Solid Ground Technologies Online Library

Bringing Intelligence to BI

Online Library

The consultants of SolidGround Technologies have actively participated in every Business Objects conference since 1994. We have included some of our recent presentations online here for your reference.

If you would like more information about any of these presentations, or would like to see a topic showcased here, please contact us.

	*An Independent Expert's Assessment of SAP BusinessObjects BI 4* Anyone can read about the new features offered by any software package in the release notes. Studying that guide, however, may not provide insights in how best to take advantage of each feature and under what circumstances.This presentation will explore the inside story behind many of the newest innovations offered by the BI 4 Enterprise Suite. Along with understanding each feature, you also will discover the optimal way to deploy and maintain these new functions to maximum advantage.This paper will provide the practical knowledge necessary for a successful implementation. presented in 2016
	*Test for Success! A Deep Dive into Effective SAP BusinessObjects BI 4 Test Strategies* Your success in migrating to the newest version of any software is directly related to the amount of testing done beforehand. No vendor can test all possible combinations of their offerings these days. Rather than expect a level of service which is impossible to deliver, review this presentation to learn techniques for testing against your content according to your terms of acceptance. Real case studies will highlight the effectiveness of each technique, and help streamline the final set of tests that work best for your circumstances. presented in 2016
	*SAP BusinessObjects Web Intelligence Unleashed: Advanced Reporting Techniques for Today's Jedi Warrior* Gain advanced skills for overcoming challenges associated with new releases, stability issues, and internal software changes. Read this presentation to: examine the latest changes to the SAP BusinessObjects Web Intelligence reporting engine, and understand potential issues that can arise as a result; learn how advanced set operations can handle tougher multi-part questions; get steps to go beyond out-of-box offerings to personalize and share your own query list of values, and inject free-hand SQL in your reports for added power and flexibility; retool existing documents with tuning techniques that accelerate query performance and report execution. published at SAP Insider in 2015
	*All Upgrades are not the Same: Unique Techniques and Lessons for Upgrading Large SAP BusinessObjects BI Installations* The rules for upgrading large SAP BusinessObjects BI installations are not the same as the rules for smaller footprints. This presentation delivers techniques that are geared for large BI infrastructures and helps you identify practices that may prove limiting in such an environment. Learn how to: identify and avoid upgrade practices that may prove limiting in a large BI environment; simplify the upgrade process using standard upgrade tools, in-house scripts, and inexpensive third-party tools; build up your advanced knowledge of the process so that the tools don't dictate your migration strategy. published at SAP Insider in 2015
	*Keep Your SAP BusinessObjects System Healthy Using the Tools You Already Own* When it comes to getting metadata on the health of your SAP BusinessObjects system, some statistics are easier to gather than others, and some may even require an SDK programmer or third-party tool. This presentation is geared for those who want to squeeze every last ounce from the system diagnostic tools they've already paid for as part of their SAP BusinessObjects license and agreement. In this presentation, you will: identify the type of information that can most easily be gathered from your system; learn dozens of techniques for gathering statistics from the CMS repository, audit, and performance databases; determine when you've gone as far as you can and need to call in third-party tools or resources. published at SAP Insider in 2015
	*Deep Dive: Monitoring Servers Using BI 4.1* With as many reporting and visualization featurse offered in past versions of BusinessObjects Enterprise, internal monitoring of the servers that enabled those features has been absent. At least until now, with the advent of BusinessObjects 4.1. This presentation explores the new capabilities behind this monitoring technology and what it means for your organization. Rather than depending on your system administrator, learn to monitor the health of your own BusinessObjects system using tools tailored to the task. This paper will illustrate how to properly configure and tune the monitoring system, including customizations for specific situations. The following concepts will be presented: understanding the monitoring technology behind BusinessObjects 4.1, enabling and customizing probes to collect information, and how to aggregate and decipher the monitoring results. presented at ASUG in 2014
	*More Advanced Webi Techniques from the Jedi Academy* You’ve gone beyond the basics of BusinessObjects eons ago. With new versions and more challenging report requirements on the horizon, you’ll need advanced training – the kind only available from the Web Intelligence Jedi Academy. Read this presentation to bolster your reporting arsenal and keep the Dark Side at bay. Learn query techniques that support combination set operations that databases don't support, query on query workarounds, tuning, and pruning. Report techniques covered include advanced monitoring, benchmarking, tuning, and reduction tricks of the trade. Many of these techniques will work in previous versions of BusinessObjects, so everyone can learn and practice the concepts. Continue your path as a Webi Jedi Knight and may the Force be with you! presented at ASUG in 2014
	*Learn SAP Web Intelligence in an Hour: A Crash Course for Beginners* Designed for beginners with little or no SAP BusinessObjects reporting experience, this presentation provides the tools and techniques you need to get started. View demos that clearly illustrate the most important concepts of SAP BusinessObjects Web Intelligence report development Learn how to create effective queries, quickly analyze the information retrieved, and format the results in a way that is easily understood by others Go beyond the mechanics of report creation and understand the reasoning behind certain assembly and format choices. published at SAPinsider Reporting and Analytics Conference in 2014
	*Creating Logical SAP BusinessObjects Web Intelligence Reports the Vulcan Way* Combine Vulcans from the popular Star Trek series with today's BusinessObjects Web Intelligence toolset….and the result is streamlined reports that are easy to understand, maintain, and administer; and, of course, logical. Though Vulcans may be make-believe, the reporting techniques that bear their name are not. This presentation will: explore logical Web Intelligence techniques that build upon one another and make reports easier to understand and maintain, such as layered report techniques, annotated report elements, structured interface points, and programmed contexts; illustrate how existing reports can be retrofitted using the same reporting methodology; apply these techniques regardless of the version of BusinessObjects; standardize future reports. published at SAP Insider in 2014
	*Building Universes by the Book: Standardizing your semantic development* Tackling a new skill is hard enough without knowing the rules that guide in your development. Understanding the benefits of standards-driven universe development is key to a smooth implementation. This universal truth is especially relevant when creating BusinessObjects semantic layers known as universes. Reference manuals show the mechanics of using the Universe Developer and Information Design Tool without relating best practices that experienced designers follow. This presentation aims to fill that knowledge gap, providing the rules of the road for universe assembly that have been learned over the years. Best practices for traditional XI 3.1 universes (.unv) as well as BI 4.1 semantic layers (.unx) will be covered. Following these rules should minimize rework and maximize the reusability of any semantic layer you create. presented in 2014
	*Universe Building for Mere Mortals* Are you new to SAP BusinessObjects and the universe semantic layer? Tired of deferring to those who have more knowledge or experience on the subject than you? Bring your skills up-to-speed by reading this presentation n for a thorough grounding in the art of building universes. Learn how to develop universes on top of almost any source of data including relational databases (including SAP HANA), multi-dimensional, and even file-based sources. Guidelines for construction will be given in a step-by-step format that leaves nothing to chance. And you’ll benefit from the best practices that have proven most effective for many customers over the years. Though geared for beginners, this session will cover areas that even SAP BusinessObjects veterans might visit as a quick review. presented at ASUG in 2013
	*Creating Dashboards using Web Intelligence* Web Intelligence has come a long way since its introduction as a Web-based replacement for reporting. The current version offers many features that blur the line between ad hoc reporting and online monitoring and visualization. In this presentation, you will discover how to use Webi to create ad hoc dashboards with the same universe semantic layer that powers your reporting solutions. Features from 3.1 through the latest BI 4.0 release will be covered to satisfy all members of the BusinessObjects community. The techniques are taught by example, starting with simple visualizations and ending with multi-part drillable dashboards. presented at ASUG in 2013
	*Advanced Web intelligence Techniques for Aspiring Jedi Knights* You’ve mastered the basic concepts eons ago and have many years of report building to your credit. Conference sessions seem boring because the same old tricks are discussed and debated ‒ nothing new. If this story seems all too familiar, this presentation will provide a fresh (and challenging) change of pace. Learn techniques that use layered variables, dynamic breaks/sorts, transposed logic, and interactive drill downs to recharge your arsenal of skills. Many of these techniques will work in previous versions of BusinessObjects, so all attendees can learn, and then practice, the concepts. presented at ASUG in 2013
	*Protect Your Critical BI Content from Disaster with These Proven Backup and Recovery Techniques* This paper presents a sustainable procedural solution for backing up – and restoring – all of your BI content. Learn various methods of backing up enterprise BI content such as cold versus hot and full versus incremental archives See how these archives can be restored to provide point-in-time recoveries of desired content Identify all portions of an SAP BusinessObjects-based enterprise solution that need to be protected and provide enterprise-strength recovery methods that are currently present in file systems and databases. presented in 2013
	*SAP BusinessObjects Security in 60 Minutes - A Template Based Approach* This presentation boils down security principles to a series of templates that can easily be applied to almost any corporate situation. Examples from both SAP BusinessObjects XI 3.1 and 4.0 environments will drive home the techniques. Learn a template-based method for applying SAP BusinessObjects security See how these techniques can be applied in a variety of situations, from setting up new accounts to standardizing privileges and delegating special privileges such as administrative tasks, design,and publishing responsibilities. presented in 2013
