C1000-065 IBM Cognos Analytics Developer V11.1.x Questions and Answers

In IBM Cognos Analytics V11.1.x, AI is utilized in a dashboard line chart visualization in the following ways:

Forecast:

AI-Powered Predictions: The forecast feature uses AI algorithms to predict future values based on historical data trends. This helps in making data-driven forecasts directly within the line chart visualization.

Enable Forecast: Users can enable forecasting on the line chart to visualize potential future data points.

Meaningful Differences:

Identifying Significant Variations: AI helps to highlight meaningful differences in the data, such as outliers or significant changes. This assists users in quickly identifying and focusing on important data variations.

Automatic Analysis: The system automatically analyzes the data and emphasizes variations that are statistically significant.

These AI-driven features enhance the analytical capabilities of dashboard visualizations, providing deeper insights and predictive analysis.

To create a Layout Component Reference in a report in IBM Cognos Analytics V11.1.x, you need to provide the "Name" property. Here are the steps:

Define Component: Identify the component you want to reference in your report layout.

Set Name Property: Assign a unique name to the component in its properties. This name will be used to reference the component.

Create Layout Component Reference: In the report where you want to use the component, add a Layout Component Reference and specify the name of the original component.

Reference the Component: The referenced component will be displayed in the new location, allowing you to reuse layout elements across multiple reports.

Using the "Name" property ensures that components can be easily referenced and maintained.

Query Performance: Enhancing query performance involves various optimization techniques.

Avoid Functions in Filters: Using functions in filters can lead to slower query performance because functions often require additional computation and can prevent the database from using indexes efficiently.

Best Practices: It is recommended to simplify filters and avoid complex functions to ensure queries run faster.

Reference: IBM Cognos Analytics V11.1.x documentation suggests avoiding the use of functions in filters as a best practice for improving query performance.

Using Data Sets: To use a Data set as a data source in a report, it needs to be added to a Data Module.

Data Module Integration: Adding the Data set to a Data Module integrates it into the Cognos environment, making it accessible for report development.

Procedure: Developers can create or modify a Data Module to include the Data set, which then becomes available for use in reports.

Reference: The IBM Cognos Analytics V11.1.x documentation explains the process of adding Data sets to Data Modules, enabling their use as data sources in reports.

Creating an information panel to be displayed in the foyer of an office can be effectively accomplished using the Story feature in Cognos Analytics. Here’s why a Story played in Kiosk mode with a loop is the best option:

Create a Story: In Cognos Analytics, navigate to the "New" menu and select "Story". This allows you to create a visual narrative using your data.

Add Content: Populate the Story with the desired content, such as charts, text, images, and other visualizations. Arrange the content to provide an engaging and informative display.

Kiosk Mode: Enable Kiosk mode, which is designed for unattended, continuous display scenarios. Kiosk mode automatically loops through the Story slides.

Looping: Configure the Story to loop, ensuring that the information panel continually updates and repeats, providing ongoing information without user intervention.

Using Stories in Kiosk mode is ideal for creating dynamic, visually appealing information panels with minimal development effort.

To combine several images and text objects into one object in a dashboard, follow these steps to group the objects:

Select Objects: In the dashboard editor, select the images and text objects that you want to combine.

Group Objects: Use the "Group" option available in the toolbar or right-click menu to group the selected objects. This creates a single group object that can be moved and aligned as a unit.

Adjust Group Properties: You can adjust the properties of the group as needed, such as alignment, size, and position.

Grouping objects simplifies the management of multiple items, making it easier to move and align them within the dashboard layout.

Creating a context filter for a crosstab report using a dimensional data source in IBM Cognos Analytics V11.1.x involves filtering measure values without affecting the items in the rows and columns. Here is how it works:

Open Crosstab Report: Open the crosstab report in Cognos Analytics Report Studio.

Select Measure: Identify the measure you want to filter.

Add Context Filter: Apply the context filter to the measure. This filter will affect only the measure values and not the dimensional items in the rows and columns.

Filter Configuration: Configure the filter criteria as needed to refine the measure values displayed in the crosstab.

Using context filters in this manner allows for precise control over the data being analyzed without altering the structure of the crosstab.

