Both the dimension list beans and the QueryBuilder
bean provide lists of dimension members for users to select. The QueryBuilder is a very powerful tool that also allows you to create and manage sophisticated queries.
A single instance of a dimension list bean allows users to choose the members of only one dimension. One instance of QueryBuilder
allows users to choose the members and measures of multiple dimensions and use them to create complex queries.
Another difference is that you must supply a dimension list bean with a single dimension query before displaying the user interface. QueryBuilder
requires only an empty query before being displayed, because you can build the query later using the QueryBuilder
itself.
The following list describes situations in which you might want to use one or more dimension list beans instead of QueryBuilder
:
To allow users to change or add data for one dimension in a populated view.
To allow users to change or add data for multiple dimensions in a single populated view.
To allow users to produce forecasting queries.