Page One

The Pivot View employs a completely opposite approach of the Grid View to create and analyze the exact same data. It is a very powerful and flexible multi-dimensional summary view.

Figure 1: The Navigator highlighting the Invoice View.

1. If the Navigator panel is not currently displayed, select the Layout Options button at the top right of the screen (next to the text menus) and choose Show Navigator.
2. Expand the NW Invoice Demo in the Navigator. The Navigator panel is at the right of the Grid panel.
3. Expand the Built-in Folder.
4. Open the Invoice Pivot View (double-click).
5. Close the Navigator panel to allow for a larger Grid panel.

The most notable difference with the Pivot View is that there is no initial data visible in the grid. Actually, the data is there - it is just waiting in the background. The information appears and begins to take shape in the grid as fields are dragged to one of the three (3) drop areas at the top of the grid.

We will start by making a very simplistic summary report, and then quickly and easily expand upon it to produce a detailed and meaningful analysis tool.

Figure 2: The start of a Pivot.

1. Drag Quantity from the View Properties panel to the Data Drop area.
2. Repeat the previous step for each of the following fields (in the order listed):

Fields

UnitPrice Discount ExtendedPrice Freight

Faceforward presents the data exactly as it is in the originating data source. Many times there is a need to format the fields so that the data makes better sense. There are several methods for changing the properties of a field:

From the View Properties

Figure 3: The field properties button.

1. Select the Edit button next to UnitPrice.
2. Within the Format section on the right side of the pop-up window:
   1. Select Currency for the Type.
   2. Set the Decimal Places to 2.
   3. Select $ for the Symbol.
   4. Place a checkmark in the Use Commas box.
3. To apply the changes select Finish.
4. Right-click on ExtendedPrice, select the Properties button , and then go to step 2.
5. Right-click the Freight, select the Properties button , and then go to step 2.

From the column header

Figure 4: Context sensitive field header menu.

1. Right-click the Discount column header located in the data drop area and select the Properties button .
2. Within the Format section on the right side of the pop-up window:
   1. Select Percent for the Type.
   2. Set the Decimal Places to 2.
   3. Place a checkmark in the Multiply by 100 box (compensates for literal values).
3. To apply the changes select Finish.

In this example we will add the numbers in the ExtendedPrice column with the numbers in the Freight column to generate figures in a newly created column (field) called Total. To accomplish this we will use the E3 Wizard.

Figure 5: The button to launch the E3 wizard.

1. Select the E3 button on the toolbar to start the wizard.
2. On the first screen:
   1. Choose New Calculated Field.
   2. Enter Total for the Name.
   3. Select Next to continue.
3. In the Field Properties screen:
   1. Double-click on ExtendedPrice to add it to the Expression field.
   2. Press the + key one time.
   3. Double-click on Freight to add it to the Expression field.
   4. Select Next to continue to the next screen.
4. Within the Format section on the right side of the screen:
   1. Select Currency for the Type.
   2. Set the Decimal Places to 2.
   3. Select $ for the Symbol.
   4. Place a checkmark in the Use Commas box.
5. To complete the wizard select Finish.
6. Drag the Total field from the View Properties panel and drop it directly into the grid area.

At this point, we have a very simplistic summary report. Unfortunately, it does not really tell us much. As a matter of fact, in its current form, the data displayed can be rather misleading. We need to begin expanding upon this meager view in order to extract the true data that will allow us to make comprehensive and confident business decisions.