LEARNING PATH: QlikView: A One-Stop Guide to QlikView

Name: LEARNING PATH: QlikView: A One-Stop Guide to QlikView
Rating: 4.2 (41 reviews)

Learn time-saving techniques for making your QlikView development more efficient

Created byPackt Publishing

Last updated 3/2018

English

What you'll learn

Build robust data models and overcome common modeling challenges
Discover the techniques and best practices to transform data in QlikView via scripts
Understand important changes made in QlikView 12
Present performance measures with charts and tables
Learn techniques and best practices to transform data in QlikView via scripts
Utilize QlikView's built-in aggregation functions to achieve complex calculations
Create Point In Time reporting and achieve complex calculations using Set Analysis
Create a consistent and interactive user interface
Ensure your QlikView applications and data are protected
Construct a data architecture that supports scalable QlikView deployments

Course content

2 sections • 57 lectures • 7h 44m total length

The Course Overview3:20
This video will give you an overview about the course.
Introducing QlikView4:16
Let's look at what QlikView is, what we can do with it, and how it differs from other BI solutions that are available on the market.
Exploring Data with QlikView10:57
Now that you know what QlikView is and how it is different from traditional BI offerings, it’s time to learn how we can explore data within QlikView
The Technology and the Components Behind QlikView3:41
Now that we have seen how QlikView works from the point of view of a business user, it is time to get a little more technical. Let's take an in-depth look at the various components that QlikView consists of.
What Is New in QlikView 12 for Developers?6:04
When working with any new technology, it is important to understand the difference between the updates and add-ons in the newer versions to utilize it’s feature to the fullest. This is what we will try to achieve, in this video.
Preparing the Workspace4:37
Before we start, we need to make sure we have everything we'll need throughout the course. Let’s go ahead to get ready and set everything in the right way!
Creating the App13:24
Now that we have our environment ready, let's move on to create ouranalytical application.
Creating the Dashboard Tab14:58
Let’s take a step ahead to see how we can enhance the analytical capabilities of our QlikView document by adding interactive charts.
Using ODBC and OLEDB Drivers3:14
We often need query translators that enable communication between an application and the DBMS. Let’s look at the two drivers which have been used for a long time, almost by all major DBMS vendors.
Extracting Data – Two Hands-On Examples13:18
This video will walk you through the steps required to extract data into a QlikView document by working along the extraction process. Thus, we will provide two examples of data extraction using two different data sources.
Loading a Table File10:56
Let's go through an example of loading a CSV file so that we can describe the stepsand dialog windows involved. We will load two additional tables in the CSV format with the purpose of demonstrating that no matter what the source is, at the end all tables are equal.
Working with QVD and QVX Files4:27
This video will show you how to store and read data in an optimized format. Thus, you will learn about the QVD and QVX files and the benefits and uses of each of them.
The Table Viewer Window5:45
We already had a small peek at the Table Viewer window in previous sections. As this feature is very useful when analyzing our data models, let's take a morein-depth look.
Understanding and Changing the Sheet’s Properties6:36
Just as there are document-level properties, we can also set properties at the sheet- and object-level. Let's have a quick look at the Sheet Properties dialog.
Setting the Object Properties5:43
It's now time to peek into some of the object-level properties that affect the QlikView document's appearance. The properties we are most interested in at this point are caption colors and caption font. Let's see what these are!
Working with Listboxes9:50
This video is a turning point for you to explore a widely used component in QlikView — the listboxes. This gives you a very convenient way to quickly make selections.
The Current Selection Box3:30
QlikView lets us select data in many different ways. While this is incredibly flexible, it can also become hard to see which information is actually selected at any given moment. Let’s see how we can address this problem.
Aligning and Resizing Sheet Objects2:53
So far, you must have noticed that the results look very unorganized. The objects are all over the place and are not aligned with the background. Of course, this is not very convenient for the user, so let's see how we can solve it.
Creating and Applying a Default Color Map3:42
Now there is only one thing left to do to finish styling up our document: apply the standard HighCloud color scheme to our charts. What are we waiting for? Let’s do it right now!
User Types3:23
The data model within a single QlikView document can be used to serve the information needs of a wide range of users, from the executive to the operational level. Let’s take a look at different users based on this approach.
Creating the Analysis Sheet24:32
This video will walk you through different chart options available, along with a few other sheet objects. Also, you will learn to use them, to extend your dashboard.
Creating the New Dashboard22:57
Now that we have finished the first iteration of our analysis sheet, it is time to start creating the new Dashboard sheet.
Creating the Report Sheet17:45
Now that we've created our Dashboard and Analysis sheets, it is time to create the final sheet from our DAR setup: the Reports sheet.
The Script Editor and Script Statements15:05
To begin with, let’s look at the script editor and some of the most important script statements, and see how we can use them to manipulate tables and control the flowof the script.
Manipulating Tables9:31
Now that we have seen an example of how QlikView script statements and functions can be used to load and combine data, let's look at some of the most common script statements for manipulating tables.
Dealing with Different Data types3:02
QlikView offers a complete toolbox for dealing with data. This video will let you explore some of the most important operatorsand functions for dealing with strings, numbers, dates, and times.
Debugging Script4:59
As with every form of scripting, writing QlikView scripts carries with it the risk of introducing bugs and errors. In this video, we will look at some of the available options to find and solve bugs in our script.
Standardizing and Organizing Script5:24
There are ways to ensure that you are able to quickly get up to speed when modifying existing QlikView script. The secrets are organizing your scripts and using naming conventions. Let’s go ahead to dive into these tips and tricks.
Re-Using Scripts4:30
When developing QlikView documents, we often have to apply the same set of logic or transformations to different data. When something needs tobe changed, you need to change it in each instance of the script, running the risk ofdifferent versions of the same transformation process. In this video, we will look at two better approaches for re-using data.
Managing File Locations and Connection Strings3:18
If, for any reason, the Data Filesfolder has to be moved somewhere else, we will have to manually change the source data path in many locations in many files. Let's create an included script file to set the source data folder ina single location.
Test your knowledge

