SAS/Graph dashboard items in Excel

[Strange_Attractor]

In the Stored Process forum, I found a document and associated samples for creating lots of great dashboard displays with SAS Graph (http://support.sas.com/kb/26/134.html). Can anyone help (or point me to examples) adapting this code for use in Excel (and eventually PowerPoint) through the MS Add-in?

Steve

[Strange_Attractor]

Let me clarify and maybe extend the question. The dashboard doc and samples describe how to do what I want through Web Report Studio, Information Delivery Portal, or Stored Process Web App. I have BI, not Enterprise BI, so IDP isn't available, and web delivery isn't an option for us now.

A good first step would be to build a complete dashboard with desired indicators as shown in the doc, then the user could see it by selecting the stored process in the Reports submenu. That's what my original question was about.

However, I'd really like to take an Excel report, and have selected cells updatable by a SAS process that'll deliver the current value (as calculated by a stored process). It'd be great to allow the user to choose one or more to update (hopefully just using the SAS menu Refresh, but maybe I'd whip up a button for each cell that would invoke the related stored process).

From the SGF and SUG papers I've read and what I can find in the SAS Knowledge Base and the product's Help, maybe I'm asking more of the Add-in than it can deliver. But it seems like it should be possible.

Steve

[Cynthia_sas]

Hi:
Generally, a stored process can create a new workbook or a new sheet in an existing workbook when you use the SAS Add-in with Excel. You do have some control over the starting location in the sheet, if that's your choice.

Even if you don't have the Portal or the SPWA, you can run a stored process that returns graphic images to SAS Add-in clients, such as Excel, PPT or Word. So the answer to your first question, is that you should be able to return a dashboard type report to SAS Add-in client applications.

As for your second question--where only certain -cells- can be updated by a SAS process -- I'm not sure that piece is possible. I'm not aware how or if you can update selected cells only with a stored process. My guess would be that it's not possible, but you might work with Tech Support to double check.

cynthia

[Strange_Attractor]

Thanks Cynthia,

I suspected that limit was real. I may check with tech support, but I see two chief strategies:

- create the final report entirely within the stored process (to be invoked from Excel), or
- create (partially summarized) data in the stored process to populate a worksheet, and use Excel to pull the desired items or sums into a final report (probably on a separate sheet).

I'll pursue those options.

Steve