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The Value Added by a Second OLAP Client Tool

by Tim Peterson

This whitepaper outlines the advantages of using two OLAP client tools in an organization - one that provides comprehensive browsing features and a second that allows for wide distribution of OLAP data. The use of two OLAP client tools can enable the most powerful and cost-effective use of Business Intelligence information.

The Challenge of Choosing OLAP Tools

There are many companies that provide tools for storing and presenting multidimensional (OLAP) data. Most companies sell their OLAP tools in a package that includes both the server and client components (such as Cognos, Business Objects, and Essbase).

Microsoft provided an alternative model for marketing OLAP tools. Starting with Microsoft SQL Server 7 in 1999, Microsoft included an OLAP server tool (now called Analysis Services) with their database for no additional charge. SQL Server did not, however, include an OLAP client tool. Instead, Microsoft provided an OLAP client tool with Microsoft Office and encouraged other companies to create client tools for Analysis Services. Many companies now offer these client tools (including Panorama, ProClarity, and Temtec).

The result is that organizations have a basic choice to make when they are considering the purchase of OLAP tools. Do they want to have a combined OLAP package, which includes both the OLAP server and OLAP client tools? Or do they want to use Microsoft Analysis Services for the OLAP server, with the need to make an additional choice regarding OLAP client tools?

The decision to use Microsoft Analysis Services is often influenced by price. If an organization already owns Microsoft SQL Server, they don’t have to spend any additional money to use Microsoft Analysis Services for their OLAP Server. Their only investment is in acquiring an OLAP client tool that can display the data used in Microsoft Analysis Services.

There is an additional benefit in using Microsoft Analysis Services, which often goes unrecognized. Because Microsoft Analysis Services only provides the OLAP server tool, but not the OLAP client tool, a company can choose to use Microsoft Analysis Services as the single OLAP server, but provide different client tools for different users.

The decision regarding OLAP client tools is very significant. It’s better for advanced OLAP users to have full-featured client tools. On the other hand, beginning OLAP users often do better with a simple tool that doesn’t require much instruction. Powerful OLAP client tools are usually more expensive, and it doesn’t make sense to purchase expensive software for users who don’t want to use it. And each of the OLAP client tools has its own special features. Different users may want different features, which might not all be available when using one tool.

The choice of the wrong OLAP client tool for a particular individual can lead to frustration, which can result in the loss of needed business insights. For a detailed discussion regarding the benefits of using a variety of OLAP tools in one organization, see the article on “How Not to Buy an OLAP Product” by Nigel Pendse of the OLAP Report at http://www.olapreport.com/How_not_to_buy.htm.

A Client Tool for Cutting Edge OLAP Browsing

OLAP tools attempt to present massive quantities of data in a way that makes sense to the business decision-maker. Multidimensional data visualization is still a developing art. OLAP client tool designers are finding new ways to show the patterns, trends, and exceptions that users want to see. They are also developing better ways of navigating the millions of different perspectives that are available in an OLAP cube.

It is a good investment for an organization to purchase an OLAP client tool that allows users to view the data in the way that is most helpful for them. The promise and goal of OLAP is to model data in a way that accurately mirrors the process of business analysis. The purpose of the dimensions and levels and measures of an OLAP cube is to match the organization of data in the analyst’s mind. But there is no limit to what the analyst might want to know. It will often be the most advanced OLAP tools that give the analyst the edge in comprehending what is really significant about their business information.

There are many excellent OLAP client tools that work with Microsoft Analysis Services. Here are some examples:

• Panorama NovaView provides a very pleasing way of displaying and navigating the levels and dimensions of a cube. NovaView offers a convenient way to search for and highlight exceptions present in lower levels of the data.

• ProClarity has a convenient, straight-forward interface for browsing OLAP data. It also provides alternative visualization possibilities, including the Decomposition Tree, which allows a user to see the significant members of levels displayed in relationship to members at other levels.

• Temtec Executive Viewer includes numerous charting and reporting options, including the use of maps to visually display OLAP data.

Microsoft Office as a Second OLAP Client Tool

The OLAP client tools in Microsoft Office are an excellent choice for the user who is less familiar with OLAP, as long as certain issues are addressed.

Microsoft Office includes four tools that support OLAP:

• The Pivot Table and Pivot Chart in Excel
• The Pivot Table list and the Office Chart Component in the Office Web Components

The Excel tools and the Office Web Component tools have very similar functionality. You can easily move data between the Excel Pivot Table and the Office Web Component Pivot Table list.

OLAP support was first provided in Microsoft Office 2000. Significant improvements were made in Office XP and again in Office 2003.

The Microsoft Office OLAP client tools offer several advantages:

• They provide a simple drag-and-drop method of moving dimensions, levels, and measures from the Field List to the Pivot Table or Chart.
• The process of drilling up, drilling down, and member slicing is simple and intuitive.
• Many users are already using Microsoft Excel and are more willing to try OLAP when it is a part of a familiar tool.
• Because many companies already own Microsoft Office, they can avoid spending extra money in purchasing client tools for people who want to use OLAP, but who will use it less frequently.

There are some issues, however, that need to be addressed before the OLAP client tools in Microsoft Office can be effectively used:

• It is difficult for a beginning user to find the menu choices needed to connect to an OLAP cube using Microsoft Excel.
• Users familiar with Microsoft Excel still need some instruction in order to understand the concepts of OLAP browsing.
• Though Microsoft Excel supports off-line OLAP cube browsing, that support is limited, is time-consuming to use, and is difficult to find.

Microsoft Office is an ideal choice for a beginning OLAP user, but a tool is needed to help users get started using it.

CubeSlice to Make Microsoft Office Convenient

< CubeSlice makes the power of the Microsoft Office OLAP client tools readily accessible so that they can be easily used by all users, whether or not they have previous experience with OLAP browsing.

CubeSlice is built using the Pivot Table list and the Office Chart Component from the Microsoft Office Web Components. It uses the capabilities of these tools and adds the following functionality:

• The ability to create multiple views allows one user to share combinations of dimensions, levels, members, and measures with another user.
• Changes made while browsing are saved, but users can easily return to the way the view was originally displayed. The ease of returning to previous states of the view helps beginning users feel confident in trying their own OLAP browsing.
• One set of views can connect a user to several different Analysis Servers and/or to off-line cubes.
• A place for notes with each view allows one user to share insights regarding OLAP data with other users.
• Full support for moving between on-line and off-line data (if the administrator chooses that option), so that users are not tied to their network.
• The ability to create CubeSlice Share files, which display CubeSlice views and OLAP data on computers that don’t have CubeSlice installed.
• The ability to automatically create multiple CubeSlice Share files and local cube files for different users, each containing only the data appropriate for that user.
• Translation of cubes and views into other languages.

CubeSlice has the following components and editions:

• The CubeSlice Creator is used to design views and to provide on-line and off-line access to OLAP data. The Creator creates CubeSlice Share files, CubeSlice View files, CubeSlice Data files, and local cube files.
• The CubeSlice Viewer is used to view the files created with the Creator.
• CubeSlice Viewer Basic is a limited function edition of the CubeSlice Viewer, which can be used without charge.
• CubeSlice Viewer Share is a limited function edition of the CubeSlice Viewer, which is included as a part of each CubeSlice Viewer Share file. It is freely distributable and does not have to be installed.

CubeSlice can be used on any computer that has Microsoft Office XP or Microsoft Office 2003 installed. It does not support Microsoft Office 2000.

CubeSlice works with Analysis Services in Microsoft SQL Server 2000 and Microsoft SQL Server 2005.

CubeSlice is much cheaper than other OLAP client tools because its OLAP capabilities are provided by Microsoft Office. CubeSlice Share files can be freely distributed within or outside your organization without purchasing any additional client licenses.

For More Information

For more information about CubeSlice, a sample of a CubeSlice Share file, and a free 30-day fully functioning demo, see www.cubeslice.com

For a tour of CubeSlice functionality, see www.cubeslice.com/tour.htm

For CubeSlice pricing information, see www.cubeslice.com/purchasecsv.htm

About the Author

Tim Peterson was involved with his first Microsoft SQL Server data warehousing project in 1995 with SQL Server 6.0. For several years he has devoted most of his time to helping organizations effectively implement Business Intelligence solutions with Microsoft SQL Server and Analysis Services. He is the lead author of Microsoft OLAP Unleashed (SAMS, 1999) and the author of Microsoft SQL Server 2000 Data Transformation Services (DTS) (SAMS, 2001). He has given five presentations at conferences of the Professional Association for SQL Server (PASS). Tim is the lead designer of CubeSlice and its predecessor products, the Local Cube Task and the OLAP Client Management System.

SQL Server, Analysis Services, Office, Excel, and the Office Web Components are trademarks of the Microsoft Corporation. NovaView is a trademark of Panorama Software Ltd. ProClarity is a trademark of the ProClarity Corporation. Executive Viewer is a trademark of Temtec International B.V. The OLAP Report is published by Optima Publishing Ltd. CubeSlice, CubeSlice Creator, CubeSlice Viewer, CubeSlice Share, Local Cube Task, and OLAP Client Management System are trademarks of SDG Computing, Inc.