Oracle BI Publisher 10g R3: Fundamentals Student Guide D53147GC10 Edition 1.0 February 2008 D54122
Authors Padmaja Mitravinda Brian Pottle Technical Contributors and Reviewers Leta Davis Tim Dexter Mike Donahue Tim McGlue Nickos Psomas Pradeep Sharma Kasturi Shekhar Jason Stoddart Editors Daniel Milne Susan Moxley Nita Pavitran Graphic Designers Satish Bettegowda Rajiv Chandrabhanu Copyright 2008, Oracle. All rights reserved. Disclaimer This document contains proprietary information and is protected by copyright and other intellectual property laws. You may copy and print this document solely for your own use in an Oracle training course. The document may not be modified or altered in any way. Except where your use constitutes "fair use" under copyright law, you may not use, share, download, upload, copy, print, display, perform, reproduce, publish, license, post, transmit, or distribute this document in whole or in part without the express authorization of Oracle. The information contained in this document is subject to change without notice. If you find any problems in the document, please report them in writing to: Oracle University, 500 Oracle Parkway, Redwood Shores, California 94065 USA. This document is not warranted to be error-free. Restricted Rights Notice If this documentation is delivered to the United States Government or anyone using the documentation on behalf of the United States Government, the following notice is applicable: U.S. GOVERNMENT RIGHTS The U.S. Government s rights to use, modify, reproduce, release, perform, display, or disclose these training materials are restricted by the terms of the applicable Oracle license agreement and/or the applicable U.S. Government contract. Trademark Notice Oracle is a registered trademark of Oracle Corporation and/or its affiliates. Other names may be trademarks of their respective owners. Publishers Srividya Rameshkumar Giri Venugopal
Contents Preface 1 Introduction to Oracle BI Publisher Course Objectives 1-2 Lesson Objectives 1-3 Course Agenda: Day 1 1-4 Course Agenda: Day 2 1-5 Course Agenda: Day 3 1-6 Oracle BI Publisher: Business Document Requirements 1-7 Functions of Reporting Systems 1-8 Classic Reporting Tools Paradigm 1-9 Oracle BI Publisher Paradigm 1-10 End-to-End View of BI Publisher 1-11 Salient Features of BI Publisher 1-12 Summary 1-13 2 Oracle BI Publisher: Technology and Architecture Objectives 2-2 Oracle BI Publisher 2-3 Batch Processing 2-4 Distributed Delivery 2-5 Report Bursting 2-6 Inbound Document Capture 2-7 Government Forms 2-8 BI Publisher Multitier Architecture 2-9 BI Publisher Desktop 2-10 BI Publisher Layout Templates 2-11 BI Publisher Enterprise Server Architecture 2-12 BI Publisher Process Architecture 2-13 Data Sources 2-14 BI Publisher Data Engine 2-15 Oracle BI Publisher Underlying Technology 2-16 Performance and Scalability 2-17 Security 2-18 Internationalization and Language Support 2-19 Translation 2-20 iii
Output Formats 2-21 Flexible Deployment Options 2-22 Oracle BI Publisher for Applications 2-23 Summary 2-24 3 Introduction to XML Standards Objectives 3-2 XML Standards 3-3 Extensible Markup Language 3-4 Advantages of Using XML 3-5 Oracle XML Support 3-6 Example: A Simple XML Page 3-7 XML Document Structure 3-8 XML Declaration 3-9 Components of an XML Document 3-10 XML Elements 3-11 Markup Rules for Elements 3-12 XML Attributes 3-13 Using Elements Versus Attributes 3-14 XML Entities 3-15 XML Comments 3-16 A Well-Formed XML Document 3-17 Class Activity 3-18 Comparing XML and HTML 3-19 XML Development 3-20 XML Namespaces 3-21 XML Namespace Declarations: Example 3-23 Why Validate an XML Document? 3-24 Document Type Definition 3-25 Simple DTD Declaration: Example 3-26 XML Schema 3-27 XML Schema Document: Example 3-29 XML Schema Versus DTD 3-30 XML Path Language 3-31 XPath Model 3-32 XSLT and XPath 3-33 XSL 3-34 XSLT 3-35 XSLT Style Sheet 3-36 XSLT Style Sheet: Example 3-37 Viewing the Transformed Document 3-38 iv
