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Business Objects FAQ, last modified 96/06/26

Answers to Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about the Business Objects query tool software, used to produce easier queries from relational databases.
Archive-name: databases/bus-objects-faq
Posting-Frequency: monthly
Last-modified: 1996/06/26
URL: http://www.upenn.edu/da/bo/busob-faq.html

   
                             BUSINESSOBJECTS FAQ
                                       
   This document was last changed June 26, 1996. Copyright 1995, 1996,
   by Stephen W. Thompson. Provided that no modification is made in the
   text and that this paragraph is retained, this document may be
   reproduced; the only exception is that employees of BusinessObjects
   must request permission for any reproduction.
     _________________________________________________________________
   
FAQ Contents

   FAQ Maintenance & Updates
          
   User Issues
          
          + Business Objects Overview
          + Installation on Windows
          + Installation on Macintoshes
          + Access
          + Performance
          + Training
          + Upcoming Versions
            
   Manager Issues
          
   
The Questions

   
   
  FAQ MAINTENANCE & UPDATES
  
   
   F1.01
          What recent changes have been made to this list?
   F1.02
          Who contributed to this FAQ?
          
  USER ISSUES
   Business Objects Overview
          
   U0.01
          Could you briefly explain what BusinessObjects is?
   U0.02
          What are some resources to learn about BusinessObjects?
          
          
   Installation on Windows
          
   U1.01
          How much space does Business Objects require on the hard drive?
   U1.02
          Why would a message about the environment variable CONFIG being
          incorrectly set arise during installation?
   U1.03
          How do I test if a connection problem with Business Objects is
          with BusOb itself or with SQL*Net instead?
   U1.04
          What type of configuration problems have you seen that prevent
          NETTEST.EXE from being successful (that is, SQL*Net is
          unhappy)?
   U1.05
          What type of configuration problems have you seen that prevent
          Business Objects from working?
   U1.06
          Will Business Objects work on Windows 95?
   U1.07
          What is the latest patch to Windows, and which do I have?
          
   Installation on Macintoshes
          
   U2.01
          Why when I try to open a universe for the first time do I get
          the error "SYS-0331: Error Retrieving Parameters"?
   U2.02
          Does installation need to be done using the installation disks,
          or can the files simply be copied?
          
   Some installation pointers written to be specific to University of
          Pennsylvania may be found at
          http://pobox.upenn.edu/~thompson/busob-penn.html.
          
   Access
          
   U3.01
          (PENN SPECIFIC) Why am I having problems getting into Business
          Objects with my password?
   U3.02
          Can I get rid of old universes by deleting directories/folders?
   U3.03
          What are some possible approaches to solving connection
          problems?
          
   Performance
          
   U4.01
          Why is Mac performance so poor?
   U4.02
          Why does canceling a query sometimes work and sometimes hang my
          machine?
          
   User Interface
          
   U5.01
          How can one retrieve queries from the repository?
   U5.02
          How does one find templates that are in the repository, or even
          find the command to import them?
   U5.03
          How can a Mac user close one universe and open another
          universe, short of quitting and restarting BusOb?
   U5.04
          How can I get labels to print 3-up (in three columns)?
   U5.05
          When creating conditions based on queries (rather than
          Constant, Variable or Object), which queries does BusOb display
          as candidate subqueries?
          For example, if the condition is on SSN, are queries displayed
          in the dialog box only if their result object is SSN?
   U5.06
          How can I query for records based on lists of id's that I have
          from other data sources? Say I have a file of SSN's to look up?
   U5.07
          How can I get better control of how my headers and footers
          appear? I want top-of-page headers related to some objects,
          beginning-of-break footers related to others, and sometimes
          text that accompanies each occurrence of an object.
   U5.08
          Why do some help screens describe features I can't locate, such
          as the "complex query" button mentioned under "outer joins"?
   U5.09
          How can I have a query use an outer join?
   U5.10
          How do I input the pipe or or-bar character?
          
   Training
          
   U6.01
          How is the training provided by Business Objects?
   U6.02
          How is training provided by others?
          
   Upcoming Versions
          
   U7.01
          What can we expect from BusOb v4.0 (codenamed Mercury)?
   U7.02
          What are new features that we BusOb users and managers wish
          would be added to the tool?
          
  MANAGER ISSUES
   M1.01
          What are some approaches to resolving loops in the joins?
   M1.02
          How can I have a context with no joins?
   M1.03
          Why can't I add new objects?
   M1.04
          Are there any "gotchas" with using the Advanced Login Strategy
          for managing security?
   M1.05
          What do I do if I lose my manager password?
   M1.06
          How can I programmatically modify object names?
   M1.07
          How can I modify the MANAGERx universe to allow reporting on
          aliases?
   M1.08
          How can I find the metamodel? for the repository files?
          
   
The Answers

  FAQ MAINTENANCE & UPDATES
   F1.01
          What recent changes have been made to this list?
          
