Comments on: Making the Best Use of Your Time (in a Prompt) http://www.dagira.com/2008/02/16/making-the-best-use-of-your-time-in-a-prompt/ ...you are in a twisty maze of passageways, all different... Tue, 07 Feb 2012 17:17:49 -0600 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: David P http://www.dagira.com/2008/02/16/making-the-best-use-of-your-time-in-a-prompt/comment-page-1/#comment-966 David P Mon, 04 Jan 2010 15:33:23 +0000 http://www.dagira.com/2008/02/16/making-the-best-use-of-your-time-in-a-prompt/#comment-966 <code> It is fairly simple to use dates (instead of datetime) without any of the problems mentioned above. <strong>LOV Object - Calendar Date (Char)</strong> <Strong>Select: </strong>convert(varchar(10), @Select(Dates\Calendar Date), 103) <Strong>Where: </strong>1 = 1 ) order by @Select(Dates\Calendar Date) desc -- An alternative is to hard code the LOV SQL. If you are using SQL Server, then you have to remove the DISTINCT from the generated LOV query, because SQL Server will not sort on a column which is not in the select when performing a DISTINCT in the query (Oracle will work fine). The general idea is to produce a date as a char, but ordered by the real date column. <strong>Example Prompt</strong> @Select(Date Time) >= convert(smalldatetime, @Prompt('1. Enter the start date:','D','LOV\Calendar Date (Char)',mono,free), 103) and @Select(Date Time) <= dateadd(d, 0, convert(smalldatetime, @Prompt('2. Enter the end date:','D','LOV\Calendar Date (Char)',mono,free), 103)) The result will be that the date values will be displayed as dates (without the time element), and you will be able to use the WebI inbuilt calendar selection method. </code>
It is fairly simple to use dates (instead of datetime) without any of the problems mentioned above.

LOV Object - Calendar Date (Char)
Select: convert(varchar(10), @Select(Dates\Calendar Date), 103)
Where: 1 = 1 )
order by @Select(Dates\Calendar Date) desc --

An alternative is to hard code the LOV SQL. If you are using SQL Server, then you have to remove the DISTINCT from the generated LOV query, because SQL Server will not sort on a column which is not in the select when performing a DISTINCT in the query (Oracle will work fine). The general idea is to produce a date as a char, but ordered by the real date column.

Example Prompt
@Select(Date Time) >= convert(smalldatetime, @Prompt('1. Enter the start date:','D','LOV\Calendar Date (Char)',mono,free), 103)
and @Select(Date Time) <= dateadd(d, 0, convert(smalldatetime, @Prompt('2. Enter the end date:','D','LOV\Calendar Date (Char)',mono,free), 103))

The result will be that the date values will be displayed as dates (without the time element), and you will be able to use the WebI inbuilt calendar selection method.

]]> By: Dave Rathbun http://www.dagira.com/2008/02/16/making-the-best-use-of-your-time-in-a-prompt/comment-page-1/#comment-287 Dave Rathbun Wed, 30 Jul 2008 08:48:22 +0000 http://www.dagira.com/2008/02/16/making-the-best-use-of-your-time-in-a-prompt/#comment-287 Heh, Hi, MissKris, and welcome. Your comment made me laugh, so thank you for that. :lol: Heh, Hi, MissKris, and welcome. Your comment made me laugh, so thank you for that. :lol:

]]> By: MissKris http://www.dagira.com/2008/02/16/making-the-best-use-of-your-time-in-a-prompt/comment-page-1/#comment-286 MissKris Wed, 30 Jul 2008 00:47:57 +0000 http://www.dagira.com/2008/02/16/making-the-best-use-of-your-time-in-a-prompt/#comment-286 Sigh. There is so much about Business Objects that makes me scream "WHY??? Who designed this thing? Nobody who has ever used it in the real world, that's for sure!" Sigh. There is so much about Business Objects that makes me scream “WHY??? Who designed this thing? Nobody who has ever used it in the real world, that’s for sure!”

]]> By: Dave Rathbun http://www.dagira.com/2008/02/16/making-the-best-use-of-your-time-in-a-prompt/comment-page-1/#comment-195 Dave Rathbun Wed, 05 Mar 2008 14:27:30 +0000 http://www.dagira.com/2008/02/16/making-the-best-use-of-your-time-in-a-prompt/#comment-195 Foad, you are preaching to the choir, as they say. :) I think your views are perfectly valid. Thank you for your comment. Foad, you are preaching to the choir, as they say. :) I think your views are perfectly valid. Thank you for your comment.

]]> By: Foad Tazi http://www.dagira.com/2008/02/16/making-the-best-use-of-your-time-in-a-prompt/comment-page-1/#comment-193 Foad Tazi Mon, 03 Mar 2008 13:52:41 +0000 http://www.dagira.com/2008/02/16/making-the-best-use-of-your-time-in-a-prompt/#comment-193 From a developers perspective, I can understand the phrase "not worth the time to try to fix this". But from BusinessObjects perspective I can't understand it. When I would hear things like "frequently asked", "users don't like them", "since 1998" ... I would try to find a solution and not propose all kind of workarounds which will stay forever. If they would just look at Crystal Reports and take over some report functions in Webi (including a lot of time functions, date or DateTime Prompts), this would already be a good start. But developing this means spending $$$'s with almost no return for BOBJ. This kind of issues are almost never a key-breaker in chosing a BI application. Just try to visualize seconds in Webi (e.g. 3660) into a time format (e.g. 01:01:00). Yes, with complex formulas this is possible but you need to do it for each measure in each report. In e.g. excel, just right click and change format. Reported it, no idea what they will do with it. Sometimes I have the impression that BOBJ is to busy with looking for new things and forget to improve/enhance (existing) things. From a developers perspective, I can understand the phrase “not worth the time to try to fix this”.

But from BusinessObjects perspective I can’t understand it. When I would hear things like “frequently asked”, “users don’t like them”, “since 1998″ … I would try to find a solution and not propose all kind of workarounds which will stay forever. If they would just look at Crystal Reports and take over some report functions in Webi (including a lot of time functions, date or DateTime Prompts), this would already be a good start.

But developing this means spending $$$’s with almost no return for BOBJ. This kind of issues are almost never a key-breaker in chosing a BI application.

Just try to visualize seconds in Webi (e.g. 3660) into a time format (e.g. 01:01:00). Yes, with complex formulas this is possible but you need to do it for each measure in each report. In e.g. excel, just right click and change format. Reported it, no idea what they will do with it.

Sometimes I have the impression that BOBJ is to busy with looking for new things and forget to improve/enhance (existing) things.

]]> By: Andreas http://www.dagira.com/2008/02/16/making-the-best-use-of-your-time-in-a-prompt/comment-page-1/#comment-189 Andreas Sun, 17 Feb 2008 21:37:03 +0000 http://www.dagira.com/2008/02/16/making-the-best-use-of-your-time-in-a-prompt/#comment-189 Not being a fan of customizing code at all, I would love if BusinessObjects introduced more time functions: be it prompts with TODAY, YESTERDAY, LAST WEEK, etc. functions/default values, or creating crosstabs with a fixed format, such as last 30 days, no matter if data is present or not, etc. I know and implemented a few work-arounds, but it is just that: a work-around. Not being a fan of customizing code at all, I would love if BusinessObjects introduced more time functions: be it prompts with TODAY, YESTERDAY, LAST WEEK, etc. functions/default values, or creating crosstabs with a fixed format, such as last 30 days, no matter if data is present or not, etc.
I know and implemented a few work-arounds, but it is just that: a work-around.

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