Dashboards
Overview
A dashboard is a group of resources combined into one unified visual display. This enables the resource data to be dynamically updated and displayed together. For example, an analysis report, KPI, and a scorecard might all be displayed in a dashboard. Once added to a dashboard, resources can be filtered and sliced either as a group or individually.
Dashboards are powerful resources because they allow you to access a whole host of different information, grouped together by purpose. For example, a 'Top 10' dashboard might display a chart of the top 10 selling bicycles, a series of tables showing which models are selling better or worse than expectations, and a group of circular gauges showing which models are selling better or worse than last month.
Add resources to a dashboard
You can insert a resource into a dashboard by dragging and dropping it from the Resource Explorer. While placing the resource, you can dynamically control where the resource will appear within the dashboard. The design canvas provides a shaded preview of the area that will be used (as you hover over it), but the resource is not added until you actually release your mouse button.
When dragging the first resource into the dashboard, placing it in the middle of the design canvas makes the resource fill the entire available area. All subsequent resources must be placed in the top, bottom, left, or right quadrants of the design canvas.
If you hover over the center of the cell when a resource is already using the entire design canvas, a link icon appears, which allows you to add a drill-through to the resource you are adding.
When a resource has been placed in a single quadrant, the next resource can be added to a portion of the remaining quadrant. It can also be added to the center of the remaining quadrant, allowing it to fill the entire quadrant.
If you hover over the center of the cell when a resource is already using the entire design canvas, a link icon appears, which allows you to add a drill-through to the resource you are adding.
Place resources directly into a specific design canvas quadrant by dragging the resource into the desired quadrant. The appearance of the design canvas dynamically changes to show you into which quadrant the resource will be placed.
After adding the initial resource, you can then add more resources to any available quadrant.
Dashboard slicing
- Global dashboard slicers - Slice all of the dashboard's cells.
- Cell slicers - Slice only a selected cell.
- Intercell slicing - Use a resource in one cell as a slicer for another cell.
Layout design
Split and insert
You can split cells on the design canvas or insert a cell between two existing cells.
- To split cells: On the Design panel, activate Split, and click in a cell quadrant to split it.
- To insert cells: On the Design panel, activate Insert and click a gridline to insert a cell next to the gridline.
The currently selected gridline highlights dynamically as the mouse moves around the design canvas.
Grid lines help with accurate placement of resources in a cell.
Holding the ctrl key after clicking the Split or Insert buttons keeps the "split" or "insert" mode active; you can then quickly split or insert a number of cells consecutively. The mode becomes inactive when the ctrl key is released.
Re-size
Click and drag the edge of the a cell to re-size split cells.
Equalize
If you have re-sized Two cells created from the same parent and want to return them to equal sizes, you can use the Equalize shortcut.
- Select the check-box at the top right corner of each cell. When a cell is highlighted, its thin dotted border becomes a solid line.
- On the Design panel, click Equalize.
Printing dashboards
You can view and modify how the dashboard will appear when printed by toggling on the Print Design switch in the Home design panel. For example, in print design mode, cell padding is displayed, but global slicers are not.
Other options in the Print section of the panel can be used to specify orientation, page size, and margins.