The Course Overview4:20
This video gives you a glimpse of what this course offers to you.
Data Consistency13:33
The first set of best practices that we present on data modeling are those related to data consistency. This is one of the most important things we need to take care of when building QlikView documents.
Design Challenges of Data Modeling10:09
Let’s explore some useful tips for dealing with more complex data models, specifically those used for dealing with multiple fact tables in a single QlikView document.
The Master Calendar7:21
When analyzing data, time often plays an important role. Initially, it's not much of the individual transactions and events that users are interested in, but rather the rolled up totals per period, or trends over multiple periods. So, our last set of best practices on data modeling involves dealing with dates and times.
Cleansing a Dirty table11:00
It's not that uncommon for business users to require consolidated information from all sorts of different sources. In such a scenario, the developer commonly faces the challenge of adapting a user file (excel, csv, txt) that has either a non-standard structure or contains "dirty" data which needs to be removed, such as report headers or subtotal lines, and sometimes both. Let’s see how to address this issue!
Loading a Crosstable4:37
A more common example of a source table that is unfit for QlikView is the Crosstable. This video lets you understand why it's not suitable for a data model, and how can we transform it into a traditional table.
Expanding a Hierarchy6:22
This video will walk you through the usage of a hierarchy table, which is a common format to store information in a parent-child structure. The hierarchical nature of the table allows one value to be related to one or more values across the table, as a parent or as a child.
Generic Load3:53
How can we store the attributes which are not necessarily shared across all objects contained in the table? Let’s answer this question with this video.
Using Variables21:01
Simply put, variables in QlikView are used to store data, either static or dynamic, and they can contain text, numbers, or any other data type. They are stored as a separate entity and are given a name to be able to reference them from any object in the whole document. Let’s see how to use them!
Using Total Qualifier3:37
How can we disregard chart dimensions and make the calculation over the entire record set as defined by the current selection state? Let’s get a solution to this problem.
The Aggr Function5:22
The Aggr function creates a virtual straight table, similar to the earlier one, so that we can further process the list of values that would appear in the expression column, without even creating the actual object. This video will show a practical implementation of this.
Conditional Functions8:52
There are several conditional functions in QlikView that can be used in the frontend to give our charts a higher level of flexibility in terms of handling and presenting the data, both in expressions and dimensions. Let's go through some examples of these functions to enhance the analysis in our QlikView app.
The Magic of Set Analysis11:50
Let’s introduce one of the most powerful tools you, as a developer, have at your disposal when creating QlikView documents.
Point in Time Reporting7:48
Having the ability to perform period-over-period analysis is a basic requirement in any BI tool and is easily performed in QlikView with the aid of set expressions. However, needless to say, Set Analysis is also amazingly useful for the fulfillment of other special requirements. Let's combine the acquired knowledge and apply it to add Point In Time Reporting to our Airline Operations document.
Comparative Analysis with Alternate States8:46
Let’s explore a feature available in QlikView since version 11 which makes it easy to create highly dynamic comparative scenarios that enables business discovery in an entirely new way.
Loading Data Already Stored in QlikView5:05
This video will walk you through useful techniques for optimizing loads when processing data. Let’s go ahead and learn another useful way of reading source tables, but this time the "source" will be QlikView itself. There are different cases in which this approach will prove useful.
Aggregating Data4:34
This video will show you, how you can implement a document segmentation scenario by aggregating the Flight Data table to create a second document intended for executive users, who only require summary data.
Sorting Tables4:06
Let’s get introduced to the Order By statement, which is added to a Load statement and is used to sort an input table based on certain fields.
Merging Forces6:08
On their own, the Order By statement and the Peek function are already powerful. Let’s combine both of these tools to enhance our input data. In this section, we will use both of these functions to add a new calculated field to our Employment table
Dealing with Slowly Changing Dimensions10:40
A slow changing dimension is one whose values vary across undefined time periods, that is, it can have different meanings depending on the time period context. Let’s see how to deal with different scenarios related to this.
Incremental Loads5:31
How can you transfer data from one database to another efficiently and avoid the unnecessary use of resources? This video will provide you with an answer to this!
Creating a Consistent QlikView UI11:25
Let’s see how to make sure that the user interface, which includes language, layout, and design, is as consistent as possible. A consistent user interface makes it predictable for the user, they will have a better understanding of how things work, and will feel more in control.
Additional Interactivity17:24
Besides properly styling your QlikView documents, how your document responds to user interaction is also critical to ensuring a pleasant user experience. Let’s see how to work on this!
Hidden Script3:00
When QlikView script is being executed, the results of the actions are written to the Script Execution Progress window. While this is a very useful feature to see what happened during reload, sometimes you do not want certain things to be visible to everyone. In fact, sometimes you do not even want all developers to have access to the entire script. This is where the hidden script comes into play.
Section Access6:58
Setting up user authorization under QlikView is generally referred to as section access, named after the statement that initiates the authorization section of the script. This video will show its implementation.
Restricting the Data9:23
How can we associate additional fields with the security fields to reduce the set of data that individual users have access to? Let’s get an answer to this question!
Document-Level and Sheet-Level Security5:45
User privileges can be set on two levels within QlikView, at the document level and at the level of individual sheets. This video will walk you through the essential steps to implement these two security levels.
Test your knowledge

