SAP BusinessObjects Advanced (Classic Launchpad) · SAP BusinessObjects Advanced 5 Chapter 2. Create a new Web Intelligence document 2. Create a new Web Intelligence document In this

SAP BusinessObjects Advanced (Classic Launchpad)

Workbook

Edition 2 June 2019 Document Reference: 3908-2019

SAP BusinessObjects Advanced

Contents

1. Introduction to the Classic Launchpad ..................................................................... 1

1.1 Classic Launchpad overview ..................................................................................... 1

1.2 Web Intelligence Reading Mode .............................................................................. 4

2. Create a new Web Intelligence document ................................................................ 5

2.1 Before you begin ....................................................................................................... 5

2.2 Choose a universe ..................................................................................................... 6

2.3 Query panel ............................................................................................................... 7

2.4 Query filters ............................................................................................................... 8

2.5 Prompts ................................................................................................................... 10

2.6 Save your new document ....................................................................................... 12

2.7 Exercise .................................................................................................................... 13

3. Report design ........................................................................................................ 14

3.1 Copy a public document ......................................................................................... 14

3.2 Edit the query of a document ................................................................................ 15

3.3 Sections, sorts and filters ....................................................................................... 15

3.4 Add items to your document ................................................................................. 20

3.5 Formatting ............................................................................................................... 23

3.6 Exercise .................................................................................................................... 24

4. Functions and formulas ......................................................................................... 25

4.1 Pre-defined functions ............................................................................................. 25

4.2 The formula editor .................................................................................................. 26

4.3 Variables .................................................................................................................. 27

4.4 Charts ....................................................................................................................... 28

4.5 Exercise .................................................................................................................... 29

5. Sharing documents ................................................................................................ 30

5.1 Send to a BusinessObjects Inbox ........................................................................... 30

5.2 Save to a public folder ............................................................................................ 31

5.3 Exercise .................................................................................................................... 31

6. Help Resources ...................................................................................................... 32

6.1 Reporting + Analytics website ................................................................................ 32

6.2 Information Portal................................................................................................... 32

6.3 Information Security ............................................................................................... 32

If you require this document in an alternative format, such as large print, please

contact Catherine Koppe in the Digital Skills and Training team by email [email protected] or phone 0131 6513233

© Catherine Koppe, University of Edinburgh 2019 CC BY

mailto:[email protected]

SAP BusinessObjects Advanced 1

Chapter 1. Introduction to the Classic Launchpad

1. Introduction to the Classic Launchpad

Learning objectives:

Know when it is appropriate to use the classic Launchpad, rather than the

modern Launchpad.

Understand the layout of the Home and Documents tab in the classic Launchpad.

Be able to find and open a Web Intelligence document from the Public Folders.

Understand the basic features of Web Intelligence Reading Mode.

SAP BusinessObjects can be accessed using either the Modern or Classic Launchpad. The Modern Launchpad is recommended for people who need to view, refresh and export data from ready-made documents. Using the Modern Launchpad is covered in the “SAP BusinessObjects Introduction” course and workbook.

You should use the Classic Launchpad if you want to make changes to existing Web Intelligence documents, or create new ones.

1.1 Classic Launchpad overview

1. Start Firefox, log in to MyEd and locate the Reporting + Analytics channel. Click on the button to open the Classic Launchpad.

http://www.myed.ed.ac.uk/

2 SAP BusinessObjects Advanced


When you first log in to the classic Launchpad you will see the Home tab, which consists of 6 panels:

Welcome

My Recently Viewed Documents

Help & Support

Messages in My Inbox

My Recently Run Documents

My Applications

The Home tab is equivalent to the My Home tab in the Modern Launchpad.

The Classic Launchpad also has a Documents tab, which is similar to the Folders tab in the Modern Launchpad. The Documents tab gives you access to your private and public documents. The Documents tab has 4 drawers in the left panel:

My Documents. This is your personal file-space where you can save Web Intelligence documents that you create or modify. You can also create sub-folders to keep your files organised. The My Documents drawer contains your BusinessObjects Inbox, which is where you will find any documents sent to you by other BusnessObjects users.

Folders. This drawer contains all of the Public Folders that you have access to.

Recycle Bin. Any documents that you delete will be kept in the recycle bin for 30 days.

Search. Allows you to search all of the files that you have access to.



2. To open a Web Intelligence document from a Public Folder in the Classic Launchpad, first click on the Documents tab.

3. Open the Folders drawer and click on the plus sign (+) to the left of Public Folders to expand the folder and view the sub-folders.

4. Locate the Web Intelligence document that you want to view within the Public Folders. When located, double-click on the document’s name to open it. It will open in a new tab in the Launchpad.



1.2 Web Intelligence Reading Mode

The date that the document was last refreshed is displayed in the bottom right corner. Click this button if you want to refresh the document.

If the document contains more than one report, these will be visible as tabs at the bottom of the main viewing area. Click on the tabs to switch between reports.

If the report contains simple filters, click on the Filter Bar button in the top toolbar to view and use them.

Click on the Export button in the top toolbar to export the data as a PDF or Excel file.

Click on the cross (X) button on the document’s tab to close it.


Chapter 2. Create a new Web Intelligence document

2. Create a new Web Intelligence document

In this section, you will learn how to use the Query Panel to create a new Web Intelligence document.


Open the Web Intelligence application.

Select a universe as a data source.

Be aware of the different types of objects.

Use the Query Panel to add objects (including the search function).

Know the advantages of using query filters.

Add simple and multi-value query filters.

Add prompted filters.

Save your new document.

2.1 Before you begin

It’s a good idea to check what is already available before creating a new document. The information you need may already be in an existing document, or it may be more efficient to modify an existing document to meet your requirements (see section 3.1), rather than creating a new document from scratch.

There are several ways to find what’s already available before creating a new document:

Browse documents in the Public Folders drawer on the Documents tab. You can

also use the Search drawer to search documents that you have access to.

Check the Information Portal, which has links to all the key information sources

held within the University.

Contact the relevant business area helpdesk if you need help finding or reporting

on specific information.

https://www.wiki.ed.ac.uk/x/YAAoD

https://www.ed.ac.uk/information-services/computing/comms-and-collab/reporting-and-analytics/access



2.2 Choose a universe

A BusinessObjects universe is a layer that maps onto a University database. The universe contains objects that we can use to retrieve the data that interests us, without having to understand the underlying database’s structure, or risk accidentally modifying it.

1. On the Home tab, click on the Web Intelligence button in the My Applications panel (right side) to open the Web Intelligence application in a new tab on the Launchpad.

Tip: If you get an error about needing to install a Java virtual machine you should update your preferences to use the HTML editor. To do this, open your Preferences using the link at the top right of the screen. Choose Web Intelligence and ensure that the HTML radio button is selected for both the View and Modify options.

Click Save & Close and refresh your browser tab to allow the changes to take effect.

2. Click on the New button in the top toolbar to create a new Web Intelligence document.

3. Ensure Universe is selected as the data source. Click OK.

You will see a list of the BusinessObjects Universes that you have access to.

4. Select a universe from the list and click OK.

The Query Panel will open.



2.3 Query panel

Use the query panel to select and filter the data you want to include in your document.

The Available Objects pane lists all the data objects available in the selected universe. This is the toolbox for building the query that will be the basis of your Webi document.

Result Objects pane – drag objects here to include them in your query.

Query Filters pane – drag objects here to set restrictions on the data returned by your query.

Search box – use this to search the available objects.

You may find several different object types in the available objects pane:

Dimension (blue diamond) – string

Dimension detail (blue diamond with green star) – string

Measure (yellow and orange ruler) – numeric

Filter (yellow funnel)

5. To find the object you want, type the first few letters of its name into the Search box

6. Drag the objects that you want to include in your document from the Available Objects pane to the Result Objects pane.

7. To remove objects from your document, drag them out of the Result Objects pane.

Tip: If you want to include all the objects in a folder, you can drag the whole folder

into the Result Objects pane.



2.4 Query filters

Introduction to query filters

You can limit the amount of data that is retrieved from the data source and returned to your Web Intelligence report by creating query filters. Query filters have three main advantages:

Retrieve only the specific data you need to answer a specific business question.

