Hello community,

About a year ago the CA Dashboards were described as a tool to explore and display data but not the right tool for designing "pixel-perfect" display of data. Since then the CA dashboards functionalities have been enhanced.

What would you choose today (CA 11.1.7) for implementing an online "Dashboard" - by dashboard I am not referring to CA Dashboards, but generally to an online display of a list of KPIs with little need for user interactivity? Would you implement such a dashboard as an Active-Report? as a CA Dashboard? or even as an HTML-Report?

Our needs are basic:
An online display of KPIs (as either Percent or Number or Time-Length), with a small history view (a bar chart). In addition we would use a drill-down to view an expanded display with a full definition, and a further drill-down to see the raw-data.

Thanks for your feedback.

------------------------------
Ori
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#CognosAnalyticswithWatson

Hi Ori,

I can totally understand your concerns and thoughts. I'm frequently in the same situation. For me, one essential criteria is how the Dashboard is used enterprise-wide. If you want to keep up with security, maintenance, future readiness, I would rather go with a new Dashboard.Also with regards that they'll be enhanced with every release. However for me the big adavantage of an Active report is the interactivity with the limited data scope. If e.g. a CEO insists on having an overview of several ressort and wants to quickly change the perspective within mililsenconds with daily data - I'd go for an saved output from an Active Report. However for me it always feels like an capsulated solution.
A third solution is yet a standard report as a Dashboard - you can apply almost all Visualization and you have the ability to customize more than within a Dashboard.

I hope you find the right decision!

Best regards,
Timm

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Timm Rosengarten
------------------------------

Hi Ori,

regarding active report, I don't know how you want to consume them but, IE support will be end in the future release.
By the way with the last release (11.1.7) a lot of improvement have been done to realise nice dashboard. You will be also able to use them on mobile app.

regards,

------------------------------
Vivien
------------------------------

Hi Vivien,

as long as you do not require them to download and work offline you can still consume the Active Report perfectly with any browser. I still use them to run them as saved report output and consume them with the best performance and interactivity. For me, unfortunately, there is no option in the latest version yet which comes close to this feature. I admit that the points @Jens Bäumler mentions below is valid, that you cannot export them to XLS or PDF.
Even if you have a really fast dataset in a Data module you cannot implement a fast interacivity within yout dataset. As far as I understand Cognos still treats the interactivity as queries.

Best regards,
Timm​

------------------------------
Timm Rosengarten
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: Thu March 11, 2021 02:35 AM
From: Vivien
Subject: Dashboard or Active Report?

Hi Ori,

regarding active report, I don't know how you want to consume them but, IE support will be end in the future release.
By the way with the last release (11.1.7) a lot of improvement have been done to realise nice dashboard. You will be also able to use them on mobile app.

regards,

------------------------------
Vivien
------------------------------

Hi Timm,

as you said: as long as you do not require them to download and work offline :)
Work offline it's the main way to use active report for my clients. And if you use rave visualisation you need Microsoft SilverLight.
There is still Cognos Mobile which is a good way to consume them offline.


regards,

------------------------------
Vivien
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: Fri March 12, 2021 02:15 AM
From: Timm Rosengarten
Subject: Dashboard or Active Report?

Hi Vivien,

as long as you do not require them to download and work offline you can still consume the Active Report perfectly with any browser. I still use them to run them as saved report output and consume them with the best performance and interactivity. For me, unfortunately, there is no option in the latest version yet which comes close to this feature. I admit that the points @Jens Bäumler mentions below is valid, that you cannot export them to XLS or PDF.
Even if you have a really fast dataset in a Data module you cannot implement a fast interacivity within yout dataset. As far as I understand Cognos still treats the interactivity as queries.

Best regards,
Timm​

------------------------------
Timm Rosengarten
------------------------------


Original Message:
Sent: Thu March 11, 2021 02:35 AM
From: Vivien
Subject: Dashboard or Active Report?

