Configuring to Download Oracle Hyperion Smart View for Office

13 Configuring Mapping and Spatial Information 13-1 13 Configuring Mapping and Spatial Information When you install Oracle BI Enterprise Edition, you install functionality for users to see maps that display data. Before users can see maps in analyses and dashboards, you must understand the system requirements, specify layers and maps, and configure the metadata. This chapter includes the following topics: ■ Section 13.1, What Are the System Requirements for Map Views? ■ Section 13.2, Hardware Sizing and Deployment Strategy for Maps ■ Section 13.3, Administering Maps See Chapter 20, Configuring Advanced Options for Mapping and Spatial Information for information about advanced configuration options for maps. 13.1 What Are the System Requirements for Map Views? To include map views on dashboards, the system must include the following components: ■ Oracle MapViewer, which is a J2EE service that serves as an engine for rendering maps using spatial data managed by Oracle Spatial. MapViewer is closely integrated with Oracle BI EE. MapViewer is installed as part of Oracle BI EE and deployed in the same domain as Oracle BI EE on the Web application server. MapViewer provides services and tools that hide the complexity of spatial data queries and cartographic rendering, while providing customizable options for more advanced users. MapViewer is designed to integrate with Location-Based services and applications. For information, see Section 20.1, Configuring MapViewer to Support Map Views. ■ Spatial boundary data. NAVTEQ is one provider of this data to Oracle customers, which can be downloaded from the Oracle Technology Network. This spatial data and any other spatial metadata, including themes and styles, must be stored in an Oracle Database to be accessed by Oracle MapViewer for display in map views. ■ Hosted maps. Oracle BI EE allows users to access hosted maps from the Oracle eLocation service. Terms and conditions of use are located at the following URL: http:elocation.oracle.comelocationlegal.html 13-2 System Administrators Guide for Oracle Business Intelligence Enterprise Edition ■ Oracle Database, version 10g or later, to store the spatial data. Oracle Locator, which is a feature of Oracle Database all editions that provides core location functionality needed by most customer applications. If you use an Oracle Database as the Repository Creation Utility RCU database, then you can use that same Oracle Database for spatial data also. See Oracle Fusion Middleware Installation Guide for Oracle Business Intelligence for information. ■ Optional Oracle Spatial is an option for Oracle Database Enterprise Edition that provides advanced spatial features to support high-end geographic information systems GIS and location-based services LBS solutions. The Spatial option is required only if you plan to make use of maps or features that require advanced spatial capabilities that are not available with the Locator option. Additional Oracle Spatial features include raster and 3D data management, spatial Web services, topology, network data modeling, resource description framework RDF, and semantic Web capabilities. ■ Metadata of the mapping between Oracle BI EE data and spatial data, which can be stored in a file system, in the Oracle BI Presentation Catalog. Figure 13–1 shows the default architecture for map views when Oracle BI EE is installed. You can store the data either in an Oracle Database or in other databases that Oracle BI EE supports. See Figure 20–1 for a diagram of the preferred architecture for map views. Figure 13–1 Default Architecture for Map Views Configuring Mapping and Spatial Information 13-3 When these pieces are in place, you administer the map using the Oracle BI Presentation Services Administration page, as described in Section 13.3, Administering Maps.

13.2 Hardware Sizing and Deployment Strategy for Maps

Rendering map views is computationally more intensive than rendering tabular views, due to the requirements to: ■ Query spatial data. ■ Create the polygons and shapes that correspond to geographical entities such as countries and states. ■ Place the polygons and shapes on a background map. ■ Provide end-user interactivity such as the ability to pan and zoom, to adjust color thresholds, and to show or hide formats. You should assess the extent of expected usage of map views at your organization including the number of users that are expected to use map views, the amount of data to be displayed on map views, and the amount of spatial data that is expected to be displayed such as only city boundaries or street level details. Based on this assessment, decide on an appropriate hardware sizing and deployment strategy. You should also review the available documentation on best practices for achieving optimal performance and scalability with your Oracle MapViewer deployment.

