Tools → Dashboard Manager
This document explains the new dashboard management experience that Incorta introduced starting this release. Here we explain how you can use the new dashboard manager, the different layouts available, and how to add components and edit their settings within a dashboard layout.
With the new enhanced dashboards, it is now easier to create, edit, delete, copy, and re-organize your insights using one of the two available layouts that you can choose from the Appearance tab:
- Grid layout (default)
- Free-form layout (new)
In the dashboards manager page when you start adding a new insight, the left pane shows two tabs: Add Insight and Appearance.
- Add Insight – contains all available components including the components you have previously downloaded from the Component SDK marketplace.
- Appearance – contains the layout types that you can choose from.
- Layers – Only available when you select free form as your layout, it contains the added insights that you can reorder for layering purposes.
Layout Settings
Setting | Type | Description |
---|---|---|
Layout | drop down | Select the shape of the layout you need. The following are the available values: ● Grid Layout (default) ● Free Form Layout |
Grid layout settings
The grid layout is the default layout used in the dashboards either newly created or after the upgrade. The grid layout organizes the components coinciding to each other and respects their proportions. It’s more rigid than the free form layout.
In the grid layout, you can control default styles for the existing through the Appearance tab.
There are two sections: Grid Settings and Component Styles.
Grid Settings
Setting | Type | Description |
---|---|---|
Gutter | spin button | In pixels, the default value is 0 and the maximum value is 100. Increase to widen the space between components in a dashboard. |
Color | color selection | Default is none. Select to choose from available colors to change the gutter’s color in your dashboard. You can also add custom colors using hex codes or color palette. |
Reset to Default | link | Select to reset all changed settings to their default values. |
Free form layout settings
The free form layout is the new layout introduced this release. The new layout enables you to organize your components in a free way that empowers your presentation for the created insights.
Property | Type | Description |
---|---|---|
Size | drop down | Select the size of the free form layout canvas. The default value is A4 Landscape (1169 x 827). When selecting the drop-down, there are multiple predefined layout sizes available that you can choose from. You can also set free custom dimensions by setting the Width and Height values. |
Width | spin button | Available in the Size drop down. Increase or decrease the pixel value to set the layout width. Note: The minimum value you can set is 200 and the maximum is 10000. |
Height | spin button | Available in the Size drop down. Increase or decrease the pixel value to set the layout height. Note: The minimum value you can set is 200 and the maximum is 20000. |
Vertical Align | drop down | Available in the Size drop down. When the canvas is of small size or zoomed out and doesn’t fit your screen, you can select from the following available options to align the canvas in your screen accordingly: ● Top ● Middle |
Canvas Background
In the Canvas Background tab, you can pick colors and upload images for your canvas’ background. The following is the detailed settings for each of the options available in this tab.
Property | Type | Description |
---|---|---|
Color | color selection | Default is none. Select to choose from available colors to change the color of your canvas’ background. You can also add custom colors using hex codes or color palette. |
Image | browse button | Select to upload an image from your machine to set as the canvas background. Supported formats are: ● JPEG ● JPG ● PNG |
Image fit | drop down | Select from the available values to resize the background picture as needed. Available values are: ● Fit (default) ● Normal ● Fill |
Reset to Default | link | Select to reset all changed settings to their default values. |
Layers
In the Layers tab, you can find all the components you have added in your canvas in the order you have added them. Re-ordering the components overrides the layering that is done in case you have components layered one on top of the other.
Next to each component are three buttons as follows:
Property | Type | Description |
---|---|---|
Edit | button | Opens the Analyzer to edit the insight data for the selected component. |
Delete | button | Deletes the selected component. |
Copy | button | Duplicates the selected component. |
Common tabs
The following tab is common in both grid and free-form layouts.
Component Styles settings
The Component Styles tab settings are per component so it’s only available when you select a component.
