Boom!!!! More than 100 good reasons to switch from IBM Cognos Analytics 11.1.7 LTS to CA 11.2.4 LTS

December 2022 — the new LTS version of Cognos Analytics with Watson has been released.

The new LTS version of IBM Cognos Analytics with Watson 11.2.4 comes with a completely revised interface. The operation of Cognos Analytics has been greatly simplified and improved. With version 11.2. the surface of other IBM products has been adjusted (carbon redesign). For example, IBM Watson, Planning Analytics and Cognos Analytics users can now quickly find their way around all interfaces.

As most users migrate from the last Long Term Support release, Cognos Analytics 11.1.7, they expect an incredibly long list of improvements and new features.

The list of changes is long. Here is an overview:

Cognos Dashboards — Cognos Analytics version 11.2.4

• 3D hexbin maps
  You can use the 3D hexbin grouping option in maps.
• New visualization properties
  This release includes several new visualization properties.
• Donut visualization created from a pie chart
  You can edit a pie visualization to display as a donut chart that shows the total number of slices in the center.
• Conditional Formatting Enhancements
  It’s faster and easier to change the conditional color palettes in your crosstab, table, and KPI visualizations.
• Top/Bottom Calculations
  In Cognos Analytics dashboards, you can create a top/bottom calculation that references a different fact table than the metadata items used in the visualization.
• Select multiple objects by mouse drag
  You can now select multiple widgets and visualizations with the mouse pointer. Previously, you had to select each object separately.
• Vertical and Horizontal Distribution for Objects
  You can specify vertical or horizontal distribution for objects on your dashboard to determine where they appear.
• Change style on axis and legend
  title Right-click an axis or legend title in a visualization on your dashboard to see more options for changing title styles.
• Improved pins
  In your collection of pins, icons make pin management easier and faster.
• A different background color for each tab
  To customize your preferences, you now have more control over the appearance of tabbed dashboards. You can set a different background color for each tab in the dashboard properties.
• Advanced widget properties
  A widget on your dashboard gives you more options for changing properties.
• Insights and forecasting now in the new
  Analysis screen You can now access visualization insights and forecasting functionality from the new Analysis screen. To open the Analysis panel, click the Analysis tab or click the Forecast or Insights icon in the visualization.
• Extended forecasting using the Watson Core time
  series library The time series forecasting function now uses the Watson Core library. Using the Watson Core time series library increases the prediction accuracy of the forecasts and allows the use of multiple seasons (or nested seasons). Time series with regular repetition cycles can be modeled with a seasonal component.
• Multivariate prediction now supported
  You can now create multivariate predictions in IBM Cognos Analytics with Watson. In a multivariate forecast, the forecast takes into account multiple variables that work together or have dependencies. This can lead to a more accurate prediction.
• Integrated Dashboards in Microsoft Teams
  In Microsoft Teams, you can add a tab with an embedded dashboard from an external Cognos Analytics environment. On each platform, team users can then perform interactive analysis of the dashboard without having to log in to Cognos Analytics themselves.
• Cascading Filters
  Cognos Analytics dashboards provide a new option that allows filter selections in the All Tabs pane (Filter tab) to affect the available selections in another category.
• Support for package features
  Access to certain features in package-based dashboards depends on the package features.
• Auto Group Feature
  You can now create only one auto group per visualization.
• Gradient fill effect and new interpolation options in area graph visualizations
  You can specify gradient fill effect and new interpolation options in area visualization.
• Handling of zero values ​​in area and line visualizations
  A value in area or line chart visualizations can be interpolated or displayed as a gap.
• New value label formats in bar chart
  visualizations New value label formats are available for bar chart visualizations.
• Changed default value for the ‘Contrast label’ property in some visualizations
  The Contrast label property for value labels is enabled by default in Row and Column and Waterfall visualizations.
• Leaf Label Formats in Treemap Visualizations
  Leaf labels in Treemap visualizations can now be displayed as a value, element, or both.
• Zoom bar in area, line, and bar
  visualizations The zoom bar allows you to scroll horizontally in a visualization.
• Share content via Microsoft Teams
  You can share your Cognos Analytics dashboard and report content and your own message via Microsoft Teams. Building on the existing integration with Slack, Cognos Analytics now gives you the option to use Microsoft Teams to share content with colleagues.
• Show multiple measures in rows instead
  of columns You can now show multiple measures in the rows instead of the columns in the crosstab visualization.
• Choosing filter values ​​from a drop-down list
  You can now choose filter values ​​from a single drop-down list for other visualizations on the canvas.
• Narrative insights in dashboard visualizations
  IBM Cognos Analytics now displays narrative insights in dashboard visualizations that help you display meaningful aspects of the chart data in natural language.
• Dashboard Canvas Canvas Zoom Levels
  In Cognos Analytics dashboards, you can specify a zoom level at which to display the dashboard canvas.
• Zoom bar in bubble, line, column, and scatter plot
  visualizations The zoom bar allows you to scroll horizontally in a visualization.
• Bubble Size Limits
  You can specify bubble size limits in bubble and scatterplot visualizations.
• Alignment position for null in line and column chart visualizations
  In line and column chart visualizations, you can control whether the line and column sections have null in the same position.
• Handling missing values ​​in line chart visualizations
  You can control how line chart visualizations display missing values.
• Show value labels in visualizations
  You can show value labels in line chart visualizations and line and column chart visualizations to make data values ​​clearer.
• Disabled portion of top/bottom calculations
  You can no longer create a top/bottom calculation that references a different fact table than the metadata items used in the visualization.