Summary 3-39 Practice 3: Overview 3-40 4 Getting Started with BI Publisher: Creating a Simple Report Objectives 4-2 Sample Schemas in Oracle Database 4-3 Human Resources (HR) Data Model 4-4 Order Entry (OE) Data Model 4-5 Logging In to Oracle BI Publisher 4-7 Opening a Predefined Report 4-8 Viewing a Predefined Report 4-9 Setting Preferences 4-10 Creating a BI Publisher Report Based on Oracle Database 4-12 Defining a JDBC Connection 4-13 Creating a New Folder in BI Publisher 4-15 Creating a Report 4-16 Editing the Properties of a Report 4-17 Defining the Data Model 4-18 Using Query Builder 4-19 Viewing Report Data 4-21 Uploading an Existing Template 4-22 Exporting or Downloading a Report 4-24 Summary 4-25 Practice 4: Overview 4-26 5 Creating Simple RTF Templates Objectives 5-2 Introduction to Oracle BI Publisher Desktop 5-3 Installing Oracle BI Publisher Desktop 5-4 BI Publisher Desktop User Interface (UI) 5-6 BI Publisher Toolbar 5-8 BI Publisher Toolbar: Tools 5-10 Setting Build Preferences 5-11 Build Options 5-12 BI Publisher Toolbar: Wizards 5-13 Creating an RTF Template from a Sample 5-15 Creating an RTF Template: Loading the Sample XML Data 5-16 Creating an RTF Template: Inserting Fields 5-17 Creating an RTF Template: Previewing Data 5-19 Creating an RTF Template: Inserting a Table 5-20 Selecting Data Fields 5-21 v
Removing Selected Fields 5-22 Completing the Table 5-23 Resulting Table 5-25 Changing Field Properties 5-26 Previewing the Table Data 5-27 Practice 5-1: Overview 5-28 BI Publisher Charts 5-29 Creating an RTF Template: Inserting a Chart 5-30 Defining a Chart 5-32 Previewing the Chart 5-33 Practice 5-2: Overview 5-34 Designing an RTF Template for a BI Publisher Report 5-35 Step 1: Open MS Word and Log In to BI Publisher 5-36 Step 2: Open the BI Publisher Report 5-37 Step 3: Define the RTF Template: Add a Table 5-38 Form Fields in RTF Templates 5-39 Step 3: Define the RTF Template: Add a Chart 5-40 Step 4: Preview the Data by Using the Template 5-41 Step 5: Upload the Template and View Data 5-42 Practice 5-5: Overview 5-43 Methods for Creating RTF Templates 5-44 Basic Method: Example 5-45 Form Field Method: Example 5-46 Form Field Method: Creating a Data Table 5-47 Completed Template 5-48 Previewing the Report 5-49 Practices 5-3, 5-4: Overview 5-50 Summary 5-51 Practice 5: Overview 5-52 6 Advanced RTF Template Techniques Objectives 6-2 Know Your Data 6-3 Looking at Raw XML Data 6-4 Looking at the Data Structure in Oracle BI Publisher Desktop 6-5 Underlying Tags 6-6 Form Field Method Tags 6-7 Additional Tag Space 6-8 RTF Template: Design Considerations 6-9 Supported MS Word Native Formatting Features 6-10 Adding Markup 6-11 vi
Images and Charts 6-14 Adding a Chart 6-16 Support for Drawings and Shapes 6-17 Other Graphic Features 6-18 Data-Driven Shape Support 6-19 Background and Watermark Support 6-22 Using More Advanced Template Features 6-23 Some More Advanced Template Features 6-27 Conditional Formatting 6-28 Conditional Formats in BI Publisher Desktop 6-32 Page-Level Calculations 6-33 Data Handling 6-36 Variables, Parameters, and Properties 6-37 Advanced Design Options 6-40 Cross-Tab Wizard in BI Publisher Desktop 6-43 Summary 6-44 Practice 6: Overview 6-45 7 Creating Parameters, List of Values (LOVs), and Hyperlinks Objectives 7-2 Reports with Parameters and a List of Values (LOVs) 7-3 Adding a Parameter to a BI Publisher Report 7-5 Modifying