What’s New for Oracle Analytics Desktop

Here’s an overview of the new features and enhancements we’ve added recently to improve your Oracle Analytics Desktop experience. It's organized by the update in which a specific feature or capability became available.

Topics:

March 2022 Update (6.5)

Data Connectivity, Modeling, Preparation
Feature Description

Filter based on valid and invalid data in quality insights.

Quality Insights provides clear statistics about the validity of column values. Interact with the insight to filter column values based on their validity or invalidity. See Explore Your Data Using Quality Insights.

Exploring, Dashboarding, and Storytelling
Feature Description

Apply conditional formatting to performance tiles.

Define conditional formatting for performance tiles along with other visualization types. See Apply Conditional Formatting to a Visualization.

Provide authors fine-grain control on consumer options.

Authors have fine-grain controls in Present to set visualization actions for consumer interactions on the dashboard (for example Export, Copy Data, Drill, Sort, and Zoom). See Create a Story and View a Story in Present Mode.

Control the dashboard filter bar.

In the dashboard filter list box, use multiple filter options in the same control. Instead of putting six list boxes on the screen, manage a single filter bar with drop-down selections. See Create Dashboard Filters.

Earlier Updates

January 2022 Update (6.4)

Exploring, Dashboarding, and Storytelling

Feature Description

Redwood Design

Oracle Analytics fully adopts the new Oracle Design Concepts code-named Redwood. Product look and feel, as well as default colors and fonts will follow the Redwood guidelines created over years of research with close attention to usability and accessibility.

My Calculations Properties

Custom calculations in workbooks show similar properties to other measures.

Consumer Mode Navigation: Bottom Tabs

Authors have a new Bottom Tabs presentation style for curating the consumer navigation experience. Authors can select this style from the Presentation property panel. See Capture Insights.

Change Settings for Multiple Columns

Save time when changing settings for multiple columns. Multi-select columns in the Metadata view to change the Data Type, the Treat As setting, the aggregation type, and the hide setting for more than one column at once. See Configure Columns Properties in a Dataset.

Inner radius of a donut chart

In a donut chart, control the radius of the donut hole. See Pie and Treemap Graphs.

Augmented Analytics and Machine Learning

Feature Description

Streamlined Advanced Analytics capabilities for some sources

For some datasets such as Oracle EPM and Essbase, we've streamlined the user-interface for advanced analytics so that you won't produce unexpected results.

XGBoost and Neural Network Algorithms for Machine Learning

Register and apply XGBoost and Neural Network algorithms with Machine Learning.

October 2021 (Release 6.3)

Feature Description

Oracle Transactional Business Intelligence and remote Oracle Analytics Server and Oracle Business Intelligence Enterprise Edition sources for datasets with multiple tables

Use the Oracle Applications connection to add tables from Oracle Transactional Business Intelligence and remote Oracle Analytics Server and Oracle Business Intelligence Enterprise Edition subject areas and reports to datasets containing multiple tables. See Create a Dataset from an Oracle Application's Subject Area and Create a Dataset from an Oracle Application's Analysis.

Position tables and pivot tables

Format visualizations more easily with enhanced positioning of tables and pivot tables.
Compute machine learning model lift and gain values Evaluate prediction machine learning models more effectively using lift and gain statistics that you can visualize. See Evaluate Machine Learning Models Using Lift and Gain Charts.

Projects renamed to Workbooks

In the Oracle Analytics user interface and user assistance, "projects" have been renamed to "workbooks." Use workbooks to organize your visualizations just as you've done for projects.

August 2021 (Release 6.2)

Feature Description
Connect to Microsoft Azure Synapse Visualize data from Microsoft Azure Synapse data sources. See Supported Data Sources.
Expression filters for entities in datasets with multiple tables Use expression filters in datasets that contain multiple tables. See Apply a Filter to a Dataset Table.
Refresh profile results and recommendations Refresh profile results and enrichment recommendations after you add or update custom knowledge. See Accept Enrichment Recommendations.
Annotations on canvases In Visualize, add notes to canvases and tie notes to specific data points. See Add Notes to a Visualization.
Enhanced map visualizations with Mapbox libraries Access smooth and powerful interactions with map visualizations through client-side libraries from Mapbox GL and WebGL.
Select multiple visualizations on a canvas Multi-select visualizations on a canvas to easily change shared properties for groups of content. See Work with Multiple Visualizations on a Canvas.

