Data requirements for widgets: Quick reference table

To successfully create a useful widget that can be used to analyze data, you must first correctly define it. To do this, you must place report objects such as attributes and metrics on the widget's template. The report objects and their placement on the widget template determine whether the widget can be successfully generated and can display data in Flash Mode.

Refer to the table below for descriptions of the requirements for each type of widget. The table also lists whether or not you need to create a selector to work with the widget, since some widgets do not come with their own selectors (such as the Gauge widget) and some do (such as the Interactive Stacked Graph).

For steps to add and define a widget, see Inserting a widget into a document. For steps to add a selector to a document, see Inserting a selector into a document.

Widget Type

Need to create a selector to interact with the widget?

Report Objects Required on the Widget Template

Gauge

Yes

  • One attribute on the rows. The attribute elements are displayed in the selector that an analyst uses to display different data in the widget.

  • One metric on the columns. The metric values determine the location of the needle on the gauge.

(No maximum number of attributes and metrics)

Cylinder

Yes

  • One attribute on the rows. The attribute elements are displayed in the selector that you use to display different data in the widget.

  • One metric on the columns. The metric values determine the amount of liquid displayed in the cylinder.

(No maximum number of attributes and metrics)

Thermometer

Yes

  • One attribute on the rows. The attribute elements are displayed in the selector that you use to display different data in the widget.

  • One metric on the columns. The metric values determine the temperature level within the thermometer.

(No maximum number of attributes and metrics)

Time Series Slider

No

  • One attribute on the rows, preferably time-based. The attribute elements are displayed along the X-axis.

  • One metric on the columns. The metric values are displayed along the Y-axis. If you include two metrics, a line graph and an area graph are displayed together.

(No maximum number of attributes and metrics)

Interactive Bubble Graph

No

  • One attribute on the rows

  • To enable drilling on the bubble chart, add one additional attribute (a second attribute) to the right of the attribute in the rows. This attribute must a child attribute of the parent attribute already on the rows. For details, see Enabling drilling in an Interactive Bubble Graph widget.

  • To enable time series animation *in addition to drilling*, add yet another attribute (a third attribute) to the leftmost side of the rows. In Flash Mode in Web, you must enable the time-series analysis and/or drilling check boxes.

  • Three metrics on the columns. These metrics are displayed along the X-axis, Y-axis and Z-axis, in order from left to right (For example, the metric on the top of the columns is displayed on the X-axis). The Z-axis value determines the size of the bubble.

  • To display a different color bubble (series) for each attribute element on the bubble chart, add an additional attribute above the three metrics on the columns.

Interactive Stacked Graph

No

  • Two attributes, one on the rows and one on the columns.

  • The attribute placed in the widget template's columns will appear in the list of check boxes on the left side of the widget. For example, if you place a Category attribute in the columns and then switch to Flash Mode, the list of categories is displayed on the left as check boxes. You can select each check box to show or hide that specific data on the area graph.

  • Attributes placed on the columns must appear to the left of any metrics on the columns.

  • The attributes placed in the widget template's rows will appear on the X-axis at the bottom of the area graph in the widget. For example, if you place a Region attribute in the rows and then switch to Flash Mode, the regions are listed on the X-axis (the horizontal graph line) at the bottom of the area graph.

  • One metric on the columns. The metric values are displayed on the Y-axis of the graph.

  • Metrics must appear below (or to the right of) any attributes on the columns.

(No maximum number of attributes. You can have only one metric on the widget template.)

Waterfall

No

  • Place at least one attribute and/or one metric on the rows of the widget template.

    • The elements of attributes placed on the rows are displayed on the X-axis.

    • Metrics placed on the rows are displayed on the X-axis of the widget. Bars based on the values of these metrics are displayed in the widget. If the metrics used in your document provide the increments and decrements for the widget, it is recommended that you place the metrics on the rows.

    • When both attributes and metrics are placed on the rows, a combination of those objects is displayed on the X-axis.

  • Place at least one attribute and/or one metric on the columns of the widget template.

    • Metrics placed on the columns are displayed in the legend. Bars based on the values of the metrics are displayed in the widget.

    • The elements of attributes placed on the columns are displayed in the legend.

    • When both attributes and metrics are placed on the columns, a combination of those objects is displayed on the X-axis.

 

Bubble Grid

No

  • Place two attributes on the widget template's rows.

Note: Bubbles are generated at the intersections of the elements from these attributes.

    • Elements from the first (left-most) attribute are displayed on the X-axis of the widget. This attribute represents one of the business areas that can be analyzed in the widget.

    • To analyze data along the X-axis relative to time, use a time-based attribute such as Hour, Day, or Month. If you use an Hour or Day attribute, apply a view filter to the Grid/Graph to limit the amount of hours or days displayed at once in the widget.

    • Elements from the second attribute are displayed on the Y-axis of the widget. This attribute represents the other business area that can be analyzed in the widget.

  • Place at least two metrics on the widget template's columns. The values of these two metrics produce the bubbles in the widget, as described below:

    • The first (left-most) metric determines the size of the bubbles. The smallest metric values produce the smallest bubbles in the widget; the largest metric values produce the largest bubbles.

    • The second metric determines the color of the bubbles. For example, if Profit is the second metric on the columns, the colors of the bubbles depict the range of profit values. You can determine which colors are used for minimum and maximum metric values.