Requirements

Some experience of analysing business data, for example in spreadsheets or other common tools, will provide useful context for this course.

Description

QlikView is one of the most powerful business intelligence platforms that is being used currently. QlikView is the best if you want to build data into your organization. So, if you are a beginner who wants to a get a kick-start in working with QlikView, then this Learning Path is for you. Packt’s Video Learning Paths are a series of individual video products put together in a logical and stepwise manner such that each video builds on the skills learned in the video before it.

The highlights of this Learning Path are:

Build robust data models and overcome common modeling challenges
Design data visualization objects to present performance measures with charts and table

You will start by exploring the fundamentals of QlikView before learning how to successfully implement it, technically and strategically. You will learn valuable tips, tricks, and insightful information on loading different types of data into QlikView, and how to model it effectively. You will also learn how to write useful scripts for QlikView to handle potentially complex data transformations in a way that is simple and elegant. Next, you will learn how to write useful scripts for QlikView to handle potentially complex data transformations in a way that is simple and elegant. Along with this, you will learn to improve user experiences. Finally, you will learn to implement security features in your QlikView applications.

On the completion of this Learning Path, you will be well versed with the working of QlikView and will be able to create powerful dashboards.

Meet Your Expert:

We have the best works of the following esteemed authors to ensure that your learning journey is smooth:

Miguel Ángel García is a Business Intelligence consultant and Qlik Solutions Architect from Monterrey, Mexico. Having worked throughout many successful Qlik implementations, from inception through implementation, and performed across a wide variety of roles on each project, his experience and skills range from pre-sales to applications development and design, technical architecture, system administration, as well as functional analysis and overall project execution. He currently holds the QlikView Designer, QlikView Developer and QlikView System Administrator Certifications. He also delivers advanced online Qlik training. His early-found passion for QlikView led him to create and host the iQlik's blog and has been proved to help many developers, both new comers and experienced, in their everyday development challenges. You can follow his blog updates via twitter on @GarciaMMiguel and @iQlik.
Barry Harmsen is a Business Intelligence Consultant based in the Netherlands. Here he runs Bitmetric, a boutique consulting firm specialized in the Qlik product suite. Originally from a background of traditional business intelligence, data warehousing, and performance management, in 2008 Barry made the shift to Qlik and a more user-centric form of Business Intelligence. Since then, he and his team have helped many clients get the most out of their investments in the Qlik platform. Barry is one of the four Qlik experts teaching at the Masters Summit for Qlik, an advanced 3 day training for experienced Qlik professionals. He also runs the Amsterdam chapter of the Qlik Dev Group, an open and informal gathering where Qlik professionals can share knowledge and experiences. For his contributions to the Qlik ecosystem, Barry has been accredited by Qlik as a Qlik Luminary since 2014. Barry and his colleagues regularly post Qlik tips, tricks and tutorials at the QlikFix blog. He can also be found on Twitter as @meneerharmsen

Who this course is for:

This Learning Path is for anyone interested in working with QlikView or who has attended QlikView Developer training. The video caters for all QlikView beginners, and anyone who wants to improve their QlikView skills.

LEARNING PATH: QlikView: A One-Stop Guide to QlikView

What you'll learn

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Course content

Getting Started with QlikView30 lectures • 4hr 6min

Advanced QlikView 12 for Developers27 lectures • 3hr 39min

Requirements

Description

Who this course is for: