Source name: Leave blank. It will default to GO Data Warehouse
(query)
Data Source type: Cognos Package
Log on: User ID: admin, Password: Education 1!
Package Location: Public Folders > GO Data Warehouse (query)
Query Name: Orders
Expand Sales and Marketing (query), and Sales (query).
4-19
COGNOS
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
4-20
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Each package or report appears as a single container data source, and each one
can have multiple queries belonging to it.
Expand Orders.
Each query has its own definition, where you can add or modify columns and
preview data and SQL. Queries for Cognos packages and reports must be
defined one at a time by using the Add Query From Package or Report option
on a package or report data source.
You want to add another query to the data source.
DATA
SOURCES
IN
TRANSFORMER
4-21
COGNOS
6.
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
7. Close the model without saving and leave Transformer open for the next demo.
Results:
You added a data source with multiple queries using a Cognos 8
Package.
4-22
DATA
SOURCES
IN
TRANSFORMER
Package:
User ID:
admin
Password:
Education1!
2.
3.
4.
4-23
COGNOS
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
4-24
DATA
SOURCES
IN
TRANSFORMER
2.
3.
4-25
COGNOS
4.
5.
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Expand the Global Employees data source, and the query below it.
The results appear as shown below:
Results:
You created a Cognos 8 report to use as a structural data source in
Transformer.
4-26
DATA
SOURCES
IN
TRANSFORMER
When you use a list report as a data source, create the report to include prompts to test
a subset of the data that would be included in the full cube build.
Prompts from reports can be handled either interactively or silently as part of a batch
script.
Instructor Notes
filter by value on specific columns: for example, you can include data for only a few of your regions
when generating categories for the Regions dimension in the model.
return a specific number of rows: For example, if the server data source contains two million records,
you can use only the first 10,000 records for your model prototype.
Adhoc Demo: Create a report in Report Studio, add a mandatory prompt on Region. Create a new
model in Transformer and add it as a data source to show specifying and editing prompt values.
2008, Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated)
Cognos Confidential. For internal use only.
This guide contains proprietary information which is protected by copyright. No part of this document may be photocopied, reproduced,
or translated into another language without a legal license agreement from Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated).
4-27
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Prompts act as questions that help users customize the information to suit their own
needs. For example, a prompt may let users select a product type. Only products
belonging to the selected product type are retrieved.
Instructor Notes
When creating a model based on a report data source, Transformer requires that you define values for
mandatory prompts or delete the prompts. When using Cognos 8 packages as data sources, you are
required to define values for mandatory prompts or delete the prompts only before executing queries.
For optional prompts in Cognos 8 report or package data sources, Transformer does not require that
you provide values.
To edit the prompt values, right-click a query in the model and click Edit Prompts.
4-28
DATA
SOURCES
IN
TRANSFORMER
Summary
At the end of this module, you should be able to:
define properties
4-29
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
4-30
DATA
SOURCES
IN
TRANSFORMER
Where to Work
Hints
Report Studio
2. Add a Cognos
Transformer
report to the
Transformer Model. New Model wizard
If you need more information to complete a task, see the Step-by-Step Instructions at
the end of the workshop.
4-31
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
4-32
DATA
SOURCES
IN
TRANSFORMER
Package:
User ID:
admin
Password:
Education1!
2.
3.
4.
5.
4-33
COGNOS
6.
7.
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
4-34
Building a Model
Cognos 8 BI
Instructor Notes
Unless specified otherwise in demo or workshop steps, instructors and students will always log on to
Cognos 8 in the Local NT namespace using the following credentials:
User ID: admin
Password: Education1!
COGNOS
5-2
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
BUILDING
MODEL
Objectives
At the end of this module, you should be able to:
create model structures
modify property sheets
confirm the data source origin
generate categories to populate the model
modify the model using the dimension diagram
verify the model
create a PowerCube
publish a PowerCube as a data source and
package
Instructor Notes
Suggested modules to reference:
Transformer_Fundamentals
The_Transformer_Development_Process
Data_Sources_in_Transformer
5-3
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Besides manually creating a dimension with levels, you can also run AutoDesign to
complete the model.
AutoDesign examines the properties of the data source columns and looks for
relationships. It then assigns the various columns in the source file(s) as dimensions,
levels, or measures.
Instructor Notes
AutoDesign functions best in a single data source model. It is data-driven. The quality of the structures
created is affected by the quality of the data. Typically, AutoDesign is used to create a preliminary
design of the model. It may require customization to meet the expectations outlined in the model plan.
You can import dimensions as model structures from packages based on OLAP data sources. This can
be useful in creating conformed or shared dimensions and, to some extent, to reusing portions of the
published metadata from the source dimension.
5-4
BUILDING
MODEL
provide a description
By default, a dimension will take the name of the first level in the dimension.
Instructor Notes
Dimension type: Defines a dimension as a regular dimension or a time dimension.
Prohibit automatic creation of categories: Locks a dimension to prevent new categories from being
added automatically when categories are generated. Transformer ignores records with source values
that are unrelated to the existing categories in the dimension.
Description: Adds a personalized business description of the dimension.
2008, Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated)
Cognos Confidential. For internal use only.
This guide contains proprietary information which is protected by copyright. No part of this document may be photocopied, reproduced,
or translated into another language without a legal license agreement from Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated).
5-5
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
specify associations
Instructor Notes
Associations: Specifies the relationships between an item in the model, in this case a level, and its
associated columns in the source data.
Source: Defines the column that supplies the categories for the level. You can specify a different
column other than the default.
Label: Used when the labels in the source columns have cryptic names, but the labels for the same
items in a related column have more meaningful names.
Category code: Specifies the name of the column in the structure data source that Transformer uses as
a source value.
Order By Tab: Defines the sort and order sequence of the level categories.
Through model properties and preferences, you can specify that all categories use a particular sort
order, rather than setting the order-by preference for each category.
5-6
BUILDING
MODEL
Transformer
Package:
User ID:
admin
Password:
Education1!
3.
Open Transformer.
Create a new model:
Model name: Sales
Data source name: Leave the default
Data Source Type: Cognos Package
Username: admin
Password: Education1!
Package: Public Folders > GO Data warehouse (query)
Expand Sales and Marketing (query), and Sales (query).
5-7
COGNOS
4.
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
5-8
You can create dimension structures manually by dragging columns that contain
text or date data to the Dimension Map. Use the hierarchies established in the
model plan to create dimension structures.
Expand the Go Data Warehouse (query) data source and then expand the
query.
Drag Product line to the Dimension Map title bar.
Product line is added as a dimension label with Product line as the first level.
You want to add the other levels to the Product line dimension.
Drag Product type below the Product line level.
The level takes the name of the data source column by default.
Drag Product name below the Product type level.
Examine the properties of this dimension.
Hint: Dimension map, right-click menu
BUILDING
6.
MODEL
5-9
COGNOS
8.
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
5-10
BUILDING
MODEL
This feature provides for dimensions to be created efficiently to resemble the original
dimensional structure from your OLAP or DMR package as closely as possible.
When the data source is a Cognos 8 OLAP package, you must import the dimensions
from the package directly from the dimension map. You subsequently import the
measures from any other data source Transformer supports.
Instructor Notes
Right-click in the Dimension Map area and select Insert Dimension from Package. The dimension will
appear inside the dimension map and a new data source will be created.
If you want to use the measures from an OLAP source, we recommend that you create a relational
query against the source data used to build the original OLAP source. This approach will provide the
best possible performance.
2008, Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated)
Cognos Confidential. For internal use only.
This guide contains proprietary information which is protected by copyright. No part of this document may be photocopied, reproduced,
or translated into another language without a legal license agreement from Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated).
5-11
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
When you generate the categories, Transformer reads the data source and populates the
Dimension Map with the categories that define each dimension. It also establishes the
hierarchy of categories within a dimension by determining the parent-child relationships
for each category.
Show Category Counts: counts the values in a category and assesses ratios.
Instructor Notes
Categories are visible only in the dimension diagram. You can create PowerCubes once you create
one dimension and one measure (the minimum required). This automatically generates the categories
prior to building the PowerCube.
Mention that categories and members are referring to the same object.
Show Category Counts is useful in determining your drill-ratio count.
5-12
BUILDING
MODEL
Dimension Diagram
a tool for customizing a dimension
the only place category information is available
Root
Category
Drill
Category
Level
Category
You can:
add, remove, rename, move, or hide and show categories and levels
filter, suppress, connect, and order categories
define a set of levels or categories and apply operations or calculations to them
add and remove subdimensions and drill-down paths
Instructor Notes
You can re-attach categories to create a structure other than that which the data suggests. The root
category Products is the dimension label. This name displays as the highest level category.
The drill category By Products acts as a placeholder to define the starting point of a drill path. It must
be the immediate descent of a root category and is used to describe the properties of the drill-down
structure, which, by default, is not seen by the user.
2008, Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated)
Cognos Confidential. For internal use only.
This guide contains proprietary information which is protected by copyright. No part of this document may be photocopied, reproduced,
or translated into another language without a legal license agreement from Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated).
5-13
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Modifying the category label changes the name of the category as it appears in the
model and to end users.
Instructor Notes
Category code: uniquely identifies the category within the dimension.
Source value: Displays the original value of the category in the source data.
Inclusion: By including categories in cubes only when they occur in the model's data source, you can
prevent the cubes from containing many zero values for categories that lacked data. The cubes are
more compact and help users to focus on the relevant data. For example, you may have 200 products but
only sales figures for 180. You can exclude the extra 20 products to save space.
Partition Number: Specify a partition number you want to assign to this category. The same number
must be assigned to every category in the same partition
5-14
BUILDING
MODEL
Check for potential problems after each major modification to a model and before
cube generation. Transformer checks model items (such as categories) to detect
problems in the drill-down path.
Check Model does not check the entire data set of the data source.
