This section includes samples and information related to the high-level builders included with WebSphere Dashboard Framework. High-level builders are built by assembling a set of lower-level builders. For example, Summary and Drilldown includes the Excel Export, Page Tabs, Breadcrumbs, Print Page Contents, Button, and Data Page builders. Whenever possible, use a single high-level builder instead of a number of lower-level builders. This approach keeps your models simpler and easier to understand and maintain.
There are certain situations when you will want to use the underlying builders in addition to a high-level builder. For example, you may use Data Page to apply a schema-typed variable to a page that was created with another builder, like Record List and Detail (RLD). You could use Data Page to create a select list that will drive the data displayed by an RLD builder.
You can also add multiple high-level builders to one model. Each of these builders adds an action called Main. Each model can only have one Main action, so make sure to disable the automatic generation of the Main action in each additional high-level builder that you add to your model.
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Hierarchy Drilldown builder
If you have a hierarchical set of data and you want to create a table that displays that data and allows users to drill down into the hierarchy, select the Hierarchy Drilldown builder. A good use for the Hierarchy Drilldown builder would be a Sales Scorecard that displays Sales by Region > by Office > by Sales Rep. For example, when a Sales VP logs into her dashboard to access the Sales Scorecard, her initial view will be sales by region. She can then click on a region (such as Europe) and see the offices within that region. She can then further select an office (such as London) and see all of the sales reps that work in the London office.
Status Page builder
If you want to display a metric against a goal, select the Status Page builder. Here are some ways to use a Status Page builder:
- Status of bookings against plan
- Percentage of employees complying to a given company policy
- Gross margin.
Summary and Drilldown builder
If you want to create a chart or a table that displays summary data and allows drilling down to the next level of detail, select the Summary and Drilldown builder. Here are some situations that are ideally suited for the Summary and Drilldown builder:
- A bar chart that displays the total number of opportunities by stage in the sales cycle. When a user clicks on a bar, they see a table of orders for the selected stage in the sales cycle.
- A trend chart that displays bookings versus plan for a given time period. Users can also view a table that displays additional information, such as number of transactions.
- A chart that shows % turnover by month. Clicking on a piece of the chart will show the turnover by department for the selected month.
Record List and Detail builder
If you want to display a table of data with optional drilldown into details or if you just want to create a details page, select the Record List and Detail builder. Here are some examples that work with the Record List and Detail builder:
- A Top Opportunities portlet that shows the top X opportunities on one page and enables users to click a link to 'View all Opportunities'. A user can also click on the opportunity name to see a page containing details about that selected opportunity.
- A Customer portlet that contains a list of customers and lets users page through the data. Users can click on a customer name to get more information about the selected customer.
- A set of two Customer portlets. A Customer List portlet contains a list of customers. This portlet also includes a link on the customer name that, when clicked, fires off an event. A Customer Detail portlet handles the event generated by the Customer List portlet and displays the details about the selected customer. One Record List and Detail Builder is used in each of these portlets.
Map builder
The Map builder is used to display a map with colors that represent predefined criteria. For example, a map of Europe showing year-end sales could show countries in red, yellow, or green, denoting results as Below Plan, At Plan, or Above Plan, respectively. The Map builder can also generate a table page to display the data in table format.