Cognos Reporting — Cognos Analytics version 11.2.4

• Add baselines to a visualization based on a layout calculation or a query calculation Baselines
  are horizontal or vertical lines that intersect the chart to indicate important divisions in the data. You can now add a font baseline to a visualization based on a layout calculation or a query calculation.
• Defining a Hyperlink in a Rich Text Element
  You can now use an element to define a hyperlink in a rich text element in a report. Use the a element to link from one page to another.
• Show local language labels on a map in a report
  When you use a map in a dashboard, you can show the local language labels.
• Application-specific buttons have been moved in reports
  Application-specific buttons have been moved from the app bar to the content view.
• New themes are available in reports
  When you create a report, two new themes are available.
• Support for PDF drill-through actions in a report in Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox
  Release 11.2 supports PDF drill-through actions in a report in Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox browsers Cognos Analytics.
• IBM Cognos
  Analytics Reports iOS app upgrade requirement If you are a IBM Cognos Analytics Reports iOS app user on Cognos Analytics version 11.0.13 FP3 or earlier, you must upgrade your version of IBM Cognos Analytics and the Cognos Analytics Reports iOS app to continue receiving push notifications.
• Active Report Viewer
  Active Report Viewer is a Windows application used to view and interact with active IBM Cognos Analytics with Watson reports saved in .mht file format.
• Select and search prompt now also for data
  modules The Select & search prompt is now available when using a data module as a report source.
• Copy values ​​from HTML report output
  You can copy values ​​from list and crosstab report outputs in the interactive viewer and preview page.
• Performance improvements for reports with tabs
  A new report property, Optimized rendering of tabs, specifies how pages are rendered as tabs.
• Donut chart visualization created from a pie chart
  You can edit a pie chart visualization to display as a donut chart.
• New visualization
  properties The visualizations have been added to the LTS CA11.2. improved and contain many new visualization properties.
• 3D hexbin maps
  You can use the 3D hexbin grouping option in maps.
• New custom filter option in reports
  When you create a custom filter in a report by manually entering values, you now have the option to ignore blank values.
• Consistent experience with downloadable report
  formats When you run reports that generate downloadable formats (Excel, CSV, XML), the user experience is consistent in both the classic viewer and the interactive viewer.
• Managing the State of Optional Prompt Controls
  In both the classic viewer and the interactive viewer, there is now a consistent approach to handling and maintaining the state of optional prompt controls after a user has been re-prompted or re-runs the report.
• Data store improvements The client data store
  now supports numeric type for categories, correct sorting of numeric categories when filtering, null and empty strings, and filtering on null and empty strings.
• Controlling drill-through behavior when context filters are used
  You can change the default package-based drill-through behavior in Cognos Analytics reporting when context filters are used.
• Hide user interface elements in reporting
  Administrators can hide the Properties pane or the More button from specific users of Cognos Analytics Reporting. This simplifies the user interface for business users who want to create simple ad hoc reports.
• New properties for sheet labels in Treemap visualizations
  New version of Treemap visualization is integrated into Cognos Analytics reporting.
• New properties in bubble and scatter plot
  visualizations New versions of bubble and scatter plot visualizations are integrated into Cognos Analytics reporting.
• Select and Search Prompt Renamed to Find & Select
  The Select & Search prompt in Reporting has been renamed to Find & Select.
• Q Assertions Replaced by Native JavaScript Assertions
  All Q Assertions in Cognos Analytics -Reporting has been replaced by native JavaScript Assertions.
• More Fine-Grained Reporting
  Starting with release 11.2.4, reporting has been enhanced to give directory administrators more flexibility. Previously, users with access to the protected functions for bursting, HTML content, and SQL content could either edit and run the associated code or not.
• Share content via Microsoft Teams
  You can share your Cognos Analytics dashboard and report content and your own message via Microsoft Teams. Building on the existing integration with Slack, Cognos Analytics now gives you the option to use Microsoft Teams to share content with colleagues.
• Source reports captured for report views in the audit database
  Report views in the audit database contain a reference to their source reports when the report views are run.
• New VIDA Image Service
  A new service, VIDA Image Service, has been introduced in Cognos Analytics 11.2.4. This service enables Cognos Analytics reports to render maps and other visualizations in PDF and Excel format. In previous releases, these visualizations were only available in HTML format.
• Integrated reports in Microsoft Teams
  In Microsoft Teams, you can add a tab with an embedded report from an external Cognos Analytics environment. On each platform, team users can then perform interactive analysis of the report without having to log in to Cognos Analytics themselves.
• Bulk conversion of queries and analyzes
  Convert a group object of type query (Query Studio report) or analysis (Analysis Studio report) to objects of type report. This helps deprecate support for Query Studio and Analysis Studio and allows you to migrate your analysis and query content to Cognos Analytics Reporting.
• Trendlines for X- and Y-axis data items in bubble and scatterplot visualizations
  You can apply a trendline to the X- and Y-axis data items in bubble and scatterplot visualizations.
• Consistent and improved functionality for running and updating reports
  The toolbar options in the classic viewer and the interactive viewer are now consistent.
• Current PDF drill-through behavior
  Drill-through behavior in PDF reports now works similar to Cognos Analytics 11.1.7.

General GUI and functionality changes — Cognos Analytics version 11.2.4

• Carbon Design
  -Based User Experience Cognos Analytics launched Carbon, IBM’s open-source design system for digital products and experiences.
• Welcome Page
  Changes The major changes to the IBM Cognos Analytics with Watson Welcome page relate to the Carbon redesign. However, some other types of changes have also been made.
• Open
  menu The Open menu is the main access point to the content and functionality of IBM Cognos Analytics with Watson.
• Content view for full page
  items in Team Content, My Content, Samples, and all customized folders are now in a full page, list, or tile view (default). In addition, new options are available for working with elements in this view.
• Search moved to the global application bar
  The search field is now located in the global application bar and is available in every context in the product.
• ‘Assistant’ icon moved to the global application bar
  The ‘assistant’ icon is now in the global application bar and is available in explorations, dashboards and stories.
• Redesigned Personal Menu
  The display and organization of information in this menu has been changed, and some options have been renamed or removed.
• Quickstart renamed to Quick Upload
  Use this feature to upload files and start building a data module, exploration, dashboard, or notebook at the same time. The functionality itself has not changed.
• Edit icon replaced with a toggle
  The edit icon in dashboards, stories, and reports is replaced with the edit toggle.
• Enhanced job options
  In Release 11.2, the Jobs user interface offers more options, allowing you to manage a very large number of reports more quickly.
• Changed the default search operator from OR to AND
  The multi-term search queries in IBM Cognos Analytics with Watson are now based on the operatorAND.
• OLAP packages and cubes-enabled rendering
  Framework Manager OLAP packages can now be rendered using automatic rendering. Cubes are enriched when used to create data modules.
• REST API session_key without using cookies
  You can now use the Cognos Analytics REST API without using cookies.
• Impact of migrating to Visual Studio 2019 on floating point
  operations Visual Studio is used to create and compile C and C++ components in IBM Cognos Analytics with Watson. As a result of upgrading Visual Studio to version 2019, you may notice discrepancies between the results of floating point operations in Cognos Analytics 11.2.1 and Cognos Analytics 11.2.0 and earlier versions.
• Search Enhancements
  In addition to the existing filter options, you can now filter by report views, jobs, and shortcuts. when you search for content
• Saved Search Contains Filters
  Saved searches now contain filters that have been applied to the search results.
• Sort order and filters persist across sessions and tabs
  The sort order and filters you apply on the content page persist across browser sessions and tabs.
• New methods for editing names and descriptions
  The name and description of the element can now be modified from the element’s context menu or from the toolbar that appears when the element is selected.
• Content page added to view switcher
  The Content page is now displayed in view switcher and can be reopened and closed from there.
• Processing of locale-specific CSV files
  The processing of uploaded CSV files is now locale-dependent.
• Support for merged cells in uploaded Excel files
  The values ​​in the merged cells are now properly reflected.
• Disambiguation for wizards
  The dialog wizard now recognizes potentially ambiguous references and provides suggestions for clarifying requirements.
• Descriptions in
  Content Page List View You can now display descriptions of items in the Content page List View when the row size is set to Standard.
• Share content through Microsoft Teams
  You can share your Cognos Analytics dashboard and report content and your own message through Microsoft Teams. Building on the existing integration with Slack, Cognos Analytics now gives you the option to use Microsoft Teams to share content with colleagues.
• Using the Up and Down Arrow Keys for Menu Navigation
  You can use the up and down arrow keys on the computer keyboard to navigate between items on a menu.