Instructor Notes
Transformer creates a Log file for each model. Log files consist of:
Processing Date/Time: indicates when the message was written to the log file.
Message Severity: Falls under one of four categories: Severe Error, Error, Warning, and Information.
Object ID: Identifies the ID of the processed object.
Message Text: processing and timing information.
Checking the model will show an error when you do a weighted average calculation with measures from
two separate sources. Transformer analyzes one source at a time; therefore, it would indicate that this
calculation is not possible.
2008, Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated)
Cognos Confidential. For internal use only.
This guide contains proprietary information which is protected by copyright. No part of this document may be photocopied, reproduced,
or translated into another language without a legal license agreement from Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated).
5-15
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Transformer
Package:
User ID:
admin
Password:
Education1!
Click the Dimension Map title bar, and then click Show Category
Counts
The zero (0) beside each level indicates that there are no categories in the
current model because you have not yet generated categories. The bracketed
numbers in the dimension labels indicate the total number of categories, and the
bracketed numbers under the dimension labels indicate the default number of
categories. By default, two categories are generated for each regular dimension
(primary path and drill-down path) and ten categories are generated for the time
dimension.
5-16
BUILDING
2.
MODEL
3.
Transformer reads the source file data, and the dimension structure is then
populated with categories. The number of categories within each level is now
shown in brackets next to each dimension label.
On the Dimension Map, click the All Products dimension label.
4.
You can maximize the dimension diagram to view all dimensions. The Date
dimension is automatically created with additional special categories because it is
a time dimension.
Task 2. Reorder the categories in the Region dimension.
1.
2.
5-17
COGNOS
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Results:
For each dimension, you determined the number of categories,
viewed its structure in the Dimension Diagram, reordered the
Countries alphabetically, and then viewed the results in Analysis
Studio.
5-18
BUILDING
MODEL
Create a PowerCube
The model must have at least one dimension with at
least one level, and its Measures list must show at
least one measure.
You can generate a default PowerCube, or manually
define it to meet the specific needs of users.
Each cube uses Structured Query Language (SQL) to retrieve the specified query items
and their relationships from the data sources in your model. When you create or
modify a cube, you can also apply security to it to control your users' access to
information.
You can define each cube to meet a set of broadly defined, but related, OLAP
reporting needs.
Instructor Notes
Examples of items that you can customize include the location of the PowerCube or the dimensions
and measures to include.
5-19
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
BUILDING
MODEL
Package:
User ID:
admin
Password:
Education1!
.
Click Create PowerCubes
A message indicates that a cube based on the currently active model is created.
By default, the PowerCube generation process generates categories, and a
PowerCube called Sales is added to the PowerCubes list.
5-21
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
1.
2.
5-22
You can publish a single cube using the Publish wizard, the settings stored in
the model, or the command line. You will use the wizard.
Right-click the Sales PowerCube, and then select Publish PowerCube as
Data Source and Package.
Method: Start publish wizard.
Data source name: Sales
Windows location: C:\Edcognos\C88382\Sales.mdc (set by default)
Test the Connection to the data source.
Package name: Sales
Package location: Public folders
View the package in Public Folders.
URL: http://localhost/Cognos8
Username: admin
Password: Education1!
Notice the Sales package you just created as shown below:
BUILDING
MODEL
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
5-23
COGNOS
8.
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Notice the changes you made previously in Transformer. The countries within
Europe display in alphabetical order.
9. Close Analysis Studio without saving.
10. Close the model without saving and leave Transformer open for the workshop.
Results:
You created a PowerCube and viewed the results in Analysis Studio.
5-24
BUILDING
MODEL
Summary
At the end of this module, you should be able to:
create model structures
modify property sheets
confirm the data source origin
generate categories to populate the model
modify the model using the dimension diagram
verify the model
create a PowerCube
publish a PowerCube as a data source and
package
Instructor Notes
If you have reached the end of a teaching day, you can show students how to remove packages and
data source connections in Cognos Connection (except Go Data Warehouse (query), and Go Data
Warehouse (analysis). This will "unclutter" public folders. You can also delete the cubes, log files etc.
from C:\Edcognos\C88382
5-25
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
5-26
BUILDING
MODEL
Hints
GO Data Warehouse (query)
package - Sales and Marketing
(query) folder, Sales (query)
namespace
Data source items: Date,
Promotion name, Campaign name,
Product line, Product type, Product
name, Country, Employee name,
Quantity, Gross margin, Revenue,
Gross profit.
Dimension Map
3. Determine the
number of
categories in each
dimension and sort
the countries.
Dimension Map
4. Publish the
PowerCube to
Cognos
Connection.
Right-click menu
Cognos Connection
Rows: Date
Analysis Studio
Columns: Promotions
Promotions package
Measure: Quantity
If you need more information to complete a task, see the Step-by-Step Instructions at
the end of the workshop.
2008, Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated)
Cognos Confidential. For internal use only.
This guide contains proprietary information which is protected by copyright. No part of this document may be photocopied, reproduced,
or translated into another language without a legal license agreement from Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated).
5-27
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
5-28
BUILDING
MODEL
Transformer
Package:
User ID:
admin
Password:
Education1!
2.
3.
5-29
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
4.
5.
5-30
Check the model and generate the categories, and click OK to close the
message.
On the toolbar, click Show Category Counts.
On the toolbar, click Show Diagram.
In the Dimensions pane, select Country.
Right-click the Country Level label, and then click Properties.
Click the Order by tab
Under Sort-by column, click Add.
Click More, select Country, and then click OK twice.
BUILDING
MODEL
9.
3.
5-31
COGNOS
5-32
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Cognos 8 BI
Instructor Notes
Unless specified otherwise in demo or workshop steps, instructors and students will always log on to
Cognos 8 in the Local NT namespace using the following credentials:
User ID: admin
Password: Education1!
COGNOS
6-2
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
THE
TIME
DIMENSION
Objectives
At the end of this module, you should be able to:
Instructor Notes
Suggested modules to reference:
Transformer Fundamentals
The Transformer Development Process
Data Sources in Transformer
Building a model
2008, Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated)
Cognos Confidential. For internal use only.
This guide contains proprietary information which is protected by copyright. No part of this document may be photocopied, reproduced,
or translated into another language without a legal license agreement from Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated).
6-3
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Date Dimension
Instructor Notes
The time dimension hierarchy is automatically based on a calendar year. Time periods used to view
data can also represent:
industry specific time periods, such as 13-week manufacturing periods
nonstandard time periods, such as fiscal years, hours, or minutes
lunar time periods, or a division of time based on thirteen 28-day months
relative time periods, such as year-to-date or previous quarter.
Display formats for the time dimension can be customized from the Time level property sheet.
6-4
THE
TIME
DIMENSION
customizable
A standard time dimension is created with categories supplied by a single data source
column. The standard time dimension is assumed to be a set of successive levels that
includes some combination of Year, Quarter, Month, Week, and Day.
Instructor Notes
Categories can be generated in the levels of a standard time dimension without processing a data
source, based on "predefined" time categories. If you want levels lower than Month (weeks and days),
then you have to create the Date dimension using the Date Wizard.
6-5
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Calendars
Gregorian Calendar (default):
Lunar Calendar:
comprises 52 weeks
The Gregorian calendar is the most common time calendar used for reporting; it
consists of a standard 12-month, 365- or 366-day year.
However, if your business does not organize its time period based on a Gregorian
calendar, Transformer allows you to organize your time using a lunar calendar or a
nonstandard time period.
Instructor Notes
Use a lunar year when your time dimension must reflect a year that consists of 52 weeks with 7 days
each week. This type of time dimension is typically used in the manufacturing sector, where production
lines are working continuously and labor schedules are matched to the production schedules.
For example, an auto parts manufacturer may have machines that run almost 24 hours a day, 7 days a
week, 52 weeks a year. The company may organize employee schedules using a lunar year calendar
that may change from week to week, rather than a Gregorian calendar, where shifts are planned for an
entire month or quarter.
6-6
THE
TIME
DIMENSION
Transformer
Date column
property sheet
Set degree
of detail
Is the
data source
column
defined as a
date data
class?
No
Yes
Set date
input format
Set data
class to date
To create a time dimension, Transformer requires information about how dates are
formatted in the source data to correctly interpret them.
Some data sources include information about their columns (metadata), while others do
not. If a data source does not predefine this information, you must define the column
in Transformer.
Instructor Notes
Transformer defaults to YMD for .csv and flat files. AutoDesign can determine date formats during its
analysis. You can define the properties for a date column on the column properties sheet.
When defining a Date Input Format, it is important to select the correct degree of detail. The degree of
detail on the Date tab defines the level at which Transformer allows reporting to occur, you cannot
specify a degree of detail that is lower than the lowest level indicated by the input format.
In the time dimension, if Transformer generates a category named Invalid Dates, the date format is
probably not defined (or not defined correctly).
2008, Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated)
Cognos Confidential. For internal use only.
This guide contains proprietary information which is protected by copyright. No part of this document may be photocopied, reproduced,
or translated into another language without a legal license agreement from Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated).
6-7
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
When you create the time dimension, you can limit the range of acceptable dates so
that categories that are irrelevant to your users do not appear in their OLAP reports.
Categories for Early Dates and Late Dates are automatically generated if dates from the
source fall outside the range specified for any time dimension. By changing the date
range, you can incorporate out-of-range dates into your model.
Instructor Notes
If a data source file contains data for two specific years, beginning with Jan 1, 2006, you can set the
absolute range of date values to match that range. If Transformer encounters dates in the data source
that fall outside that range (due to invalid data entry, for example), it notifies you with an Early Dates or
Late Dates category in the time dimension.
The Earliest date is the upper boundary for the range of dates declared in the Time tab of the Time
Dimension property sheet. The Latest date is the lower boundary for the range of dates declared on the
Time tab of the Time Dimension property sheet.