          
          960611 Added info about BUSOB-L mailing list. Removed
          comp.databases.ingres from posting list since it is also
          received as an e-mail list.
          
          
          960501 Revamped the HTML formatting so the FAQ looks better and
          is easier to use interactively.
          
          
          960501 Moved the FAQ to it's new, more official location.
          
          
          Added a thumbnail explanation of what BusOb is for the
          uninitiated. Added two user interface questions, one on help
          text and one on outer joins.
          
          Added a paragraph for the "new versions" question concerning
          Object Query.
          
   F1.02
          Who contributed to this FAQ?
          
          Tad Davis: [email protected]; Adam B. Greenfield:
          [email protected]; Andy Mannhart:
          [email protected]; Susan Quant:
          [email protected]; Lorraine Ratajczak:
          [email protected]; Carol Rice: [email protected]; Ann
          Stockton: [email protected] .
          
          The document is very Oracle-specific right now; users of other
          RDBMS's are invited to contribute. Send your contribution to:
          [email protected].
          
  USER ISSUES
   Business Objects Overview
          
   U0.01
          Could you briefly explain what Business Objects is?
          
          Business Objects is a query tool sold by a company by the same
          name which is used to create 'ad hoc' reports from data stored
          in databases in a client/server fashion. It provides facilities
          to retrieve data from relational databases and create reports
          and graphs, as well as to export the retrieved data to other
          applications. Tools with which it might compare include
          Impromptu from Cognos, GQL from Andyne, Browser from Oracle and
          Brio Query from Brio Technology. It is available on Windows,
          Macs and Motif.
          
   U0.02
          What are some resources to learn about Business Objects?
          
          To subscribe to a mailing list, send the line "subscribe
          busob-l Yourfirstname Yourlastname" to
          [email protected]. This is a list started June 1996
          for discussion about both user and management issues.
          Subscribers only may submit messages by mailing to
          [email protected]. (Please remember: Text goes to
          busob-l; commands go to listserv.)
          
          The current copy of this FAQ is always available at
          http://www.upenn.edu/da/bo/busob-faq.html.
          
          A WWW site is maintained by Business Objects at
          http://www.businessobjects.com/.
          
          Although there is no perfect newsgroup that exists yet,
          comp.database.olap is perhaps the most appropriate.
          
   Installation on Windows
          
   U1.01
          How much space does Business Objects require on the hard drive?
          
          
          For version 3.1.1E I estimate about 6.5 Mb. Of course, once you
          start downloading Universe definitions and doing reports, that
          could grow enormously. Use the Query, Document and Template
          management menus to delete work once you're done with it in
          order to save disk space.
          
   U1.02
          Why would a message about the environment variable CONFIG being
          incorrectly set arise during installation?
          
          
          This has happened when SQL*Net was already installed on the
          machine and used with another query tool we were evaluating.
          Removing the entire ORAWIN directory and the
          \WINDOWS\ORACLE.INI file, removing any SET CONFIG or
          CONFIG_FILES line from the AUTOEXEC.BAT and starting the TCP/IP
          Adapter installation again was our fix.
          
   U1.03
          How do I test if a connection problem with Business Objects is
          with BusOb itself or with SQL*Net instead?
          
          
          SQL*Net for Windows (not Mac, unfortunately) comes with
          NETTEST.EXE in /ORAWIN/NETWORK/ADMIN. From FileManager, double
          click it, and enter an Oracle uid and password and a connection
          string, which at Penn is "warehouse". If you don't get a
          successful connection then the problem is with SQL*Net and not
          BusOb.
          
   U1.04
          What type of configuration problems have you seen that prevent
          NETTEST.EXE from being successful (that is, SQL*Net is
          unhappy)?
          
          
          SQL*Net was installed before TCP/IP Adapter, instead of TCP/IP
          Adapter first, as is required. (We surmise that the "Required
          Support Files", found with both packages, are bad somehow in
          the SQL*Net set of disks but okay with TCP/IP Adapter disks.)
          
          Problems also arise if you choose a "wrong" TCP/IP product when
          prompted during the TCP/IP Adapter installation. This is wrong
          as far as SQL*Net is concerned, not necessarily anything you
          have understood or done incorrectly. For instance, When using
          LAN Workplace for DOS v. 12, which uses WINSOCK, we found you
          must NOT select WINSOCK, but instead select LWP.
          
   U1.05
          What type of configuration problems have you seen that prevent
          Business Objects from working?
          
          
          The PATH in AUTOEXEC.BAT does not include \ORAWIN\BIN.
          
          The TCP/IP package or WINSOCK.DLL was not compatible with the
          JSB files that Business Objects installs. (A symptom of this is
          an error message that appears when every server access is made,
          after which Business Objects successfully continues working
          fine.)
          
          There's a bug in 3.1.1E (at least) when using SQL*Net 2.1. A
          difference between v. 2.0 and v. 2.1 is that what was
          ORA7WIN.DLL is now ORA71WIN.DLL. Business Objects is expecting
          to find ORA7WIN.DLL. We had success simply copying ORA71WIN.DLL
          to ORA7WIN.DLL, and keeping both files around. This info came
          direct from BusinessObjects themselves!
          
   U1.06 
          Will Business Objects work on Windows 95?
          
          
          Yes, at least v. 3.1.1E. Similarly, a U.S. company reports
          using BusOb on Win95, with the added benefit that "In fact
          Windows 95 can handle the "lockup" problem with Oracle and
          SQL*net. You're still not able to cancel the query, but at
          least your entire system is not tied up waiting for the first
          row to be returned. Windows 95 allows the user to switch
          applications during this lock up period (I guess they really
          did build a true multitasking environment.?)" This was using
          SQL*Net v1.1 and specifying "the generic WINDOCK TCP stack that
          comes with Windows 95" as the vendor for installation of
          Oracle's TCP/IP Adapter product.
          
          A European company reports much success using Windows 95 on
          thousands of machines, using versions 1 and 2.1 of Oracle's
          SQL*Net over TCP/IP as middleware.
          
          As to which vendor to specify when configuring TCP/IP Adapter,
          this company reports that "this TCP_VENDOR, you nearly always
          have problems. That's why we don't use the Oracle-Routines any
          more. We just copy the most important files directly from CD or
          diskettes. We have SQL*NET 2.1.4.1.0 at the time and the
          generic Microsoft 32bit-TCP/IP. Here the most important files
          are:
          

- C:\WINDOWS\WINSOCK.DLL        42080 bytes     (came with Windows 95)
         this DLL-file is often overwritten by other installations

- ...\ORAWIN\BIN:
         COREWIN.DLL                   833856 bytes
         CORE3WIN.DLL                  245136 bytes
         MSOCKLIB.DLL                   42208 bytes
         MWINSOCK.DLL                    7104 bytes
         ORA71WIN.DLL                  321968 bytes
         ORA7WIN.DLL                   272448 bytes
         SQLTNS.DLL                      4848 bytes
         SQLTNS1.DLL                   198080 bytes
         NL.DLL                        137888 bytes
         NLS23WIN.DLL                  749312 bytes
         NS.DLL                        173600 bytes
         NT.DLL                         26288 bytes
         NTT.DLL                        42096 bytes
   
          
          I don't enclose the file date because this may vary (Oracle
          doesn't have the same versions in the USA and in Europe).
          
   U1.07
          What is the latest patch to Windows, and which do I have?
          
          
          The last patch known to me is Patch 9. Check the splash screen
          for your patch level. If if only has "3.1.1 E" (for the English
          version, anyway), you have no patches.
          
   Installation on Macintoshes
          
   U2.01
          Why when I try to open a universe for the first time do I get
          the error "SYS-0331: Error Retrieving Parameters"?
          
          
          This message occurs on a DuoDock Macintosh. Our latest theory
          is that the Duodock and the Powerbook 180 have only one port,
          so ethernet, Appletalk, modem, etc., need to share it.
          Apparently they don't do this well, and making a switch from
          non-MacTCP to MacTCP wipes out a settings files which SQL*Net
          uses. The problem is NOT a Business Objects problem, but is
          entirely at the Mac and Oracle level.
          
   U2.02
          Does installation need to be done using the installation disks,
          or can the files simply be copied?
          
          
          Copying the files, for instance over Appleshare network
          connections, has worked successfully. Copy everything from the
          old machine to the new one, including all the preference files,
          etc.
          
          For Oracle users, you then need to re-set the "home" directory
          for Oracle (using the "Set Oracle Home" application in the
          Oracle Applications folder), and everything works OK.
          
          (Note: This action should be fully documented in complience
          with your software license; document when BusOb is installed on
          a user's machine, when it is moved to a new machine and when it
          is removed from the old machine. The assumption in this FAQ is
          that software licenses are being followed.)
          
   Access
          
   U3.01
          (PENN SPECIFIC) Why am I having problems getting into Business
          Objects with my password?
          
          
          Initially we have everyone using Steve Thompson's Oracle
          account to access BusOb. This is controlled by the DICT.KEY
          file. We plan to change access so everyone uses their own
          Oracle account, which is important so access to data can be
          controlled by the Oracle built-in security scheme.
          
          What that means is that you need to remember your Oracle
          account and password, because you'll need it when we make the
          change. But for now a BusOb account and password need to be
          created for you, currently by Lori or Steve.
          
          When we make the change, we'll make announcements about it by
          e-mail, then change Steve's Oracle account password so the old
          DICT.KEY no longer gives access to data. At the same time we'll
          make available a new DICT.KEY that requires you to login to
          BusOb using your ORACLE account and password. Hopefully there
          are few enough of us in the pilot group that we can minimize
          the confusion of this process.
          
