Kaleidoscope 2010 Registration - Discount Code

A bunch of Hyperion people have been talking to their friends and have heard about how much they learned at previous Kaleidoscope conferences; it is starting to show. I heard that the Kaleidoscope registration count to date is significantly higher than at the same time last year. Applied OLAP is again sending at least four people to the conference including two of us who will be leading some hands-on labs.

As a sponsor of Kaleidoscope, we also have been given a discount code that you can use to save $300 on registration. The discount code is valid until April 23 so don't miss your opportunity to attend the most concentrated Hyperion and Essbase information exchange anywhere. Register today at www.odtugkaleidoscope.com and use the discount code OLAP to get your discount.

I hope to see you there.

Cool New Excel 2007 Ribbon

I ran across a utility on the OTN Essbase forum a couple of days ago that sounded very useful. It is a Excel 2007 Ribbon UI for the classic Essbase add-in. Before this ribbon was available, it was a pain to access the classic Essbase add-in in Excel 2007 as it is hidden away on a sub-Ribbon as shown here.






















The new Ribbon UI is from a group known as In2Hyperion (In-to Hyperion, get it?).  I had read a few things on their blog at http://www.in2hyperion.com in the past but took a closer look when I heard about the Ribbon UI.   I looked at the authors of In2Hyperion and I know a couple of people on the list from their days at WhittmanHart (now part of TUSC/Rolta).  I downloaded and tried out the Ribbon and, in my limited testing, I found it very useful.  Below is a screenshot of the Ribbon; click on the picture to see a larger version.








Their blog post that discusses the Ribbon, and has installation instructions and a download link, is at http://www.in2hyperion.com/post/2010/03/21/Hyperion-Excel-Add-in-Ribbon.aspx.  Thanks to the In2Hyperion team for their contribution to the Essbase community.  Hopefully you will find the Ribbon UI useful too.

Classic Excel Add-in in Windows 7

Since my post on how to install the Essbase stack on Windows 7, I have had a few people tell me that the classic Essbase add-in doesn't work on Windows 7.  We took a look at the issue and found that the classic add-in now needs modification to three environment variables instead of two.  The classic add-in has always required two environment variables:

• ARBORPATH - Set to the Essbase home directory (ex. C:\Hyperion\products\Essbase\EssbaseClient)
• PATH - Set to %ARBORPATH%\bin

The add-in now requires a third environment variable which was not properly setup by the installer on Windows 7:

• ESSBASEPATH - Set to the same directory as ARBORPATH.

I don't know for sure when (or why) they added this new environment variable, but in the cases we have worked with, if manually add the variable to your system (and, perhaps, reboot afterwards), the classic add-in should work for you.

HUGmn techday2010 - March 11 in Minneapolis

I will be presenting next week at the Hyperion User Group - Minnesota 'TechDay 2010' event next week in Minneapolis.  The user group has lined up a number of great speakers including fellow Oracle ACE Directors Edward Roske from interRel Consulting and Eric Helmer from The Hackett Group.  Oracle Essbase product managers Alan Lee and Karen Zubetz and HFM product manager Mike Malwitz will also be doing presentations along with a number of other consultants. 

Alan Lee will be speaking on the new features coming in Essbase 11.1.2 and Karen Zubetz will discussing the new OBI Applications Essbase Integrator which will, in essence, spin Essbase cubes from Oracle BI Server sources.  Mike Malwitz will talk about what is new, and what is coming, with HFM.  My presentations are on Essbase 11 installation and on converting a VBA application to Dodeca.  Here is the full agenda for the meeting: http://www.harbinger-group.com/HUGpage.html#.

I will be in Minneapolis for a couple of days and I have promised myself I would take a bit of time to enjoy my trip.  I am planning to visit the climbing gym in St Paul on Wednesday night (Vertical Endeavors - http://www.verticalendeavors.com/st_paul/index.html) and am planning to ski on Thursday night (Afton Alps - http://www.aftonalps.com).  Anyone interested in joining me?

Wisdom of Crowds BI Market Study

Howard Dresner, formerly the Chief Strategy Officer at Hyperion, is now an independent BI Strategy consultant and is currently conducting a BI market survey. His “Wisdom of Crowds” Business Intelligence Market Study is not underwritten or sponsored by any vendors and no detailed data will be shared with the outside world. If you are interested in having your opinions help shape the BI market, you can participate in the study at http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/QMZTVSV.

I have known Howard for a number of years and we became fast friends when we learned we were both pilots. For some reason, however, my 210 is faster than his airplane although I didn't buy his explanation that salaries for 'Chief Strategy Officers' are not that high.. Rather, I think it boils down to the fact that I spend a greater part of my salary for the care and feeding of my plane!

Win a Free Kaleidoscope Registration

ODTUG is set to announce a new contest that gives you a chance to win a free registration to Kaleidoscope or, alternatively, a suite upgrade at the Marriott Wardman Park.

All you need to do is create a 3 minute (or less) YouTube video on “Why You Need to Attend ODTUG Kaleidoscope 2010”.  Make it funny, musical, or informational.  Mostly, make it memorable.  Make it viral and we will see you in DC!

To qualify, make sure to include the ODTUG Kaleidoscope logo and submit your video for consideration by emailing you name and YouTube video link to Crystal Walton at crystal@odtug.com.  By the way, Crystal works on the small team of full-time ODTUG people who work very hard to make Kaleidoscope the best Hyperion conference in the world.

Video Contest Guidelines: Video must be three minutes or less, contain no inappropriate content, and be posted publicly to YouTube by March 31, midnight EST. All videos must remain in public domain until after July 1st, 2010. The winning video will be selected from among all the entries. The judges’ decision will be final. Judges may include members of the ODTUG Kaleidoscope Conference Committee and others. Winner will be notified by April 2nd, 2010. Winner will have the choice of a complimentary non-transferable registration to ODTUG Kaleidoscope 2010 or a suite upgrade at the Marriott Wardman Park.