	*Preparing for Life on Planet UNIX* As SAP BusinessObjects has grown, one thing has remained fairly constant - the universes upon which queries, reports, and dashboards have been built. The 4.0 release offers a new semantic layer and accompanying toolset, the Information Design Tool, which will eventually take the place of traditional technology. Given that most companies have made a huge investment creating and maintaining traditional universes, the prospect of moving to something new can be daunting. This presentation provides a real understanding of the preparation needed to make the jump. presented at ASUG in 2012
	*Audit Thyself Using BusinessObjects 4.0* Auditing has been a mixed blessing for BusinessObjects customers. The level of detail that can be retrieved from normal operations is amazing. The level of effort that it takes at times to retrieve and aggregate that information, less so. In BusinessObjects 4.0, the auditing technology has been completely revamped and promises better performance and accessibility than ever before. Through this presentation, become acquainted with this newest version of audit and what it holds in store for you. Administrators from v3.x systems will discover how their auditing pain points are addressed in this version, while those new to BusinessObjects will learn the rationale and justification for auditing. Initialization, configuration, and tuning of the new audit process are covered, as well as the creation of several sample reports that bring the audited results to life. This presentation will allow the user to understand the new auditing technology behind BusinessObjects 4.0, learn how to initialize and configure the auditing system to suit your purposes, and discover the differences between Audit 4.0 and past versions. presented at ASUG in 2012
	*Strategies and Tools to Ensure a Seamless Migration of Business Objects Content from Development to Production Environments* presented in 2012
	*Tips, Tricks, and Gotchas of Running Your Business Objects Enterprise Platform on UNIX Operating System* presented in 2012
	Proven Methodology for Performing an SAP BusinessObjects BI System "Health Check" presented in 2012
	Getting Into Trouble and Back Out Many conference presentations discuss new features or best practices for using the software that you own. This is the first that concentrates on common problems implementing the technology and troubleshooting techniques that quickly isolate and rectify the situation. Such knowledge is extremely important to the current BusinessObjects landscape that includes databases, application servers, administrative and processing servers, and network storage devices. This session will present a troubleshooting methodology that can be quickly applied to most environments. Learn how to use tools and techniques that help diagnose your problem, often at little or no additional cost. presented at ASUG 2011
	*Virtually Yours - The Sequel* presented at ASUG 2010
	*Better Universes by Design* presented at ASUG 2010
	*Metadata Madness* Business intelligence has become so popular that information on the data collected and analyzed is now a vital source of information all by itself. This metadata is extremely valuable in its own right when you’re trying to understand how your data is consumed and by whom; the answers to these questions can streamline your BI efforts. Unfortunately for most companies, many of these insights aren’t realized since metadata is never analyzed. This presentation hopes to change that attitude by introducing Metadata Manager as a tool that can cull those insights and present the findings online. The key points for using Metadata Manager are covered, illustrated by examples using real-world scenarios. If you’re wondering how many of those 150 universes are really needed or what impact changing a table will have on thousands of production reports, this presentation is for you. presented at ASUG 2010
	*Blue Collar Business Intelligence* Many presentations focus on Business Intelligence from the CEO level down, but few highlight the impact on the masses — the very people who can take the information/analysis and make the biggest operational difference for an organization. This presentation focuses upon building BI from the bottom up, by intelligently pushing information to the users rather than depending upon users to pull it themselves. presented at 2009 SAP BusinessObjects User Conference
	*Universe Best Practices* Developing a quality universe to be used by Web Intelligence or Crystal Reports users can be a daunting task for the first-time developer. Guidelines given during this presentation make that task much easier. Standards and best practices are given for every facet of universe design, from naming conventions to loop resolution, including the best query acceleration techniques. Universes built upon these standards will simplify ad-hoc query creation, allow for more complicated problem solving, and drastically reduce maintenance efforts. presented at 2009 SAP BusinessObjects User Conference
	*Xcelsius Essentials* Learn the basics behind SAP BusinessObjects’ newest and friendliest performance management solution. This presentation explains the fundamental steps necessary to build a dashboard using Crystal Xcelsius. Topics include how to add common visual components such as charts, gauges, and tables to a dashboard. Advanced techniques, such as switching from one component to another, drilling, and write-back capability for what-if analysis, also are included. presented at 2009 SAP BusinessObjects User Conference

SAPinsider is published by WIS Publishing, a division of Wellesley Information Services. Online ISSN #2155-2444, Print ISSN #1537-145X.

SAP is a trademark or registered trademark of SAP SE in Germany and other countries.

ASUG is a trademark or copyright of Americas' SAP Users' Group.