Re: Report Writing

Tony Tyrwhitt-Drake (tonytd@ttyrwhit.demon.co.uk) wrote: : In article <D90IBv.FLM@gonix.com>, jsw@gonix (Jack Winslade) says: : > : >cymerman@mindspring.com (Mark Cymerman) writes: [snip] : Best I've come accross is Business Objects, needs a DBA to set it : up, but from there on it is (almost) idiot proof (well I liked it) Impromptu from Cognos provides interactive reporting and many controls /features to insulate the user/protect the system. Several mags/papers have been running comparison reports of reporting solutions. Attached is a brief on the product... BURLINGTON, MA -- December 6, 1994 -- Cognos* (NASDAQ:COGNF;TSE:CSN) today announced the new version of Impromptu*, the Company's enterprise reporting tool. Impromptu 3.0 is the first database reporting tool to allow end users to interact with data, create reports and make additional queries -- all in a single unified, highly graphical working environment. In addition, Impromptu also offers the fastest, most complete implementation at the enterprise-wide level with enhanced administrative control, easy enterprise deployment and the lowest cost of ownership. "We've nailed enterprise reporting," said Alan Rottenberg, senior vice president of Cognos' desktop business unit. "We provide exactly what both IS and the end users want. For the first time, users can interact with data easily and productively. They can ask questions as they think of them. They can create any report that they can imagine. With full OLE 2.0 support, Impromptu looks, feels and acts like the spreadsheets and word processors in use on most desktops today. Rather than introduce new concepts and skills, Impromptu leverages the skills the users already have." "And, it's not just the end user who benefits from Impromptu's ease-of-use," Rottenberg continued. "IS will find it easy to manage. It's the fastest reporting tool to deploy across an enterprise and it's incredibly easy to maintain. Anyone who can write a simple query on one of our competitors' products can install, maintain and service a company full of Impromptu users. The bottom line is: we give users access to data." Impromptu is specifically designed as an enterprise data access and reporting tool. It strikes a balance between providing end users with the freedom to create sophisticated reports, and providing corporate administrators with precise control over database access, security and network impact. Impromptu 3.0 provides several new benefits, including: Impromptu 3.0 * Dramatically increased reporting capabilities, through the use of Frame-based reporting and smart templates; * A rich set of enterprise deployment and control features; and * Complete Windows integration as an Object Linking and Embedding (OLE) 2.0 client and server, including OLE Automation. Impromptu's New User Interface is Easy-to-use Impromptu has moved from list-style report creation to "Frame-based reporting". Frame-based reporting is a new concept which will redefine users' expectations of reporting tools. (A Frame is a term derived from word processing, and describes the basic components used to build data independent reports. It is a dynamic area of the workspace, resembling a layout page on-screen, where users place report elements.) To create reports users can simply click on data in the Impromptu Catalog and drop it into the Frame of their choice. (The Impromptu Catalog is where users and administrators find the business-oriented presentation of the data, the join strategies, governors and user class definitions.) The data is formatted according to the type of Frame. Once a user has created a report design, it can be saved and used again with any data. Complex reports are built from combinations of Frames. "Frames are a report's basic building blocks," said Rottenberg. "It is this innovation which enables Impromptu to leave the competition behind. No other tool has the ability to build reports this easily. Users simply drag and drop-to-build any type of report that they can imagine. It's as easy as creating a new document in a word processor. This style of building a report, combined with the interactive nature of Impromptu for building queries, makes it easier for users to build any report that they can imagine." There are several types of Frames: list, form, cross- tab, chart, text, image and OLE. In addition, Impromptu 3.0 also includes ReportWise*. ReportWise contains predefined intelligent templates, complete with powerful logic calculations and automated macro processing, for use with reports. Impromptu 3.0 will include dozens of templates specific to such classic report styles as invoices, mailing labels, sales reports, quarterly reports, expense reports, name and address books, catalogs, etc. These templates will enable users to generate reports immediately. Impromptu 3.0 Impromptu's OLE 2.0 Supports Integrated Enterprise Applications Impromptu 3.0 contains complete OLE 2.0 support, including OLE Automation, a series of new specifications from Microsoft which allow users to automate any type of cross-application function. Cognos has even extended the automation to call any Impromptu function and combine it with OLE activities from other applications. The extended OLE Automation facility allows Impromptu to run database stored procedures on the server, producing the first client/server macro facility. These client/server procedures can be run completely transparent to the end user. An administrator can create a scripted macro on the server timed to run just before getting data from the database. A new feature geared to end users performs a similar function. Scheduler is a separate application that allows users to run reports when they want. Security remains intact because the user's ID is encrypted and the report is not displayed while it is running. New Catalog Provides Administrators with Advanced Control The Impromptu Catalog is the portion of the product which insulates the user from the database. It contains information about the database that the user doesn't need or want to know. With the Catalog, users get a presentation of their data which matches the way they look at their business, not meaningless file names. The user interface for the Impromptu Catalog is simple, made easier for 3.0 with tabbed dialogue boxes. In addition, logic has been added so that an administrator needs to find only the first level of joins; future, indirect joins are done automatically. In addition to redesigning the Impromptu 3.0 Catalog to make it smarter and physically smaller, various functionality has been added to provide superior control options for the administrator. Governors give administrators the ability to allow, warn or prevent costly query activities. These activities can be controlled via new user profiles and classes which the administrator can set. Activity warnings and restrictions can be set intelligently, based on historical data. For example, Impromptu will tell the user, "With 89