6-8
THE
TIME
DIMENSION
Use the Year begins box to customize the beginning of the business year or reporting
periods used by your organization.
The fiscal start date of a business year can be incorporated into a Transformer model
by using the time dimension Drill Category property sheet. For example, if an
organization's fiscal year starts on March 1 and ends on February 28 of the following
year, you can set up a time dimension that recognizes March 1 as the start of the year.
The first quarter of the year will contain March, April, and May.
Instructor Notes
The ability to set the fiscal start date can be accessed only through the time dimension diagram. You
would use the Date tab on the Drill Category property sheet, which specifies how Transformer should
handle dates in the current drill-down path for a date dimension.
Transformer uses the Year begins value when performing calculations during date category generation.
All years, both forward and back from the specified start date, are constructed based on the given
value.
2008, Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated)
Cognos Confidential. For internal use only.
This guide contains proprietary information which is protected by copyright. No part of this document may be photocopied, reproduced,
or translated into another language without a legal license agreement from Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated).
6-9
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Transformer
Package:
User ID:
admin
Password:
Education1!
2.
6-10
THE
3.
TIME
DIMENSION
6-11
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
6-12
THE
8.
9.
TIME
DIMENSION
Click OK.
A warning message appears stating that these changes will cause existing date
categories to be removed.
Click OK to accept the warning.
3.
Close the dimension diagram and leave Transformer open for the next demo.
Results:
You reset the fiscal year start date and modified the display format
of the month level.
6-13
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Calendar?
Lunar?
Quarter Years?
Months?
Weeks?
Days?
First Day of Year?
Generate Categories?
6-14
THE
TIME
DIMENSION
Package:
User ID:
admin
Password:
Education1!
Delete the Date dimension from the dimension map. (remove all categories)
2.
6-15
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
6-16
THE
TIME
DIMENSION
Check the model, generate the categories, accept the warning, and then create
the PowerCube.
Right-click the Sales (Time) PowerCube, and then select Publish
PowerCube as Data Source and Package.
Method: Publish the PowerCube using current settings.
This option publishes the PowerCube using settings stored in the Model. You
do not have to use the wizard with this option.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
6-17
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
You can see a change in revenue for all regions including detail to the week and
day levels.
12. Close Analysis Studio without saving the report.
13. Close the model without saving the changes, and leave Transformer open for
the next demo.
Results:
You built a model to show the change in revenue for all Regions
based on a lunar calendar and including detail to the week and day
levels.
6-18
THE
TIME
DIMENSION
You may need to create a time dimension that does not contain any of the "standard"
date levels. You do this by creating a nonstandard time dimension.
You must manually create all the structure for a nonstandard time dimension.
Instructor Notes
Another example is the growing seasons of a farm when harvests occur at various times throughout the
year. These time periods probably do not follow typical time intervals and require manually constructed
time dimensions.
After you have created a nonstandard time dimension, you can set up relative time categories for the
periods within the dimension. For example, if you are tracking the number of patients monitored within
nursing shifts, you could find the number of patients monitored in the same hour on a previous shift.
Nonstandard time dimensions make no assumptions about the nature of the levels they contain, other
than the fact that they represent time periods and are therefore ordered in time.
2008, Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated)
Cognos Confidential. For internal use only.
This guide contains proprietary information which is protected by copyright. No part of this document may be photocopied, reproduced,
or translated into another language without a legal license agreement from Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated).
6-19
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Package:
User ID:
admin
Password:
Education1!
2.
Instructor Notes
Option: Show students the Seasonal Sales report in Report Studio before adding it as a data source
in Transformer.
6-20
THE
3.
4.
5.
TIME
DIMENSION
2.
3.
4.
5.
6-21
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Check the model, generate the categories, and create the PowerCube.
Publish the PowerCube to Cognos Connection as a Data Source and Package.
Hint: Right-click menu, Publish PowerCube as Data Source and Package.
Method: Publish the PowerCube using current settings.
2.
6-22
THE
3.
4.
5.
TIME
DIMENSION
The revenue for each product line displays by season. The product manager can
now determine which products sell best in which season.
Close Analysis Studio without saving, and then close Internet Explorer.
Close the model without saving and leave Transformer open for the workshop.
Results:
The product manager can now determine which products sell best
in which season.
6-23
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Summary
At the end of this module, you should be able to:
Instructor Notes
If you have reached the end of a teaching day, you can show students how to remove packages and
data source connections in Cognos Connection (except Go Data Warehouse (query), and Go Data
Warehouse (analysis). This will "unclutter" public folders. You can also delete the cubes, log files etc.
from C:\Edcognos\C88382.
6-24
THE
TIME
DIMENSION
6-25
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Hints
Model name: Sales
GO Data Warehouse (query)
package - Sales and Marketing
(query) folder, Sales (query)
namespace
Data source items: Date, Product
line, Product type, Product name,
Region, Country, City, Revenue
Dimension Map
Measures
Revenue
Dimension Diagram
If you need more information to complete a task, see the Step-by-Step Instructions at
the end of the workshop.
6-26
THE
TIME
DIMENSION
After modifying the start of the fiscal year to March 1st, the result appears as shown
below:
6-27
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Transformer
Package:
User ID:
admin
Password:
Education1!
2.
3.
6-28
THE
TIME
DIMENSION
3.
4.
6-29
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
6-30
THE
TIME
DIMENSION
Where to Work
Hints
Toolbar
Date wizard
Based on a Calendar
year.
Split, but do not
create 1-day weeks.
2.
Verify the
result.
Show Diagram
Generate the
categories.
Verify 6-day work
week.
If you need more information to complete a task, see the Step-by-Step Instructions at
the end of the workshop.
6-31
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
6-32
THE
TIME
DIMENSION
Transformer
GO Data Warehouse (query)
admin
Education1!
Delete the Date dimension from the dimension map. (remove all categories)
2.
3.
6-33
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
6-34
Relative Time
Cognos 8 BI
Instructor Notes
Unless specified otherwise in demo or workshop steps, instructors and students will always log on to
Cognos 8 in the Local NT namespace using the following credentials:
User ID: admin
Password: Education1!
COGNOS
7-2
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
RELATIVE
TIME
Objectives
At the end of this module, you should be able to:
Instructor Notes
Suggested modules to reference:
Transformer Fundamentals
The Transformer Development Process
Building a Model
The Time Dimension
7-3
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
By including the most commonly required relative time categories in your cubes, you
avoid the need to calculate them when you analyze the data. Relative time categories
can make it easy for your users to answer these time-comparison questions:
Have you ever wondered how sales this month compare to those from last
month or during the same month last year?
Have sales of a particular product in the last two months of this quarter increased
over sales during the last two months of the previous quarter?
Instructor Notes
Example: You can create custom relative time categories to track moving annual totals. Current MAT
(Moving Annual Total) could be to November 2005 (Prior MAT would therefore be to November 2004).
If you opened a report in May 2006, the values would change to reflect May 2006 (Current MAT) and
May 2005 (Prior MAT). Transformer updates relative time categories automatically according to the
current period set for the dimension.
7-4
RELATIVE
TIME
Instructor Notes
In the Slide, the Date dimension has Year, Month, and Quarter. 8 default relative time categories are
created: Current Month, Last Month, QTD, Prior QTD, QTD Grouped, YTD, Prior YTD, YTD Grouped.
If the Date dimension had Year, Month, Quarter, and Week,11 relative time categories are created:
Current Week, Last Week, MTD, Prior MTD, MTD Grouped, QTD, Prior QTD, QTD Grouped, YTD,
Prior YTD, YTD Grouped.
2008, Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated)
Cognos Confidential. For internal use only.
This guide contains proprietary information which is protected by copyright. No part of this document may be photocopied, reproduced,
or translated into another language without a legal license agreement from Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated).
7-5
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Today
Q1
Q2
Q3
Q4
Q1
Q2
Q3
Q4
Q1
Q2
Single
Period-to-Date
Running Total
RELATIVE
TIME
prior period-to-date
period-to-date
Grouping compares two relative time categories that share the same specification but
differ in terms of context offsets.
The grouped special categories appear only when the time dimension contains one or
more levels higher than the current period. Those categories are required to calculate
the values of Change and Growth.
Instructor Notes
It is possible to add/remove special categories to/from the group either by modifying the group category
specification or by adding/removing them through the diagram.
A group category cannot contain other group categories. A relative time group category contains at
least one relative time category based on the group category specification. If none of these categories
exist in the group, the group category becomes a regular special category. When a new time dimension
is created, a default relative time group category will be created for Period To-Date/Period To-Date,
Prior Period for the highest period in the time dimension.
2008, Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated)
Cognos Confidential. For internal use only.
This guide contains proprietary information which is protected by copyright. No part of this document may be photocopied, reproduced,
or translated into another language without a legal license agreement from Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated).
7-7
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
The current period can be set automatically or manually. By setting the current period
manually, you can select the time category to define the current period.
To set the current period manually, you must make sure that categories have been
generated. Setting the period manually is required if your data includes future values for
measures, such as forecasts or deliveries.
Instructor Notes
If the current period is defined as December 2007, Transformer makes the following declarations:
For the relative time category Last Month, Transformer assigns November 2007.
For the relative time category Last Year, Transformer assigns 2006.
If you have limited the Range of Dates, and the current period in the data found by Transformer falls
within Early Dates, Transformer will set no current period. No relative time categories will be generated.
To correct this, select a different current period, or select a different range of dates.
7-8
RELATIVE
TIME
Model:
User ID:
admin
Password:
Education1!
2.
7-9
COGNOS
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
7-10
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
RELATIVE
TIME
7-11
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
3.
4.
5.
2.
7-12
RELATIVE
3.
4.
5.
TIME
Check the model and generate the categories, and then click OK to accept the
warning.
Right-click the Sales and Marketing PowerCube, and click Properties.
Set the PowerCube file name to C:\Edcognos\C88382\
sales_and_marketing.mdc.
7-13
COGNOS
4.
5.
6.
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
7-14
RELATIVE
8.
TIME
Instructor Notes
This model is used in the next demo. However, you will close it and re-open it to use an unmodified
copy. If you choose you use the same model and build the cube, the cube may be locked if you attempt
to build it without enough time passing for the lock to be released. You can use the PCConn utility to
get around this. See Maintain Models and PowerCubes module. Be sure to close Analysis Studio to
prevent the locking of the cube.
2008, Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated)
Cognos Confidential. For internal use only.
This guide contains proprietary information which is protected by copyright. No part of this document may be photocopied, reproduced,
or translated into another language without a legal license agreement from Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated).
7-15
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Single category
If the default relative categories do not meet your needs, you can create custom relative
time categories.
When you create a custom relative time category, Transformer displays the detailed
options associated with a relative time category, allowing you to explicitly control the
specific relative time period you want to create.
Instructor Notes
These categories are based on time periods you choose. For example, you can create a custom
relative time category that spans a specific time period, either in the past or in the future.
For any relative time category type other than Custom, you can view the detailed options, but you
cannot change them. To construct a customized relative time category, you can start with one of the
predefined categories, make it a custom category, and then modify the settings.
When setting up a custom relative time category, you may find it helpful to refer to the properties of
existing category examples that are similar to what you need.
7-16
RELATIVE
TIME
Target offset: -1
Context offset: 0
Note: if Context offset was -1, the period would be last year,
prior week
Target period: Indicates the periods for which you want to create a relative time
category.
Target offset: Sets the time position relative to the current period.
Context period: Indicates a time period within which the Target period occurs.
Context offset: Sets the position of the Context period relative to the current period,
where 0 corresponds to the current period.
7-17
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Customize: Period-to-Date
Period-to-Date is a sequential set of periods, which
start at the beginning of a period and end at
another specific period, such as Month-to-Date.
Properties of month-to-date for the previous 6 months
Basic Approach: Period-To-Date Total
To-date period: Month
Target period: Week Target offset: 0
Context period: Month Context offset: -6
7-18
RELATIVE
TIME
In some cases, you may want to set up relative time categories that span several specific
time periods, either in the past or the future. Unusual reporting periods that are not
covered by Transformers built-in relative time categories can be created in a custom
category.
A three-month rolling total from the end of the last month sums the values from the
previous three months, no matter what those months are.
If you enter positive numbers for the Target offset or the Context offset, the current
period should not be the most recent period for which you have data. You must
include time periods later than the current period so that Transformer can use them in
positive (Future) contexts.
7-19
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Model:
User ID:
admin
Password:
Education1
2.
7-20
Click the Time dimension label, and then click Show Diagram.
Close all relative time categories to make it easier to display the categories you
will add to the dimension diagram.
RELATIVE
3.
4.
5.
TIME
7-21
COGNOS
6.
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Leave the Target offset and Context offset box set to 0, and then click OK.
The dimension diagram displays the new time category MAT.
If you created an analysis in Analysis studio, you can view all values for the last
year from the current period (1 year ago starting at July, 2007).
7-22
RELATIVE
TIME
2.
3.
7-23
COGNOS
4.
5.
7-24
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
RELATIVE
6.
7.
8.
9.
TIME
7-25
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
You can now view all values for the last year from the current period (1 year
ago starting at July, 2007) and compare it against the Moving Annual Total from
the previous year.
11. Close the dimension diagram.
7-26
RELATIVE
TIME
7-27
COGNOS
5.
6.
7.
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
You can now compare your current moving annual total with the results from
the previous year.
Close Analysis Studio, and Internet Explorer without saving the report.
Close the model without saving, and leave Transformer open.
Results:
You added custom relative time categories to view the current
moving annual total (MAT) and to compare the company's revenue
performance to the previous MAT for analyzing year-over-year
performance.
7-28
RELATIVE
TIME
984501
2007
1278476
2008
3495600
2009
4325900
Date
10084477
Revenue
Projected Revenue
Example (current period set at Dec. 2006): Its projected that by 2009,
there will be a four-year total of over $10 million in revenue
If your data source contains forecasting values, you can build future relative time
categories to determine projections into the next quarter or even into the next year.
Instructor Notes
For example, if your Queries list includes a forecasting query with future revenue projections for 2008
and 2009, you can create future relative categories to display the forecasting projections. Based on
your forecasting projections, you can make informed business decisions about your organization.
The slide example illustrates available forecasting revenue results for 2006 - 2009 in the data source.
With the creation of future relative time categories, users can display projected revenue values for the
year 2009.
Because forecast values project beyond the current period into the future, it is important to ensure that
the current period is not set to the latest date in your model.
2008, Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated)
Cognos Confidential. For internal use only.
This guide contains proprietary information which is protected by copyright. No part of this document may be photocopied, reproduced,
or translated into another language without a legal license agreement from Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated).
7-29
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Considerations
Avoid multiple time dimensions in a PowerCube.
Define the date input format.
Limit the range of dates included in the model.
If you make modifications to the time dimension only,
use Generate Date Categories to update the model,
instead of regenerating all the categories.
When Transformer reads date values from the data sources you set up, it requires that
you define how the dates are formatted when the data sources fail to include date
information.
Avoid multiple time dimensions. Multiple time dimensions can cause confusion for
users if they try to filter on more than one time dimension at the same time. While it
might seem logical to add separate time dimensions to a model based on columns such
as Date and Ship Date, use a single time dimension and then use measures based on
calculations for elapsed time between two date values.
Instructor Notes
You cannot create more than one time dimension in a single PowerCube that has a time-state measure
because Transformer is designed to use values from a single time dimension when performing timestate rollups.
7-30
RELATIVE
TIME
Summary
At the end of this module, you should be able to:
7-31
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
7-32
RELATIVE
TIME
Where to Work
Hints
File menu
2. Create a custom
relative time
category.
Show Diagram
3. Publish the
PowerCube directly
to Cognos
Connection.
PowerCube List.
Blank Analysis
Right-click menu
If you need more information to complete a task, see the Step-by-Step Instructions at
the end of the workshop.
7-33
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
7-34
RELATIVE
TIME
Package:
User ID:
admin
Password:
Education1!
4.
Click the Time dimension label, and then click Show Diagram.
Close all relative time categories to make it easier to display the categories you
will add to the dimension diagram.
Create a new relative time category.
Hint: Click the right side of the Time root category label, and then drag it
under the default relative time categories. The pointer should be a
crosshair.
Category label: Last 3 Months - Running Total
Click the Relative Time tab.
7-35
COGNOS
5.
BI
TRANSFORMER:
7.
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
6.
DESIGNING
Custom
N-Period Running Total (Grouped)
3
Month
Year
-1
Click OK.
The dimension diagram displays the new relative time category.
Close the dimension diagram.
7-36
RELATIVE
TIME
7-37
COGNOS
7-38
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Cognos 8 BI
Instructor Notes
Unless specified otherwise in demo or workshop steps, instructors and students will always log on to
Cognos 8 in the Local NT namespace using the following credentials:
User ID: admin
Password: Education1!
COGNOS
8-2
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
USE
MULTIPLE
DATA
SOURCES
Objectives
At the end of this module, you should be able to:
Instructor Notes
Students should be familiar with:
the Transformer development process
Transformer data sources
how to build a model
Transformer model concepts
2008, Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated)
Cognos Confidential. For internal use only.
This guide contains proprietary information which is protected by copyright. No part of this document may be photocopied, reproduced,
or translated into another language without a legal license agreement from Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated).
8-3
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Multiple data sources reduce the total volume of data that Transformer processes,
which speeds up category generation and PowerCube creation.
Instructor Notes
Some data is static, while other data is updated frequently. If you separate static data from dynamic
data into different data sources, you do not have to manage the static data as often. Multiple data
sources offer even greater benefits if database joins are simple (or non-existent),index creation is kept
to a minimum, cube builds are performed only for dimensions with categories that have changed, fact
processing is done during category generation.
Sales information systems do not usually include information about staffing levels for each branch. By
including a data source that provides this in a model, you can help identify valuable information, such
as the average sales per employee. For example:
A) Human Resources have staff information in an Excel spreadsheet, Finance has staff payee
information in a data mart, and Sales has staff sales records in an .iqd data source.
B) Management is now tracking performance indicators in a new database. This information can be
added as a new source to an existing model.
8-4
USE
MULTIPLE
DATA
SOURCES
If you have a high volume of data, you can achieve better performance by getting the
data from multiple sources. For large volumes of data, you can read values for the
lowest-level categories of each dimension from a single data source.
Instructor Notes
Guidelines that to improve performance of processing multiple data sources are:
create one structural data source for each dimension, and then set up one transactional data
source to provide the measures for those dimensions (simple dimensions and most time
dimensions do not require a separate data source)
relate data sources and check the model for any potential issues
When data is read from the separate data sources, Transformer directly associates column values with
the lowest-level categories in the model. As a result, it does not have to read and drill up to the higherlevel categories (which provide the structure of the model) when building PowerCubes.
By creating smaller queries based on multiple data sources (each with data pertaining to a single
dimension), only less memory is required to obtain the results. This is the case even though the total
number of rows being processed is slightly higher.
2008, Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated)
Cognos Confidential. For internal use only.
This guide contains proprietary information which is protected by copyright. No part of this document may be photocopied, reproduced,
or translated into another language without a legal license agreement from Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated).
8-5
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Transactional
contains transactional
data (usually numeric)
representing the
measures
Guidelines for structural data sources: Create one data source for each dimension, Place
structural data sources before transactional data sources.
Guidelines for transactional data sources: Create one or more data sources to provide
measures, include enough structure in the transactional data sources to roll up measures
in each dimension.
Instructor Notes
Structural data sources: primarily contains columns with text data, contains columns that define levels,
which defines the model structure, primarily used as dimensions in Transformer.
Transactional data sources: primarily contains columns with numeric data and primarily used as
measures, contains text columns that reference the categories in a dimension structure.
Q. Why would you include more than one transactional data source in a model?
A. If your data comes from a data warehouse and is organized with two Fact Tables (transactional
data). It is better to organize two transactional data sources than to merge the data from the tables.
8-6
USE
MULTIPLE
DATA
SOURCES
Data Source 2
Structural
Data Source 3
Structural
Data Source 4
Transactional
Instructor Notes
Each data source contains a column that exists in both the Structural and Transactional Data Sources.
This makes it possible for the measures to be associated with Dimension 1, Dimension 2, and
Dimension 3.
Each structural data source provides category values for the levels in a single dimension. Each data
source provides category values for the lower levels in each dimension and also in the model
measures.
Structural data sources do not have to provide level columns down to the lowest level in the dimension.
2008, Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated)
Cognos Confidential. For internal use only.
This guide contains proprietary information which is protected by copyright. No part of this document may be photocopied, reproduced,
or translated into another language without a legal license agreement from Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated).
8-7
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Transformer
User ID:
admin
Password:
Education1!
8-8
Start Transformer.
Create a new model.
Model Name: Great Outdoors
Data source name: Product Information
Data source type: Cognos Report
Note: User ID - admin, Password - Education1!
File location: Public Folders > GO Data Warehouse (query) > Product
Information
Query definition details: All Query1.0 items
Hint: Do not run AutoDesign.
The product information data source is added to the Data Sources list. This is a
structural data source.
USE
MULTIPLE
DATA
SOURCES
2.
3.
8-9
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
2.
Results:
You added the structural data sources for product information,
locations, and retailers to the Data Sources list, as well as the
transactional data source containing the critical success factors.
8-10
USE
MULTIPLE
DATA
SOURCES
Associate each data source column with a level in the Dimension Map because
Transformer
does not support joins between columns
expects that each data source will generate some categories in the model
must be able to relate all categories to at least one measure
expects that categories for columns contained in more than one data source
are unique
Instructor Notes
When Transformer generates categories in multiple data source models, each data source is
processed separately against the model. Transformer does not perform database joins between data
sources. Instead, Transformer associates data source columns from each data source directly with
levels in the Dimension Map.
8-11
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Product Type
Putters
Product
Revenue
Course Pro Putter
300
Sunscreen
Sun Shield
400
Transformer relates columns from different data sources to the same level in a
dimension if the column names are identical in all data sources.
Be aware that when you rename columns, the names must be identical, including case
and punctuation.
8-12
USE
MULTIPLE
DATA
SOURCES
Instead of renaming columns, you can use Source Association to relate data sources.
Source association specifies that even though columns have different names, they
contain the same data in each data source.
Instructor Notes
In Transformer, you can relate columns from different data sources to the same level in a dimension.
Slide: Employee code from the Regions data source and EMPLOYEE CODE from the Basic Measures
data source contain the same type of information. Using the Level property sheet, we can set the
source association.
8-13
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Setting the current period for multiple data sources determines which data source will
define the date values in the time dimension.
When you create a model, by default, Transformer uses the date values in the data
source to set the current period. If no data source is set as the current period, and
several date columns exist, Transformer uses the latest date values in the multiple data
sources to determine the current period
8-14
USE
MULTIPLE
DATA
SOURCES
Transformer
User ID:
admin
Password:
Education1!
3.
4.
Expand all the data sources so that all the columns display.
In the Regions data source, right-click Region and then click Properties.
The data class is unspecified because the file is a .csv file. Setting the data class
to Text identifies the data in the column as structural. Structural columns are
used to build dimensions. Setting the data class to Text is not required, but it is
a good practice.
In the Data class box, click Text, and then click OK.
Change the data class to Text for all columns in this data source.
8-15
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Employee code in the Regions data source, and EMPLOYEE CODE in the
Basic Measures data source must be named identically (including case
sensitivity) to make sure the two data sources are related.
In the Basic Measures data source, rename EMPLOYEE CODE to
Employee code.
Retailer site code in the Retailers data source, and RETAILER SITE CODE in
the Basic Measures data source must also be named identically to make sure the
two data sources are related.
Rename RETAILER SITE CODE to Retailer site code.
Right-click Date, and then click Properties.
In the Data class box, click Date to indicate that the column contains date and
time information.
Click the Time tab.
In the Date input format box, click MDY.
You can open the data source viewer to see that the format is MDY.
Transformer can now read the date values as entered (for example, 12-31-2006).
In the Degree of detail box, click Month.
This detail does not specify the lowest time level in your data, which is day.
Your .csv file contains a date column with month/day/year. This is too much
detail, therefore Month is chosen as the lowest level.
Click OK.
Instructor Notes
Point out the column relationships between data sources. Explain that each structural data source must
link back to the transactional data source, but structure data sources do not have to link to other
structural data sources.
8-16
USE
MULTIPLE
DATA
SOURCES
9. In the Basic Measures data source, right-click Quantity and click Properties.
10. In the Data class box, click Numeric.
It is good practice to specify the data in the Quantity column as numeric.
11. Click OK.
12. Set the data class for the Revenue and Product Cost columns to Numeric.
These columns are used to define measures.
Leave the model open for the next demo.
Results:
You set properties of columns in the four data sources included in
the model so they will work together to build the PowerCube, and the
president can prepare the required reports for analysis.
8-17
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Transformer
User ID:
admin
Password:
Education1!
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
8-18
USE
7.
MULTIPLE
DATA
SOURCES
8-19
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Transformer
User ID:
admin
Password:
Education1!
2.
3.
8-20
USE
4.
MULTIPLE
DATA
SOURCES
The data sources are added to the model. In order to generate a PowerCube
from this model that contains multiple data sources, you must specify
uniqueness.
Close the Transformer without saving the model.
Results:
You added a dimension to the dimension map using an OLAP
Package.
Instructor Notes
Uniqueness is covered in the next module.
8-21
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Summary
At the end of this module, you should be able to:
8-22
Uniqueness
Cognos 8 BI
Instructor Notes
Unless specified otherwise in demo or workshop steps, instructors and students will always log on to
Cognos 8 in the Local NT namespace using the following credentials:
User ID: admin
Password: Education1!
COGNOS
9-2
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
UNIQUENESS
Objectives
At the end of this module, you should be able to:
Instructor Notes
Students should be familiar with:
the Transformer development process
Transformer data sources
how to build a model
Transformer model concepts
2008, Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated)
Cognos Confidential. For internal use only.
This guide contains proprietary information which is protected by copyright. No part of this document may be photocopied, reproduced,
or translated into another language without a legal license agreement from Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated).
9-3
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Direct
(yellow)
Indirect
(light yellow)
Conflicts in
the model (red)
Unrelated
(white)
Models are valid when the data sources and the dimensions in the model are correctly
related. Before you generate categories, you should validate the model to resolve
potential structural problems and reduce the duration of processing.
Instructor Notes
Data source scope levels:
Yellow: Level derived directly. The level is directly related to a source column from the data source.
Light Yellow: Level derived indirectly. The level is not related to a source column from the data source.
Instead, another level in the dimension is related through a source column from another data source.
White: Level not derived. The level is not related to a source column by name from the data source.
Red: Level referenced but not derived. The level is related to a source column by name from the data source.
However, the data source is missing columns within the dimension structure.
9-4
UNIQUENESS
Transformer
User ID:
admin
Password:
Education1!
3.
4.
5.
6.
Open Transformer.
Open the model.
Location: C:\Edcognos\C88382\PPT-Uniqueness
Name: Demo 1_Start.pyj
Check the model for warnings or errors.
Hint: User ID - admin, Password - Education1!
Three errors and three warnings exist. If you receive warnings, you can still
build a PowerCube. However, you cannot generate a PowerCube until the
errors are corrected. Use Data Source scope to correct these issues.
Click OK.
Expand the Product Information data source, and then right-click the Product
Information query.
Click Show Scope.
9-5
COGNOS
7.
8.
9.
9-6
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Select Data Sources, and then in the list, click Product Information.
The Data Source scope Dimension Map appears.
The levels in this dimension are dark yellow, indicating that data values for these
levels come from the product information data source (Cognos 8 Report).
In the Data Sources list, click Regions.
The levels in the Region dimension are dark yellow, indicating that data values
for these levels come from the Regions data source (a .csv).
In the Data Sources list, click Retailers.
All the levels in this dimension are dark yellow, indicating that all data values for
these levels come from the Retailers data source (Cognos 8 package).
UNIQUENESS
Red indicates the level is derived from a data source that has missing parental
data. There is currently no link between the Basic Measures data source and the
levels above the Product Number, Employee name, and Retailer site code
levels. For example, a Product Number column exists in the Basic Measures
data source but no Product name, Product type, or Product line columns.
Therefore, Transformer cannot roll up the measure values contained in the
Basic Measures data source from Product Number to Product line.
These red levels caused the errors and warnings in step 2.
Leave the model open for the next demo.
Results:
You validated the model and found three errors and three warnings.
To troubleshoot the errors and warnings, you used the Show Scope
command and found that the Basic Measures data source is missing
parental data.
9-7
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
What is Uniqueness?
Data Source 2 is independent of Data Source 1.
How can you ensure that Revenue is rolled up to the
Region level?
Structure Data Source 1
Employee Code
124
125
126
Employee Code
124
125
126
Revenue
9000
110850
57780S
Level uniqueness means that no two categories in a level can represent identically
named distinct categories.
Level uniqueness is required so that Transformer identifies each category in the level by
its source value alone, without reference to its ancestor category.
Instructor Notes
In multiple data source models where some data sources contain details about the dimension structure
and other data sources supply measure values but lack details about dimension structure, you must
declare level uniqueness to roll up measure values to the structural data. Rollup values are a summary
of the lowest level of transaction values from the source data.
9-8
UNIQUENESS
Staff Name
City
Staff Name
Revenue
Jake Cartel
Melbourne, Australia
Jake Cartel
110850
Jake Cartel
Jake Cartel
London, U.K.
45650
When you combine two data sources on the Dimension Map, you are trying to create a
relationship between two independent data sources so that more information can be
presented to the user. You are creating this relationship at a particular level. This level
must be unique. It is unique in that no other category, or combination of category and
parent categories, is the same.
Instructor Notes
In Data Source 1, two Employees with the same name exist in two different cities; therefore, Staff
Name is not unique. This is okay for Data Source 1 because the combination of Staff Name and City is
unique (that is, the Jake Cartel working in Melbourne, Australia is different from the Jake Cartel in
London, U.K.). Transformer can distinguish between the two categories.
In Data Source 2, Staff Name is not unique. However, this time there is no city context to help make it
unique. The question is: Does revenue for Jake Cartel roll up to Melbourne or London?
2008, Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated)
Cognos Confidential. For internal use only.
This guide contains proprietary information which is protected by copyright. No part of this document may be photocopied, reproduced,
or translated into another language without a legal license agreement from Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated).
9-9
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Staff Name
Staff Name
Jake Cartel
City
Melbourne, Australia
Jake Cartel
Rev
City
Jake Cartel
Jake Cartel
London, U. K.
45650
London, U. K.
New column
By adding the City column to Data Source 2, Transformer can differentiate between
the values in the Staff Name column, and can roll up the data to the correct city.
Instructor Notes
Another solution is to add more structure to both data sources by concatenating two columns to create
a new field so that this new column is unique. The new column can be created in both the original data
sources, or it can be added to the data sources in Transformer.
9-10
UNIQUENESS
Instructor Notes
It is possible that the source data contains columns that populate levels that you thought were unique
but are not. In this case, a message appears to inform you when you attempt to generate categories or
build a PowerCube. If categories for some levels are derived from transactional data sources
(containing measures), Transformer may not be able to detect uniqueness conflicts.
After you have successfully generated a PowerCube with no uniqueness warnings, you can disable
uniqueness verification (Data Source property sheet) to improve performance in the PowerCube.
2008, Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated)
Cognos Confidential. For internal use only.
This guide contains proprietary information which is protected by copyright. No part of this document may be photocopied, reproduced,
or translated into another language without a legal license agreement from Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated).
9-11
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
insufficient context
uniqueness issues
Instructor Notes
It is good practice to run Check Model at key stages in the design process and again at time of cube
creation to alert you of potential model issues.
9-12
UNIQUENESS
Transformer
In the Data Source scope Dimension Map, right-click the Product number
level, and click Properties.
Select the Unique check box to declare the level unique.
Click Yes to confirm that the Product number level has unique categories.
Click OK.
Product number is dark yellow to indicate a direct relationship to the Basic
Measures data source. Its parent levels are light yellow to indicate an indirect
association and that it allows for roll up to the Product line level.
9-13
COGNOS
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Currently, there are only shades of yellow. This indicates that there is sufficient
information to roll up measures in the Basic Measures data source to the
highest level in each dimension.
Check the Model.
You corrected the errors and warnings. No problems were found.
Create the PowerCube.
Save the model as Demo 2.pyj.
Location: C:\Edcognos\C88382\PPT-Uniqueness
Close the model.
Results:
You declared levels unique and generated a PowerCube.
Instructor Notes
You create the PowerCube and close the model to generate the log file, which you will use in Demo 3,
Task 2.
9-14
UNIQUENESS
Instructor Notes
This is instructor only for clarity and so that students remember the result rather than the process; they
are not going to edit source data to create these problems. Also, the source data will be used in other
demos throughout this course, so it is better that the student data files on the classroom machines
remain unmodified.
9-15
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
4.
5.
Instructor Notes
Although you added Max Caron to the region data source, you did not add any transactional data for
Max to the Basic Measures data source. By default, Transformer does not include categories for which
there is no transactional data.
NOTE: Although not typical, you are modifying the Employee key to illustrate a uniqueness violation.
9-16
UNIQUENESS
Results:
You updated the PowerCube by making modifications to the data
source.
9-17
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Unique Move
The ability to move categories in unique levels to new contexts lets you keep the
structure of a current dimension without having to regenerate all categories in that
dimension.
Measure values, even those accumulated under the old structure, are thereafter rolled
up to the new path of the moved categories.
Instructor Notes
When you move a category from a unique level, a uniqueness violation is reported during category
generation because the moved category now appears in a different context.
With the Unique Move feature you can have uniqueness violations treated as a request to move the
category to a new context and to bring the information in lower levels with it. This prevents you from
having to manually restructure the categories in a unique level to conform to the changed ancestor
data.
If an employee moves from one city to another city, Transformer moves all the child data, including, for
example, past clients and revenue.
9-18
UNIQUENESS
User ID:
admin
Password:
Education1!
3.
4.
9-19
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
5.
9-20
UNIQUENESS
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
You want to know what happens if you move Rhonda to Miami by adding a
new employee key for her at the new office, while maintaining her old one.
In Microsoft Excel, open the Regions.csv.
Below line 20, add a new row with the following:
Row order: Americas, United States, Miami, Level 2 Sales Representative,
Rhonda Cummings, 56, 5000
Save and close the file.
Generate the Categories, and then click OK to accept the warning.
Click the Regions dimension, and then click Show Diagram.
Expand the following items: Americas, United States, Boston, and Miami.
For Boston and Miami, expand Level 2 Sales Representative.
Transformer generates two categories for Rhonda: the category under the
Boston office and the category under the Miami office. The measure values
associated with the Boston office will remain in Boston.
1.
2.
Rhonda Cummings is re-locating to Miami and you will use the Unique Move
feature so that Rhonda and all of her history are assigned to Miami.
In Microsoft Excel, open the Regions.csv data source.
In cell G21, change the Employee key to 4019.
Additional Information
Strategy A demonstrates how all information for Rhonda Cummings could be moved to Miami. This
method does not consider that some information might need to stay associated with the Boston branch
(such as revenue).
Unique Move can be very powerful and should not be used without knowing the repercussions. You
should use it only if you want ALL transactional data for a category and all its child categories to move.
2008, Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated)
Cognos Confidential. For internal use only.
This guide contains proprietary information which is protected by copyright. No part of this document may be photocopied, reproduced,
or translated into another language without a legal license agreement from Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated).
9-21
COGNOS
3.
4.
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
5.
6.
7.
9-22
UNIQUENESS
9-23
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
1.
2.
3.
4.
9-24
You will create a new calculated column, which concatenates Employee Name,
City, and Employee key to create a unique level. When Rhonda Cummings
relocates, a new and unique code will differentiate her records in Boston from
those in Miami.
In the dimension map, delete Employee name.
Expand the Regions data source.
Right-click the Regions data source, click Insert Column, and then in the
Column name box, type Unique Rep.
Set the Data class to Text.
UNIQUENESS
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
In the Column type area, click Calculated to select it, and then click
Calculation.
Create the following expression:
"Employee name" + "City" + "Employee key"
Click OK twice.
Drag the Unique Rep column to the Regions dimension.
Set the Unique Rep level as Unique.
Click Generate Categories.
Click Regions, and click Show Diagram.
Expand: Americas, United States, Boston, Level 2 Sales Representative.
In Boston, Rhonda Cummings has a Unique Rep code of Rhonda Cummings
Boston 4019. If you entered a new record for Rhonda in Miami, in the
Regions.csv, then a Unique Rep code for RhondaCummingsMiami4019 will be
created as a separate category. New orders for Rhonda Cummings could then
be reported on as they are entered into the data source.
Close the dimension diagram.
9-25
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
You now want to know what happens if you completely move Rhonda to
Miami and assign all of her Boston history to Miami.
In Microsoft Excel, open the Regions.csv.
In cell C20, change the City for Rhonda Cummings to Miami.
Save and close the file.
In Transformer, click Generate Categories, and then click OK to close the
warning.
Click the Regions dimension, and then click Show Diagram.
Expand: Americas, United States, and Miami.
Expand Level 2 Sales Representative.
Rhonda Cummings and all her data is now associated with the Miami location.
Close the Transformer without saving the model.
If necessary, close Internet Explorer.
Results:
You modified a model to show the change when one of your sales
representatives moved office locations.
9-26
UNIQUENESS
Summary
At the end of this module, you should be able to:
9-27
COGNOS
9-28
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
10
Cognos 8 BI
Instructor Notes
Unless specified otherwise in demo or workshop steps, instructors and students will always log on to
Cognos 8 in the Local NT namespace using the following credentials:
User ID: admin
Password: Education1!
COGNOS
10-2
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
WORKING
WITH
MEASURES
Objectives
At the end of this course, you should be able to:
Instructor Notes
Suggested modules to reference:
The_Transformer_Development_Process
Data_Sources_in_Transformer
PPT-Building_a_Model
10-3
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Measures
Measures gauge the performance of your business.
Two types of measures:
a regular measure
a calculated measure
Measures are quantifiable results, or key performance indicators used to determine the
success of a business operation.
You can define each measure by modifying its settings in the property sheet.
Instructor Notes
Regular Measures: summary of available information taken directly from a source column in the data
source. Columns of numeric data are included where possible, in the data source to support the
measures outlined in the model plan. A column containing data related to cost can be used to support a
measure for Product Cost as well as Average Product Cost.
You can create a calculated measure which derives new numeric data for measures when no direct
source column is available. The calculation can involve existing transactional values, constants, and
arithmetic functions. To store the calculation and the measures that are used in it, create the
calculation in the model. If the calculation is used repeatedly in multiple cubes, it may be more efficient
to create it in the data source.