13.3 Administering Maps

Before content designers can create map views, you as the Oracle BI Administrator must specify layers and maps and configure the metadata. This section discusses the following: ■ Section 13.3.1, Working with Maps and Layers ■ Section 13.3.2, Administration Page Functions ■ Section 13.3.3, Administering Maps Using Administration Pages ■ Section 13.3.4, Handling the Translation of Layers in Maps

13.3.1 Working with Maps and Layers

The first step is to select the layers for use on maps. An administrator has configured layers using the Map Builder tool of Oracle Spatial. You next select at least one map from a list of those that an administrator has configured using the Map Builder tool of Oracle Spatial. This map becomes the background on which the layers are applied. You can optionally specify images for use with map formats. This section provides the following information about maps and layers: ■ Section 13.3.1.1, Associating Layers with Columns ■ Section 13.3.1.2, Ordering Layers on Maps ■ Section 13.3.1.3, Changes to Spatial Metadata Require Restart

13.3.1.1 Associating Layers with Columns

After selecting layers and maps, you associate those layers with columns in the subject area folders. If the association between a column and a layer is incorrect, then the layer cannot be displayed correctly on the map. The association ensures that shape 13-4 System Administrators Guide for Oracle Business Intelligence Enterprise Edition definitions can be found in the database for the column values during map rendering. You must ensure that a shape geometry definition exists for each column value in the database. If a shape geometry definition does not exist for a particular column value, then the shape cannot be shown on the map and might inhibit user interactions on the map. Shape lookup is based on the column values, and column-to-layer mapping is independent of locale or language. Therefore, you must ensure that the spatial column that is being associated with a layer does not itself have values that are affected by locale or language. To ensure this association, do one of the following: ■ Model spatial columns as double columns in the business modeling layer, which is the recommended method. ■ Create special spatial columns that have values that do not change across locale or language. You must ensure that content designers are not confused seeing these special columns in the Subject Areas pane when working with analyses. See Oracle Fusion Middleware Metadata Repository Builders Guide for Oracle Business Intelligence Enterprise Edition for more information on double columns. The advantages of using double columns are the following: ■ You can provide code values that is, descriptor IDs for each shape definition and at the same time show display values that is, descriptor values according to locale or language. ■ Code values are passed only as layer key values for lookup. ■ You eliminate the need for the complex joining of various columns to uniquely locate the shape. For example, a layer geometry table might contain multiple cities with the name of London. To uniquely distinguish these cities, you might use a pattern of Country_State_City, as in US_Kansas_London or Canada_Ontario_ London. The problem with this approach is that it might require three separate columns to be grouped, joined by a delimiter such as an underscore, and associated with a layer. This association requires the content designer to select three columns Country, State, City in the criteria to create a single layer. A layer can be associated with multiple columns in multiple subject areas. You must ensure that a layer is associated with at least one spatial column. If the layer association is missing, then the map might not be updated when a user drills on the mapped BI column.

13.3.1.2 Ordering Layers on Maps

The ordering of map layers is very important. You must pay close attention to ensure that users have a seamless experience while navigating on the map that is, drilling and zooming. In the Edit Background Map dialog, you assign each layer a minimum and maximum zoom range. Given that the map zoom slider can slide only from bottom to top vertically, the layers with lower minimum zoom levels are placed at the bottom of the slider. Ensure that the layer grid on the Interactive BI Layers section of the dialog follows a similar pattern, so that you place layers with lower minimum zoom levels at the bottom of the list. Ensure that you sort the layers by clicking the sort icon before closing the dialog. Layer ordering becomes irrelevant when the zoom ranges of layers do not intersect on the scale. Ordering becomes very important when layers have a common minimum and maximum zoom range. Use care to ensure that detailed layers are not hidden by the aggregated layers during drilling or zooming operations.