Setting | Type | Description** |
---|---|---|
Active Border | buttons | Five Buttons, selected by default, to highlight all 4 outer borders: ● top border ● right border ● bottom border ● left border ● all borders (selected by default if all previous buttons are select) |
Border Width | spin button | In pixels, the default value is 1 and the maximum value is 30. Increase or decrease the width of the selected component's border. |
Border Radius | spin button | In pixels, the default value is 0 and the maximum value is 30. Increase to change the border radius of a component. |
Border Color | color selection | Default is none. Select to choose from available colors to change the color of your component’s borders. You can also add custom colors using hex codes or color palette. |
Border Style | drop down | Choose from available border style options available: ● Solid (Default) ● Dotted ● Dashed ● Double ● Groove ● Ridge ● Inset ● Outset |
Background Color | color selection | Default is none. Select to choose from available colors to change the color of your component’s background. You can also add custom colors using hex codes or color palette. |
Reset to Default | link | Select to reset all changed settings to their default values. |
Tips and tricks
- You can select all components within a layout using Ctrl + A to edit their style settings.
- As you move a component within your free-form layout, you will notice snapping lines that help you center or align this component along with other components.
Dashboard actions
Create dashboard and add insights
In Content, in the Action bar, do the following:
- Select + New, and in the Add New menu, select Add Dashboard.
- Name your dashboard.
- In the Action bar, select Edit (pen icon).
- Select your layout type, knowing that the default is “Grid Layout.”
- Start adding in your components.
- Edit each component to start building your insights.
Copy an Insight from one Dashboard to Another
Copy an insight from one dashboard to another as follows:
- For the insight you would like to copy, select More Options (⋮ vertical ellipsis icon).
- In the More Options Menu, select Copy.
- To paste the insight:
- For a new dashboard, select Paste Insight in the Insight canvas.
- Or, select Edit (pen icon) → Paste Insight in the Action bar.
Duplicate an Insight within a Dashboard
Duplicate an insight within a dashboard as follows:
- For the insight you would like to duplicate, select More Options (⋮ vertical ellipsis icon).
- In the More Options Menu, select Duplicate. The insight is duplicated at the bottom of the active dashboard tab.
Copy/Duplicate an Insight within a Dashboard Layout
If you are in edit mode within a dashboard layout and you need to copy/duplicate an insight, all you need to do is just select Copy (two papers icon).
Incorta copies/duplicates the insight of the active dashboard layout. Or you can select an insight and use the key stroke (Ctrl + C) and paste (Ctrl + V).
The copied/duplicated insight in the free-form layout is usually beside the original insight. while in the grid layout, it is at the bottom.
Personalize the Dashboard
Personalizing a dashboard is only available for the grid layout.
Select Dashboard Insights
Use the Edit Layout panel to select the insights to include on your dashboard with the following steps:
- Open the Edit Layout panel with one of these two options:
- Select Personalize (page icon) in the upper right corner of the dashboard page, select Personalize and Select Insights in the Context bar.
- Select More Options (⋮ vertical ellipsis icon) → Personalize to the right of the tab name on the active dashboard tab, and Select Insights in the Context bar.
- In the Selected Insights panel to the right of the insights, select or deselect the insights to include or exclude from the dashboard, respectively. By default, all insights are included.
- Select the Save button.
Edit the Dashboard Layout
Use the Edit Layout panel to move and resize insights on your dashboard with the following steps:
- Open the Edit Layout panel with one of the following options:
- Select Personalize (page icon) in the upper right corner of the dashboard page, and Edit Layout in the Context bar.
- Select More Options (⋮ vertical ellipsis icon) to the right of the tab name on the active dashboard tab, and select Edit.
- Select Edit (pen icon) from the Action bar
- Drag and drop the insight to the desired area of the dashboard.
- Resize insights in a dashboard using the following methods:
- For multiple insights within the same row, drag and drop the horizontal border line to resize all insights in that row.
- For a single insight, drag and drop the vertical border line to resize that particular insight.
- Select the Save button.
Edit Insight Settings
Use the Edit Layout panel to select the columns to include in the insight (table visualizations only) with the following steps:
- Open the Edit Layout panel by selecting Personalize (page icon) in the upper right corner of the dashboard page, and Edit Insight Settings in the Context bar.
- Select a table insight on the dashboard.
- In the Table Columns panel, select or deselect the measures to include in the insight. All measures are included by default.
- Select the Save button.
More options
Focus an Insight
Enlarge an insight to full screen, and view the remaining insights on a tab one by one as follows:
- Select More Options (⋮ vertical ellipsis icon) for the insight.
