3/22/17
On Friday March 17, 2017, IBM Cognos Analytics Release 6 was made available to download and with it came some big updates. Below are some of the highlights and what it all means to you.
Dashboard Enhancements
The dashboard area gained some important enhancements in IBM Cognos Analytics Release 6. They include the following:
- Direct connection to OLAP sources. This includes TM1 and PowerPlay cubes as well as Dynamic Cubes, Essbase, etc.. This is an important addition to the dashboard platform. It provides the many users of TM1 and PowerPlay quick dashboard creation based on already modeled data.
- Dashboard widgets connectivity. The standard is to have all widgets connected by default. You can now pick and choose what widgets are connected, which gives your dashboards even more flexibility. As you can see below, you can quickly connect different widgets by creating new connections.
- Geospatial mapping was introduced in Release 5. In IBM Cognos Analytics Release 6, new additions to mapping include the ability to drill down from country to state or province to county or city. Now you can use zip codes to further enhance your map. In addition, a refined region area has been added to clarify disambiguate locations.
- Navigation paths now show in a metadata tree in the data source area.
- Auto scaling for text widgets make your dashboards more dynamic.
Reporting Enhancements
The reporting area also continues to include enhancements in each release. They include the following:
- Continued performance improvements in the report viewer and rendering reports.
- For those of you who use Cognos 10, lineage and business glossary support is now in CA.
- Edit data modules directly in the reporting solution. You can add calculations, parameterized filters, and drill through directly to the data module. Prior to R6, you had to edit or create these items in the module itself.
Storytelling
​Storytelling was introduced in IBM Cognos Analytics Release 4. Utilizing storytelling provides a dynamic way to bring your dashboards to life and guide your audience through the story you want to tell. Added in Release 6:
- ​New guided journey templates
- New animations
- Pin enhancements
- Timeline enhancements
Cognos Analytics "Portal"
One of the big issues I heard from customers regarding Cognos Analytics was the lack of portal tabs. Well, in R6 IBM has provided the ability to create custom folders which can act similar to portal tabs. You can create folders and assign based on roles or users for limited access or appearance. If portal tabs were holding you back, this might be the fix for you.
Also added is the ability to create report shortcuts or views. Last, you can share or embed a saved report or dashboard.
Administration Platform
Several items have been added to the administration platform within CA. They include enhanced support for advanced routing rules, new upgrade features, and multi tenancy support.
Data Access Additions
- Enhanced support for TM1 / Planning Analytics Interoperation. This includes support for REST connections, PA hierarchies, and localized PA cubes.
- New Sources - Google Cloud and Google Big Query
- New Versions - Cloud Impala 2.6, Teradata 16, Oracle 12C2, SAP Hana 2, Microsoft SSAS 16 and Informix 12.10xC8
As you can read, there are some awesome new items in IBM Cognos Analytics Release 6. As a reminder, in order to have access to the latest release, you must be current on support with IBM. Contact Renewals@lodestarsolutions.com for a quote or to obtain assistance.
Check out our upgrade evaluation toolkit to help you decide if it is the right time to upgrade by joining our Cognos Club. Also, look for our online training series to be made available very soon!
If you have any other questions you can reach me at services@lodestarsolutions.com