• Full Page Properties View Item properties
  are now displayed in a full page view.
• Context-Sensitive Search
  You can narrow your search results by navigating to a specific location on the Content page and then starting your search.
• Hide video button on welcome page
  Administrators can hide the Watch Video button on the welcome page for Cognos roles.
• Configuring the default view for the content page
  The content page can be displayed in tile view or list view. You can configure any of these views as the default view.
• Natural language processing model upgraded to Stanford CoreNLP 4.5.1
  IBM Cognos Analytics with Watson uses the Stanford CoreNLP suite as the natural language processing model in English, French, and Spanish. In Cognos Analytics 11.2.4, the CoreNLP suite has been updated from version 3.7.0 to 4.5.1.
• My API Keys
  A new page, My API Keys, is available in the Personal menu. You can create and manage API keys that you can use with other Cognos Analytics API commands.
• Share Content to Multiple Recipients in Microsoft Teams
  In Cognos Analytics 11.2.4, when you share a report or dashboard through Microsoft Teams, you can now send the content to up to 10 channels, group chats, or individual recipients. Each recipient will receive their own Direct Message containing the content you are sharing.

Cognos data modules — Cognos Analytics version 11.2.4

• Navigation
  Path Enhancements Creating, editing, and viewing navigation paths within a data module is now easier and faster.
• Data grouping available for some standalone calculations
  The context menu action for a standalone (global) calculation can now include the Create data group option.
• Java Samples for Data
  Modeling Java samples are now available to help you automate modeling tasks in Cognos Analytics.
• New macro function in the expression editor
  The functionassetPropertyhas been added to the list of supported macro functions for dynamic query mode.
• Faster metadata updates
  Some column or calculation property values ​​are derived from the property values ​​of another column or calculation on which they depend. After a column or calculation property is changed, you can update the property values ​​of the dependent columns or calculations in batch mode.
• Sorting the data tree
  You can sort items in the data module tree by label or by data type in ascending or descending order.
• Dynamic parameter ‘as_of_date’
  You can specify a dynamic date for the parameter as_of_date.
• Alias ​​and fast access tables in data modules
  Alias ​​and fast access are new types of custom tables supported by data modules.
• Converting Referenced Tables
  You can now convert some referenced tables to different table types.
• Relinking tables referenced
  Shortcut and alias tables are based on references to other tables in a data module. You can change these references to point to other tables.
• Description
  property The description field has been added to property display in data modules.
• Query optimization for relative date measures
  Queries generated for relative date measures defined in data modules are optimized.
• Security fix in Framework Manager
  Framework Manager fixed a vulnerability in XML processing in Apache Jena.
• Dynamic Source Overrides
  Data modules can be dynamically redirected to different data server connections, schemas, or catalogs at runtime.
• ‘Convert’ option available for all table
  types The Convert option is now available for all types of referenced tables, including ‘except’, ‘intersect’, ‘join’, ‘union’ and ‘SQL-based tables’.
• Relink option available for all types of tables
  The relink option is now available for all types of referenced tables, including ‘except’, ‘intersect’, ‘join’ and ‘union’.
• ‘Break Link’ option replaced with ‘Convert’ option
  The context menu option Break Link for all linked tables is replaced with the Convert option.
• Secured features within the web-based modeling facility
  The web-based modeling facility has two more differentiated functions: Edit Data Module Defined SQL and Use Data Module Defined SQL. However, these two functions are not yet active.
• Current_date session parameter added for dynamic query mode
  The new current_FILES session parameter is now available for dynamic query mode.