- Select Focus.
- Select the right or left arrows in the Action bar to view the other insights on a tab in full screen mode.
Download an Insight
- Select More Options (⋮ vertical ellipsis icon) for the insight.
- Select Download as.
- Select the download file format:
- For chart insight types, the options are PNG, JPEG, PDF, and SVG.
- For table insight types, the options are XLSX and CSV.
Print a Chart Insight
For chart insight types only, print the insight as follows:
- Select More Options (⋮ vertical ellipsis icon) for the insight.
- Select Print Chart.
- Select Print.
View Chart Insight as a Table
For chart insight types only, view the chart as a table as follows:
- Select More Options (⋮ vertical ellipsis icon) for the insight.
- Select View as Table.
- Select the table type. The options are:
- Regular
- Aggregated
Delete an Insight
- Select More Options (⋮ vertical ellipsis icon) for the insight.
- Select Delete.
- In the dialog, select Delete.
Set an Insight Alert
- Select More Options (⋮ vertical ellipsis icon) for the insight.
- Select Set Alert. Refer to the Scheduler document for additional information on Data Alerts.
Manage Dashboard Bookmarks
After you run filters on a dashboard, you can add a bookmark to the dashboard to save a dashboard filter for later use. You can create scheduled jobs to deliver a dashboard as PDF or HTML to export folders or via email while applying a selected bookmark. You can also select to reveal the bookmark name and the values of the applied filters in the delivered files.
Add a bookmark
Here are the steps to add a bookmark:
- Select the Bookmark icon in the upper left corner of the dashboard.
- Select + Add Bookmark.
- Enter a Name for the bookmark.
- Optionally select the Set as Default checkbox, which will cause the filter to be applied to the dashboard when opened.
- Optionally select the Include Default Prompts checkbox, which will include the default prompts even if they are not part of the bookmark that is set as default.
- Optionally select the Make it Public checkbox, which will share the bookmark with users that have access to the dashboard.
- Select Add.
- Select Close.
Edit a bookmark
Here are the steps to edit a bookmark:
- Select the Bookmark icon in the upper left corner of the dashboard.
- Select the pen icon to the right of the bookmark you want to edit.
- Edit the bookmark name or options.
- Select Save.
Changing a bookmark from public to private suspends all related scheduled dashboard delivery jobs that other users created. However, the scheduled jobs that you created (as the bookmark owner) will run as usual.
Update the bookmark filters
You can update the filters of a bookmark and save these updates. When you update bookmarks that you or other users use in scheduled dashboard delivery jobs, these changes are applied in the next job runs.
Here are the steps to update the bookmark filters:
- Apply the filters you want on the dashboard.
- Select the Bookmark icon in the upper left corner of the dashboard.
- Select the bookmark with arrow icon to the right of the bookmark you want to update its filters. New filters overwrite the bookmark saved filters.
- In the warning message, select Update. New filters will overwrite the bookmark saved filters.
Delete a bookmark
Here are the steps to delete a bookmark:
- Select the Bookmark icon in the upper left corner of the dashboard.
- Select the Delete (trash can) icon to the right of the bookmark you would like to delete.
- In the warning message, select Delete.
Deleting a bookmark that you or other users use in scheduled dashboard delivery jobs suspends the related scheduled jobs. You cannot resume a dashboard delivery job that has been suspended due to deleting a bookmark or changing it to private. You have to first update the scheduled job to remove the bookmark or select a valid one.
Engage the Audience with the Dashboard
As the dashboard creator, there are several ways for you to engage the audience of your dashboard in order to initiate collaboration on the analytics presented. The following are ways to engage the audience:
- Share the dashboard
- Send the dashboard as an email
- Schedule delivery of the dashboard
- Configure filters, prompts, and variables
- Copy dashboard link
Share the Dashboard
Share a dashboard with other users, email addresses, or groups, and provide them with either View, Share, or Edit access to the dashboard. Here are the steps to share a dashboard:
- Select the Share icon in the top right corner of the dashboard page.
- Select Share Access.
- In the Share dialog, in the With: field, enter the name of the user, email address, or group you would like to share the dashboard with, and select it from the results.
- Select the eye icon to the right of the With: field to set the access level as Can View, Can Share, or Can Edit. The default value is Can View.