Hide data you don’t want users to see when they access the document.

Minimise the quantity of data returned to optimize document performance and size.

A filter consists of four parts – the filter object, operator, operand and filter type.

The filter object is the object that is being used for the filter.

The operator is the filter function. Click on the down arrow to the right of the operator to see a list of available functions, including equal to, between, greater than and in list.

The operand is the input to the operator function. This will be one or more values associated with the filter object.

The define filter type menu lets you choose how the operand value is entered. It can be a constant (typed in when you create the query), a value chosen from a list of available values, or a prompt (where the person running the document is prompted to fill in the value).

Add a simple query filter

Simple filters can be used to filter the data in a Webi document to only show a single value of the chosen object.

8. To add a simple filter to your query, drag the object you want to use for the filter from the Available Objects pane to the Query Filters pane.

Tip: If you want the filter object to be available to view in your document it must be

in the Result Objects pane as well as the Query Filters pane.

9. You want to select a specific, single value to filter on, so click the define filter type menu, and select Value(s) from list.



10. In the window that opens, use the search box at the bottom left to search for the value you want to filter by. When you have found the correct value, click once to select it, then use the right arrow to add it to Selected Value(s) pane.

11. Click OK to close the List of Values window. You have now added a simple filter.

Tip: You can add more than one value to a simple query filter. This is useful when you need to see a broader range of data than a single value would allow. However, try to

ensure filters are as specific as possible - broad filters take longer to return data.



Add a date range filter

A query can contain more than one filter. You should add as many filters as you need to return the data you want.

Other filter operators can be used to create more complex filters, for example specifying the start and end point of a date range you are interested in.

Using a date object, I can set the operator to Between, and can now use the two Open Calendar buttons to specify the date range.

By default, query filters are combined using the AND Boolean operator (only data that matches both filters is returned), but this can be changed to OR by double-clicking on it. Using the OR operator will produce more results (i.e. all data that matches either filter).

2.5 Prompts

If you want the user to select what data to return, then rather than pre-defining the filter value for them (as in the examples above), you can create a prompted filter. A prompt asks the person accessing the report to choose the values they want before the report will load.

In this example, I add a filter that will prompt the user to select the course provider for themselves. However, you can make prompts out of all objects.

12. Decide which query filter you want to turn into a prompt. Click on its Define filter type menu and choose Prompt.

That’s it! Now when someone refreshes the document they will see a prompts window which will let them select the values they want.

13. When you have finished adding Result Objects and Query Filters, click on the Run Query button in the Query Panel to create your Webi document.



If you have set any query filters as prompts you will need to fill these in before the document appears.

Tip: You can edit the text that appears for each prompt in the Prompts window Prompts Summary pane, to make it clearer what is being asked for. In the Query

Panel, click on the Show prompt properties button to the right of the filter.

Make any changes to the Prompt text and click OK.



2.6 Save your new document

The new document will appear as a tab in the classic Launchpad. It has not yet been saved, so you should save it to your My Favorites folder within your My Documents drawer, which is your personal file-space in BusinessObjects. This area is called My Folders in the Modern Launchpad.

14. Click on the Save Menu button on the File tab.

15. The Save As window will open. Make sure that your Favourites Folder is selected in the left panel. Give the document a name to help you find it again easily.



16. If you click the More (two arrows) button you can also enter a Description, which may be used to provide extra information about the document.

17. Click on Save.

Refresh on open

It is good practice to set any Web Intelligence documents that you create to refresh on open. This means that anyone using the document will only see current data.

18. Ensure the document is open in the Classic Launchpad Design view.

19. Click the Document Summary button on the far left of the screen and choose Edit.

20. Tick the box for Refresh on open and click OK.

21. Save your changes.

2.7 Exercise

You have been asked by your line manager to create a simple report based on a universe you are familiar with. Decide what the report should be about. Build it and then save it to your My Favorites folder. Include all of the following items:

At least 5 result objects, including at least 1 measure.

At least 1 simple filter.

1 prompted filter.


Chapter 3. Report design

3. Report design

Report creators have a responsibility to build reports that meet a clear business question. These reports should be easy to use and navigate. This section looks at ways to improve the layout and clarity of your document.


