Economical Cloud-Based Business Intelligence with Software from Microsoft, Google, Panorama Software, and SDG Computing
Tim Peterson
This article describes a new strategy for cloud-based Business Intelligence, combining software systems from a wide variety of sources, including Microsoft, Google, Panorama Software, and SDG Computing.
A Challenging Time for Business Intelligence
New opportunities have opened up for Business Intelligence in
recent years. Organizations are analyzing their data in ways that
allow them to monitor current performance, discover trends, and gain
business insight. The growth of Business Intelligence has been
fueled by several contributing factors:
- A recognition that there is important information hidden in corporate data
- Increasing requirements for managers to have analytical reports on current data
- Advances in Business Intelligence software
- More powerful computers
The current economic slowdown, however, has made it difficult for organizations to continue with new initiatives – even when those initiatives are critical to the success of the organization.
The strategy described in this paper provides a convenient and economical way to move forward with cloud-based Business Intelligence. It does this by bringing together high-quality, reasonably priced software from four companies.
The Software - Microsoft
This strategy is anchored in Microsoft Business Intelligence,
specifically in the use of Microsoft Analysis Services, the
multidimensional database system that is sold as a part of Microsoft
SQL Server 2008.
Microsoft Analysis Services is a powerful tool for building
dimensions and cubes. It is also economical when compared with other
products – and very economical (free!) for organizations that have
already purchased Microsoft SQL Server. It takes some time and skill
to design and set up a multidimensional database in Analysis
Services, but there is a lot of help for organizations who choose to
do so – consultants, training sessions, books, blogs, etc.
If you aren’t currently using Microsoft Analysis Services, I
encourage you to give it a try. It is a great platform for
developing Business Intelligence solutions.
If you have already created cubes in Microsoft Analysis Services,
then you are ready to try the strategy for cloud-based Business
Intelligence described in this paper.
The Software - Google and Panorama Software
Google has developed a flexible tool called a gadget, which can be
used in a wide variety of ways. Using Google’s gadget framework,
third party companies have developed gadgets for telling horoscopes,
for translating phrases into other languages, for playing games, and
whatever else people can imagine.
Panorama Software has developed a Google gadget that displays data
from a multidimensional cube. The presentation of the data in the
tool looks very good. A spreadsheet view and a variety of charts are
available. All the normal multi-dimensional capabilities are built
in to the gadget – placing any of the dimensions on rows and
columns, drilling down, slicing, etc. The tool has a large number of
built-in calculations, including time-based calculations such as
Year-To-Date.
And all this functionality is available for free. (At least it’s
free now, along with advertising being displayed.)
The Panorama Analytics Gadget (as it’s called) can be used in a
variety of places:
- You can place it on your web site.
- You can use it on your personal igoogle page.
- You use it in a GoogleDocs spreadsheet.
- You can display it in a blog posting.
Panorama is the largest remaining independent company that markets client software for Microsoft Analysis Services. Panorama’s enterprise product NovaView provides more advanced capabilities for browsing Microsoft Analysis Services cubes than any other tool.
The Software - CubeSlice from SDG Computing
You can use the Panorama Analytics Gadget to look at cube data from your Analysis Server cubes – but not directly. It does not now allow a direct connection to an Analysis Server database.Instead, you use the gadget with local cube files built from your Analysis Server cubes. These local cube files are uploaded to the cloud, where they can then be browsed using Panorama’s gadget.
The last piece of software needed for this strategy is CubeSlice, a local cube generating tool from SDG Computing. CubeSlice allows you to connect to any Analysis Server cube, decide which portions of it you want to include, and create a local cube file that meets your specifications. You can remove measure groups, measures, dimensions, hierarchies, levels, attributes, calculations, KPIs, or actions that you don’t want. You can slice any of the hierarchies on any member or combination of members. You can make your choices and then schedule your local cubes to be created repeatedly on a schedule – every night after the data mart load, for example.
CubeSlice is available with all its features for a free trial period. If you’re already using Analysis Services, you’re ready to give this whole strategy a try with no cost or commitment.
How It All Fits Together
You create your cubes in Microsoft Analysis Services. You create
local cube files from those Analysis Server cubes with CubeSlice.
You upload those local cubes to the cloud and view them there with
the Panorama Analytics Gadget. You give this cube data to whoever
needs to see it – either by putting the gadget on a web page, by
sending a link so people can add the gadget to their igoogle page,
or by sharing a GoogleDocs spreadsheet with the gadget.
See this being done here, using the familiar Adventure Works cubes
from Microsoft’s Analysis Services demo:
There are four copies of the gadget hooked up to four different
local cubes. One of them contains the top 100 products sold
world-wide. Another contains all the sales in Australia for two
months. The third contains all the customer information for the best
Australian customers. The fourth contains the customers from
Australia who had purchases in previous years but no purchases in
the most recent year (2004 in Adventure Works).
