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Paul Mendelson, March 23, 2017
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IBM Cognos Analytics R6 – PMsquare Brief 031717
IBM announced the general availability of Cognos Analytics R6 otherwise known as 11.0.6 on Friday March 17th 2017. With Self Service BI guiding the continued development of Cognos Analytics several new features have been added in R6. Attached is an FAQ regarding central aspects of the release.
Table of Contents
Cognos Analytics R6 – New Features
Dashboarding
- Access to OLAP Framework Manager packages DMR, Powercubes, TM1 etc.)
- Dashboard Widget connectivity – advanced customization of widget connections to allow for independent simultaneous analysis in a dashboard.
- See navigation paths in metadata use
Mapping Enhancements
- Pitney Bowes Polygons for multiple administration boundaries:
- Admin National – Country
- Admin 1 – States, Provinces
- Admin 2 – Counties, Cities
- Admin 3-5 – Precinct, Village, Subarea, Parish, Townships, Communes etc.
- Refine Region option to disambiguate locations and the addition of an ambiguous and unrecognized regions list to identify and resolve unrecognized areas.
Reporting
- Interactive Viewer Improvements now include Lineage and Business Glossary
- Freeze List column headings
- Data Module Support for Query Editing, Create custom calculations, Parameterized filters and Drill-through
See Complete Fix List:
http://www-01.ibm.com/support/docview.wss?uid=swg27047208
Cognos Analytics R6 – FAQ
Powerplay
Q: Are there any new developments regarding Powerplay?
A: Not yet, but Powerplay 11 will be released soon. The expectation is R7 timeframe.
Geospatial Analytics
Q: Can we have ESRI Integration with R6 which can provide street level information?
A: ESRI is no longer integrating with Cognos Analytics. That may change in the future but for now our strategic direction for mapping is Mapbox and Pitney Bowes.
Q: Is it possible to have street level information (Latitude /Longitude) via Mapbox and/or Pitney Bowes?
A: A geospatial service that will allow for Latitude /Longitude, street level, etc. will be added in the near future. It is not in R6.
Q: Does R6 support mapping at zip code level?
A: Yes, zip code level is supported.
Q: If Cognos Analtyics won’t support ESRI, does that mean ESRI will be unable to create the integration they’ve had with their SpotOn acquisition? Right now, ESRI functionality is more advanced than MapBox with custom polygons, lasso, etc.
A: ESRI required some extensions to the product for them to integrate that IBM product management was not prepared to support at this time due to higher priorities in the Cognos Analytics roadmap. It may come back later, but right now the aligned direction is with Mapbox. Custom polygons will be added from Pitney Bowes as well as additional gestures like lasso. Possibly as soon as R7.
Dynamic Cubes
Q: Will Dynamic cubes also be supported in Dashboards?
A: Only on premise. Dynamic Cubes are not supported on Cloud at this time. This is being looked at and will be beta tested soon.
Framework Manager
Q: With the continuing capabilities being added to Data Modules, what is the future of Framework Manager?
A: Framework manager is not going anywhere. Data Modules are another way to model data, especially for local data uploaded by a user (Excel, CSV, etc.) Modern BI tools require an easier way to upload and model data which is what Data Modules are for. However, for enterprise needs, Framework Manager is still critical and will remain in the product. So for example, row-level security, and some details around modeling requirements are not in Data Modules as it’s really designed for a Business person to model. Details that IT needs will remain in Framework Manager.
Data Modules
Q: Can you connect two widget that come from two different data source?
A: Yes, you can connect 2 different data sources. Use Data Modules to establish the link. Easy But if relationship/filtering is needed then you’ll need to connect in a data module.
PowerCubes
Q: Can you drill down on the cube dimensions in the dashboard?
A: PowerCubes are connected through a special feature within Cognos Analytics, there are no plans to open CQM to any other source.
Transformer
Q: Are there plans to update Transformer?
A: Transformer will remain as a desktop tool to build cubes. Few feature enhancements are planned, if any, but it is not going anywhere.
Drill Down
Q: Can we drill through from a dashboard to a report? Or drill from a report to a dashboard?
A: Not in R6, but this is on the roadmap and is a priority for next releases.
RAVE
Q: Are D3JS based RAVE2 charts available in R6?
A: D3 is later in the roadmap. RAVE2 customization utility is planned for this calendar year, but not in R6 or R7 but likely in 2nd half.
Workspace Advanced
Q: Can you simplify Authoring to remove many options to make it more like Workspace Advanced? I know that the functionality exists in Authoring to replace Workspace Advanced but I’ve heard Authoring is harder to use.
A: You can create a new role in the Cognos namespace and customize the UI to remove every button/icon in reporting tool.
Legacy Studios
Q: Have any legacy studios been removed?
A: No studios have been removed yet on R6. Event studios will not go away until the capabilities are integrated into Cognos Analytics and improved or easier to use.
Install
Q: Can R6 be installed over R5?
A: Yes. All Cognos Analytics R releases can install over top of each other.
Salesforce
Q: Will R6 connect with Salesforce.com? If so, how will it integrate?
A: We will continue to support connectivity to Salesforce as we always have, using the older “Admin/Data Connection” interface. This is because the Salesforce connection is not JDBC. Connect to Salesforce there, then model in Framework Manager (Note: not Data Modules).
Detailed Review:
PMsquare is scheduling 30 minute informational meetings with all existing Cognos customers to provide support in evaluation of Cognos Analytics R6 and development of a version upgrade roadmap. Please contact us to schedule an appointment.