Save a copy of a public document to your My Documents folder.

Edit the query of an existing document.

Add sections to a report.

Sort a table.

Add simple filters using the filter bar.

Add a report filter.

Add a report to a Webi document.

Add a vertical table to a report, add and remove columns to/from the table.

Add a pre-defined cell to a report.

Use the Formatting tab to change backgrounds and fonts.

Add an empty cell and type in text using the formula bar.

3.1 Copy a public document

If you want to make changes to an existing public document, you should first save a copy to your My Documents folder. Most people do not have permissions to save changes to the public folders, as any changes to the public copy will affect all users.

1. To save a copy of a public document, first locate the document on the classic Launchpad Documents tab.

2. Click once to select the document, then go to the Organise menu and choose Copy.

3. Open the My Documents drawer and select your My Favorites folder.

4. Go to the Organize menu and choose Paste.



Tip: It is a good idea to change the name of any document you save a copy of, so it is easy to tell which is the copy and the original. With the document copy selected,

open the View menu and choose Properties. Edit the Title and click Save & Close.

5. Once you have saved the copy, open the copy in Design mode and make any changes you require, remembering to Save when you have finished.

3.2 Edit the query of a document

6. To change an existing document’s query, go to the Data Access tab > Data Providers sub-tab and click the Edit button. This will open the Query Panel, which we looked at in chapter 2.

3.3 Sections, sorts and filters

Sections, sorts and filters are tools that you can use to present your data in a clear and logical way.

Sections

Sections can be used to split up a long table. Each section has its own title that appears in the Navigation Map.

7. To add sections to a Webi document, first ensure that the document is open in Design mode.

8. Go to the Report Elements tab > Section sub-tab and click on the Insert Section button.

9. Click once in an empty space above the table you want to split into sections.



10. Choose the object that you wish to use for the section and click OK.

The table will be split up into separate tables displaying only events from each value of the object. There is a title with the section name before each table.

11. Click on the Navigation Map button on the far left of the screen.

12. Use the plus (+) button to expand the report that you have just added sections to, and use the clickable titles to move between sections.



13. To delete a section, click once on any section title to select it, and then click the Remove (X) button. Click Yes when asked to confirm the deletion.

If you accidentally delete part of your document you can use the Undo button to restore it.

Sorting

You can sort your data by columns, and you can have more than one sort in place at once.

14. To sort the table, first select the column you want to sort on by clicking once on its contents (not the header).

15. Then click on the Sort button on the Analysis tab > Display sub-tab.

16. To return to the default sorting, make sure the sorted column is selected and click the Sort button again. Alternatively, you can click on the Sort button menu (down-arrow to the right of the Sort button) and choose Advanced… to manage all the sorts in the table.



Tip: If the sorts that you apply to a table do not work as expected it may be that there is already sorting applied to the table. Click on the Sort button menu (down arrow to the right of the Sort button) and choose Remove all Sorts to clear all sorting

and start afresh.

Simple filters

You can add simple filter menus to a report using the filter bar. These only allow filtering on a single value, but they are available to people using the modern Launchpad.

17. To insert a simple filter, you first need to turn on the filter bar. Go to the Analysis tab > Interact sub-tab and click Filter Bar.

18. The filter bar will appear at the top of the document. Click the Add simple report filter button on the filter bar.

19. Choose the object that you want to use as the filter. The filter will appear as a menu in the filter bar. Choose one of the values from the menu to filter the report.

There is always an option to show all values at the top of the list, and an option to remove the filter at the bottom of the list. You can add more than one simple filter to a report.

Tip: You do not have to be in Design mode to add simple filters. The Filter Bar button

is also available in the toolbar in the classic Launchpad Reading mode.



Report filters

Report filters allow you to do complex filtering of the data in the report, for example viewing data from within a date range.

20. In Design mode, click once in the empty space below the report title to ensure no part of the table is selected. Go to the Analysis tab, Filters sub-tab, and click on the Filter button.

21. Make sure Report 1 is selected in the Filter Map Pane and click on the Add Filter button.

22. Select the object you wish to use as the filter from the list of Available Objects and click OK.

Report filters are similar to query filters in that they consist of a filter object, operator and operand.

