Database Reference
In-Depth Information
has many additional layers as well. There is a layer that identifies the type of data in the
cell, a layer that identifies attributes for a cell, a layer that returns information about the
text measure, also known as smart lists, if applicable, and a layer that returns formatted
cells values. you also can write values to these layers and, in the case of a query, you
must
write values to the grid using the
IEssGridView.setValue
method.
The final two interfaces,
IEssMemberCell
and
IEssDataCell
, refer to the information
returned from an Essbase query. These two object types identify, as their names imply, a
cell or cells that contain either an Essbase member or a number returned from Essbase.
he
IEssMemberCell
interface contains properties that read the dimension number and
attributes of the cell. have you ever wondered how the classic Essbase Excel add-in and
Smart view determine the formats used to create Styles? Both of those products use
attributes to determine the appropriate format to apply to the cell.
he
IEssDataCell
interface includes methods for both reading and writing the value
of the cell. other methods can tell you if the data cell is read-only, read-write, or if
the user has no access. Data cells are also the attachment point in Essbase for Linked
reporting objects (Lros), and naturally, the
IEssDataCell
interface has methods for
determining if the cell has associated Lros, determining what type of Lros are associ-
ated with the cell, as well as adding and removing Lros from the cell. Another useful
method of this interface returns the members represented by the data cell.
now that you have been introduced to some of the common objects that are used
when programming in the Essbase Java API, let us talk a little about the order in which
some of these objects may be used when writing code. When you write Java applications,
or write code in any language for that matter, you are specifying the actions you want
the computer to perform. Imagine for a minute that you want to write a program that
instructs your friend to go to the store and get a gallon of milk. you may think to your-
self that it should be an easy task because the store is less than a block away on the left-
hand side of the road. however, if you were programming a robot to get you a gallon of
milk, you would need to give it very explicit instructions. If the robot were sitting when
it started, you would have to program instructions including how to stand up, which
way to turn, how to walk, how to open the door, etc. As you can easily see, the program
may get quite detailed and require that instructions be executed in a certain order for
the program to complete successfully. In the Essbase Java API, the order in which opera-
tions much be completed is called the
Task Sequence
.
There are a number of operations in Essbase where the task sequence is very impor-
tant. There are other places where the task sequence is not important at all. one of the
challenges when writing code in the Essbase Java API is to understand when there is an
important task sequence and when an operation does not require a specific sequence.
Ideally, you could look up the task sequence for any operation in the documentation, but
unfortunately, the API documentation does not contain task sequence information. The
Essbase Java API does ship with a number of sample programs, however, and these are
probably the best place to find the proper task sequences for the most common Essbase
operations. The sample code files are located in the following directory:
%EPMHOME%\common\EssbaseJavaAPI\11.1.2.0\samples\japi.
What do you do if there is not sample code that shows the task sequence? In that case,
all you can do is perform the operation and visually observe what happens. Though this
approach is not always helpful, at times it can help you understand the operations that