Cognos Explorations — Cognos Analytics version 11.2.4

• Other improvements in visualization
  details Visualization details for explorations have been expanded and improved for better readability. These natural language insights are more concise and understandable, allowing you to quickly review information from data analysis.
• New visualizations in explorations
  You can now use the boxplot and radar visualizations in explorations.
• Insights and forecasting now in the new
  Analysis screen You can now access visualization insights and forecasting functionality from the new Analysis screen. To open the Analysis panel, click the Analysis tab or click the Forecast or Insights icon in the visualization.
• Extended forecasting using the Watson Core time
  series library The time series forecasting function now uses the Watson Core library. Using the Watson Core time series library increases the prediction accuracy of the forecasts and allows the use of multiple seasons (or nested seasons). Time series with regular repetition cycles can be modeled with a seasonal component.
• Multivariate prediction now supported
  You can now create multivariate predictions in IBM Cognos Analytics with Watson. In a multivariate forecast, the forecast takes into account multiple variables that work together or have dependencies. This can lead to a more accurate prediction.
• Package feature support
  Access to package-based explorations depends on package features.

Cognos Assistant — Cognos Analytics version 11.2.4

• Assistant filtering with time entities
  The assistant now understands time-related expressions. You can ask the wizard to filter on time entities like year, month, season, date, time, and even holidays to create more attractive visualizations.
• Support for wizard functionality in data sources
  The functionality for using the wizard can now be set at the source level. Previously, permission to use the wizard was set at the user level. When the Use Assistant feature is enabled for a source, you can interact with the source in the assistant and ask questions or create a visualization or dashboard.

Cognos Mobile — Cognos Analytics version 11.2.4

• Android support
  IBM Cognos Analytics for Mobile can now be used on Android devices.
• Support for Cognos Analytics on Premises
  You can now connect to your Cognos Analytics on Premises servers from IBM Cognos Analytics for Mobile.
• License entitlements for Cognos Analytics for mobile users
  You can now be licensed exclusively as Cognos Analytics for mobile users. For relatively little effort, a new license entitles you to all the Cognos Analytics for Mobile functionality you need.
• Cognos Analytics for Mobile now supports all Cognos Analytics authentication providers
  IBM Cognos Analytics for Mobile supports all authentication providers supported by IBM Cognos Analytics with Watson.
• Cognos Analytics Mobile report logging changes
  All diagnostic logs for Cognos Analytics Mobile reports are now written to the install_location \logs\cognosserver.log file.

Cognos Notebooks — Cognos Analytics version 11.2.4

• Notebook content imported from Watson Studio
  If access to an external Watson Studio environment is enabled in Cognos Analytics 11.2, you can import notebooks authored in IBM Watson Studio. You and your colleagues can then select content from an imported notebook and add it to a report or dashboard.
• Changed location of Watson Studio logs
  The Watson Studio logs from the dataplatform-service node service are moved from a separate directory to the central cognosserver.log file.
• Export Notebooks
  A new right-click menu option lets you export your notebook as an .ipynb file. You can then share your notebook with data scientists who can use other notebook tools, such as B. Anaconda and Google Colab.
• Upgraded Python and R kernels
  Cognos Analytics for Jupyter Notebook Server 11.2.4 includes updated kernel versions for Python and R. Updated kernels are more compatible with newer packages. This results in fewer errors when running notebooks.
• Upgraded Python kernel
  The Python kernel for Cognos Analytics for Jupyter Notebook Server 11.2.4 has been upgraded to version 3.11. Updated kernels are more compatible with newer packages. This results in fewer errors when running notebooks.