You can browse all these cubes, trying out the Panorama Analytics
Gadget. You can imagine the different views you could create with
your own data – and how you could make that data available to
everyone who needs to see it.
Why You Would Choose To Do This – A Variety of Scenarios
There are different reasons for following this strategy, depending
on your current situation.
Scenario #1. Those Who Are Using Analysis Services
with Microsoft Office SharePoint Server and PerformancePoint
Services
Congratulations! You already have a complete strategy for delivering
your BI information through a web portal. But there may be times
when you want to take a specific portion of your data and give it to
someone who doesn’t have access to your SharePoint site. You can use
the Panorama Analytics Gadget to deliver the cubes for those special
situations.
Scenario #2. Those Who Are Using Analysis Services
with Microsoft Excel
Microsoft Excel 2007 is a very good client tool for Analysis
Services cubes. Consider using BI in the cloud if you want to extend
the reach of your BI solution to a wider group of people. Because
you’re already using Analysis Services, it will be very easy for you
to implement this strategy.
Scenario #3. Those Who Are Using Analysis Services
and Are Still Looking for the Perfect Analysis Services client tool.
This is the ideal situation for trying the Panorama-Google-CubeSlice
solution. It will be very easy for you to try distributing your
cubes through the cloud and it costs nothing to try. Even if you
eventually choose a different client tool, you can still use the
Panorama Analytics Gadget for special situations.
If you like the Panorama gadget, you should consider looking at
NovaView, Panorama’s Enterprise tool. NovaView offers a combination
of traditional network access to cube data together with Business
Intelligence in the cloud. While you are browsing your cube with
NovaView, you may find a particular view of the data you want to
share. You can export this view to the cloud. The underlying cube
data is still available in the cloud, so that other users can start
with your view and continue analyzing the data with their own
browsing.
Scenario #4. Those Who Want to Do Business
Intelligence, But Are Not Now Using Microsoft Analysis Services.
You have a longer way to go before you can implement this strategy.
But it’s good to think about it now. If you’re considering other
multidimensional database systems, I would encourage you to look at
how much functionality you can get at a reasonable cost by using
Microsoft Analysis Services. And with Microsoft Business
Intelligence you have a wide variety of ways to get the data to your
users. I hope that this possibility of doing BI in the cloud will
give you one more reason to choose Microsoft for Business
Intelligence.
Getting Started
If you’re interested in this solution, here’s what you should do
next:
1. See the sample Business Intelligence
dashboard in the cloud.
2. If you’re not using Microsoft Analysis Services, find out how it
can help you set up an excellent Business Intelligence System.
Much information at Microsoft's BI pages.
Many vendors offer assistance in getting started with Microsoft
Analysis Services. We also would be glad to help you with this. You
can contact us here.
3. If you have a Microsoft Analysis Server cube, download a copy of
CubeSlice and create some local cube files. If you have a large
cube, create a local cube that has only some of the data, by
removing large dimensions or lower levels of large dimensions.
Download a free demo of CubeSlice
here.
4. Open iGoogle or a new spreadsheet in GoogleDocs. (If you haven’t
used iGoogle or GoogleDocs before, go to Google and register for a
free account.) Choose the option to add a new gadget. Search for
Panorama Analytics. You will see two gadgets. Pick the one that is
called Panorama Analytics and add it to your iGoogle page or your
GoogleDocs spreadsheet.
5. Upload your local cube file with the Panorama Analytics Gadget.
(Note that you also have the choice of using the gadget with OnLine
Reports, which are created with Panorama NovaView. And you can use
the gadget with Google spreadsheets and other data files, in
situations where you have a small amount of data to analyze.)
6. Configure the pivot table, selecting what you want to see on rows
and columns and choosing the measure you want to display. Explore
the various options. You can:
- Put additional dimensions on the rows or columns.
- Drill down to lower levels.
- Slice by one of the values in any of the unused hierarchies.
- Choose different types of charts, or choose to just display the grid.
- Order values from highest to lowest.
- Apply calculations.
- Export your data.
There is Online Help available when using the gadget. You can also read more at the Panorama website about using the Panorama Analytics Gadget:
7. When you are done configuring your gadget, share it with others who need to see your data. You can share it through iGoogle, with a shared GoogleDocs spreadsheet, by adding the gadget to your blog, or by putting it on your web site.
8. Please contact us with questions or for more information.
Happy Cloud Browsing!
Conclusion
Low-cost cloud-based Business Intelligence is very possible today by combining:
- Microsoft Analysis Services, as the database Business Intelligence Server
- Google, for the cloud
- The Panorama Analytics Gadget, for cube viewing
- CubeSlice, for creating the local cubes to connect it all together