What tools can we used for OLAP Browser?

What is OLAP?

OLAP (On Line Analytical Processing) performs multidimensional analysis of business data and provides the capability for complex calculations, trend analysis, and sophisticated data modeling. It is quickly becoming the fundamental foundation for Intelligent Solutions including Business Performance Management, Planning, Budgeting, Forecasting, Financial Reporting, Analysis, Simulation Models, Knowledge Discovery, and Data Warehouse Reporting.

It can also be defined as the capability of manipulating and analyzing data from multiple perspectives is widely used in business intelligence, data mining and reporting applications that provide complex analysis of data in a short period of time.

What makes OLAP such a powerful data analysis tool, and why would you want to use it are question that most people ponder when they are first introduced to this technology.

Using OLAP lets you find out:

·         Why one month’s sales were better than another month’s sales?

·         Which product your Sales department selling the most of?

OLAP types can be found in the MOLAP, ROLAP, and HOLAP

Now our main Question is “What tools can we used for OLAP Browser”

Below are the tools for OLAP web browser may be some of miss in the list

·         Dundas

·         BI Companion

·         IntelliMax

·         Panorama

·         Radar-Soft

·         ProClarity

·         Ranet OLAP

·         PerformancePoint

Today we discuss more on Ranet OLAP Browser

Ranet OLAP is an open source set of data visualization controls – powered by Microsoft Silverlight and was written specifically for SQL Server Analysis Services with support for SQL Server. Ranet OLAP is our advanced front-end solution for Microsoft SQL Server Analysis Services.

It can be used for displaying data using most popular Web-browsers: Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome, and Internet Explorer.

It provides parsing, generating and visualization of MDX language and MDX query results. Moreover it provides data input and Write back to OLAP cube. It works under .NET and Silverlight.

It includes:

-         MDX Document Object Model (MDX DOM)

-         MDX Parser

-         MDX Generator

-         Description of supported MDX Syntax

-         Set of OLAP visual controls for MS Analysis Services:

-         Dynamic Pivot Grid - Pivot Table with WriteBack ability for arbitrary MDX text query

-         MDX Query Designer - visual MDX query builder

-         OLAP metadata explorer

-         Choice controls: CubeChoice, KpiChoice,  MeasureChoice,  LevelChoice,  MemberChoice, etc

Ranet OLAP includes Visual Controls:

·         PIVOT GRID

-          Control shows a summary table which is a result of running the MDX query

-          Sorting – Ascending and Descending sorting can be applied to a row area, column area, or data area in the pivot grid table

-          Members group – grouping data in the row area and column area are in the pivot grid table

-          Show Properties – It can display the property of the dimension member in the table

-          Properties, Custom Properties – show properties of the dimension member or cell, and their current values, in a special window

-          DrillThrought – shows the detailed data used for calculating the indicator value for the cell, in a special window

-          Show MDX – displays the MDX query generated as a result of design, or prepared manually by the user, in a special window

-          Writeback – Editing cube data

·         MDX DESIGNER  

-          Control permits creating interactive reports based on Microsoft Analysis Services OLAP cube data

-          Customer Calculation Editor – a built-in Customer Calculations Editor permits the user to create calculated members and calculated sets on his own

·         Change Filter – to modify the filter, where a list of members included in the report is

Determined

·         MEMBER CHOICE – control serves for selecting one or a number of cube dimension members

·         Find tab – It is a visual element used to determine the search parameters

·         LEVEL CHOICE – control is used for selecting a level in the cube hierarchy.

·         MEASURE CHOICE – control is intended for selecting a cube measure, including selection within a specific measure group

·         KPI CHOICE – control is intended for selecting a Key Performance Indicator (KPI) for the cube

·         DATE PARAMETER – control is intended for selecting a date from a cube time dimension on a calendar form

·         KPI VIEWER – control shows Key Performance Indicators (KPI) defined in the cube, and their basic values at certain time

Why is Ranet OLAP your complete solution OLAP Browser?

ü  Interactive Designer Pivot tables.

ü  Support Functions Drill Down / Up And Drill Through.

ü  Flexible Filter, Sorting, & Groping Data.

ü  Export / Import setting, snapshots of data.

ü  Editing data in the cube via the internet.

ü  Export analysis result to Microsoft Excel.

ü  Easy-to-use UI.

Posted by - SUHAS R. KUDEKAR (MCTS - Microsoft Business Intelligence)

Learning Office 2010 + SharePoint 2010 + SQL Server 2008 R2