23. Use the menu to choose the operator, and then fill in the operand(s).

24. When you are happy with the filter click OK to close the Report Filter window.

The report will display the filtered data.

Tip: It is not always obvious if a report is being filtered. You can check for filters via

the Filter button on the Analysis tab > Filters sub-tab. Filters may not be on the whole report, so use the Filters Map Pane to look for filters on different parts of the

report.



3.4 Add items to your document

Add a report

A Web Intelligence document can contain more than one report. In the classic Launchpad reports appear as tabs at the bottom of the open document. All of the reports in a document use data from the same query but may present it in different ways or highlight different parts of it.

25. To add a new report to an open Webi document, go to the Page Setup tab > Report sub-tab and click on the Add Report button.

Tip: Reports may be duplicated, deleted, renamed or moved using the options on the

Page Setup tab.

Add and modify a table

There are several types of table you can add to your Web Intelligence documents, the most commonly used is the vertical table which displays data in rows. Horizontal tables (to display data in columns) and cross tables are also available.

26. To add a vertical table to a report, click on the Available Objects button on the left.



27. Click once on the object you want to be the first column to select it, then hold down the [Ctrl] key and click on the other objects you want to be in the table, in column order.

28. When all of the objects are selected, drag them onto the report to create a new table.

Tip: The default column width is often too narrow to view the full contents. You can resize a column by hovering the mouse over the column’s edge until the pointer turns into a two-headed arrow. The column edge can then be dragged to the required size. To resize a column to fit the widest value, again hover over the column edge until

you see a two-headed arrow, then double-click the mouse.

29. To add a new column to a table, drag and drop the object onto the header row next to an existing column.

30. To replace an existing column, drag and drop the object on top of the header row of the column you want it to replace.

31. To remove a column from the table, click once on the column (not the header) to select it and click the Remove button.



32. To delete the entire table, select the table by clicking on its edge (mouse pointer will change to a four-headed arrow) and click the Remove button.

Tip: You can also add a vertical table (or the other types of tables available in Webi documents) using the Tables sub-tab on the Report Elements tab. Click on the button for the table type you want, then click on an empty space in the report to insert a blank table. Drag objects from the Available Objects panel to populate the

empty table.

Add a pre-defined cell

As well as tables, individual cells can be added to Webi reports. You can type the contents into a cell using the formula bar, or you can use a pre-defined cell that already contains a formula. The pre-defined cells can be found on the Report Elements tab > Cell sub-tab, and include the document name, prompts and last refresh date.

Tip: Similar to Word documents, Webi reports contain headers and footers at the top and bottom of the page. Objects in the header and footer will be displayed on every page. You can change the height of the header and footer on the Page Setup tab >

Header and Footer sub-tabs.

33. To add a pre-defined page number cell to a report header, switch to the Report Elements tab > Cell sub-tab. Click on the Pre-Defined button and choose Page Number.

34. Click in the header at the top of the report to insert the cell.

35. If the report has more than one page, you can move between pages to see the page number change.

Tip: To move an item (e.g. table or cell) in a report, move the mouse pointer over the edge of the item until it turns into a four-way arrow. Then drag the item to its new

position.



3.5 Formatting

Each item in a Webi document has formatting options. You can access these by selecting the object and clicking on the Formatting tab.

Change backgrounds

36. To change an item’s background colour, first click once on the item to select it. Alternatively, click on an empty part of the report to change the report’s background.

37. Click on the Formatting tab > Style sub-tab, Background Color button menu (down arrow to the right of the button).

38. Click on a colour to select it.

Tip: You can add a logo or picture to a report by setting it as the background to a cell. Use the Background image button on the Formatting tab > Style sub-tab. Select the Image from file radio button, then Add to upload the image. You may have to adjust

the cell’s size to fit the image.

Change fonts

39. To change the font, click once on a cell to select it.

40. Go to the Formatting tab > Font sub-tab and change the font type using the Font Name menu and the font size using the Font Size menu.

41. To change the font colour, go to the Formatting tab > Style sub-tab, click on the Text Color button menu and choose the colour from the options.



