Discovering the Benefits of Using Hidden Columns in SAS® Visual Analytics

This article contains supporting information for the 2018 SAS Global Forum paper: There’s No Reason to Hide! Discovering the Benefits of Using Hidden Columns in SAS® Visual Analytics. This paper demonstrates the benefits that can be gained by using the new hidden data role in SAS® Visual Analytics 8.2 reporting.

Abstract

SAS® Visual Analytics 8.2 includes many features that report designers can leverage to create dynamic, interactive reports. One of the most powerful new features is the hidden data role that is available for many reporting objects. While initially the concept of hidden columns or data might be a bit foreign, just a little instruction can empower report designers to leverage it and create their most dynamic SAS Visual Analytics reports. This paper demonstrates the various methods in which one can use hidden data in report design, and the benefits each of these methods provides to report consumers. Examples include robust mapping between multiple data sources, creating improved color-mapped display rules, and, most importantly, dynamic linking to external web resources based on the values in one or more hidden columns in a list table. Once armed with the knowledge of how to use the hidden data role in SAS Visual Analytics, report designers will be ready to create their most interactive, dynamic, and useful reports yet.

Online materials and examples

SAS Global Forum proceedings

The PDF version of the paper can be found here:

Drutar, Michael. 2018. Paper SAS2021-2018: There’s No Reason to Hide! Discovering the Benefits of Using Hidden Columns in S...

SAS Visual Analytics Reports and Datasets

The zip file attached to this post contains the contains all the reports (in JSON form) that are shown in the paper. Additionally, the zip file contains SAS code which will create the files that are used as the reports' data sources.

The final, complete report from the paper is displayed below: