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Showing posts from 2011

How to find the version information for the iPad and Cognos Mobile App.

This information can be located under the "Settings" on the iPad. To check the iPad version select About and check, on the following screen, the "Version" information listed there. -- Open Settings -- Select "General" and then "About" -- The "Version" information listed there. To check the Cognos Mobile App version information ... -- Open Settings -- Scroll all the way to the bottom of the Settings window -- Under the Apps section you should find IBM Cognos listed -- Select "IBM Cognos" -- The Version and build information is listed there.

Evaluate: IBM Cognos Business Intelligence for FREE Download

Like to evaluate IBM Cognos 10 for FREE. Here it goes... http://www.ibm.com/developerworks/downloads/im/cognosbi/#components

IBM Cognos BI - Create Side-by-Side Chart Comparisons with IBM Cognos Active Report

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IBM Cognos BI - Working with Tab Controls in IBM Cognos Active Report

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IBM Cognos BI - Active Report Tree Control

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IBM Cognos BI - Create a Dynamically Exploding Pie Chart with IBM Cognos Active Report

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Invalid URL Syntax

When an email is sent through Cognos with a link to a Cognos report output, a message with 'Invalid URL syntax' is seen intermittently. Multi-server environment with a stand alone Content Manager (no gateway URI field in Cognos Configuration). Issue seen intermittently as it only fails when delivery done through Content Manager. When delivery through Application Tier service, link works. Depending on mail client, will either see 'Invalid URL syntax' or the link is simply not 'clickable'. If the URL is visible in the mail client, the server name (gateway) will be missing from the URL. Cause By default the Delivery Service is enabled on CM only and App Tier only installs. When running a report and sending link via email, you must have saved output. When the Delivery Service is enabled on CM and an email link is sent which points to saved content, you are not able to open the content via the link. There is no Gateway URI field in Cognos Configuration for a stan

How to filter a report using a comma-separated string entered in a text box ?

This technique will allow users to enter a comma-separated string of multiple values that can be passed to a report parameter as a list of multiple items (essentially behaving as a mult-select prompt.) Text box prompts in IBM Cognos ReportNet (CRN) and Cognos 8 (C8) have a special 'Multi-Select' mode that allows users to enter multiple values to pass to a parameter in a report. To use a multi-select text box prompt, a user has to enter a value and hit an 'Insert' button to take a just-entered value and add it to a list of items that will be passed to the report parameter. In some cases, a more efficient way to pass multiple text strings to a parameter in a report is to enter comma separated values such as, "Camping Equipment, Mountaineering Equipment, Golf Equipment" rather than entering each value and hitting the "Insert" button in a multi-select text box prompt. There is no direct way to have a text box prompt handle a comma-separated value st

How to allow comma separated values to be entered into a text box prompt ?

Use a filter expression to parse out the values. For example, a report has a prompt with parameter ?ParamZipCode? and is used to filter query item [Zip Code] The filter expression would be as follows: cast([Zip Code],varchar(200)) in ( #csv ( split(' ', split(',', split(' ,', split(' , ', split(', ', prompt('paramZipCode','token') ) ) ) ) ) ) # ) This filter converts the Zip Code to text and looks for the value IN a list of comma separated values. Due to the nature of the macro functions, the result of the function is a series of string elements. The cast function applied to a numeric field ensures that the appropriate data types are being used within the filter expression. The split() macro functions are in place to handle additional white space that users may enter between the comma-delimited values.

Cognos Mobile for Apple iPhone and Apple iPad

http://public.dhe.ibm.com/software/data/sw-library/cognos/demos/od_cog_ibm_cognos_bi_for_mobile_workforce_portfolio/index.html

Steven Paul 'Steve' Jobs

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  Steve Jobs, 1955 - 2011 "Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma -- which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice." 

How to add a custom message for all Cognos users on Cognos Connection Page

This article provides you information about how one can add a custom message for all Cognos users on Cognos Connection Page Solution 1 : Add the message on the title bar of Cognos Connection. Refer point 1 in image attached. Steps : a. Open <c8_install>webcontent/skins/<skin_used>/shared/banner.css b. find ".mainHeader1middle" c. Modify content as per requirement. Example : .mainHeader1Middle { width:100%; background-image: url(../shared/images/Message.gif); background-repeat: no-repeat; } Solution 2 : Add the message on the title bar of table. Refer point 2 in image attached. Steps : a. Open <c8_install>webcontent/skins/<skin_used>/portal/default.css b. find ".tableHeader" c. Modify content as per requirement. Example : .tableHeader { background-color: #ffffff; background-image: url(images/Message.gif); background-repeat: no-repeat; } Please refer to attached snapshot for the location where the message would be

Enable Job, SMTP, and Task Queue Metrics

By default, only the queue length metric for job, task, and SMTP queue metrics is enabled. The following metrics are also available for each but are set to zero and do not appear in the user interface unless you enable them: Time in queue high water mark Time in queue low water mark Time in queue Number of queue requests Queue length high water mark Queue length low water mark For more information about these metrics, see System Performance Metrics . Note that enabling these settings may affect performance. You must have the required permissions to access IBM Cognos Administration functionality. See Secured Functions and Features . Steps Start IBM ® Cognos ® Connection. In the upper-right corner, click Launch , IBM Cognos Administration . On the Status tab, click System . Click the arrow next to System to display the Actions menu, and then click Set Properties . Click the Settings tab. For the Environment category, next to Advanced settings , cl

Configure the IBM InfoSphere Business Glossary URI

If your organization uses the IBM ® InfoSphere ™ Business Glossary, you can also access the Glossary in IBM Cognos ® software from IBM Cognos Viewer , and from the metadata tree in Report Studio, Query Studio, and Analysis Studio. To access IBM Business Glossary, you must specify the URI of the Glossary Web page. By default, the Glossary search results in IBM Cognos software return all terms that contain the keyword specified in the search. To access the Glossary, users must have permissions for the Glossary capability. For more information, see Secured Functions and Features , and Object Capabilities . Steps In IBM Cognos Connection, click Launch , IBM Cognos Administration . On the Status tab, click System . Click the arrow next to System to display the Actions menu, and then click Set Properties . Click the Settings tab. For the Environment category, IBM Business Glossary URI , type the following URI: http:// server_name : port_number /bg/popup/popupSear

Filter on indexes - but be careful!

If you are familiar with databases, you will know that your first preference will be to filter on the clustered index, then on any non-clustered indexes. Any other filtering will force a table scan - a potentially costly operation. But did you know that there are rules for filtering on indexed fields? For example, assuming order date was indexed, this: (current_date,[Order date]) < 30 is less efficient than: [Order date] > (current_date - 30) even though they mean the same thing. The difference is that the first performs an index scan (it looks at every row, performs the calculation, then determines if the row should be included), while the second performs a seek (it positions directly on the first row where the order date is greater than or equal to 30 days ago). The second option has to read far fewer records so it is more efficient. A general rule of thumb is to know your indexed fields, and, if possible, do not perform calculations on those fields. Apply the

Enhancements to Business Insight Advanced 10.1.1

Enhancements to Business Insight Advanced 10.1.1 ·          Custom groups You can create custom groups of existing data items based on elements that you define and that are meaningful to you. ·          Creating sections You can now create sections to show a separate list, chart, or crosstab for a data item. ·          Filtering directly from the data tree When using IBM® Cognos® Business Insight Advanced with relational data sources , you can now filter using measures and query items in the source tree. This allows you to create a filter based on a data item that is not included in your report. ·          Names for lists, crosstab, and chart objects A new Name property for lists, crosstabs, and charts allows you to give these report objects a meaningful business name. These names allow business users to easily recognize the lists, crosstabs, or charts when they add them into an IBM Cognos Business Insight workspace. ·          New startup options A new Start page view option

Cognos Mobile Shortcuts

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While you are working with IBM® Cognos® Mobile on your device, you can use a number of shortcuts for navigation and to perform other actions.  

How to Manage Your Own Data Source Credentials

You may be prompted for your data source credentials when you perform the following actions: view, run, or open an entry use a schedule or a job select the data sources that can be used to create a package You may also be prompted for data source credentials when you use Framework Manager (see the Framework Manager User Guide). You can save your data source credentials so that you are not prompted for them every time. You can also view and delete your data source credentials. If you are an administrator, you can also create or modify data source signons , but if you have a lot of users, it can be unwieldy for data source configurations that require each user to have their own signon since the credentials for each user must be done individually. You can also view the data source credentials for other users. Note that credentials are checked in the following order: first, the signons that you create as an administrator are checked if no credentials are found for the use

Prompts in Cognos Framework Manager

Format : Macro- #prompt(‘pmtName’,’datatype’)# Parameter Map- #$parametermap{prompt(‘pmtName’,’datatype’)}# Session Parameter- #$parametermap{$Sessionparameter}# Date Prompt- to_date(#prompt('Start/END Date', 'varchar')#,'yyyy-mm-dd')

Exploring New BI tools

Microsoft has a free BI excel plug in that's simple to learn and use but very powerful, it's called power pivot. You can download it from www.powerpivot.com - check it out.

Cognos 8 Macro functions list

We have seen that cognos macro functions available in framework manager are also available in report studio. Here is a simple list of existing Cognos Macro with description. This list contains functions that can be used within a macro. A macro may contain one or more macro functions. A macro is delimited by a number sign (#) at the beginning and at the end. Everything between the number signs is treated as a macro expression, which is executed at run time. + value1 + value2 Concatenates two strings. Example: # '{' + $runLocale + '}'# Result: {en-us} CAMIDList CAMIDList ( [ separator_string ] ) Returns the pieces of the user's identity (account name, group names, role names) as a list of values separated by commas. Example: #CAMIDList ( )# Result: CAMID("::Everyone"), CAMID(":Authors"), CAMID(":Query Users"), CAMID(":Consumers"), CAMID(":Metrics Authors") CAMIDListForType CAMIDListForType ( identit

Configure the IBM WebSphere Business Glossary URI

To access IBM Business Glossary, you must specify the URI of the Glossary Web page. By default, the Glossary search results in IBM Cognos 8 return all terms that contain the keyword specified in the search. Steps 1. In IBM Cognos Connection, click Launch, IBM Cognos Administration. 2. On the Status tab, click System. 3. Click the arrow next to System to display the Actions menu, and then click Set Properties. 4. Click the Settings tab. 5. For the Environment category, IBM Business Glossary URI, type the following URI: http://server_name:port_number/bg/popup/popupSearch.do For example, type http://myserver:9080/bg/popup/popupSearch.do 6. All terms that contain the keyword specified in the search are returned. 7. Click OK.

Random browser error: RV_RES is undefined

Problem(Abstract)Having random browser error when running reports : RV_RES is undefined, Code 0, URL http://server/cognosalias/rv/cv.js SymptomRV_RES is undefined cv.js CauseIn a distributed installation the Cognos services were modified in Cognos Configuration on the Content Manager component. Resolving the problemVerify that the services in Cognos Configuration for the Content Manager are set as default: Dispatcher and Presentation service need to be disabled. All others services are enabled

IBM Cognos 10

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Cognos 10 Upgrade Cognos 10 Redguide Cognos 10 Redbook Cognos 10.1 Upgrade Resources Cognos 10 Product Videos Cognos 10 Product Vision Cognos 10 Handbook Cognos 10 Slideshow Cognos 10 Launch Overview Cognos 10 Whitepaper The New Promise of BI Model Design Accelerator

Limit the Number of Entries That Users Can Cut, Copy, and Paste

You can limit the number of entries that users can cut, copy, and paste to improve the performance of IBM® Cognos® software. This allows you to control the storage space taken up by temporary entries and reduce the time required to execute cut, copy, and paste requests. For example, you can set the limit to 50 entries. If users cut, copy, or paste more than 50 entries, they receive a maximum entries message. To change the limit, you must have access to the computer where the report server is installed. Steps On each computer where IBM Cognos software is installed, open the c10_location/templates/ps/portal/system.xml file in an editor. Ensure that your editor supports saving files in UTF-8 format. Find and edit the maxEditEntries parameter as follows: <param name="maxEditEntries">     50 </param>Save the system.xml file. Stop and then restart the IBM Cognos service.

