The Challenge
Information in your business application databases is one of your company’s most valuable assets when making critical business decisions. But to reach that point, you must first provide your users with a solution enabling them to access that data. That solution must offer advanced functions to transform separate database records and fields into a cohesive, comprehensive analysis of your business. You need a solution that is easy for end users to learn, but one that guarantees security and performance are in the hands of IS. Is this too much to ask from one single product?
Not when your solution is IQ Server (IQ) from NGS!
Empower Your Users
IQ Server is an advanced-function System i (AS/400) query, reporting, and business intelligence solution that serves as the engine for the entire NGS-IQ™ product line.
The single, most valuable advantage of IQ Server over IBM Query/400 and nearly all competing software is IQ Server’s ability to produce professional reports in a single step, using only one query to obtain the results users need.
One-step report writing means increased productivity and better system performance because your users can produce accurate reports quickly and not tie up system resources by running multiple queries.
IQ Server enables you to do this with superior functionality and seamless integration to your business applications.
Advanced Features
Conditional Calculations: IQ Server enables you to create new fields, where calculations are based on the value of the data retrieved. You can place up to 32 conditional calculations on a simple new field!
You also can do the following:
- Replace code values with meaningful descriptions
- Create flags to draw attention to critical values in your report
- Calculate percentages, exponents, square roots, and remainders
- Convert fields from lower-case letters to capital letters
- Define summary functions such as sum, minimum, maximum, average, and standard deviation
- Substring and concatenate fields
On-Line Formatting: IQ Server delivers unlimited formatting capability, and lets you see how your report looks online at every step. You can do the following:
- Place literal text on detail and summary lines
- Change line spacing
- Move column headings
- Rearrange report fields from a single panel
- Design reports so your page numbers restart at any or all report break levels
- Format your output for use with preprinted forms or multi-up labels
Run-Time Prompting: IQ Server lets you build queries that prompt for record selection/exclusion criteria and new field calculation formulas at run time. You can even write help text instructions for these prompts so your users can answer them correctly. If you like, you can go beyond the standard IQ Server prompt by using the sample CL programs that come with IQ Server to create your own custom prompt panel. Run-time prompts defined in IQ Server automatically appear with your help text instructions whether your users run their queries from IQ Server, Qport Builder™, or Qport Access™.
Record Selection and Exclusion: IQ Server provides comprehensive record selection and exclusion logic including the not-in-the-range function to assist in exception reporting. You can use AND/OR logic to define relationships between multiple selection criteria or use parentheses to define your selections in one statement. You can even perform calculations within record selection criteria if you want to base a selection on the result of a derived value.
Analytical Summary "Matrix" Reporting: IQ Server allows you to create up to ten tables within a query, delivering quick, detailed analysis of patterns, trends, and exceptions! Within an IQ Server table, you can instruct the product to calculate sums and cumulative sums, averages, rankings by sum and average, and special record counts. IQ Server will sort the table results from high to low, from low to high, by sum, or by average.
Adobe® Acrobat File Generation: IQ Server lets you create formatted reports and turn them into Adobe Acrobat files with bookmarks assigned to pages or the break fields in your output.
Web Report Publishing: IQ Server lets you generate your reports as HTML files for viewing with a Web browser. You can assign hypertext links inside your report to support drill-downs and reference cascading style sheets, banners, backgrounds, and images to create professional, presentation-quality Web reports.
XML File Generation: IQ Server also can transform your reports into XML files which can be distributed with or without HTML tables and style sheets for easier viewing.
Simplified File Joins: IQ Server takes the guesswork out of joining DB2 UDB files when building queries by recording how you, or just the users you designate as your experts, join files as they build queries. Then, as others build new queries over those same files, IQ Server suggests they join the files that same way. IQ Server also lets you pre-define join relationships spanning up to 32 DB2 UDB files, so your end users can get to the data they need and design efficient queries over multiple files without having to understand the underlying join logic or actual DB2 UDB file names.
Database Field Aliases: IQ Server’s alias feature lets you optionally create longer, meaningful names for database fields that otherwise might be incomprehensible to your end users. But unlike many tools which require you to build a comprehensive data dictionary before you begin using the software, the IQ Server alias feature is completely optional and can be employed on a field-by-field basis. One user may continue to display the original DDS field names while another displays the alias names. It’s completely flexible and unrestrictive.
Previous Record/Skip Record: IQ Server’s previous record and skip record functions allow you to eliminate the problems associated with "one-to-many" relationships between joined files. By using these functions, you can have a field’s current value compared to its value in the previous record and automatically skip one record, a range of records, or all remaining records in the series where the field’s value is the same. You may also use this feature to produce "top n" reports, showing your biggest orders, fastest selling items, and more.
Program Exits: To help you handle even your most complex database analysis requirements, IQ Server allows you to call and execute your own custom programs immediately before, during, and immediately after query execution. You can use these exit points to run jobs that perform unique data manipulation routines, retrieve data stored on other systems (including non-System i databases), and other tasks. The data provided by your program is then available for integration into the resulting IQ Server output.
Report and Data Distribution: IQ Server allows you to assign distribution lists to your reports so they reach multiple desks automatically after execution. For paperless distribution and data warehouse development, IQ Server lets you send reports directly to another System i as a file, so remote users can then access and analyze their slice of your enterprise data on their own system. You also can take advantage of IQ Server’s built-in support for e-mail and FTP.
Union Support: You can create a union of files or file members to consolidate your data for reporting purposes.
New Fields/Sorts: IQ Server provides expanded support for new fields, allowing you to define up to 99 new fields in a single query. Sorting capabilities allow up to 32 sort fields in a single query. You can define up to 32 groups by fields in a single query.
SQL Command Interface: In addition to a menu-driven user interface, IQ Server provides a Structured Query Language (SQL) command entry panel for quick inquiries.
Report Management: IQ Server allows you to link up to 99 queries, so completion of one triggers the execution of the next.
System i File Member and IDDU Support: Many of the most popular midrange software applications store your data in multiple member files or in non-relational files defined in IDDU. IQ Server may be the only third-party query and reporting system that can access the information stored in these unique System i formats. Plus, IQ Server not only lets you access this information, but also lets you override member selections at run time so that different users can run the same report to access the members containing their data.
Benefits
IQ Server easily guides even the non-technical user through the creation of reports due to its short learning curve, easy-to-implement interfaces, strong documentation, and online help. Your daily burden of developing custom reports for your company managers and users is dramatically reduced.
NGS-IQ, IQ Server, Qport Access, and Qport Builder are trademarks of New Generation Software, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
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