Using PowerPlay for Windows for Reporting and Analysis with an Analysis Services Cube

Say we need a total, at this point, for the report in general, and that total, not too surprisingly, needs to be accurate. There are a couple of ways to approach this, but let’s go about it in a manner that will afford us exposure to other attributes of the Reporter mode.

4. Click the USA block of the bottom row to highlight it.

5. Press the Delete key (another way to delete a category).

We have removed the total (or USA) row. We will now create a total row to replace it, through the creation of a calculation that accurately adds the totals of the two remaining state rows.

6. Highlight both the CA and OR rows, beginning with the CA row. ([CTRL]-Click is used to highlight non-adjacent objects, as it is in many Windows applications, and can be employed here.)

7. From the top menu, click Calculate -à Add.

The Add dialog appears.

8. Type the word “Totals” into the Label box.

The Add dialog appears.

9. Click OK to close the Add dialog.

The new Totals row appears.

(If the order of the highlighted rows has somehow gone astray, and the new total appears between the CA and OR rows, simply drag the new row below the OR row and drop at the bottom of the report. You can also delete and re-create (within Reporter) to achieve the same effect.

10. Highlight the Time column that appears in the report (it carries na throughout, at this point).

11. Press Delete to remove the column.

The column disappears from our report. We would not have been able to perform this action in Explorer mode, as we discussed earlier.

12. Highlight the 1997 and 1998 columns, in that order.

13. Click Calculate > Subtract from the top menu.

The Subtract dialog box appears.

14. Select the 1998 – 1997 radio button.

15. Type “Change” into the Label box.

The Subtract dialog box appears.

16. Click OK.

The new Change column appears.

17. Click the 1997 column.

18. [CTRL]-Click the new Change column.

The idea here is to highlight both columns simultaneously.

19. Click Calculate > Percent from the top menu.

The Percent dialog box appears.

20. Select the Percent (Change, 1997) radio button

21. Type “% Change” into the Label box.

The Percent dialog box appears.

22. Click OK.

The new % Change column appears.

We might have added divers other features to this report, or to its Explorer forebear, such as exception highlighting, various formatting schemes, additional calculations, and so forth. We will discuss various features of PowerPlay for Windows and its kindred components, within the context of specific focuses, as our series evolves.

23. Click File > Save As from the top menu.

24. Save the file as % Change.ppr in a convenient location.

25. Select File > Exit to close PowerPlay for Windows.

We will conclude our brief overview of PowerPlay for Windows reporting for an Analysis Services cube at this point. Much of the body of functionality that is available can be reviewed within the online documentation and other sources, just as it might be for a natively generated PowerCube. For information regarding another option for Analysis Services cube reporting with Cognos PowerPlay, please see my upcoming article Cognos for Microsoft Analysis Services Reporting: Using PowerPlay Web with an Analysis Services Cube.