Additional popup window opens while openining Report Studio, Business Insight Advanced in Cognos 8 and Cognos 10

1. Go to <C8 install>\webcontent\pat folder                            2. In the pat folder, locate rsapp.htm and make a copy of this file as a backup.                                                                3. Open rsapp.htm in any editor preferably HTML editor and scroll to the bottom of this file.                                                    4. The last line reads                                                    </body></html>                                                        5. Add a new line before this line,                                    6. Paste the following text on this 2nd last line which is empty right  now                                                                    <script>var myparent = window.opener; myparent.close();</script>      7. Save the rsapp.htm.    (Ensure you save this file against as HTML format)

How to specify Report Output is Part of Deployment

Specify if Report Output is Part of Deployment You can specify if report output is part of deployments. There are two advanced settings that you can use: CM.DEPLOYMENTSKIPALLREPORTOUTPUT to include or skip all report output from My Folders and Public Folders. CM.DEPLOYMENTSKIPUSERREPORTOUTPUT to include or skip user report output from My Folders only. By default, these are set to True (include). To change the default to exclude, set them to False. You must have the required permissions to access IBM Cognos Administration [Secured Functions and Features] . Steps 1.Start IBM® Cognos® Connection. 2.In the upper-right corner, click Launch, IBM Cognos Administration. 3.On the Status tab, click System. 4.Click the arrow for the Actions menu next to Systems and click Set properties. 5.Click the Settings tab. 6.Click Edit next to Advanced Settings. 7.Select Override the settings acquired from the parent entry. 8. In the Parameter column, type CM.DEPLOYMENTSKIPALLREPO

Include Configuration Objects in Import of Entire Content Store

You can include configuration objects when importing an entire content store. For example, you may want to import the configuration because you have a series of advanced settings for your services that you want from the source environment. By default, configuration objects are excluded when you import an entire content store, even though they are included in the export. Configuration objects include dispatchers and configuration folders used to group dispatchers. For more information, see Rules For Deploying the Entire Content Store. We recommend that you do not import configuration objects. Dispatchers should be configured in your target environment before you import data from a source environment. If you must import configuration objects, you should either stop the source dispatcher services before the import, or restart IBM Cognos 8 in the target environment after the import. Otherwise, you may get errors with the status of dispatchers. If you want to import configuration object

Attempting to install Cognos BI 10.1 Fix Pack 1 may result in error if certain interim fixes are already installed

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Problem(Abstract) In instances where a Cognos BI 10.1 Interim Fix with a build number 10.1.4707.1055 to 10.1.4705.1077 has been applied, an error will occur during the installation of Fix Pack 1. Symptom This product is incompatible with your previously installed version. Please choose another directory. Resolving the problem The cmplst.txt file for Cognos BI 10.1 interim releases within the build range 10.1.4707.1055 to 10.1.4705.1077 include two extraneous entries. The addition of these entries will result in an installation error upon performing any subsequent Cognos BI 10.1 interim or fix pack installations. If the extraneous entries are present in the cmplst.txt file, the IBM Cognos 10 installer will fail with the following error at the Installation Location screen. To correct this situation: 1.Locate the cmplst.txt file within the IBM Cognos install directory. 2.Create a backup copy of the cmplst.txt file 3.Open the cmplst.txt file using an editor of

Demo - Multi-Version Coexistence in Cognos 10.1

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IBM Cognos Lifecycle Manager Demo

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RSV-SRV-0031 The user does not have the assigned capability to use 'HTMLItem' layout element.

Getting RSV-SRV-0031 The user does not have the assigned capability to use 'HTMLItem' layout element error message even though this user has capabilities for both Report Studio and HTML Item   Symptom RSV-SRV-0031 The user does not have the assigned capability to use 'HTMLItem' layout element.   Cause New to 8.4 is the ability to set capabilities on the package and folder level. This will overwrite what is being set at the server level.   Resolving the problem Ensure the User or User classes that the Role, Group or User belong to have both Report Studio and HTML Item capabilities at the package level. Steps:     Go to Cognos Administration     Click on the Security tab     Go to the Capabilities section     Click on the "Actions" button on the Report Studio and click on "Set properties"     Add the role/group/user to have at least traverse permission on Report Studio     Click OK     Drill down a level on the Report Studio capability     Add t