Tip: Another useful option on the Formatting tab is word wrapping. If it is enabled then text that is too wide will wrap to the next line, instead of not being visible. To turn word wrapping on, select the item then click the Formatting tab > Alignment

sub-tab, Wrap text button.

Add a cell with text

42. To add a new, empty cell, go to the Report Elements tab > Cell sub-tab. Click the Blank button, then click on an empty part of the report to insert the new cell.

43. Click once on the new cell to select it, then click inside the formula bar (below the toolbar tabs). Type the text you wish to appear in the cell and press the [Enter] key to insert it.

Tip: By default blank cells have a bottom border line. To change a cell’s borders, click to select it, then go to the Formatting tab > Border sub-tab. Use the Borders button

menu to set the cell’s borders.

3.6 Exercise

Using the document you created in the exercise at the end of chapter 2, do the following:

Add sections to the table you created in chapter 2.

Add a simple filter (menu in the filter bar at the top of the report).

Add a report filter.

Add a new report.

Add a vertical table with at least 3 columns to the new report.

Add page numbers to the report footer.

Add a blank cell above the table. Type a title into the cell.

Change the title cell’s font size and background colour.

Save the changes you have made.


Chapter 4. Functions and formulas

4. Functions and formulas


Add a pre-defined function.

Use the formula editor to add a function.

Convert a formula to a variable.

Create a chart.

4.1 Pre-defined functions

Some common functions can be quickly added to a table using the Analysis tab > Functions sub-tab. These include sum, count and average functions.

To add a total to a column in a vertical table:

1. In Design mode, click once on the column (not the header) of numbers you want to total, to select it. Go to the Analysis tab > Functions sub-tab and click on the Sum button.

A row is added to the bottom of the table with the sum of the column.

2. To remove the sum, click on its cell and click the Remove button. Make sure that Row is selected and click OK.



4.2 The formula editor

More advanced functions can be added using the formula editor.

In this example we will add a new column to a table and use a formula to insert the first 5 characters from a measure (string) object:

3. To add a new column, click once to select a column in a table. Go to the Report Elements tab > Table Layout sub-tab. Click on the Insert menu and choose Insert Columns on Right.

4. Click once to select the new column, then click the Formula Editor button to open the formula editor.

You can use the available objects, functions and operators in the formula editor to create a formula. If you select one of the Available Functions a short description of how to use it (including a link to more information) appears in the description box. When you have finished defining the formula, click the Validate Formula button (green tick) to check that the formula is defined correctly.

5. Find Left in the list of Available Functions and double click to insert it in the Formula box. Note the required format in the function description box.



6. Place the cursor inside the curved brackets in the Formula box and double-click on a Measure (blue diamond icon) in the Available Objects to add it to the formula. Alternatively you can type in the object name between square brackets.

7. Type “;5” (without the quotation marks) after the object – this is the number of characters that will be used from the object.

8. Click the Validate Formula button to check that the formula is defined correctly.

9. Click OK to insert the formula in the column.

Tip: If you insert a formula in a column in this way the header cell will be blank. To

add a header, select the blank header cell and type the column title into the formula

bar.

4.3 Variables

A variable is a formula saved as an object so that it can be reused within the document.

10. Select a cell containing a formula and click on the Create Variable button in the formula bar.

11. The Create Variable dialogue window will open. Enter a name for the variable.



12. Make sure that the correct Qualification is selected – this will usually be a Measure for a number or a Dimension for a string. Click OK to save the variable.

13. The variable will appear in a Variables folder in the Available Objects pane.

4.4 Charts

To create a chart in a Webi document you need one measure (number) object and at least one dimension (string) object. Dimension objects have a blue diamond icon and measure objects have a yellow/orange ruler icon.

14. To insert a chart, go to the Report Elements tab > Chart sub-tab and click on the Insert a Column Chart button.

15. Click on an empty area in the report to insert the blank chart.



16. Switch to Available Objects in the left panel and drag one dimension object and one measure object on to the chart.

Tip: To change the data shown in a chart, right-click on it and choose Assign Data… To change the chart’s appearance, select it then go to the Formatting tab > Chart

Style sub-tab.