          If your Oracle account is different from your Business Objects
          account, it is a good idea to contact Lori or Steve to change
          your BusOb account.
          
   U3.02
          Can I get rid of old universes by deleting directories/folders?
          
          
          
          Yes. From either Windows or Mac, delete the contents of the
          appropriate directories as you would any other directory or
          folder. For a universe called FRED, there is a directory/folder
          called DEF/FRED containing the "definition" of the FRED
          universe to Business Objects and STORAGE/FRED containing the
          queries and results of queries that you have run against FRED.
          Deleting the STORAGE/FRED directory will delete all queries
          you've done again FRED, also.
          
          You might wish to be more selective in your cleanup. Since
          results of queries and reports against those results are called
          *.ASC and *.E??, you may delete just those files in order to
          save space and still have the queries themselves (*.REQ) to run
          again later if you need to.
          
   U3.03
          What are some possible approaches to solving connection
          problems?
          
          
          Even after flawless installations of the middleware product
          such as SQL*Net from Oracle and of BusOb, there may still be
          connection problems. For example, you might get the error
          "UNI-0010: Invalid access code". Your problem then is to
          determine where the problem is -- with BusOb, with your
          desktop, with your network software (ie., TCP/IP), with your
          middleware, or with the server.
          
          BusOb provides a trace facility to aid in this detective work.
          In the OBJECTS.INI file, change "INTERNALTRACE=NO" to
          "INTERNALTRACE=YES". Then try to connect or do whatever you had
          tried before without success, and then quit BusOb.
          
          BusOb will have created TMP\SQLBO.LOG (TMP:SQLBO.LOG on Macs)
          which shows internal procedure calls and parameters passed to
          and returned from the middleware. Error codes and messages
          shown there may be very helpful in determining in what
          component of software the problem derives.
          
   Performance
          
   U4.01
          Why is Mac performance so poor?
          
          
          The standard release of version 3.1.1E for the Mac (internally
          known as Patch #4) experiences a long (10 - 30 second) lag time
          between double clicking on the "Result Objects" bar and when
          the list of available objects appears. There are apparently
          also long delays in notifying the user that the connection
          parameters fail to give a valid connection.
          
          In mid-September 1995, Patch #5 of version 3.1 was being
          delivered to customers. It makes performance 5 to 14 times
          faster, making the Mac and Windows comparable for most
          purposes. Congratulations, Business Objects!
          
          There are also recommendations from Business Objects has been
          to open the "Get Info" window for the BusOb application and
          give it the maximum "Minimum Memory" you can. While always wise
          for Mac applications, this doesn't make a noticeable
          difference.
          
   U4.02
          Why does canceling a query sometimes work and sometimes hang my
          machine?
          
          
          At Penn we use Oracle's SQL*Net to access data from Oracle,
          including for access by Business Objects. Apparently either
          SQL*Net or the TCP/IP package (NOT BusOB) restricts you to
          being able to cancel only after you've received the first row
          back in response to your query, not before. So waiting for the
          row counter to indicate at least one record has been retrieved
          means it's safe to cancel your query; otherwise your machine
          will probably hang.
          
   User Interface
          
   U5.01
          How can one retrieve queries from the repository?
          
          
          When a universe is open, use the "File->Import query from
          repository" menu item. Be sure to select "Import with
          associated documents" to get any reports and charts that
          accompany the query.
          
   U5.02
          How do you find templates that are in the repository, or even
          find the command to import them?
          
          
          The "Templates" menu only appears from within a report. So
          create a plain, vanilla report from your .ASC file by going to
          ReportAssist, choosing the first report-type icon, then "Ok."
          From the report screen, then, you can see the Templates menu.
          Use "Import Templates from Repository" if you have not yet
          retrieved the templates.
          
   U5.03
          How can a Mac user close one universe and open another
          universe, short of quitting and restarting BusOb?
          
          
          The problem in changing universes in the Mac is that the old
          universe stays selected when it is closed, so the menu pick
          remains "Open Universe". If you click in the Universe window on
          a blank area to deselect the old universe, then you will be
          able to choose "Open Universe..." (note the dots now) to open
          another universe, perhaps one you have not yet received from
          the repository.
          
   U5.04
          How can I get labels to print 3-up (in three columns)?
          
          
          Create a default report and use the "Report Editor" (accessed
          from the "Modify Document" icon or the "Modify Report" command
          from the Document menu) for most of this.
          
          First, stack the lines of the label. Delete the column labels,
          then stack the lines by dragging and dropping name, then
          street1, then street2, etc. Create a variable ("Tools" menu)
          which concatenates city, state, zip and country with blanks and
          commas as needed into one string, and insert that variable
          *instead of* the individual components. If street2 is often
          blank, you might create two other variables: one which returns
          street2 is non-blank, otherwise cityStateZip; and another which
          returns cityStateZip if street2 is non-blank, otherwise blank.
          
          Then, make each cell narrow enough so that 3 columns will be
          accommodated.
          
          Remove all headers, footers and other non-essential cells.
          Click on the 'G' symbol, and uncheck the "Break footers" box.
          This will make the report contents and the Global contents the
          same height.
          
          Close the Report Editor with the File->Generate Total Report
          menu selection. Then use page setup to choose number of columns
          (3 in this case). The columns will only appear side-by-side in
          Page Preview.
          
   U5.05
          When creating conditions based on queries (rather than
          Constant, Variable or Object), which queries does BusOb display
          as candidate subqueries? For example, if the condition is on
          SSN, are queries displayed in the dialog box only if their
          result object is SSN?
          
          
          BusOb is none too intelligent here. If there is only a single
          result object in a query, that query is displayed as a
          candidate, even if the objects are of different data types.
          
          For instance, if you've started a condition such as "Employee
          SSN is in list", a query BIGDEPT might be listed as a possible
          subquery since it has only one result object, say "Department
          of Manager" even though that comparison doesn't make sense
          based on the data.
          
   U5.06
          How can I query for records based on lists of id's that I have
          from other data sources? Say I have a file of SSN's to look up?
          
          
          
          The idea is to create an "in list" condition, then coerce your
          file to show up when you click the "List of Values" button
          instead of querying the database. (A disaster for something
          like SSN!)
          
          This approach works because the normal behavior is for BusOb to
          query the database only the 'first time', then to use those
          results again until the "Refresh" button is pressed. The
          results are stored in an .ASC file (as for normal query raw
          results), with a name prefaced by an ampersand, such as
          "&SSN__3.ASC". If you put your data in that file instead, then
          when you create the "in list" condition and click the "List of
          Values" button your data will be displayed and may be
          highlighted to select as usual.
          
          The two gotchas are knowing what .ASC file to manipulate and
          using the correct field delimeter. Identifying the .ASC file
          name is easy when the BusOb manager has given all users access
          to the MANAGERx universe. This universe holds data *about* the
          other universes, listing class names, Select SQL strings,
          object names, and, helpful in the current situation, the List
          of Values Name. (Care should be taken when exporting this
          universe, since it contains an object for "User Password".
          Rather than exporting the generic MANAGERO universe for Oracle,
          at Penn we have duplicated that universe and then removed the
          password object (and named it UNIVRSES). Then it's usable by
          all, and a query for Class Name, Object Name and List of Value
          Name for the universe in question will show you the .ASC file
          to use. The delimiter, which can be difficult to create, is
          best copied from an existing query and pasted into the new
          file.
          
          Each line of the .ASC file will look like this (for SSN's):
 123456789|
   
          
          (The final character is the 'pipe' or OR-bar character.)
          
          Make all lines the same line length; crashes have been seen
          when variable-length lines are not padded prior to the pipe
          character. A few lines for a variable-length object might
          appear like this:
          

POTATO   |
CARROT   |
ONION    |
RUTABAGA |
   
          
   U5.07
          How can I get better control of how my headers and footers
          appear? I want top-of-page headers related to some objects,
          beginning-of-break footers related to others, and sometimes
          text that accompanies each occurrence of an object.
          
          
          There are two kinds of headers and footers. We'll call them
          document headers/footers and break headers/footers. (These are
          my terms.)
          
          Document headers/footers are akin to those in Excel; default
          ones are created for you with basic info about the current
          document and page, you can edit them more or less by hand, and
          what you see of the header or footer is basically what you'll
          see in the finished document. They are only visible in
          formatted form using "File->Print Preview" (or use the toolbar
          button -- look for the magnifying glass). Edit them by using
          "Document->Modify Report" (hint text labels it "Modify
          Document", since it's also used for modifying charts). By
          default (when using QuickReport or ReportAssistant) you'll find
          the variables QueryName, QueryDate and QueryTime in the
          document header, and Page centered in the document footer.
          These may be replaced with anything that you would like.
          
          Break headers/footers are printed every time the value of the
          break variable(s) change. For example, if a "Month" result
          object were in a document and there was a break header on it,
          then a new header would appear when a previous row was
          "November" and the current row is "December".
          
          Break headers/footers are visible from the regular document
          viewing window, EXCEPT THAT using "Repeat Header on New Page"
          (from the "Tools->Breaks" window) is only visible on the FIRST
          page. Use PagePreview to see these headers on following pages.
          Note that though there are several places to get this dialog
          box, clicking the break icon in BusinessAnalyzer gives you a
          break editor which leaves out certain options that you'll want
          sometimes.
          
          But first you need to be sure you have these headers and
          footers populated with text or variables, or else nothing will
          show up because there was nothing TO show up! (Did you follow
          that?)
          
