Nest rows or columns

You can nest items in an Exploration View to compare information by using more than one item in a column or row. For example, an Exploration View shows the sales by product line for the past fiscal year. You can add an item to further break down the sales by order method. You can also nest rows in a list.

When nesting columns in an Exploration View, there are four distinct drop zones where you can insert a new data item. The drop zone you choose defines the relationship between the data item and the column.

The following relationships are created when you insert a data item as a row:

  • Inserting a data item before or after a column creates a parent-child relationship between the data items.

    When you insert a data item before a column, the data item becomes a parent to the row. When you insert a data item after a column, the data item becomes a child of the row.

  • Inserting a data item before or after a column creates a union relationship between the data items.

The following relationships are created when you insert a data item as a column:

  • Inserting a data item before or after a column creates a union relationship between the data item and the column.
  • Inserting a data item before or after a row creates a parent-child relationship between the data items.

When you insert a data item before a column, the data item becomes a parent to the column. When you insert a data item after a column, the data item becomes a child of the column.

For example, you have an Exploration View with Product line as rows and Quantity and Revenue as nested rows. For columns, you have Order method with Country or Region as a nested column.

  • Product line is a parent to Quantity and Revenue.
  • Quantity and Revenue are peers.
  • Order method is a parent to Country or Region.

In the overview area, you can drag the boxes that represent the nested items to quickly change the nesting order.

If you nest a row or column, the context menu for Expand, Drill, and Explore does not appear for the outer item when you convert to formulas and use cell-based methods.

Procedure

  1. In the source tree, click the item that you want to insert.

    Tip: When selecting multiple items, the selected items are placed in the exploration in the order that you click them. To avoid rearranging items after you drag and drop them into the exploration, click the items in the order of placement that you want.

  2. Drag the item to the location that you want in the rows or columns.

    A highlight bar indicates where you can drop the item.

  3. If you are working with a list, to merge cells with the same data, right-click items in the column you want to group, and then click IBM® Planning Analytics > Group/Ungroup.
    Tip: If you add more than one measure to an Exploration View to the same axis, you must add them as a set. Ctrl+click the items or, to add a measure to another measure already in the Exploration View, press the Ctrl key while dragging the item to the other measure.