Query Tools - Business Objects at Penn

BusinessObjects Web Intelligence (Webi) and InfoView XI3

BusinessObjects is the primary supported query tool used to provide access to the Data Warehouse, which resides on an Oracle database server.

• InfoView XI3 login
• How To.... - quick reference sheets for common functions
• Tips and FAQs - browse or search for answers to common questions
• External Resources for Webi and BusinessObjects

Web Intelligence (Webi) is SAP/BusinessObjects' strategic web-based tool for ad hoc analysis, replacing the Desktop Intelligence (Deski) software that has been in use at Penn for many years. Webi provides extensive query construction and report formatting capabilities, all in a web environment and without the need for desktop client software.

InfoView is the portal to all BusinessObjects reports, including:

• the individual's personal collection of queries and reports, stored in their My Favorites area on the server
• the Public Folders which contain all reports shared by groups of people
• the gateway to Web Intelligence, either by choosing the option to edit an existing Webi report, or selecting New, and then Web Intelligence Document from one of the dropdowns in the toolbar.

Supported browsers (and java versions) for InfoView and Webi XI3 SP5 include (as of April 2012):

• Mac OS X:
  • Safari 5 (with Apple 1.6.0_xx) *
• Windows XPsp3 or Windows7:
  • Firefox 3.6 (with Sun 1.5.0_xx or Sun 1.6.0_xx) **
  • Firefox 8 (with Sun 1.6.0_xx)
  • IE 6.0 SP3 (with Sun 1.5.0_xx or Sun 1.6.0_02+)
  • IE 7.0 (with Sun 1.5.0_xx or Sun 1.6.0_02+)
  • IE 8.0 (with Sun 1.6.0_xx) - compatibility mode
  • IE 9.0 (with Sun 1.6.0_xx) - compatibility mode

* Although not on the supported list, SP5 also has been successfully tested at Penn using Firefox 11 on Mac, patched with Java for OS X Lion 2012-002

** See the FAQ for a work-around for some older Firefox versions (Windows)

Using Other Query Tools

Warehouse users may also employ other tools, such as Oracle's SQL*Plus, TOAD, Microsoft Access or Excel with Microsoft Query and FileMaker Pro, once they have received access to a data collection. Users of these and other tools are strongly advised to consult Data Administration before exploring these options for advice on connecting to the Warehouse, joining tables, and efficient querying.