          From "ModifyDocument", you'll see something like this (pardon
          poor text-based illustration):
          

       +---------
       |      hg
       | +-------
       | |    h1
       | | +-----
       | | |  h2
       | | |
       G 1 2  Object names appear here
       | | |
       | | |  f2
       | | +-----
       | |    f1
       | +-------
       |      fg
       +---------

   
          
          The areas in which you place headers at the global (document),
          first break and second break levels are labeled hg, h1 and h2
          respectively. Likewise, fg, f1 and f2 label where labels for
          global, first level and second level breaks are placed. If
          there are not empty cells ready to be filled in, use
          "Edit->Insert..." (or tool bar buttons with arrows) to add new
          cells or rows above (for headers) or below (for footers) the
          appropriate break-level cell.
          
          Then, when leaving the ModifyDocument window, use
          "File->Generate Total Report" (or Partial).
          
   U5.08
          Why do some help screens describe features I can't locate, such
          as the "complex query" button mentioned under "outer joins"?
          
          
          SADLY, the help for the User version of BusOb is the same help
          as for the Manager version, and it doesn't indicate which help
          is for which version. The "complex query" button that is
          mentioned is only available to Managers, for use when creating
          automatic joins between tables, not to users, unfortunately.
          (Already called in as an enhancement request.)
          
   U5.09
          How can I have a query use an outer join?
          
          
          You have to modify the SQL (with "Generate SQL" and "View SQL"
          from the File menu). There is no way to do so from the "Modify
          Query" screen.
          
          To explain this more, imagine a universe with several joined
          tables and another table used to lookup values. For instance,
          to find department names that match department codes. Say there
          are a number of objects which contain department codes. If you
          wanted to create a Condition "ManagingDepartmentCode equals
          LookupDeptCode", it is not presently possible to have that
          Condition be an outer join. (Already called in as an
          enhancement request.)
          
   U5.10
          How do I input the pipe or or-bar character?
          
          
          The delimiter looks like a solid pipe (|), or perhaps a broken
          pipe (either is OK), but *do not* use the pipe key on the
          keyboard, regardless of whether you're using a DOS platform or
          a Mac.
          
          On DOS platforms, use the DOS editor to edit the .SQL or .ASC
          file. Go to the spot where you want the delimiter. Press and
          hold down the Alt key while using the *numeric key pad* to type
          179 and then release the Alt key. *Do not* use the number keys
          that are above the letter keys.
          
          On a Mac, use cut and paste to copy the delimiter from an
          existing LoV file.
          
   Training
          
   U6.01
          How is the training provided by Business Objects?
          
          
          The only reports I am aware of currently are for the 1-day user
          training. Based on two reports only, this training has not been
          praised. Ours, for instance, had complaints of quick movement
          thru slides despite students not having understood the material
          and inexperienced teachers.
          
          Dennis Broderick, [email protected], reports that
          "the Business Objects training enrollment coordinator is Darla
          at 408-864-2084."
          
   U6.02
          How is the training provided by others?
          
          
          According to mail from Dennis Broderick
          ([email protected]), "Business Objects has a
          certification/authorization process that 'authorized' training
          facilities must complete. The process involves learning and
          'student teaching' activities under BusObj supervision plus an
          audit by BusObj. Contact Carla Parone, the BusObj training
          manager, at 408 864-2010."
          
          
          Some of these authorized trainers are:
          + Braun Technology Group (BTG) (Chicago, 312-443-1317). Dennis
            Broderick, [email protected], reports that:
            
            "Braun Technology Group (BTG) is the authorized training
            center for Business Objects in the Midwest. BTG teaches both
            the 1-day user course and the 3-day Universe Manager course.
            Both courses are offered monthly in Chicago. BTG also
            customizes and teaches Business Objects courses at client
            sites. Also, BTG provides implementation consulting and
            assistance for the Business Objects products. For enrollment
            information contact Allen Rice, 312 443-1317x168 or
            [email protected].
            
          + Context Integration (New York City, 212-785-6100),
            http://www.context.com.
            Regan Coleman reports:
            
            "Yes, we are certified training partners, and we have three
            facilities: one in New York, one in Austin, TX, and one in
            South San Francicso,CA." They also offer customized end-user
            and manager training, both on-site and off-site.
            
            I took the manager training from them and found it excellent,
            and two other people have given me strong reviews for them
            for both the 3-day manager training and the user training.
            
            They were expecting to have Advanced Users training beginning
            the summer of 1995, and at that time were developing an
            Advanced Managers training.
            
          + Recon Corp. Saratoga (San Jose) CA., 408-866-8676,
            [email protected]. "Based in the Silicon Valley, Recon
            provides database development, consulting and training
            solutions. As a certified training and consulting partner to
            Business Objects we conduct the standard user and manager
            training. Additionally we prepare customized user training
            which has been very well received by our clients."
   
          
          
          (Standard disclaimer here. I have no connection other than as a
          customer with any organization other than my employer. As
          additional information is offered for this FAQ, it will be
          added without prejudice.)
          
   Upcoming Versions
          
   U7.01
          What can we expect from BubOb v4.0 (codenamed Mercury)?
          
          
          Concerning the weakened security of storing the manager
          password on the desktop where it may be copied to other
          machines, a contributor reports: "I've seen the Alpha Version
          of BO Version 4.0 and it seemed to me that they replaced the
          OBJECTS.USE through a role concept which is stored somewhere in
          the repository. I think they know at BO why they do that."
          
          Carol Rice, [email protected], reports:
          
          "I called Business Objects tech support relative to Business
          Query 1.1 and its ability to run on Excel 7, and the official
          word is that BizQuery 1.1 does not support Excel 7. The support
          guy I spoke to was very vague as to when it WILL be supported,
          and I'm expecting a call back from a more senior manager
          regarding timing on this issue. Perhaps if someone other than
          me called them about getting Business Query updated for Excel 7
          (it's only an add-in, for heaven's sake), they might push
          development forward."
          
          Tech Support reported in a phone call in early March that
          Mercury is "on schedule" for the end of Q196 or early April,
          but that it will be a "controlled release" only. For more
          information about what that means, I was referred to my
          salesperson. Mercury's beta version was out December 1995, and
          is currently at the beta-2 level.
          
          Does anyone know anything else that we are able to publicize?
          
   U7.02
          What are new features that we BusOb users and managers wish
          would be added to the tool?
          
          
          I am aware that Business Objects staff are aware of this FAQ.
          Lacking a mail list or a newsgroup to communicate with them,
          here are some features that have been frequently requested:
          
          + Allow objects of the same name in one universe, as long as
            object names are unique within the class.
   
          
          Please contact the maintainer of this list with additions. 
          
  MANAGER ISSUES
   M1.01
          What are some approaches to resolving loops in the joins?
          
          
          A loop is at least two tables which have two or more sets of
          joins between them, so an entity relationship diagram of the
          tables would have an enclosed area composed of the tables and
          their joins. An example from my subject area might involve the
          tables STUDENT and INSTRUCTOR. A STUDENT is taught by an
          INSTRUCTOR and is advised by an INSTRUCTOR. The tables can be
          joined from STUDENT.INSTRUCTOR_ID to INSTRUCTOR.ID and also
          from STUDENT.ADVISOR_ID to INSTRUCTOR.ID. Rarely will the
          teacher be the same person as the advisor, so applying both
          joins at the same time is rarely desired.
          
          One approach is to use contexts, always at least two. A context
          is a set of joins that should be applied at one time. If
          objects from classes are selected which involve tables from a
          loop, the user is asked to decide which of the contexts to use.
          Present experience, both within and not within BusOb, suggests
          that creating and naming contexts so as to give the user a
          clear idea of which to pick is hard.
          
          Another approach is to use aliases (available starting with
          version 3.1, I believe). Aliases are alternate names for
          tables. Joins and objects are then based on the alias for a
          table instead of the table itself, and thus only the joins
          which correspond to the alias are in effect for a join. This
          sounds clearer, but it still requires decision on the part of
          the user. Ought they select this object, or that object? It may
          also require creating duplicate classes, one for each table or
          alias name.
          
   M1.02
          How can I have a context with no joins?
          
          
          Create a join from one table to the same table, specify complex
          join, then type in "1=1". This places a harmless condition on a
          table. Then, create a new context for which only that 1=1 join
          is selected. The only joins, then, will be user-created joins
          by means of conditions. We have found some situations where
          experienced users needed a clean slate environment to
          experiment with new joins.
          
   M1.03
          Why can't I add new objects?
          
          
          Three possibilities come to mind: you've exceeded the value for
          NBOBJ in OBJECTS.INI (which defaults to 2000 for ver. 3.0.1E);
          you've exceeded the maximum for the individual "hashing file"
          that your intended object would belong to; or your _OBJECTS.ASC
          isn't a subset of your _STRUCT.ASC.
         1. NBOBJ exceeded. Entries in memory are reserved for the number
            of objects specified by NBOBJ in OBJECTS.INI, and you are
            trying to add yet another object. You may need to divide the
            objects between two or more universes, or increase NBOBJ.
            Note that increasing NBOBJ on one manager's machine means
            increasing NBOBJ on every machine (user and manager) that
            will need to use that universe, and BusOb will be using more
            RAM while running on each of those machines.
         2. Filled hashing file. BusOb divides a universe's objects
            between 8 files in the DEF directory, each of which is
            assigned to store a portion of all of the objects. For
            instance, for a universe XYZZY, the file XYZZY.ID2 stores all
            objects beginning with 'D' up to 'F' (inclusive), and
            XYZZY.ID8 has objects starting with W-Z, plus all numbers and
            symbols. Each of these files has a maximum number of objects,
            which may be ( NBOBJ / 8 ). If all of your objects are named
            starting, say, with "Data containing ...", then XYZZY.ID2 may
            be full even though the other hashing files are empty.
         3. _OBJECTS not subset of _STRUCT. The .PRM files allow
            different 'strategy files', with SQL other than the default
            SQL to create different sets of candidate objects from your
            data dictionary or other source. This may be useful, for
            example, if you use Oracle, since the default SQL requires
            that each user have private SYNONYMs created for each table
            that will be accessed. A different strategy file will vary
            the contents of _OBJECTS.ASC which represents the candidate
            objects. Unfortunately, _OBJECTS.ASC must be the same or a
            subset of _STRUCT.ASC, and _STRUCT.ASC is not affected by the
            strategy files. You also, then, must modify your ST*.SQL file
            (for Oracle 7, it's STORA7.SQL) to include tables for all
            possible objects in the _STRUCT.ASC.
   
