Insight (OBIEE) Tips: Advanced technique - variables

Otilia Antipa-Oracle

For more Eloqua Insight Resources, please visit: https://community.oracle.com/topliners/discussion/4470627/eloqua-insight-resource-page

Variables are referenceable objects that you can use in an analysis, dashboard or agent. For example, you can use predefined variables to insert information such as the user locale or dashboard name.

In Eloqua, we support a few types of variables:

• Predefined System Session Variables - variables used by the OBIEE server typically. But can also be used in an analysis.
• Predefined Presentation Variables - predefined variables available for use in an analysis, dashboard or agent.
• User Created Presentation Variables - a variable that you can create when creating prompts.

Here I wanted to talk about predefined variables. If you want to find out more about user created presentation variables, have a look here:

Here are some use cases where you might want to consider using predefined variables:

• Add the user name and current time to an agent's email body so that you know who generated the content and when it was generated
• Add the user name and current date to a dashboard page
• Use current time variables as default values in a prompt
• Add the dashboard description to a page in the dashboard

Here is a list of all the predefined presentation variables provided with OBIEE: https://docs.oracle.com/middleware/11119/biee/BIEUG/analyses.htm#CJAHGDFF

Examples: Use a variable in an agent message body:

In the message body, you can use system, session, and user variables (refer to them in the link above).

Presentation variable syntax: @{<variableName>}

This example adds the current time (server time) and user:

Example: Use a variable in a column formula

In a custom column formula, you can use system and session scope predefined variables.

Example syntax:

• Predefine System variable: VALUEOF(NQ_SESSION.<variableName>)
• Presentation variable: @{<variableName>}{<defaultValue>}[format]

This example is another way of getting the current time (server time). You can also get syntax help from the UI if you use the Variable option highlighted below.

Example: Use a variable in a prompt formula

This example show using Eloqua pre-defined variables to set the default dates in a column prompt: