Hi,

Based on the little reading that I have done, it seems that for Business
Intelligence, COGNOS, Micro Strategy, Business Objects etc. probably are
the market leaders??? I have also noticed that their prices are also
quite ... let me just say HIGH.

Compared with the above mentioned products, how would you rank
Microsoft's Data Analyzer? I am aware that in order to use Data Analyzer
you need SQL server...

1. In addition to MS-SQL server, do you also need any other SQL server
related service/add-on to be running if planning/considering to use Data
Analyzer?

2. Is MS-Data Analyzer only a basic level product or does it offer
almost everything which the other products offer?

3. I was unable to get the prices for MS-Data Analyzer but I assume it
is far less than others?

4. Would someone have the details of how much Data Analyzer (and all
required pre-requisites other than MS-SQL server) costs?

5. IS there a concept of developer license for MD-Data Analyzer and then
a 'free run-time' engine or something which can be used to deploy the
solution(s) to the end users??? I realize that my question might be a
bit incomplete but hopefully you get the picture??


I will be very grateful for a detailed reply. Many thankx in advance

"Learner" <wantnospaml (AT) email (DOT) com> wrote

MSDA is a specialist tool that does not compare directly with other BI
products. It provides an interesting and unusual form of multidimensional
analysis, that some people really like, but many others do not. But in
either case, you would still need a "normal" multidimensional grid viewer as
well, as MSDA is not really suited to being the only OLAP front-end even for
a single user. And it won't be usable at all for some models as it expects
certainly dimensional layouts.

Microsoft's basic front-ends for Analysis Services are Excel (2000 or,
preferably, later) and Office Web Components, which provide standard dice
and slice functionality. But there are a number of excellent third party
products, mainly from small, specialised companies, which perform better,
offer more functionality and are easier to use. It's striking how much more
successful the users of these tools are than those who just stick to
Microsoft's front-ends.

In The OLAP Survey 3, Analysis Services sites which used only Microsoft
front-ends had, overall, business benefits achievement rates that were
slightly worse than the full sample average, but those using good third
party front-ends with Analysis Services were among the most successful of
all the users in the 1047 site sample.

So, rather than picking a front-end first, you might be better to first
compare servers and then choose the front-end(s) to use with them. Analysis
Services is a pretty good and very cost-effective OLAP server, but to get
the most out of it, take some time to pick the right front-end(s) for your
business needs (don't just buy the cheapest).

The good news is that solutions based on these products and Analysis
Services are all much cheaper than those from Business Objects, Cognos,
Hyperion Solutions, MicroStrategy, Oracle and SAP. And cheaper doesn't mean
worse: data from The OLAP Survey shows that Analysis Services users are just
as successful in business terms as users of the more expensive products and
they actually have fewer technical problems.

Nigel Pendse
OLAP Solutions
http://www.olapreport.com

Hi,

If you are looking for a front end tool, there is one available for ASP.NET
on the MSDN site.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/d...793-B3C6-4ED5-
ACB3-820D0E832151&displaylang=en

thanks,
maersa


"Nigel Pendse" <nigelp.nospam (AT) compuserve (DOT) com> wrote

Hi Nigel,

Thanks for your reply. Some more question if you/someone can kindly
answer:

1. From your reply I infer that MSDA is an intermediate (maximum) kind
of BI tool and offers limited functionality?? I say the limited
functionality part because in your reply you say that "...it won't be
usable at all for some models as it expects certainly dimensional
layouts"

2. What do you mean by "other models and certainly dimensional layouts".
Do other products offer data analysis capability even if you do not have
cubes??? Can you kindly elaborate a bit here. Sorry for asking but as
you have already figured out, I've JUST dived into the OCEAN of
OLAP/BI/DW/etc./etc. and have a lot of basics to catch up with before I
dive any further

3. What do you mean when you say that "... it offers unusual form of
analysis"... does it offer something (or in a form) which other's do
not??

4. You've mentioned that one of Microsoft's basic Analysis service is
Excel. Are you referring to Excel's Pivot feature which DOES allow you
to analyze data from a variety of angles as long as the underlying data
is there in tabular form. Is my understanding correct on the Excel side
of things?

5. You've also mentioned Office Web components as another Microsoft
service for data analysis? Is this basically Pivot functionality
available in Internet Explorer or is there MUCH more to the Office Web
components??


6. Can you kindly recommend the "affordable" and excellent 3rd party
products from small and specialized companies which offer the slice,
dice, drilling functionality without compromising on the performance.
Please do reply especially to this point.

I will certainly visit your web site (www.olapreport.com) and go through
the Survey that you have mentioned....

Looking forward to your reply.

Thanks
--

"Learner" <wantnospam (AT) email (DOT) com> wrote

First of all, The OLAP Survey 3 isn't published yet, though The OLAP Survey
2 is still available. The huge OLAP Survey 3 will be out in November and
includes (among many, many other things) analysis of the relative success
rates of different Analysis Services client tools as well as numerous
comparisons of the performance of Analysis Services and other,
non-Microsoft, OLAP products.

I think if you're so new to OLAP, you should forget about MS Data
Analyzer -- it's not for beginners. Only look at it after you've
successfully deployed a more standard OLAP client.

Excel PivotTables can work with both cubes and tabular data sources. They
offer more functionality, better performance and more scalability when
accessing Analysis Services cubes than when going against tabular sources.
Essentially, OWC is a Web version of PivotTables that works in IE over an
intranet.

In strictly alphabetical order, BIXL, BusinessQuery MD, Crystal Analysis
Pro, IntelligentApps, MIS Plain, Panorama NovaView, ProClarity, SPSS OLAP
Hub, Temtec Executive Viewer, Visual OLAP and XLCubed are examples of
specialized client tools optimized for Analysis Services.

Nigel Pendse
OLAP Solutions
http://www.olapreport.com

Nigel,

Really appreciate you taking the time to answer my basic question. Trust
me, your replies have been of great help!!

Many many thanks for your kind assistance

Regards,

Learner