Procedure
Work
with a Time Dimension
Continue Basic Cube
Creation – Time Dimension
The Define
Time Periods page appears next. Here we will define the date range
within which our cube data will exist.
2. Click the default Year value (2004)
in the First calendar day setting to select it, as depicted in Illustration
14.
Illustration 14: Selecting
the Year in the First Calendar Day Setting for Modification ...
3. Type “2002” over the currently
existing 2004.
4.
Click the
downward-pointing arrow on the right side of the Last calendar day setting box, just underneath the First
calendar day setting, to open the calendar.
5.
Using the “right”
button atop the calendar selector, scroll forward in time to December 2007.
6. Select December 31, 2007 on
the drop-down calendar, as shown in Illustration 15.
Illustration 15: Selecting
Last Calendar Day of the Time Period Range ...
7.
Leave the First
day of the week setting at its default of Sunday.
8.
Select (via
the respective checkboxes) the following attributes within the Time periods
pane:
-
Year
-
Half Year
-
Quarter
-
Month
-
Date (key
dimension attribute - required)
The Define
Time Periods page appears, with our selections, as depicted in Illustration
16.
Illustration
16: The Define Time Periods Page, with Our Selections
9.
Click Next.
10.
Check the box
to the left of the first option, Fiscal calendar, on the Specify
Additional Calendars page that appears next.
11.
Set Start
day and month (the selectors beneath the Fiscal calendar checkbox we
have checked) as follows:
-
Day: 1 (the default)
-
Month: April
12.
Leave Fiscal
calendar naming convention set at default of Calendar year name + 1.
The Specify
Additional Calendars page appears, with our settings, as shown in Illustration
17.
Illustration
17: The Specify Additional Calendars Page, with Our Settings
We
arrive at the Define Dimension Usage page. Here we see that the Internet
Sales measure group will be related to the dimensions we have selected
within our cube. The Define Dimension Usage page appears as depicted in Illustration
18.
Illustration
18: The Define Dimension Usage Page
NOTE: For more information about Measure
Groups and Dimension Usage in general, see my article Mastering
Enterprise BI: Working with Measure Groups.
The Completing
the Wizard page appears next.
15.
Replace the
default Cube name with the following:
DBJ_Adventure Works
16.
Expand the Date
dimension in the Preview pane (named Date 1, by default), by
clicking the “+” sign to its immediate left.
17.
Expand the Hierarchies
folder that appears within the Date 1 dimension.
Here
we can see both the “cloned” and alternate Date hierarchies we have
established via the Wizard.
The Completing
the Wizard page appears, with our expansion, as shown in Illustration 19.
Illustration
19: The Completing the Wizard Page
The
cube is generated, and opens immediately, within the Cube Designer - Cube
Structure tab, as depicted in Illustration 20.
Illustration
20: The New Cube Opens, Cube Designer – Cube Structure Tab
The
cube also appears within the Solution Explorer, as shown in Illustration
21.
Illustration
21: The New Cube in the Solution Explorer
» 
Comment and Contribute