- Select Share.
- Select Close.
Send or Schedule Delivery of the Dashboard
Schedule delivery of the dashboard to send the dashboard to other users, email addresses, or groups, or send dashboards to data destinations. Set up the delivery of the dashboard on a recurring basis to proactively share dashboard updates with the recipients or send the dashboard right away.
Here are the steps to schedule delivery of the dashboard:
- Select the Share icon in the top right corner of the dashboard page.
- Select Send/Schedule a Report.
- In the Schedule page, enter the dashboard schedule and delivery properties.
- Select the delivery channel: Email or Data Destination, and then enter the dashboard email properties or the dashboard data destination properties respectively.
- Select Done.
Copy dashboard link
You can use the copy link feature to share the dashboard with users who you have granted access to the shared dashboard before. You can find the Copy Link option in the following places: • The More options (⋮ vertical ellipsis) icon in the Content manager page beside a dashboard. • Share icon in a dashboard’s Action bar. • Dashboard’s tab More options (⋮ vertical ellipsis) icon.
In sharing the dashboard link, dashboards filters and bookmarks by default. By selecting Include current filters in the URL option, the filters will be added to the URL string. This can be especially useful when leveraging URLs from third-party tools.
Use the Include current filters in the URL option if you are drilling down to Incorta or embedding the dashboard.
Additional Dashboard Options
Hide or Show the Filter Bar
A filter must be applied to do the following:
- Select More Options (⋮ vertical ellipsis icon).
- If the Dashboard Search and Filter Bar is displayed, select Hide Filter Bar.
- If the Dashboard Search and Filter Bar is hidden, select Show Filter Bar.
Switch Between Relaxed and Compact Dashboard View Mode
- Select More Options (⋮ vertical ellipsis icon).
- If Relaxed Mode is active, select Switch to Compact Mode.
- If Compact Mode is active, select Switch to Relaxed Mode.
Configure Dashboard Settings
Configure dashboard properties and advanced settings as follows:
- Select More Options (⋮ vertical ellipsis icon).
- Select Configure Settings.
- Edit the dashboard configuration properties as necessary.
- Select Save.
Dashboard configuration properties
Property | Control | Description |
---|---|---|
Name | text box | Enter the dashboard name. |
Description | text box | Enter a description of the dashboard. |
Open in Maximized View | checkbox | Select this checkbox to open one insight at a time. |
Customize Color Palette | checkbox | Select this checkbox to customize the dashboard color palette. Options are: ● Classic ● Bright and Bold ● 90’s Retro ● Contemporary ● Custom This option also allows you to set a default hex value for common colors in each palette. |
Enable Incremental Reporting | checkbox | Select this checkbox to enable incremental reporting. |
Select data column | drop down list | With incremental reporting enabled, select a data column to use for incremental reporting. |
Move a Dashboard
Move a dashboard to another folder as follows:
- Select More Options (⋮ vertical ellipsis icon).
- Select Move to…
- In the folder tree, navigate to the folder to move the dashboard to. You can filter the tree results by entering a search string in the Search text box. Optionally add a New Folder to add the dashboard to by selecting the New Folder button.
- Select Move.
Copy a Dashboard
- Select More Options (⋮ vertical ellipsis icon).
- Select Make a Copy.
- Optionally enter a New Name for the dashboard copy. The default is the name of the original dashboard with Copy appended to the end.
- In the folder tree, navigate to the folder to move the dashboard copy to. You can filter the tree results by entering a search string in the Search text box. Optionally add a New Folder to copy the dashboard to by selecting the New Folder button.
- Select Copy, or select Copy & Open if you would like to open the dashboard copy.
Export a Dashboard
Export a dashboard as follows:
- Select More Options (⋮ vertical ellipsis icon).
- Optionally select the Include Bookmarks and Include Scheduled Jobs checkboxes to include this information in the XML.
- Select Export.
Exporting dashboard with bookmarks included will overwrite existing bookmarks during the import process. If you do not want to overwrite existing bookmarks, make sure not to select the Include Bookmarks option.
Delete a Dashboard
- Select More Options (⋮ vertical ellipsis icon).
- Select Delete.
- In the dialog, select Delete.