    • Additional metrics are displayed in tooltips when an analyst hovers the cursor over a bubble in Flash Mode. These metrics do not have an effect on the size or color of the bubbles in the widget.

 

Graph Matrix

No

  • Place at least two attributes on the widget template's rows.

    • The first (left-most) attribute on the rows, and the second, third, fourth, and so on, provide the row headers in the widget.

    • The last (right-most) attribute on the rows provides the X-axes of the graphs. This attribute, which is generally time-based, is used to drive the time series of the graphs.

  • Place at least two metrics on the widget template's columns. The values of these two metrics produce the bubbles in the widget, as described below:

    • The first (left-most) attribute on the columns provides the column headers in the widget. These values are used to slice the data, or group it by the attributes on the columns.

    • Additional attributes on the columns produce separate line graphs within each area graph in the widget.

      • If you do not place any attributes on the columns, you must place at least three attributes on the rows.

  • Place at least one metric to the right of (or below) the attribute on the widget template's columns.

    • The first metric is depicted as the colored series in the area graphs.

    • Any additional metrics are depicted as the forecast lines in each area graph.

 

Microcharts

No

  • Place at least seven metrics on the widget template’s columns.

    • The first (left-most) metric on the columns determines the height of the bars in the bar microcharts and the peak points in the sparkline microcharts.

    • The second metric creates the horizontal reference lines that are displayed in the sparkline microcharts.

    • The third metric determines the length of the performance measure bar in the bullet microcharts. The bar represents the actual metric value.

    • The fourth metric determines the maximum possible values in the bullet microcharts.

    • The fifth metric determines the right-most boundary of the first color band, Band 1, in the bullet microcharts.

    • The sixth metric determines the right-most boundary of the second color band, Band 2, in the bullet microcharts.

    • The seventh metric determines the value of the vertical reference line in the bullet microcharts, which is typically the target value for the metric.

    • Any additional metrics are displayed in the columns of the widget, after the microcharts and their associated metrics.

 

Weighted List Viewer

No

  • Place at least one attribute on the widget template's rows. The attribute’s elements are displayed in the grid rows of the widget. For example, if you place the Region attribute on the rows, each region is listed in the grid in the widget, with corresponding metric values on the right and a contribution chart on the left.

  • Place two metrics on the widget template's columns. The metric data and corresponding colors displayed in the widget reflect the performance of different elements.

    • The first metric on the columns is the threshold metric. This metric is used to set the color of the rows. These colors are displayed in the grid on the right side of the widget.

    • The second metric on the columns is the weighting metric that determines the percent-to-total value for each business attribute. It is used to set the relative size of each section of the contribution chart on the left side of the widget.

    • Additional metrics are displayed in the grid, but do not have any effect on the threshold colors or contribution chart on the left side of the widget.

 

Funnel

No

  • Place at least one attribute on the widget template's rows.

    • The attributes are displayed as separate sections in the widget.

  • Place at least one metric on the widget template’s columns.

    • The size of each section of the widget is determined by the values of the metric.

 

Time Series Slider

No

  • Place at least one attribute on the rows. This attribute is typically time-based, such a Day or Quarter attribute, but it does necessarily have to be. Its elements are displayed on the X-axis.

  • Place one metric on the columns. The metric values are displayed on the graph report's Y-axis. If you include two metrics, a line graph and an area graph are displayed together.

 

Date Selection

No

  • One attribute on the rows.

    • The attribute must contain a date type attribute (i.e. Day, Month, or Year) on the rows.

 

Data Cloud

No

  • At least one attribute on the rows.

    • The elements of the attribute are displayed in the widget. For example, if the attribute is Year, a list of years is displayed in the widget.

    • If you include additional attributes to the right of the first attribute, elements from all of the attributes are combined and displayed in the widget. For example, if Year is the first attribute and Quarter is the second attribute, every combination of year and quarter is displayed in the widget, including 2007 Q4 and 2007 Q3.

  • At least one metric on the columns.

    • The first metric on the columns determines the size of the font of the attribute elements in the widget.

    • If you include additional metrics to the right of the first metric, the metrics are displayed in the tooltips available in Flash Mode. When a user hovers the cursor over an attribute element, a tooltip is displayed. The tooltip lists the attribute element and metric values for that attribute element.

Heat Map

No

  • One attribute on the rows.

  • The first attribute is used to create the large rectangles whose names are displayed in the widget.

  • If you add additional attributes to the widget template, all of the attributes will be displayed as separate rectangles within the larger rectangles.

Note: The widget can actually take any number of attributes. Attributes with a parent-child relationship work best, because they are ultimately nested within one another.

You can choose to create a dynamic heat map that an analyst can control using a selector. This type of heat map is considered dynamic because a user can use the selector to choose a different attribute element to view on the heat map. For steps, see Creating a dynamic Heat Map.

  • Two metrics on the columns. If more than two metrics are placed on the widget template, they are displayed as options in the drop-down lists within the Heat Map.

  • The first metric on the columns determines the size of the small rectangles within the larger rectangles. Items with lower values are represented by smaller rectangles.

  • The second metric must be placed at the far right of the columns. It determines the color of each rectangle. It must include values in the range of -1 to 1. This range is used to provide different shadings of color in the heat map widget.