If you have to generate reports with Crystal Reports in an SAP NetWeaver BW environment, this is the book you need. You’ll learn how to quickly create effective reports that get the right information to the right people. This book covers the primary features and functions of Crystal Reports, while paying special attention to integrating with other BusinessObjects and SAP applications and data sources.

The SAP BI Toolset
Learn about all the reporting and analytics tools that comprise the SAP BI toolset, including Crystal Reports, Xcelsius, and Web Intelligence.

SAP BW as a Crystal Reports Data Source
Explore how SAP NetWeaver BW can function as a data source for Crystal Reports.

Flexible Formatting
Select from a variety of possible report layouts and learn how to design more flexible reports that provide feedback to the end user.

Filtering
Discover the two tools that allow users to filter data in SAP NetWeaver BW reports — the BW variable and the Crystal Reports parameter.

Sub-Reports
Find out how to use sub-reports to retrieve data from different data sources.

Highlights

· SAP BI Toolset
· Relational Databases
· InfoProviders
· BW Queries
· Crystal Reports Data Sources
· Key Figures
· Aggregates
· Crystal Reports Templates
· Filtering Data
· BW Variables
· Highlighting Expert
· Publishing Reports

The Author

Mike Garrett is an independent consultant who has been working with Crystal Reports and its SAP Integration Kit for over 8 years. Mike was involved with the first installation of Crystal Reports for
SAP BW 3.x in 2002.

