Databases Reference
In-Depth Information
The formatting options include choosing whether to copy the existing
workbook formatting, adding custom page headers and footers,
suppressing rows that don't contain data from your reports, and including
a table of contents with each workbook.
A final word on the Essbase add-in
After reading all of this you can see that the Essbase Add-in for Microsoft Excel is
an incredibly powerful tool. The only thing more amazing than how powerful the
Essbase add-in really is is how easy it is to use.
Except for a few functions which require a bit of practice to become good at, every
function included in the Essbase add-in is intuitive and has comprehensive help that
is readily available.
It's also a good idea to keep in mind that as seamless as the add-in is with Microsoft
Excel, the Essbase add-in can be controlled that seamlessly using Microsoft Excel's
built-in and powerful
Visual Basic for Applications (VBA)
. You can create powerful
applications quickly and easily with nothing more than a basic Essbase installation
and Microsoft Excel.
Using the Essbase Query Designer
The EQD is a wonderful tool within a tool that allows you to set up reports and
spreadsheets with the aid of an easy to use visual interface tool. Once you have
a query designed just the way you want it you can save it off and use it over and
over again to retrieve your data.
As mentioned earlier, one huge side benefit of the EQD is that when saving your
custom designed query, you have the option to tell the EQD to also save the query
as an Essbase report script file. Like we mentioned in the previous chapter, this
option lets you utilize the powerful and easy to use data selection functionality
of the EQD to create complicated and specific report scripts as well. Apart from
the complicated selection criteria, you can also sort the data in either ascending
or descending order, rank your data, and also filter your data based on your own
needs. It is with these report scripts and a little editing that you will find yourself
in possession of complex data extraction abilities which will allow you to feed
data to downstream systems efficiently and reliably.
Where do I find the Essbase Query Designer
The EQD can be found as a selection on the Essbase add-in menu pick that is added
to the Microsoft Excel menu toolbar when you install the add-in as shown:
