Properties under data section

[bloggerman]

What is the significance of using Properties option under the Data section. I have been told that an eg of its use is if you want to group on an item that is not in the layout then you need to include it in the properties section. I am able to group anyway.

Is there a best practice around using this option in reports?

[cschnu]

What is the significance of using Properties option under the Data section. I have been told that an eg of its use is if you want to group on an item that is not in the layout then you need to include it in the properties section. I am able to group anyway.

Is there a best practice around using this option in reports?

I would say the best practice is to use it carefully because calculations can appear to be incorrect based on the fields on the report. You are essentially hiding the columns which are used for calculation of numeric data, if you do not display on them on the report.

[bloggerman]

Thanks. could you suggest when it should be used and when not. E.gs would help too.

[CognosPaul]

The properties option forces Cognos to include a specific field when it is generating the SQL for a specific report object.

Mostly I use it for drillthroughs. If you have a drillthrough on a relational report you'll need to click on the key field in the properties, otherwise you won't be able to pass the key as a parameter.