Quick Tip to Use when Creating a Metadata Library Here’s a quick tip for SAS BI Administrators or anyone who has to create metadata library in the SAS Management Console. Often before I define the metadata library I am at the folder or the physical path of the library. Obviously, it’s critical that the path is defined correctly in the metadata. So here’s my quick tip. In the physical library, click or double-click the path and use the Ctrl+C keyboard shortcut to capture the path. As you assign the metadata library, in the New Library Wizard window, click New to assign the path. Instead of clicking the Browse button to navigate to your library path, do this instead: Double-click the Paths field and press Ctrl-V to paste the path.Some folks may not realize that is an editable line – so you can also make changes if needed.
Tag: Building Business Intelligence
SAS BI Dashboard Rocks My Google Analytics Data Analysis
I have to say I’m in love with the new SAS BI Dashboard and it’s many features. It really brings the Google Analytics to life and helps me understand how the Website traffic changed over time along with the key influences. The following figure gives you an idea of how you can integrate dashboard indicators for an interactive user experience. The best part is how easy it is. Once I understood the how the feature worked, this indicators below took less than an hour to setup and most of that was deciding what data I wanted to see. [More articles about Google Analytics here.] Quick Dashboard Tour This dashboard has two indicators, a line graph that shows the traffic over time and a spark table that contains specific data about site visitors. As the user drags the slider and clicks, the data in spark table updates. I left the Week variable in the Spark Chart to help you understand what was happening. Also in the Last Wk Delta, New Visitors (%) and New Visitor Delta columns, you can see the various gauges available. Creating an Interactive Dashboard For several weeks I’ve been discussing using Google Analytics with the SAS […]
Career: Secrets from a Professional SAS Recruiter
Recently I spoke with Dick Smith, Talent Engagement Manager for PiTech Solutions, about some tips for working with recruiters. He’s an experienced technical recruiter so I think you’ll find this information particularly insightful. He offers a good mix of traditional job search strategies and ways to leverage social media for your job search. Working with SAS Recruiters As for working with SAS or specialty recruiters, the technology world is most times defined by skill sets or product expertise. In SAS for example, there is a big difference between a SAS/Stat Programmer and a SAS BI/Analytics skill set. For my money, the KISS method applies in either case. So to begin with, keep your resume simple and straightforward. Tell the reader what you can do, what your best expertise is, and what you are looking to do with your career next. Our screening process here at PITech Solutions, for instance, has a focus on the individual. Of greatest importance to us is to clearly understand what kind of position you are really looking for, or put another way – what is the ideal job for you? What do you see as your strongest expertise in the IT field at this point in your […]
SAS BI Dashboard: Google Analytics Dashboard Kicked Up a Notch
Google Analytics uses data from your Website to prepare a neat looking application where you can explore your data and answer what I consider your first-level questions. First-level questions are the most basic things you might want to know, such as How many? What Time Period? It is the second- and third-level questions where the analysis and action plans come into play. After all, it’s not enough to know how many people visited the site – you need to know what segment attracted them and how do you keep them coming back for more. [More articles about Google Analytics here] Reviewing the Google Analytics Dashboard In the Google Analytics site from the Home tab, you can design a dashboard to review what you consider key measurements for your site. This dashboard is easy to use and works great for checking daily traffic. However, these measurements answer your basic questions, such as the counts. It’s more difficult to use the information for in-depth discovery. For instance, in the following figure I am comparing month over month traffic for the site using the Dashboard. This number indicates the total visits for each month. So, what can I learn from these metrics? Traffic […]
SAS Enterprise Guide: Quick Tip for Selecting Text in Columns
Earlier in the week I discussed how I used Google Analytics to help me discover topics of the most interest. SAS Enterprise Guide was a popular topic, so here’s a quick tip that I like to use when working with text in columns. Moving Text around in SAS Enterprise Guide When it comes to data entry, I can assure you that I put the “Z” in lazzzzzzzzzzzzzy. Blech, I hate it more than pie charts. It’s the first thing I’ll have my home robot do when they finally become as normal as a refrigerator. So here’s a tip to save you some keystrokes. When you copy text in SAS EG, you generally have to copy entire rows, but sometimes you just need a list of variable names or the variable values. When you need to copy a column of data, do the following: Hold the ALT key while clicking and dragging to select the column. The column turns blue so you know it works. Press Ctrl+C to copy the column. Click where you want to place the text and press Ctrl+V to paste it. Then you can make any edits you desire. Applying this Trick Other Areas You can […]
SAS Web Report Studio: Chart Makeover – Before and After Shots!
SAS Web Report Studio has some features that help can improve the overall appearance or just shake things up a little. You can change the template for individual reports in cases where you need to better highlight an idea. Tip! Check out the Information is Beautiful site for some inspirational ideas about presenting data. Of course, Stephen Few’s Now Your See It book I keep on my desk as a reference for presenting data. Changing the SAS Web Report Studio Template Colors In the Before shot, the Applied filters text is black, which I think is a little distracting, and the green line disappears slightly into the blue bar. In the After chart, the line is red so there is more contrast between the line and bar. Note: This change will update the template and change the color from green to red everywhere. Make sure that is what you want to do. To change the chart, do this: From the File menu, select Properties. From the Format pane, select the Use customized colors radio button. Select the second color box on the top row, which controls the line color. From the color drop-down box, select a new color. Bonus Ideas […]
SAS BI: Looking at Google Analytics for Popular Blog Topics
This past week I have been studying the Google Analytics data to determine the best topics to discuss in the upcoming month and to prepare the SAS Glo Fo 2012 conference. Google Analytics allows me to measure which posts get the most hits when posted and continue to be popular or referenced. I’ll unveil my little known, but highly coveted analytics process. How’s that for some hype? Getting the Google Analytics Data In a past article, I discussed how I extracted the data from Google Analytics using Excellent Analytics. The following figure shows my query in the Excellent Analytics tool, the data results, and the results in SAS Enterprise Guide. The data consists of the date, post path and title (with URL), source (how person came to site), and visitor type. It’s probably obvious why I would want the date, post, and source but what is not so obvious is visitor type. Visitor Type allows me analyze what topics bring new visitors to the site as well as the topics that retain visitors. Cleaning Up the Data My original plan was to use MS Excel to complete this analysis since I thought it would be simple. However, I realized that […]
New Year’s Resolution: Find a New Job with LinkedIn (Part II)
LinkedIn.com is fast becoming a way for professionals to not only network but also look for work in a more clever way. Last week, I discussed ways to enhance your LinkedIn Profile, but there’s…
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