View Large Amounts of Data

When you work with large amounts of data, it can be difficult to see all the data in one graphical display. Too many columns can clutter the display, making accurate interpretation difficult. To resolve this problem, a scroll bar appears by default in any display that has more than eight columns. You can change this default at any time.

For example, you prepare a IBM® Cognos® PowerPlay® report using the simple bar display that includes all the tents in your product line. Because there are several tents, your display appears cluttered. You want to adjust the number of columns that appear on each page so the data is more easily understood.

You can also define whether to show summary categories for nested crosstabs.

You cannot add scroll bars to a pie display, 3-D bar display, or a scatter display.

Procedure

  1. Select the chart display that you want to change.
  2. From the Format menu, click Display Options, and click the Scrolling tab.
  3. In the Scrolling Options box, select the Use a Scrollbar If Required check box.

    Tip: If you want to see all the data in one display, clear the Use a Scrollbar if Required check box. If you reach the maximum limit of bars (500 rows or columns) in PowerPlay, an error message appears warning that the data will be truncated.

  4. In the Maximum Columns Displayed box, specify the number of columns that you want to appear in the display.

    You can show between 5 and 52 columns on one page of a display.

  5. In the Maximum Columns Printed box, specify the number of columns that you want to print.
  6. Click OK.