10-4
WORKING
WITH
MEASURES
Transformer
User ID:
admin
Password:
Education1!
3.
Open Transformer.
Start the new Model wizard.
Model name: Measures
Data source name: Leave default
Data source type: Cognos Package
User ID: admin, Password: Education1!
Location: Public Folders > GO Data Warehouse (query)
Expand Sales and Marketing (query) and Sales (query).
10-5
COGNOS
4.
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
3.
10-6
WORKING
WITH
MEASURES
2.
10-7
COGNOS
3.
4.
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Results:
You customized a Transformer model for the Finance and Sales
departments by modifying the Unit Cost and Revenue measures to
meet the model requirements.
10-8
WORKING
WITH
MEASURES
Regular
Rollup
Examples
Count
Minimum
1,170,000.00
Maximum
4,700,000.00
Average
2,690,000.00
Sum
8,070,000.00
Rollup is the method used to summarize measure data. It specifies how Transformer
summarizes (rollup) measure values from the child categories to the parent categories.
Rollup options summarize your measure values in different ways, which provides the
opportunity to create several measures from a single column of source data.
Instructor Notes
Regular Rollup: Specifies the function applied when summarizing measure values from the lower levels
to the higher levels.
Time State Rollup: Specifies how Transformer represents the state of a measure at specific times.
Duplicates Rollup: Specifies how Transformer evaluates duplicate records in the source data. For
example, a source file may be very large and contain many records with duplicate non-measure values
(date, products, etc.). You can choose Average as the Duplicates Rollup function to combine the
duplicate records and reduce the size of the resulting cube.
Adding different rollups adds business value to the cube for minimal extra technical cost (a small
increase in cube size). For example, you could have a Revenue measure that rolls up to show the sum
value, or from the same column, you could have a Revenue measure that displays the minimum data
value.
2008, Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated)
Cognos Confidential. For internal use only.
This guide contains proprietary information which is protected by copyright. No part of this document may be photocopied, reproduced,
or translated into another language without a legal license agreement from Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated).
10-9
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Calculated Measures
include data in the model that is not available in
the data source.
derive new numeric data from:
regular measures
other calculated measures
functions and constants
By customizing or calculating your measures, you can find trends that are not apparent
from your data source.
For example, if there is no source column for Profit Margin, you can calculate the
profit margin from the Revenue and Product cost columns. Profit Margin is a
calculated measure because there is no source column that directly contains this data.
Instructor Notes
After you create a calculated measure, you can control whether the measure is calculated before or
after rollup.
You can use If-then-else clauses in your measure calculations.
10-10
WORKING
WITH
MEASURES
Timing of Calculation
Before Rollup and After Rollup options determine
when the data of a calculated measure is
computed.
By default, measures are calculated after the rollup.
Calculated measures, by default, are calculated after all the transaction values for the
measure have been summarized.
Instructor Notes
You can modify the timing of measure calculations by using the Rollup tab on the Measure property
sheet. If you select Before Rollup, Transformer performs the operation for the calculated measure on
each record first and then summarizes the calculated measure. If you select After Rollup, Transformer
summarizes the numeric data first and then performs the calculation.
10-11
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Revenue
Cost
Profit
Profit
Margin
Profit
Margin %
$400
$100
$300
300/400
75%
$300
$100
$200
200/300
67%
142%
Values for measures calculated before rollup are based on source values instead of on
summed values and are rolled up separately.
Performing calculations before the rollup may lead to incorrect results.
Instructor Notes
Slide: Profit Margin and Profit Margin % are performed for each record and are subsequently
summarized or rolled up. The result is an incorrect overall Profit Margin of 142%.
10-12
WORKING
WITH
MEASURES
Total
Revenue
Cost
Profit
$400
$100
$300
$300
$100
$200
$200
$500
$700
Profit
Margin
Profit
Margin %
500/700
71%
If you set the timing of the calculation for a calculated measure to After Rollup,
Transformer summarizes the numeric data and then performs the calculation.
Instructor Notes
Slide: Revenue and Cost are summarized first, and then calculations for Profit Margin and Profit Margin % are
performed. The result is a correct overall Profit Margin % of 71%.
On occasion, a measure may have to be calculated before summarizing occurs. For example, a
company collects data for sales transactions on extremely price-sensitive products, and it records price
and quantity information. To calculate revenue, it must multiply price by quantity. If After Rollup is the
timing for calculation, inflated revenues result. But Before Rollup will return accurate results.
2008, Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated)
Cognos Confidential. For internal use only.
This guide contains proprietary information which is protected by copyright. No part of this document may be photocopied, reproduced,
or translated into another language without a legal license agreement from Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated).
10-13
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
For example, you can create a count to show how many customers of each type bought
a specific product each month, quarter, or year. This count is a consolidation of all the
categories in the unique level Customer Number. For example, if the same customer
buys a product in two months, the quarterly rollup counts that customer only once.
Instructor Notes
Category Counts are associated with a specific data source column, and for any intersection, displays
the number of unique instances of the column that were contained in rows that contribute to a counting
rollup for a measure.
You should accept the default Activity Measure (All Measures) only if you are sure that no categories
are missing measures, and no measure values sum to zero when they are rolled up to the next higher
time period. You must use the Rollup tab of the Measure property sheet to specify the Activity Measure
for the category count. This Activity Measure cannot be any of the following:
a before or after-rollup calculated measure, an externally rolled up measure, another category count
measure
an allocated measure, if the allocation occurs in the same dimension as the category count and
above the counted categories level
10-14
WORKING
WITH
MEASURES
User ID:
admin
Password:
Education1!
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
10-15
COGNOS
7.
8.
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
2.
3.
4.
10-16
WORKING
WITH
MEASURES
5.
Expand Measures and drag Revenue, Quantity, Product Cost, and Profit
Margin to the Columns drop zone.
The analysis appears as shown below:
6.
7.
Results:
You added the company standard for profit margin as a calculation
in the Measures list and viewed the result in Analysis Studio.
10-17
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
User ID:
admin
Password:
Education1!
2.
3.
4.
5.
10-18
WORKING
6.
7.
8.
WITH
MEASURES
7.
8.
10-19
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
7.
8.
10-20
WORKING
WITH
MEASURES
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
10-21
COGNOS
9.
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Examine the values for Profit Margin % (Before Rollup) and Profit Margin %
(After Rollup). A Profit margin (Before Rollup) of 229,500.00% for 2004 seems
unreasonable. A Profit margin (After Rollup) of 35.18% seems reasonable. This
is because of the different rollup techniques. The values in the cells for Profit
Margin % (After Rollup) are the result of calculating the profit margin based on
total values for Revenue and Product Cost for all years.
10. Close Analysis Studio, and then click Log Off.
Leave the model open for the next demo.
Results:
You created a model that includes a measure that calculates the
average transaction cost by using a regular rollup based on Average.
You also created an alternative method of presenting Profit Margin
expressed as a percentage for the Sales department.
10-22
WORKING
WITH
MEASURES
User ID:
admin
Password:
Education1!
2.
3.
4.
10-23
COGNOS
5.
6.
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
10-24
WORKING
WITH
MEASURES
6.
Expand Measures, and then drag Maximum Quantity (Last Month) to the
Measures drop zone.
The analysis appears as shown below:
7.
Examine the Golf Equipment column and its value for 2006.
The cell takes the value 1586, the value of the largest quantity purchased in the
last period, ending Dec 2006.
Examine the Outdoor Protection column and its value for Dec 2004.
The cell takes the value 9319, the value of the largest quantity in the last month
of 2004. Analysis Studio reports the maximum value of the last month of all
children for this measure as a result of the Last Period Time State rollup option
selected earlier.
The summary row always has the same values as the last detail row when the
rows are from the time dimension.
The summary value (Product line column) for each row is not a sum of the
different product lines, but instead takes the maximum value of each row. All
dimensions (except for the time dimension) return a maximum value for all
children instead of adding up the values in those categories.
8.
10-25
COGNOS
9.
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
10-26
WORKING
WITH
MEASURES
User ID:
admin
Password:
Education1!
10-27
COGNOS
8.
9.
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
10-28
WORKING
WITH
MEASURES
6.
Expand Measures, and then drag Retailer Count to the Measure drop zone.
The report appears as shown below:
7.
8.
Results:
You can now see how many Retailers bought products from a
specific product line.
10-29
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Summary
At the end of this course, you should be able to:
Instructor Notes
If you have reached the end of a teaching day, you can show students how to remove packages and
data source connections in Cognos Connection (except Go Data Warehouse (query), and Go Data
Warehouse (analysis). This will "unclutter" public folders. You can also clean up the .mdc and log files
in C:\Edcognos\C88382.
10-30
WORKING
WITH
MEASURES
10-31
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Hints
Model name: Sales Info
GO Data Warehouse (query)
package
Data source items: Date, Product
line, Product type, Product name,
Region, Country, City, Order
Method, Revenue, Unit cost,
Quantity.
Dimension Map
Measures
Add Measures
Measures
Output scale =2
Source > Unit cost
Average (regular rollup)
Format = $0, 2 decimal places
4. Publish the
PowerCube directly
to Cognos
Connection.
Transformer
Analysis Studio
If you need more information to complete a task, see the Step-by-Step Instructions at
the end of the workshop.
10-32
WORKING
WITH
MEASURES
After creating the report in Analysis Studio, the result should appear as seen below:
10-33
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Transformer
Package:
User ID:
admin
Password:
Education1!
2.
3.
10-34
WORKING
WITH
MEASURES
3.
6.
7.
10-35
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Check the model, generate the categories, and create the PowerCube.
Right-click the Sales Info PowerCube, and then click Publish PowerCube as
Data Source and Package.
Method: Publish the PowerCube using current settings
10-36
WORKING
WITH
MEASURES
10-37
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Where to Work
Hints
Measures
2. Publish the
PowerCube directly
to Cognos
Connection.