a Report to Include the Parameter 7-6 Viewing the Report Data 7-7 Creating a List of Values and Associating It with a Parameter 7-8 Cascading Parameters 7-10 BI Publisher Reports with Hyperlinks 7-11 Creating a Report with a Hyperlink: Example 7-12 Creating a Master Report 7-13 Creating an RTF Template for the Master Report 7-14 Creating and Editing a Detail Report 7-15 Defining a Hyperlink 7-17 Defining a Dynamic Hyperlink 7-18 Viewing the Report Data 7-19 Summary 7-20 Practice 7: Overview 7-21 8 Working with PDF and etext Templates Objectives 8-2 PDF Template Overview 8-3 Supported Modes 8-4 vii
Adding Markup to the Template Layout for Adobe Acrobat Users 8-5 Accessing the Text Field Tool in Adobe Acrobat 8-6 Creating a Text Field in Adobe Acrobat 8-7 Supported Field Properties Options 8-8 Creating a Check Box 8-9 Creating a Radio Button Group 8-10 Defining Groups of Repeating Fields 8-11 Adding Page Numbers 8-13 Adding Page Breaks 8-14 Performing Calculations 8-15 Run-Time Behavior 8-16 Downloaded PDFs 8-17 Using Downloaded PDFs with Form Fields 8-18 Running Reports with PDF Templates: Define Data Model 8-19 Running Reports with PDF Templates: Upload Template 8-20 Running Reports with PDF Templates: View Report 8-21 etext Templates 8-22 Structure of etext Templates 8-24 Row Types 8-25 Setup Command Tables 8-26 Constructing Data Tables 8-27 Command Rows 8-28 Structure of Data Rows 8-30 Using Template Viewer 8-32 Viewing an etext Template 8-33 Viewing the Output 8-34 Summarizing etext Templates 8-35 Summary 8-36 9 Oracle BI Publisher Server: Administration Objectives 9-2 Administration Options 9-3 Logging In to BI Publisher Server 9-4 BI Publisher Home Page 9-5 Administration Settings 9-6 Data Sources 9-7 Setting Data Sources: JDBC 9-8 Testing the JDBC Connection 9-9 Setting Data Sources: JNDI 9-10 Setting Data Sources: Files 9-11 Viewing or Updating a Data Source 9-12 viii
BI Publisher: Supported Security Models 9-13 BI Publisher Security Model: Security Center 9-14 Users and Roles 9-15 Functional Roles 9-16 Setting Up Users, Roles, and Permissions 9-17 Setting Up Roles and Permissions 9-18 Delivery Options 9-20 Setting Up Delivery Options: Configuration 9-21 Setting Up Delivery Options: Printer 9-22 Setting Up Delivery Options: Fax 9-24 Setting Up Delivery Options: WebDAV 9-25 Setting Up Delivery Options: Email or FTP 9-26 System Maintenance 9-27 Defining Report Repository 9-28 Server Configuration 9-29 Scheduler Configuration 9-31 Refreshing the Metadata 9-32 Integration with BI Products 9-33 Summary 9-34 Practice 9: Overview 9-35 10 Scheduling Reports and Analyzing Data Objectives 10-2 Scheduling BI Publisher Reports 10-3 Configuring BI Publisher Scheduler 10-4 Scheduling a Report 10-5 Viewing the Saved Output and History 10-7 Managing Scheduled Reports 10-8 Scheduling Reports with Advanced Options 10-9 Scheduling a Report to be Delivered as an Email Attachment 10-10 Bursting a Report 10-12 Scheduling a Report to Burst to a File Location 10-13 Step1: Creating a Report with Appropriate Fields 10-14 Step 2: Uploading an RTF Template for the Report 10-16 Step 3: Defining Bursting Properties for the Report 10-17 Step 4: Scheduling the Report to Burst to a File Location 10-19 Step 5: Viewing the Schedule and the Report 10-20 Scheduling a Report to Be Burst as Email 10-21 Analyzing Data in Reports 10-23 Using Online Analyzer 10-24 Excel Analyzer 10-25 ix
Using Excel Analyzer 10-26 Using Excel Analyzer: BI Publisher Menu and Toolbar 10-27 Summary 10-29 Practice 10: Overview 10-30 11 Translating Reports Objectives 11-2 Translations: Types and Options 11-3 Localized Template Option 11-4 XLIFF File Option 11-5 Structure of the XLIFF File 11-6 Updating the XLIFF File 11-7 Naming Standards 11-8 Locale Selection Logic 11-10 Translating Templates in BI Publisher Desktop 11-12 Report File Translations 11-13 Generating XLIFF in BI Publisher Enterprise 11-14 Saving the XLIFF File 11-15 Uploading the XLIFF File 11-16 Summary 11-17 12 Creating Reports by Defining XML Data Templates Objectives 12-2 XML Data Template 12-3 Data Extraction Engine 12-4 What Functionality Is Supported? 12-5 Supported Functionality 12-6 Report Migration 12-7 Data Template Definition 12-8 Data Template Structure Diagram 12-9 Data Template Declaration 12-11 Defining Parameters 12-12 Defining Queries 12-14 Data Query 12-15 Example: Data Query 12-17 Defining a Data Link Between Queries 12-18 Query Linking Options 12-19 Query Linking: Bind Variable Example 12-20 Query Linking: <link> Tag Example 12-21 Distributed Queries 12-22 Data Triggers 12-23 x
Using Data Triggers 12-24 Data Structure Section 12-25 Data Structure: Example 12-26 Creating an XML Data Template 12-27 Viewing the XML Data 12-28 Associating the XML Data Template With an RTF Template 12-29 Viewing the Report 12-30 Summary 12-31 Practice 12: Overview 12-32 13 Oracle BI Publisher Integration Features Objectives 13-2 Oracle BI Publisher Integration 13-3 Creating a BI Publisher Report from an Answers Request by Using BI Publisher Enterprise 13-4 1. Creating a BI Publisher Report 13-5 2. Specifying a BI Answers Data Set for the Report 13-6 3. Associating an Existing Template with the Report 13-7 4. Viewing the Report 13-8 Creating a BI Publisher Report from an Answers Request by Using BI Publisher Desktop 13-9 1. Logging In to BI Publisher from the Template Builder for Word 13-10 2. Selecting an Answers Request as the Data Source and Saving It as a BI Publisher Report 13-11 3. Creating a Template 13-12 4. Uploading the Template 13-13 5. Viewing the Report 13-14 Creating a BI Publisher Report from the BI Server 13-15 1. Creating a Report that Queries the BI Server Metadata 13-16 2. Building the Query by Using the Query Builder 13-17 3. Associating an Existing Template with the Request and Viewing the Report 13-20 Creating a BI Publisher Report from the Discoverer Worksheet Content 13-21 Discoverer Worksheet 13-22 1. Logging In to BI Publisher 13-23 2a. Selecting Discoverer and a Public Connection 13-24 2b. Selecting a Discoverer Worksheet 13-25 2c. Saving the Worksheet as a BI Publisher Report 13-26 3a. Creating a Template for the Report 13-27 3b. Modifying the Template 13-28 4. Previewing the Report Output 13-29 5. Uploading the Template 13-30 xi
Viewing the Report in BI Publisher Enterprise 13-31 Adding BI Publisher Reports to Interactive Dashboards 13-32 Summary 13-33 Practice 13: Overview 13-34 14 Creating Reports Based on Other Data Sources Objectives 14-2 Data Sources Supported by BI Publisher 14-3 Introduction to Web Services 14-4 XML/RSS Feeds 14-5 Proxy Settings 14-6 Creating a BI Publisher Report Based on Web Services 14-7 Step 1: Creating a Report and Defining the Data Set 14-8 Step 2: Defining a Parameter and Adding It to the Data Set 14-9 Step 3: Viewing the Report XML Data 14-10 Step 4: Viewing the Data by Using a Predefined Template 14-11 Creating a BI Publisher Report Based on RSS Feeds 14-12 Step 1: Creating a Report and Defining the Data Set 14-13 Step 2: Viewing the Report XML Data 14-14 Step 3: Using a Predefined Template to View the Data 14-15 Creating a Report Based on a File 14-16 Step 1: Checking the Demo Files Data Source 14-17 Step 2: Creating a Report and Defining the Data Set 14-18 Step 3: Viewing the XML Data 14-19 Step 4: Using a Sample Template to View the Data 14-20 Summary 14-21 Practice 14: Overview 14-22 xii