4.5 Exercise

Using the document you created in the exercise at the end of chapter 3, do the following:

Use the pre-defined functions to add a sum (for numerical data) or count (for string data) to a table column.

Add a column to your table and use the formula editor to insert a formula into it.

Convert one of the formulas in your report into a variable. Tip – if you do not have any measure objects in your document, create a measure variable to use in the next step.

Add a column chart to your document.

Save and close your document.


Chapter 5. Sharing documents

5. Sharing documents


Send a document to a colleague’s BusinessObjects inbox.

Save a document to a public folder.

5.1 Send to a BusinessObjects Inbox

If you wish to share a document you have created or edited with other BusinessObjects users you can send it direct to their BusinessObjects Inbox. This will create a copy of the document for everyone that you send it to.

1. To send a document to a colleague’s BusinessObjects Inbox, first select the document on the classic Launchpad Documents tab.

2. Click on the Send menu and choose BI Inbox.

3. A window will open. Type your colleague’s University username into the Find Title box and click the Find (binoculars) button. Alternatively, change the Find Title menu to Find full name and search on your colleague’s name.

4. Select the correct user and click the Add to Selection (>) button to add them to the Selected Recipients.


Chapter 5. Sharing documents

5. When you have added all the people you want to send the document to, click the Send button.

You can find any documents that you have been sent in your Inbox in the My Documents drawer on the Documents tab in the classic Launchpad.

Un-viewed documents in your Inbox appear in bold and also appear in the Inbox panel on the Home tab.

Tip: Your Inbox can store a maximum of 20 documents at any one time. When it is full, the oldest document will be automatically deleted to make room for the new one. We strongly recommend that if you are sent a document you want to keep, you

should copy it from your Inbox to your My Folders area.

5.2 Save to a public folder

You can also share a document by saving it to a Public Folder. This has the advantage of not creating copies of the document, so if you need to make any changes to it you only need to update the single public copy. However, BusinessObjects users are not usually able to save to the Public Folders. You should contact the team responsible for the public folder (e.g. Finance, Information Services Group, Student Systems) if you would like to be given access to an area of it.

5.3 Exercise

Send a Webi document to your own BusinessObjects Inbox.


Chapter 6. Help Resources

6. Help Resources

6.1 Reporting + Analytics website

The Reporting + Analytics website is the first place to look for answers to any SAP BusinessObjects question.

The Accessing Data page lists the most popular data sources and provides a contact email for the content provider. You should contact the content provider directly to request access to a data source, report a problem with a document in a public folder, or to enquire about training for specific Web Intelligence documents.

The BusinessObjects Training page provides about other training resources, including:

Video tutorials and lecture recordings on Media Hopper

BusinessObjects Explorer videos and workbook (coming soon)

Resources from the supplier, SAP

6.2 Information Portal

The Information Portal contains links to all the key information sources held within the University, including those in BusinessObjects.

6.3 Information Security

BusinessObjects contains large amounts of sensitive, and potentially personal, information. All users of BusinessObjects are therefore obliged to familiarise themselves with the University's Information Security and Data Protection guidance, available at this link:

Data Processing and Information Security webpage

In addition, all staff are required to complete the Information Security Essentials and the Data Protection Training online courses. Instructions for accessing them can be found on the above webpage. Your access to BusinessObjects is dependent on having completed both courses.

Please consider taking the following action when working with BusinessObjects reports:

If you are creating documents for other people to use, consider using query filters to restrict what they have access to. Users should only ever have access to the data they need.

Set your documents to refresh on open so you are not viewing out-of-date data.

Only download data to Excel if it is necessary. Only download what you need and make sure that downloaded data is stored securely.

https://www.ed.ac.uk/information-services/computing/comms-and-collab/reporting-and-analytics

https://www.ed.ac.uk/information-services/computing/comms-and-collab/reporting-and-analytics/access

https://www.ed.ac.uk/information-services/computing/comms-and-collab/reporting-and-analytics/about-bi-suite/training

https://media.ed.ac.uk/media/1_3dv5qmos

https://www.wiki.ed.ac.uk/x/YAAoD

https://www.ed.ac.uk/information-services/computing/comms-and-collab/reporting-and-analytics/data-processing-guidance