Two questions re: possible limitations on Custom Data Groups used in Dashboards.

[FerdH4]

Good Afternoon All,

I'm trying to use Custom Data Groups in v11.2.3 - the kind defined on the fly...not the kind built into the data model.  I'm encountering two symptoms and I'm wondering if any of you have experience or knowledge to share on either of these two questions.

1.  It appears that a Custom Data Group is unique to an individual Visualization.  What I mean is, I can't find anyway to reuse a new Custom Data Group created for one Visualization to influence a second Visualization on the same Dashboard. It appears that I have to redefine the same Custom Data Group all over again for the second Visualization. Does this match your own experience?

2.  I've been able to successfully define a Custom Data Group working with a Column Visualization, a Bar Visualization, a Stacked Column Visualization, and a Pie Visualization.  I can't seem to use the same navigations to create a Custom Data Group when working with a Line Visualization for example.  Is anyone aware of specific limitations relevant to which Visualizations Custom Data Groups are not supported?

Thank you - once or twice - for attempting to share input on either question here.

By the way, the one page of relevant instructions in the "IBM Cognos Analytics v11.2.0 - Dashboards and Stories User Guide" doesn't talk to either of these possible, perceived functional limits.  For full disclosure, those instructions do include the word "column" more than once - like "Select the columns that you want..." or "Ctrl+click one of the columns..."  That specific text is what's causing me ask question #2 above.

[bus_pass_man]

1.  Stuff you create in a dashboard (data groups, calculations, and navigation paths for example) belong to that dashboard.  If you want to have them available to other dashboards you ought to create them in the data module, where they will be available.  I think you mentioned in another question that you don't have control over the data module's contents.  Requirements from the reporting tools should have some weight on what is modelled in the data module (and FM packages for that matter).  Getting that done is a business/managerial problem, not a technical one.

2.  I was able to Control-select the circles in a line chart and create a data group.  As you select them, the unselected circles become a sort of greyish colour.

[FerdH4]

Thank you bus_pass_man for sharing both of those inputs.

1.  You're right that influencing the data module is a business issue not necessarily a technical one.

2.  I'll give the Custom Data Group another try with a Line Visualization and a few other random graphs too.  I"ll report back if I have any specific failures or successes.  I might need to change the battery in my wireless mouse - that or clean my mouse pad.  Either of those housekeeping tasks might be impacting the quality of my mouse clicks to select tiny objects.   

[cognostechie]

The original technology was made to re-use all objects used in modelling but unfortunately none of the modelers knew how to use Framework Manager to create a self-service BI package, more so because making a Data Warehouse with a proper star schema design was very tough for most of them and required intuitive skills along with technical skills which most people don't have. That made modelers publish packages which made reporting difficult and hence increased the reliance on the developers to make every single report. Most techies only know less than 50% of what's written in the book and don't have any intuitive skills to perceive/imagine how to design it for optimal results. Design part is always more important the development part but they don't understand that.

As training people was out of question for IBM so they decided to introduce all these new features which would allow the non-technical users to create their own reports and that's why these objects are meant to be used only for a single report. The objects that can be re-used are already there in the form of packages. Some new objects can be re-used such as data modules.