Table of Contents

• ... Acknowledgments ... 11
• ... Introduction ... 13
• 1 ... SAP BI for the Rest of Us ... 21
• 1.1 ... The Aging Information Age ... 21
• 1.2 ... The Good and Bad of the Relational Database ... 22
• 1.3 ... Set Your Data Free – the Data Warehouse ... 28
• 1.4 ... Finding Relief for Information Constipation ... 30
• 1.5 ... Just-in-Time Report Design ... 33
• 1.6 ... So Why Not … SAP BI for the Rest of Us ... 39
• 1.7 ... I Can Do It Myself ... 42
• 1.8 ... Summary ... 43
• 2 ... Understanding the New SAP BI Toolset ... 45
• 2.1 ... The Job of the Knowledge Worker ... 45
• 2.2 ... The Information Processing Continuum ... 47
• 2.3 ... Information and the Conservation of Complexity ... 49
• 2.4 ... Introducing the New SAP BI Tools ... 52
• 2.4.1 ... Xcelsius ... 54
• 2.4.2 ... Voyager ... 55
• 2.4.3 ... Web Intelligence ... 56
• 2.4.4 ... Crystal Reports ... 57
• 2.5 ... Comparing the New SAP BI Tools ... 58
• 2.5.1 ... End-User Content Creation Tool ... 59
• 2.5.2 ... Operational Ongoing Reports ... 61
• 2.5.3 ... Financial and External Reporting ... 62
• 2.5.4 ... Control Over Formatting ... 63
• 2.5.5 ... Good for Ad Hoc Reporting ... 64
• 2.5.6 ... Users Can “Play” with the Data ... 66
• 2.5.7 ... Good for Data Analysis ... 67
• 2.5.8 ... Good for Data Visualization ... 68
• 2.5.9 ... Good for “What If” Analysis ... 69
• 2.6 ... Making the Transition ... 70
• 2.6.1 ... The Question of Ownership ... 70
• 2.6.2 ... Close the “Knowledge of the Tool–Knowledge of the Business” Gap ... 74
• 2.6.3 ... Develop a Dogmatic Pragmatism ... 76
• 2.6.4 ... Build Your BI Baseline Using Crystal Reports ... 77
• 2.6.5 ... Power to the People ... 78
• 2.7 ... Summary ... 80
• 3 ... SAP BW as a Crystal Reports Data Source ... 83
• 3.1 ... SAP NetWeaver Business Warehouse 101 ... 83
• 3.2 ... A Short Course on SAP NetWeaver BW Terminology ... 84
• 3.3 ... Handle with Care: The Exploding Data Warehouse ... 87
• 3.4 ... The BW Query: Bedrock of SAP BEx ... 92
• 3.4.1 ... Designing BW Queries for Use with Crystal Reports ... 93
• 3.4.2 ... Going “Flat” – the DSO ... 96
• 3.4.3 ... Creating a Master Query ... 96
• 3.5 ... Summary ... 101
• 4 ... Creating the Crystal Reports Template ... 103
• 4.1 ... Creating a Template for Your Master Query ... 104
• 4.2 ... The Alias Formula ... 131
• 4.3 ... Summary ... 143
• 5 ... Getting Started with Crystal Reports and SAP NetWeaver BW ... 145
• 5.1 ... Getting Set Up ... 145
• 5.2 ... A Simplified Approach to Reporting ... 146
• 5.3 ... Starting with the Big Picture ... 149
• 5.4 ... Your First SAP BW Crystal Report ... 151
• 5.4.1 ... Creating a Crystal Report from Scratch ... 151
• 5.4.2 ... Creating a Crystal Report from a Report Template ... 158
• 5.4.3 ... Aliases: A Brief Review ... 159
• 5.4.4 ... Arranging Toolbar Buttons ... 159
• 5.4.5 ... Adding Objects to Your First Report ... 160
• 5.4.6 ... Data Explosion in Action ... 164
• 5.5 ... Making It All Look Pretty – Formatting 101 ... 169
• 5.5.1 ... Keeping Things Lined Up ... 174
• 5.5.2 ... Resizing Objects ... 178
• 5.5.3 ... Moving Objects ... 183
• 5.5.4 ... The Finer Touches ... 186
• 5.6 ... Sharing with Others ... 193
• 5.7 ... Summary ... 195
• 6 ... Summing It All Up ... 197
• 6.1 ... Creating Groups ... 197
• 6.1.1 ... Creating a Standard Group ... 201
• 6.1.2 ... Grouping by Date Using a Text Field ... 210
• 6.1.3 ... Keeping Up with Business – Creating Custom Groups ... 225
• 6.1.4 ... Leveraging Built-In Summary Functions in Crystal Reports ... 249
• 6.2 ... Conditional Summaries Using Running Totals ... 252
• 6.3 ... Conditional Summaries Using a Formula ... 261
• 6.4 ... Summary ... 270
• 7 ... Picking and Choosing ... 273
• 7.1 ... Filtering Data with a BW Variable ... 273
• 7.2 ... Filtering Data with a Crystal Reports Parameter ... 289
• 7.3 ... Summary ... 305
• 8 ... Flexible Formatting ... 307
• 8.1 ... Using the Highlighting Expert ... 308
• 8.2 ... Applying Conditional Formatting Using a Formula ... 313
• 8.3 ... Stretching Your Reports with Conditional Suppression ... 324
• 8.3.1 ... The Classic Crystal Drill-Down ... 326
• 8.3.2 ... Drill-Down Report Using a Parameter and Conditional Suppression ... 338
• 8.3.3 ... Adding Versatility with Dynamic Groups ... 346
• 8.4 ... Summary ... 355
• 9 ... Handling Hierarchies ... 357
• 9.1 ... Building a Hierarchy Using Hierarchical Grouping ... 358
• 9.2 ... Custom Formatting for Hierarchies ... 365
• 9.3 ... Taking Hierarchies to the Next Level ... 376
• 9.4 ... Summary ... 379
• 10 ... Extending Reports Using Subreports ... 381
• 10.1 ... The Query to Query Subreport ... 383
• 10.2 ... The Query to SAP ERP Central Component (SAP R/3) Subreport ... 403
• 10.3 ... Summary ... 414
• 11 ... Getting Published ... 415
• 11.1 ... How Not to Get Noticed ... 415
• 11.2 ... Publishing Reports to SAP BusinessObjects Enterprise ... 417
• 11.3 ... Fast-Track Publishing ... 420
• 11.4 ... Summary ... 425
• 12 ... Moving On ... 427
• 12.1 ... A Personal Report Development Game Plan ... 428
• 12.2 ... Putting it All Together – The ReportMart ... 429
• ... The Author ... 433
• ... Index ... 435