          
   M1.04
          Are there any "gotchas" with using the Advanced Login Strategy
          for managing security?
          
          
          The Advanced Login Strategy allows the BusOb user to use their
          RDBMS userid and password to login to BusOb. The BusOb userid
          must match the RDBMS userid. The password, however, may be any
          value, since the strategy ignores the BusOb password entirely.
          All security restrictions are imposed by the RDBMS itself.
          Advanced Login is activated by installing a replacement .BUR
          for LIBRARY/DEFAULT.BUR, available from BusOb.
          
          Therefore, the user doesn't need to keep their BusOb password
          synchronized with their RDBMS password (as for Same Login), and
          all users don't access the RDBMS using only one userid/password
          with only one set of security privileges (as for Separate
          Login).
          
          At least one site (U. Penn.) has successfully tested .BUR files
          both for Windows 3.1 and Macintosh platforms.
          
   M1.05
          What do I do if I lose my manager password?
          
          
          Two options: Reinstall BusOb from the original disks, so that
          the defaults of USER/PASS are restored, or get another copy of
          OBJECTS.USE (*not* DICT.KEY as was previously stated here!) for
          which you *do* know the userid/password (from a co-manager?).
          Either way, change the userid/password to be the desired new
          password (that you can remember :-).
          
          A contributer to this FAQ rightly points out that publicizing
          this use of OBJECTS.USE may be a potential security hole. The
          contributor's policy is to require reinstallation of the
          Manager option. While I agree that public knowledge of it gives
          the potential cracker a key piece of information, they still do
          not have the password. We can hope that the encryption that
          BusOb uses for the password in this file is strong. To leave
          out the use of OBJECTS.USE to improve security, however, makes
          life harder for those who might benefit from knowing about it,
          and I assume a cracker could learn of it from other sources.
          Additional input on this choice is welcome. (See also the
          question on BusOb v4.0.)
          
   M1.06
          How can I programmatically modify object names?
          
          
          While the details of this task will vary based on your RDBMS,
          modifying several features of a universe consists of UPDATE sql
          commands sent to the RDBMS. First, Export the universe to be
          sure the "freshest" version is reflected in the repository. The
          repository tables are nicely normalized, so changing OBJ_NAME,
          for instance, from the OBJECTS table changes the object in the
          particular table while keeping integrity.
          
          For example, SQL might appear as follows:

 prompt MY_CLASS, MY_OBJ
 update objects
    set obj_name = 'New Object Name'
    where uni_id = 3
      and cla_id = 12
      and obj_id = 74  ;
   assuming, of course, that one had already determined that the object
          was in universe number 3 and class number 12 and object number
          is 74. Use joins in MANAGERx (exact name depends on your RDBMS)
          universe to determine these values correctly to correspond to
          the names of universe, class and object you wish to modify.
          Perl and SQL scripts already exist to help automate some of
          these steps; contact Steve Thompson at [email protected].
          
   M1.07
          How can I modify the MANAGERx universe to allow reporting on
          aliases?
          
          
          Evidently when BusOb released v. 3.1.1E, they did not update
          the MANAGERx universe (x is 'O' for Oracle, 'S' for Sybase,
          others might exist) to reflect that aliases were now possible
          in universes. To modify MANAGERx, add the following classes and
          joins:
          
          + BO_ALIAS (table)
          + TABLES2 (alias for TABLES table)
          + TABLES.UNI_ID = BO_ALIAS.UNI_ID (+) AND TABLES.TAB_ID =
            BO_ALIAS.ALI_ID (+)
          + BO_ALIAS.UNI_ID = TABLES2.UNI_ID (+) AND BO_ALIAS.TAB_ID =
            TABLES2.TAB_ID (+)
   
          
          These joins assume Oracle, with Oracle outer joins indicated by
          "(+)" where nulls are permitted.
          
   M1.08
          How can I find the metamodel for the repository files?
          
          
          See the URL http://www.upenn.edu/da/bo/busob-model.gif for a
          reverse-engineered version. (Caveat! Caveat! No warrantees!)
          
   
   
   
     _________________________________________________________________
   
   Thanks to the contributors to this FAQ. This FAQ is maintained by
   [email protected]
     _________________________________________________________________




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