What’s New in SAP BusinessObjects Xcelsius 2008 SP3?

Here’s a summary of some of the new things in the latest version of Xcelsius 2008. I’ve borrowed liberally from the official documentation that you can download, along with the program, here. New Components Sparkline chart components. The new Sparkline chart is based on the Sparkline chart created by Edward Tufte and provides a method for displaying a one-dimensional range of numeric data in a way that is dense, takes up a small space, and can... [Read More...]

Real Real-Time Analytics

Here’s a great video from this weeks SAP Influencer Summit featuring the advantages of real-time, in-memory analytics. You can see the full list of recorded keynote sessions here (registration required). If you’re interested in business intelligence and analytics, you’ll find it mentioned in the presentations by Jim Snabe, Vishal Sikka, Marge Breya and John Wookey. The sessions featured interaction with Twitter very heavily, using the... [Read More...]

SAP BusinessObjects Explorer for iPhone Now Available on Apple AppStore!

The iPhone version of SAP BusinessObjects Explorer from the SAP BusinessObjects Innovation Center was (finally!) released today on the Apple iStore, available as a free download Here’s the description of the application: “Your business at your fingertips” With Explorer for iPhone, insight into your business is never more than a few flicks away. Through simple keyword search, navigation and visualization, Explorer allows you to ask and answer... [Read More...]

Microsoft’s Dallas Copies BusinessObjects Information OnDemand

Just over two years ago, BusinessObjects launched Information OnDemand, an online store allowing you to buy information from premium providers such as Dun & Bradstree, the US Census Bureau, NewsTin, etc. And now Microsoft have launched their “Dallas” project, a variation on the same theme: “Microsoft’s Information Services business, enabling developers and information workers to instantly find, purchase, and manage datasets to power... [Read More...]

BI for Baby: Dashboards to Track Your Child’s KPIs (And The Rest of Us)

Prepare your child for the new world of business from its very earliest hours! Trixie Telemetry has released Trixie Tracker, which includes everything an analytic-obsessed parent needs to track baby’s key performance indicators, including: Sleep Tracking Bowel movements Feeding schedule Medicines And many, many more – including support for mobile: How much longer before this application is available for grownups, too? Well, it’s probably... [Read More...]

OLAP is Dead (Long Live Analytics)

The term OLAP or Online Analytic Processing was coined in 1993 by relational database technology pioneer Ted Codd (my claim to fame: we went to the same high school, Poole Grammar). The term was chosen to contrast with OLTP or online transaction processing, and was prompted by some clever marketing folks at Essbase, who wanted to promote their multidimensional database product. Codd was famous for his twelve rules defining the relational model and... [Read More...]

Drink Dispenser Analytics: Coca-Cola Goes Freestyle, With Help from SAP BI

Mary Hayes Weier of InformationWeek recently published a great article, Coke’s RFID-Based Dispensers Redefine Business Intelligence. Coca-Cola has introduced a new RFID-enabled drink dispenser called Freestyle. It provides mass customization with 30 flavor cartridges (sodas, teas, flavored waters, etc.) that can be mixed to make more than 100 different drinks (out of the more than 3,000 that Coca-Cola sells around the world). Starting this... [Read More...]

BusinessObjects is The Best Thing About SAP Business Suite 7?

As I’m sure everybody knows by now, SAP launched Business Suite 7 last week. There was a “let’s-wait-and-see” attitude in the coverage for some of the claims made for the new suite, but the inclusion of BusinessObjects analytics into the suite was almost unanimously declared a big part of its appeal: SAP Business Suite 7 - what’s new? “One aspect that does deserve attention is the inclusion of "select analytics capabilities... [Read More...]