Transformer
Analysis Studio
If you need more information to complete a task, see the Step-by-Step Instructions at
the end of the workshop.
10-38
WORKING
WITH
MEASURES
10-39
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Transformer
Package:
User ID:
admin
Password:
Education1!
5.
10-40
Check the model, generate the categories, and insert a new PowerCube called
Time state.
Right-click the Time state PowerCube, and then click Create selected
PowerCube.
Right-click the Time state PowerCube, and then click Publish PowerCube as
Data Source and Package.
Method: Publish the PowerCube using current settings
WORKING
WITH
MEASURES
Instructor Notes
You can also replace the Rows with the entire Date hierarchy. Ask students why the 2007 row will be
blank. Answer: The data in 2007 ends in July.
10-41
COGNOS
10-42
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
11
Allocated Measures
Cognos 8 BI
Instructor Notes
Unless specified otherwise in demo or workshop steps, instructors and students will always log on to
Cognos 8 in the Local NT namespace using the following credentials:
User ID: admin
Password: Education1!
COGNOS
11-2
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
ALLOCATED
MEASURES
Objectives
At the end of this module, you should be able to:
Instructor Notes
If you intend to teach this module, students should be familiar with:
the Transformer development process
Transformer data sources
how to build a model
Transformer model concepts
working with Measures
Set the default directories for opening cubes and saving reports to C:\Edcognos\C88382.
11-3
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Allocation
Allocation is a way to compensate for incomplete
data.
Data source
Dimension
Instructor Notes
Slide: The Product line dimension has 2 levels that do not exist in the data source: Product type and
Product name. To roll up the Forecast measure from the data source to the lowest level in the Product
line dimension, you must allocate. By default, Transformer allocates Forecast as a constant.
Allocation distributes data, which is specified at a summary level of a dimension, to lower levels. For
example, actual sales revenue may be tracked daily, but sales revenue is forecast quarterly. You may
find allocation useful for distributing quarterly forecasts to the month and day levels.
11-4
ALLOCATED
MEASURES
Allocation - An Example
How do we assign the hydroelectric power expense in
this business?
Per workstation?
Per employee?
As a location constant?
Instructor Notes
To allocate you must have a model with two or more data sources, defined the measures in that model,
and a dimension map.
By default, when Transformer allocates a measure, the categories within a level inherit the allocation
type from the higher level. You cannot allocate a calculated measure. You can, however, allocate a
regular measure in proportion to a calculated measure.
2008, Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated)
Cognos Confidential. For internal use only.
This guide contains proprietary information which is protected by copyright. No part of this document may be photocopied, reproduced,
or translated into another language without a legal license agreement from Cognos ULC (formerly Cognos Incorporated).
11-5
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Direct relationship to
the selected Measure
No association to the
selected Measure
Constant or By
Measure allocation is
applied
The Measures scope Dimension Map shows the distribution of a particular measure
over various levels in the Dimension Map. The Show Scope command, when used on a
measure, provides a color-coded Dimension Map, which:
highlights the relationship between the selected measure and the levels within a
dimension
displays the distribution of a measure in a model
Instructor Notes
Yellow - direct relationship exists: all of the required data for the roll up comes from the data source
that contains the measure.
Green - the measure has been allocated to the dimension or label.
White - no relationship exists between the measure and the dimensions or levels, and the categories in
these levels will have no values.
11-6
ALLOCATED
MEASURES
Instructor Notes
You can recognize an allocated measure in Transformer as a constant in a particular level when values
are not summarized in the summary rows or columns. The measure displays the same value at both
the summary and detail level.
11-7
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
User ID:
admin
Password:
Education1!
11-8
Open Transformer.
Open a Model.
Location: C:\Edcognos\C88382\PPT-Allocated measures
Name: Demo 1_Start.pyj
ALLOCATED
MEASURES
2.
3.
Right-click the Employee Count data source, and then click Show Scope.
The result appears as shown below:
The red highlighting indicates that Branch code cannot take its values from the
Employee Count data source. The Employee Count data source does not
contain the ancestral columns necessary for rollup. However, you know that
Branch code contains unique categories.
Set Branch code as Unique.
Close the Data Sources scope Dimension Map.
11-9
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
3.
Drag EMP_COUNT from the Data Sources list to the Measures list.
In the Measures list, right-click EMP_COUNT, and then click Show Scope.
The Measures scope Dimension Map appears as shown below.
The green highlighting in the Measures scope Dimension Map indicates that the
measure EMP_COUNT is allocated to all levels in the Product line dimension.
By default, the measure is allocated as a constant.
The levels that remain white indicate that no values for EMP_COUNT will
appear in its categories because no relationship is established. Analyses will
show blank values for these categories.
In the Measures box, click Revenue.
The dark yellow highlighting indicates that Revenue is directly related to all
dimensions in the Dimension Map. This is because Revenue is contained in the
same data source as all the dimension levels, all product information, regional
information, and date information.
Instructor Notes
Setting Branch code as unique tells us that categories in the Branch code level are identified only by
their source values, without reference to their ancestors (City, Country and Region).
11-10
ALLOCATED
4.
MEASURES
6.
7.
11-11
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
2.
Check the model, click OK to accept the warning, and then create the
PowerCube.
Note: User ID - admin, Password - Education1!
Publish the PowerCube as a data source and package.
Method: Publish the PowerCube using current settings
2.
3.
4.
11-12
ALLOCATED
5.
6.
MEASURES
5.
In the Measures list, right-click EMP_COUNT, and then click Show Scope.
In the Measures scope Dimension Map, right-click Year, and then click
Properties.
Click the Allocation tab.
Under Allocation type, right-click N/A, and then click Constant.
Allocation must be set from the level above the level you want to allocate.
Click OK.
6.
The Quarter and Month levels are highlighted in green. This means that the
EMP_COUNT measure will remain constant at the Quarter and Month levels
of the DATE dimension; that is, they have the same value as the Year level.
Close the Measures scope Dimension Map.
3.
4.
11-13
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
8.
Notice the new values allocated by EMP_COUNT at the Quarter level. All
categories in the Quarter level have a constant EMP_COUNT of 223.
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ALLOCATED
MEASURES
9.
The data has remained constant throughout the drill-down action because
EMP_COUNT is established as a constant measure throughout the levels of
the Product line dimension.
13. Close Analysis Studio without saving, and then click Log off.
Leave the model open for the next demo.
Results:
The Great Outdoors Company can analyze the relationship between
revenue and the total number of employees used to generate that
revenue.
11-15
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
$50,000 (50%)
Countries
France
$10,000
$10,000 (29%)
Employees
Central Europe
UK
$100,000 (100%)
$20,000 (100%)
$35,000 (35%)
$20,000 (57%)
$7,000
$3,990
Asia Pacific
$15,000 (15%)
$3,000
Cities
$2,030
Belgium
Birmingham
$15,000 (75%)
$2,993
London
$5,000 (25%)
$997
$5,000 (14%)
$980
Instructor Notes
Slide: bonuses are allocated based on the revenue per Region, Country, and City.
If you set the allocation type to By Measure, Transformer opens the Select a Measure dialog box,
where you can allocate the measure value as a multidimensional proportion to descendant categories
by using values from another measure as a weighting factor. For example, an advertising budget is
given for each product line, and you want to view the corresponding budget values for each individual
product type. Allocating the advertising budget value based on the revenue of each product type
provides an estimate of the overall advertising budget spent on each corresponding product type.
11-16
ALLOCATED
MEASURES
User ID:
admin
Password:
Education1!
2.
3.
4.
5.
11-17
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
General tab:
Time tab:
11-18
ALLOCATED
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
MEASURES
In the Measures list, right-click Forecast revenue, and then click Show Scope.
The green highlighting indicates that Forecast revenue has been allocated to the
entire Product line dimension. This is because there is no association to Product
line information in the Forecast data source where Forecast revenue originates.
Therefore, by default, a constant allocation is assigned to the entire Product line
dimension.
In the Measures scope Dimension Map, right-click the Product line dimension
label, and then click Properties.
Click the Allocation tab.
For Forecast revenue, change the Allocation type to By Measure.
Click Revenue, and then click OK twice.
This action informs Transformer to allocate the Forecast revenue measure to
the Product line dimension by a proportion of the Revenue measure.
11-19
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
In the Measures scope Dimension Map, right-click the Year level, and then
click Properties.
Click the Allocation tab.
For Forecast revenue, change the Allocation type to By Measure.
Click Revenue, and then click OK twice.
You allocated the Forecast revenue measure, based on Revenue, to the Quarter
and Month levels. The green highlighting indicates this.
5.
11-20
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MEASURES
4.
11-21
COGNOS
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
Do Not Allocate
Disable automatic allocation when:
When you disable allocation, Transformer creates data points with missing values,
which:
are displayed as blank values, by default
can be displayed as "na", depending on the display options selected
If allocation does not provide meaningful representation in a dimension level, use the
Do Not Allocate option.
Instructor Notes
Allocating bonuses to all Staff based on revenue may not work if half of your employees are part-time
and do not qualify for bonuses. You would then set the Do Not Allocate option for the Staff levels.
Depending on the measure setup, the Do Not Allocate option shows either zeros as default or N/A. N/A
can be used so that missing items are not misinterpreted as zero values. This option is defined from
the Missing value box on the General tab of the Measure property sheet.
11-22
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MEASURES
Summary
At the end of this module, you should be able to:
Instructor Notes
If you have reached the end of a teaching day, you can show students how to remove packages and
data source connections in Cognos Connection (except Go Data Warehouse (query), and Go Data
Warehouse (analysis). This will "unclutter" public folders. You can also delete the cubes, log files etc.
from C:\Edcognos\C88382.
11-23
COGNOS
11-24
BI
TRANSFORMER:
DESIGNING
OLAP
MODELS
(VERSION
8.3)
W W W. C O G N O S . C O M