Hi Ori,

regarding active report, I don't know how you want to consume them but, IE support will be end in the future release.
By the way with the last release (11.1.7) a lot of improvement have been done to realise nice dashboard. You will be also able to use them on mobile app.

regards,

------------------------------
Vivien

Hi Ori.
When it comes to dashboards, where design is paramount, I would still fall back on reporting. Pixel-perfect design is not possible in dashboards, and at different resolutions the display often doesn't fit well.

Active Reports do not have the ability to export to PDF and Excel. That's my favorite solution:
- Datasets for the data (fast database).
- Data modules based on the datasets
- "normal" report as HTML

Jens
P.S. For Active Reports there will be a new app for Windows and iOS in the near future to display the MHTML files. Internet Explorer is slowly "disappearing".

------------------------------
Jens Bäumler
Senior Consultant and Trainer
Apparo Group
------------------------------

Hi Jens,

Totally agree with you that report studio is the best, requirement from our senior management was to email the dashboards instead of signing on to Cognos.  Unfortunately  emailing of dashboards functionality  does not exist in R7.

I tried to create the dashboard visualization in Report Studio however I found that the visualization that exist in Report Studio like (Bubble visualization)  does not have the same drop zones (Fields)  that exist  on a dashboard. 

Dashboards visualizations could not be created in report studio.






------------------------------
Vincent Dsouza
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: Thu March 11, 2021 02:53 AM
From: Jens Bäumler
Subject: Dashboard or Active Report?

Hi Ori.
When it comes to dashboards, where design is paramount, I would still fall back on reporting. Pixel-perfect design is not possible in dashboards, and at different resolutions the display often doesn't fit well.

Active Reports do not have the ability to export to PDF and Excel. That's my favorite solution:
- Datasets for the data (fast database).
- Data modules based on the datasets
- "normal" report as HTML

Jens
P.S. For Active Reports there will be a new app for Windows and iOS in the near future to display the MHTML files. Internet Explorer is slowly "disappearing".

------------------------------
Jens Bäumler
Senior Consultant and Trainer
Apparo Group
------------------------------

Yes. The visualizations in reporting differ from those in the dashboard. But there is a wide choice. In many cases (like with the bubble charts) the "old" charts help:


------------------------------
Jens Bäumler
Senior Consultant and Trainer
Apparo Group
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: Thu March 11, 2021 08:15 AM
From: Vincent Dsouza
Subject: Dashboard or Active Report?

Hi Jens,

Totally agree with you that report studio is the best, requirement from our senior management was to email the dashboards instead of signing on to Cognos.  Unfortunately  emailing of dashboards functionality  does not exist in R7.

I tried to create the dashboard visualization in Report Studio however I found that the visualization that exist in Report Studio like (Bubble visualization)  does not have the same drop zones (Fields)  that exist  on a dashboard. 

Dashboards visualizations could not be created in report studio.






------------------------------
Vincent Dsouza
------------------------------


Original Message:
Sent: Thu March 11, 2021 02:53 AM
From: Jens Bäumler
Subject: Dashboard or Active Report?

Hi Ori.
When it comes to dashboards, where design is paramount, I would still fall back on reporting. Pixel-perfect design is not possible in dashboards, and at different resolutions the display often doesn't fit well.

Active Reports do not have the ability to export to PDF and Excel. That's my favorite solution:
- Datasets for the data (fast database).
- Data modules based on the datasets
- "normal" report as HTML

Jens
P.S. For Active Reports there will be a new app for Windows and iOS in the near future to display the MHTML files. Internet Explorer is slowly "disappearing".

------------------------------
Jens Bäumler
Senior Consultant and Trainer
Apparo Group

Hi Jen, appreciate the feedback however the cool features that exist in dashboard are missing in Report studio. Like abbreviate a Numeric format. I know there are work arounds to show anabbreviated number on the visualization  however if the features that exist in dashboard were available in report studio.  it would be amazing.

------------------------------
Vincent Dsouza
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: Thu March 11, 2021 10:52 AM
From: Jens Bäumler
Subject: Dashboard or Active Report?