July 2021 (Release 6.1)

Feature Description

Enable Oracle’s Redwood experience

Use the preview dialog to enable Oracle’s Redwood theme in Oracle Analytics before it becomes the default look and feel.

Conditional formatting

Use conditional formatting to highlight important data events in your visualizations so that you can take action. See Apply Conditional Formatting to a Visualization.

Null values in list filters

When a list filter with a large number of values is displayed, the list is refreshed when the user pages and when all possible values in the current page are selected. See Apply List Filters.

Automatic refresh of list filters

When a list filter with a large number of values is displayed, the list is refreshed when the user pages and when all possible values in the current page are selected. See Apply List Filters.

Control presentation mode interactivity for stories

When defining a story in Narrate, you can use the context menu to turn on and off the user interactivity options for the story in presentation mode. See Create a Story.

Sort data in visualizations by columns that aren't in the visualization

Sort data in a visualization by a column that's not included in the visualization. See Sort, Drill, Select Data, and Apply Statistics in Visualization Canvases.

Print visualizations on canvases with enhanced options

Print visualizations on canvases with logical default print sizes based on the printing target and enhanced options for various sources. See Print a Visualization, Canvas, or Story.

Auto-join option in datasets with multiple tables

Use the Auto Join Tables option to turn off or on automatic join creation in datasets. By default, joins are created automatically when you drag and drop tables onto the Join Diagram. In some cases it's useful to turn auto joins off and build joins manually. See Disable Auto Joins in Datasets.

May 2021 (Release 6.0)

Feature Description

Hierarchy navigation for Essbase and EPM data sources

Navigate Essbase or Enterprise Performance Management (EPM) hierarchies when connecting to subject areas or datasets. You can drill up and down the hierarchy tree in pivot and table visualizations. You can't use hierarchies in filters but you can use a hierarchy level in a filter. See Sort and Select Data in Visualization Canvases.

Customize auto-refresh in visualizations

Set the frequency at which the data automatically refreshes in visualizations on a canvas. See Visualize Canvas Layout and Properties.

On-canvas filter types

Select various on-canvas filter types such as Top Bottom N and Relative Time. See Create On-Canvas Filters and Apply Different Filter Types.

On-canvas  date filters

Use the on-canvas date selector and the relative time filter for date filters. See Create On-Canvas Filters and Apply Different Filter Types.

On-canvas  measure filters

Use the on-canvas measure selector and the top and bottom time filter for measures. See Create On-Canvas Filters and Apply Different Filter Types.

Tooltips on visualization titles

Enter your own tooltip text to display when you hover over a visualization title. See Visualize Properties.

Improved sort options

Use the Sort dialog to configure sorts and clearly see the sort order and any sort conflicts. See Sort and Select Data in Visualization Canvases.

Time series forecasting

Perform time series analysis forecasting directly from data flows. See Add a Time Series Forecast to a Data Flow.

Graph analytics

Enhance your geospatial visualizations using powerful spatial analytics functions. For example, you can compute the shortest path between two vertices or identify connected vertices in the graph. See Add Graph Analytics to a Data Flow.

Improved home page search

Enter advanced search commands in the search bar to tailor your search results for exact matches, multi-term matches, and field-level matches. See Advanced Search Commands for Finding Content.

Map layers in non-joined datasets

Create map layers in a visualization where the data between the layers isn't joined. See Apply Multiple Data Layers on a Single Map Visualization.

Average aggregation in Waterfall visualizations

When you add a Detail to a Waterfall visualization, the weighted average is calculated and displayed in the Bridge report.

Connect to Google BigQuery

Analyze data from Google BigQuery data sources. See Connect to Google BigQuery.

Datasets with multiple tables

Perform self-service data modeling with datasets by adding multiple tables to a dataset from one or more relational data source connections. See Create a Dataset from a Connection.

Data quality insights

Explore your data, and use a visual overview of your content to assess and improve data quality. See Explore Your Data Using Quality Insights.

Frequent Item Set function supports association rules

Create more powerful Frequent Item Set analyses using enhanced algorithms. See Database Analytics Functions.

Oracle machine learning supports Feature Extraction

Apply a registered Oracle machine learning Feature Extraction model's view to a data flow. See Apply a Predictive or Oracle Machine Learning Model to a Dataset.

