Using Crystal Reports with SAP

1. Auflage 2010
ISBN: 978-1-59229-327-8
Verlag: Rheinwerk Verlag

Buch, Englisch, 442 Seiten, GB, Format (B × H): 175 mm x 229 mm

Reihe: SAP PRESS Englisch

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 Business Objects and SAP applications and data sources.

1. 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.

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

3. 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.

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

5. 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

Autoren/Hrsg.

Garrett, Mike

Fachgebiete

• Mathematik | Informatik EDV | Informatik Angewandte Informatik Wirtschaftsinformatik
• Mathematik | Informatik EDV | Informatik Business Application Unternehmenssoftware SAP
• Wirtschaftswissenschaften Betriebswirtschaft Wirtschaftsinformatik, SAP, IT-Management

Inhaltsverzeichnis

. 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

. 2.5. Comparing the New SAP BI Tools. 58

. 2.6. Making the Transition. 70

. 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

. 3.5. 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

. 5.5. Making It All Look Pretty -- Formatting 101. 169

. 5.6. Sharing with Others. 193

. 5.7. Summary. 195

6. Summing It All Up. 197

. 6.1. Creating Groups. 197

. 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

. 8.4. 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

Über Autor(innen)

Garrett, Mike
Mike Garrett is an independent consultant and has been working with the Crystal Reports and its SAP Integration Kit for over 7 years. He helped with the fist installation of Crystal Reports solution for SAP BW 3.x in 2002. Since then he has worked one-on-one and in group situations with more developers and business analysts in implementing this solution than probably anyone else in the field. He has delivered custom end-user training to hundreds of business users and has been able to experience first-hand what it takes for the average end user to learn and master this solution. He was previously with Apple Computers for 6 years.