Tips for creating WebFocus focexecs using Report Assistant:
WebFocus 7.6.6 works with
either Microsoft Java VM or Sun Java. We recommend using Sun Java since
you will find that most other web applications you use work with Sun Java.
For proper screen behavior, the screen resolution should be at the highest setting
If your screen is not set at the highest resolution, the scroll bar may be missing from the page. Here's an example:
To set your screen resolution, click on Start, Settings, Control Panel.
Double-click on Display.
Set the screen resolution to the highest setting and click on OK.
Now the scroll bars should appear where they are needed.
Create the report using the best view for your purpose:
Take care and choose the appropriate domain and view (Reporting Object on the
WebFocus menu) when you first create
your
WebFocus focexec. The focexec will only run using the table it was originally
set up to use, so you will have to re-create it if you
decide you need to run
it using a different table.
For example, if you think you might want to run the focexec for several different
cycles, be sure to create it using the ALL table
rather than PRIOR or CURRENT.
The ALL table includes the data from the PRIOR table, but not from the CURRENT
table, which is not final.
If you will not need dependent, address, or lab data for your report, then
do not create the focexec in the Campus/Lab, Address,
or Dependent domains.
Joining data from a number of different tables increases the time your focexec
takes to run and uses more
memory than is necessary.
A description of the appropriate use for each of the
tables can be found at links contained on the CPS
Data Warehouse Domains
page.
Check the data dictionary if you are unsure what a field's purpose is or what the values for that field mean:
Be sure to check the CPS
Data Dictionary if you are unsure what a data element means or what its
values are. The record layout for each of
the Personnel
Data Warehouse views includes links to the CPS Data Dictionary pages for
the data elements it contains.
Test your report by using a record limit before running it against the entire table.
You can set a record limit by clicking on the Options tab and putting a number in the Record Limit box.
Submit reports to run deferred whenever possible:
Click on the Run Deferred button instead of the Run button
in order to run the focexec in the background. You won't have to wait for the
report to appear in your browser; the report will be saved automatically and
you can go back and view it later. You can also continue
working in WebFocus
on another focexec if you need to.
Some focexecs which require a great deal of memory to
run might time out if you do not run them deferred, due to a limit on the time
the browser will wait for data to be returned. These focexecs generally will
finish properly if they are run in deferred mode, and the report
will be saved
for you to view.
Deferred Status Listing
Deferred reports will be saved for 29 days. Please try to remember to delete deferred reports which you no longer need.
Be careful which fields you designate as Sort fields:
Sort fields are generally the fields which you use to
either order the data in a logical way or to accumulate totals. For example,
you might want
to accumulate earnings or calculate a headcount by campus and
then by home department, or by title unit code and then by title code. The "by"
fields in these examples are campus, home department, title unit code, and title
code. If you want to print detail by employee, you might also add
employee number
and employee name to the sort fields.
If you add a lot of unnecessary sort fields, your focexec
might run very slowly, and you might end up with a report that makes no sense
or is
difficult to interpret.
Avoid clicking on "Values" for a field which has many thousands of values:
When you are creating a "Where" statement you can click on the Values
button to see what values the database is
storing for that field. WebFocus goes
through every record in the table to collect all of the unique values in that
field.
When the field contains too many values, it will take some time for all
of the data to be returned, and it's possible that
your browser will hang or
crash. Avoid clicking on the Values button for fields like employee number,
social security number,
birthdate, etc. which will undoubtedly have many thousands
of unique values in them.
Share focexecs with other people in your unit and copy others' focexecs:
You can share a focexec by checking the Share Report
box when you Save the report. You can find others' shared reports by clicking
on the
Shared Reports tab for the appropriate domain, doubleclicking on the
name of the person who created the report and selecting the correct folder.
Click on the + sign for that folder to see the focexecs contained in
it. You can then right-click on the name of the focexec and select "Save
as My
Report"; the report will be stored in your "My Reports"
folder and you can modify it as you wish.
The person must have been set up as a "Shared"
user and must have checked the "Share Report" box for their focexecs
to show up under "Shared
Reports".
For step-by-step instructions for creating some WebFocus focexecs, see Personnel Data Warehouse WebFocus Sample Focexecs.
Last Updated: February 10, 2009
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