January 2021 (Release 5.9)

Feature Description

Data Action: Avoid passing duplicate filters

When you create a data action using multiple data points to filter another canvas, and you return to the original canvas and invoke the data action using different data points, the new expression filter replaces the previous filter on the target canvas. See Create Data Actions to Connect Visualization Canvases.

Data Action: Support single/multi selection

You can restrict the invocation of a data action to work only for a single value by setting Supports Multiple Selection to Off. You set this when the selection of multiple data points will result in an error (for example, with some third-party REST APIs). See Use Data Actions to Connect to Canvases, External URLs, Oracle Analytics Publisher Reports, and in Embedded Content.

Show database model full details in Oracle Analytics Cloud inspectors - Model Explainability

Oracle Analytics provides explainability about your registered Oracle machine learning models. Outputs describe how the Oracle machine learning model computes the predicted results for each record in the dataset and allow you to aggregate these results. See Inspect Registered Oracle Machine Learning Models.

Show database model full details in Oracle Analytics Cloud inspectors - Visualize Database Views

Visualize a registered Oracle machine learning model's views to better understand the model and iteratively improve the model's overall accuracy. See Visualize a Registered Oracle Machine Learning Model's View.

Ability to add new map backgrounds

You can add a map hosted on a web server as a map background using the Web Map Service (WMS) protocol and XYZ tile layers. See Add Map Backgrounds.

Apply no sort to data

In visualizations, data is always sorted by default. You can use the Sort By None option to "unsort" or return the data to its original order. See Sort Data in Visualizations.

Area chart visualization

In addition to the stacked area and 100% stacked area, you can visualize data in an area chart. See Change Visualization Types.

Improved chrome density in the data panel

The data panel across all visualization editors uses horizontal tabs instead of vertical tabs, and the density of the tree content is increased. See Build a Visualization by Adding Data from Data Panel.

Improved progress bar behavior

The blue bars that were previously visible across the screen when data was refreshed have been removed. The data refresh experience is more subtle. Hover the mouse pointer over a visualization to see refresh details or to cancel. See Refresh Data in a Project.

Pass filters between the filter bar and visualizations

Filters for a canvas or project are defined on the top bar, and filters for a visualization are defined on the grammar. You can move a filter from one scope to another. See Change the Scope of Filters Between the Main Filter Bar and Visualizations.

Respect the canvas aspect ratio when exporting

You can select to maintain the canvas aspect ratio, ensuring that the outcome is closest to your intent. See Print a Visualization, Canvas, or Story.

Sort by multiple columns

You can select multiple sort columns for a visualization. You can create nested sorts based on a combination of the attributes and measures in the visualization. See Sort Data in Visualizations.

Trim spaces on text columns

You can easily trim or remove leading and trailing spaces on text columns using the transform options menu. See Transform Data Using Column Menu Options.

Support for database text tokenization in data flows

An advanced text-analytics technique is applied to user data to identify and list the words most frequently appearing within a text data-column. See Support for database text tokenization in data flows.

Support for Database Frequent Item Set (Market Basket) in data flows

Discover relationships in your data by identifying sets of items that often appear together. This data mining technique is known as association rule learning, affinity analysis, and market basket analysis. See Support for database text tokenization in data flows.

September 2020 (Release 5.8)

Feature Description
Consistent legend properties across visualizations

The following visualizations have properties (such as location and fonts) added to their legend: Sankey, Network, Tree Diagram, and Chord. See Adjust Visualization Properties.

Image backgrounds for heat maps

Visualize data with heat map layers on your custom image maps. See Apply Map Backgrounds and Map Layers to Enhance Visualizations.

Single header on all pages

The user interface in Oracle Analytics has been enhanced with a single header that helps to maximize your workspace. With the content density provided, you can realize the benefits of your viewing capability with a modernized user interface and improved navigation.
Enrichments for live datasets

You can leverage enrichments for live datasets along with cached or file-based datasets. See About Data Preparation.