In IBM Cognos Analytics V11.1.x, when formatting text in a dashboard crosstab or table, the following statement is true:

Table Summary Row Formatting:

Customization: You can format the table summary row with a different color. This allows for visual differentiation between the summary row and other rows in the table or crosstab.

Implementation: Select the summary row, access the formatting options, and apply the desired color.

Additional Formatting Capabilities:

Column Titles: Although column titles can be formatted individually in terms of font, color, and size, this is a general capability and not specific to summary rows.

Text Wrapping: By default, the object does not wrap text, but this option can be enabled if needed.

Applying specific formatting to the summary row enhances the readability and visual appeal of the data presentation.

Filter Expression: The filter expression[Product Group] = # sq( prompt( 'productgroups', 'token', 'Clothes' ) )#uses a prompt macro.

Default Text: The string 'Clothes' acts as the default value for the prompt. If the user does not provide a value at runtime, 'Clothes' will be used in the generated query.

Macro Function: Thepromptfunction retrieves the value provided by the user or defaults to 'Clothes' if no value is supplied.

Reference: IBM Cognos Analytics V11.1.x documentation provides detailed information on using macros and prompt functions, including the use of default values in filter expressions.

Layout Positioning for Mobile Devices: When designing dashboards for different mobile devices, the layout positioning must be flexible.

Relative Positioning: This option ensures that dashboard components are arranged in a way that adapts to different screen sizes and orientations, providing a consistent user experience across various devices.

Adaptive Layouts: Relative positioning allows the dashboard elements to resize and reposition automatically based on the device, ensuring usability and accessibility.

Reference: IBM Cognos Analytics V11.1.x documentation recommends using relative positioning for dashboards intended for mobile devices to maintain optimal presentation and functionality.

Custom Sorting: In IBM Cognos Analytics dashboards, custom sorting allows developers to manually define the order of columns in visualizations.

Manual Ordering: By using custom sorting, the developer can specify the exact order in which columns should appear, overriding any automatic sorting.

Implementation: This is done by accessing the sort options for the visualization and choosing the custom sort option, where the desired order can be set.

Reference: IBM Cognos Analytics V11.1.x documentation details the process of using custom sorting to manually order columns in a visualization, ensuring that the display order meets specific requirements.

Default Measure Property: Changing the Default measure property in a Crosstab impacts how measures are displayed.

Replacing Existing Measures: If a measure is already set on the Crosstab edges, changing the Default measure will replace the existing measure with the new Default measure.

Crosstab Updates: This change updates the Crosstab intersections to reflect the new Default measure, altering the displayed values accordingly.

Reference: The IBM Cognos Analytics V11.1.x documentation provides comprehensive details on Crosstab properties and the implications of modifying the Default measure, ensuring accurate data representation in reports.

Dynamic Query Analyzer: This tool is used to analyze and troubleshoot queries in IBM Cognos Analytics.

Graphical Representations: The Dynamic Query Analyzer provides graphical representations of the query logs produced by Dynamic Query Mode (DQM) queries. This visualization helps in understanding the query execution and performance.

Troubleshooting Assistance: By analyzing these graphical logs, developers can identify bottlenecks, optimize query performance, and resolve issues more efficiently.

Share Option: The Share option in IBM Cognos Analytics V11.1.x provides multiple ways to share dashboard content with other applications or users.

iFrame Generation: One of the key benefits is the ability to generate HTML code to create an iFrame. This allows the dashboard to be embedded within other web applications or websites.

Implementation: Users can copy the generated HTML code and insert it into their web pages, facilitating seamless integration and access to Cognos dashboards.

Cognos Documentation: According to IBM Cognos Analytics V11.1.x documentation, the Share option is designed to enhance the accessibility and usability of dashboards by leveraging standard web technologies like iFrames.

To modify a prompt in a relational sourced report to support multi-select functionality, make the following changes:

Change Prompt Property Usage to Select-many:

Edit the Prompt: Select the prompt object in the report.

Property Panel: In the properties panel, change the "Usage" property from "Select-one" to "Select-many". This allows users to select multiple values in the prompt.

Update Filter Expression:

Edit Query: Open the query associated with the prompt.

Change Filter Expression: Modify the filter expression from using "=" to "in". This change ensures that the filter can handle multiple values selected by the user.

These modifications enable the prompt to accept multiple selections and apply the filter accordingly in the report.