Yes. The visualizations in reporting differ from those in the dashboard. But there is a wide choice. In many cases (like with the bubble charts) the "old" charts help:


------------------------------
Jens Bäumler
Senior Consultant and Trainer
Apparo Group
------------------------------


Original Message:
Sent: Thu March 11, 2021 08:15 AM
From: Vincent Dsouza
Subject: Dashboard or Active Report?

Hi Jens,

Totally agree with you that report studio is the best, requirement from our senior management was to email the dashboards instead of signing on to Cognos.  Unfortunately  emailing of dashboards functionality  does not exist in R7.

I tried to create the dashboard visualization in Report Studio however I found that the visualization that exist in Report Studio like (Bubble visualization)  does not have the same drop zones (Fields)  that exist  on a dashboard. 

Dashboards visualizations could not be created in report studio.






------------------------------
Vincent Dsouza


Original Message:
Sent: Thu March 11, 2021 02:53 AM
From: Jens Bäumler
Subject: Dashboard or Active Report?

Hi Ori.
When it comes to dashboards, where design is paramount, I would still fall back on reporting. Pixel-perfect design is not possible in dashboards, and at different resolutions the display often doesn't fit well.

Active Reports do not have the ability to export to PDF and Excel. That's my favorite solution:
- Datasets for the data (fast database).
- Data modules based on the datasets
- "normal" report as HTML

Jens
P.S. For Active Reports there will be a new app for Windows and iOS in the near future to display the MHTML files. Internet Explorer is slowly "disappearing".

------------------------------
Jens Bäumler
Senior Consultant and Trainer
Apparo Group

@Vincent Dsouza We're at 11.1.7 and you can email a .png image attachment of one dashboard tab. That may be problematic if you have multiple dashboard tabs, though (like we do). 

Keep in mind if there's a viz you like in Dashboarding you can copy assets from Dashboarding to Report Studio. 

Best wishes,

------------------------------
Wendi Lewis
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: Thu March 11, 2021 08:15 AM
From: Vincent Dsouza
Subject: Dashboard or Active Report?

Hi Jens,

Totally agree with you that report studio is the best, requirement from our senior management was to email the dashboards instead of signing on to Cognos.  Unfortunately  emailing of dashboards functionality  does not exist in R7.

I tried to create the dashboard visualization in Report Studio however I found that the visualization that exist in Report Studio like (Bubble visualization)  does not have the same drop zones (Fields)  that exist  on a dashboard. 

Dashboards visualizations could not be created in report studio.






------------------------------
Vincent Dsouza
------------------------------


Original Message:
Sent: Thu March 11, 2021 02:53 AM
From: Jens Bäumler
Subject: Dashboard or Active Report?

Hi Ori.
When it comes to dashboards, where design is paramount, I would still fall back on reporting. Pixel-perfect design is not possible in dashboards, and at different resolutions the display often doesn't fit well.

Active Reports do not have the ability to export to PDF and Excel. That's my favorite solution:
- Datasets for the data (fast database).
- Data modules based on the datasets
- "normal" report as HTML

Jens
P.S. For Active Reports there will be a new app for Windows and iOS in the near future to display the MHTML files. Internet Explorer is slowly "disappearing".

------------------------------
Jens Bäumler
Senior Consultant and Trainer
Apparo Group

Hi Ori, 
If performance is an issue I would go for Data Modules based on Data Sets as well. A lot of logic can be implemented there. Then my pragmatic aproach is to try Dashboards first since most of their creation goes easy and fast. Then you would see if this "easy" tool is sufficient or if you need the "big" tool with reports or active reports.

------------------------------
Philipp Hornung
------------------------------

Honestly for me, it comes down to:

1. Real time data - Are you monitoring something that is changing every few minutes? If so, the dashboard widget refresh is a very cool feature.

2. Control over the user experience - if you want every user to see the same layout, and not be able to effect it very much (in a good way, or troublesome - depending on the user), then a standard or active report fits better.

There are many more considerations of course, but if you answer yes to either one of those I think the decision is easier.

Cheers!

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Christopher Keaton
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