July 2020 (Release 5.7)

Feature Description
Spark charts within performance tiles You can liven up your visualizations with spark charts added to tiles. See Examine Trends with Spark Charts.
Responsive canvas layouts You can use controls for setting vertical and horizontal scrolling of canvas reports and automatic responsive design across screen resolutions. See Adjust the Visualization Canvas Layout.
On-canvas filters You can add on-canvas filters that allow users to choose, change, and apply filters to attribute columns within some or all of the visualizations on the canvas. See Add an On-Canvas Filter.
Oracle machine learning models and Oracle Analytics Desktop In Oracle Analytics Desktop, you can register and use Oracle machine learning models to model, score, and output large datasets on the database. You can register and use Oracle machine learning models from Oracle Database and Oracle Autonomous Data Warehouse connections. See How Can I Use Oracle Machine Learning Models In Oracle Analytics?.
Top/Bottom filters for attributes Add a Top/Bottom filter for an attribute and then pick the measure. Previously you could only add the Top/Bottom filter for a measure and then pick the attribute. See Apply Top Bottom N Filters.
Bridge reports You can use the Waterfall visualization to build a bridge report. A bridge report groups data by contributions of each member to the overall variation between values of categories. For example, show the respective contribution of various products to the total sales variation year by year. See Create a Project and Add Datasets.
Database Advanced Analytics functions in data flows

You can consume advanced analytics functions from Oracle Autonomous Data Warehouse and Oracle Database. These include Dynamic Clustering and Dynamic Anomalies, Unpivoting of columns and rows, and Smart sampling. See Add Analytic Functions to a Data Flow.

May 2020 (Release 5.6)

Feature Description
Connect to Microsoft Azure SQL Database Visualize data from Microsoft Azure SQL Database. See Supported Data Sources.
Create digitized custom map layers Easily create custom interactive visualizations from any image. Upload images and create map layers that support defining areas on the images with no-code polygon definitions bound to data interactively. See Use an Image as a Map Background and Draw Map Layer Shapes on the Image.
Create data actions to Publisher reports Create data actions to easily navigate to a Publisher report. See Create Data Actions to Connect to Publisher Reports.
Enhanced color in Waterfall visualizations Assign custom colors for increase and decrease values in a waterfall visualization.
Copy calculation expressions to the Clipboard Access a simple menu option to copy an entire expression to the Clipboard without opening the formula editor.
Create calculations more quickly Quickly copy and duplicate custom calculations to create derivatives of calculations, to make backup copies, and to test syntax scenarios quickly.
Improved usability of the Canvas As you create a project, you have many different tabs of analyses. Explore the improved content density of canvas names for better visibility and quick duplication of a canvas for iterative report creation and testing. As you duplicate or copy canvas tabs, new canvasses are added next to the original and not at the end of the list for ease of accessibility.
Enhanced map rendering and ability to disable gestures The performance of map rendering is enhanced including data truncation warnings when using large datasets. You can lock the display of a map and disable interactive gestures for a better experience.
Flexible and persistent cell sizing in tables and pivot tables Enhance the clarity of tables and pivot tables. You can control the size of columns and rows for specific data points that need more attention or more room for visibility.

January 2020 (Release 5.5)

Feature Description
Butterfly visualization You can select the Butterfly visualization to present two sets of data series side by side and organized by a specific metric.
Spacer visualization You can add spacers to the canvas to provide filler space between visualizations.
Assign a map layer to a column You can use the Location Details option to assign a map layer to a column. See Assign a Map Layer to a Data Column.
Auto focus in map layers When you've added filters to your map visualization, you can use the Auto Focus on Data option to automatically focus on a particular map area. See Auto Focus on Data for a Map Visualization.
Enhance grand totals in pivot tables and tables For pivot tables and tables, use the Property tab to control the formats and positions of grand totals and subtotals.
Canvas and project background configuration You can add background colors and images to canvases and projects.
Hierarchical coloring You can select the Hierarchical Coloring option to ensure consistent coloring for each metric's attribute values.
Reference line in Explain In Explain's Key Drivers results for attribute columns, a constant reference line is displayed in 100% stacked charts. See Analyze Data with Explain.
Oracle NetSuite Connection Type Visualize data from Oracle NetSuite data sources.
Oracle Database Advanced Connection Options Connect to an Oracle Database configured on multiple clusters using a Single Client Access Name (SCAN) ID. In the Create Connection dialog, you select Advanced to configure the Single Client Access Name (SCAN) ID. See About Specifying Connections to Databases.

Documentation Accessibility

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Access to Oracle Support

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