Introduction to Functions and Template Dialog Box

You can select functions and operators to add to a metric formula using the Select a Function or Template dialog box. You can select a metric template to quickly define options for a level, conditional, or transformation metric. If you want to type the metric formula directly, or to create a metric that combines multiple metrics or contains custom expressions, click Use Formula Editor, then see Metric Formula Editor for steps.

You can search for a function or operator by typing its name in the search field. The bottom pane automatically displays the search results. For sample syntax and examples of every function see the Functions Reference.

You can browse for functions and operators by selecting a category from the drop-down list. The bottom pane automatically displays any functions or operators in the selected category. The following categories are available:

Basic Functions are basic mathematical functions like average, greatest, least, maximum, minimum, first, last, and so on. They are among the most commonly used functions when creating a calculation.

Data Mining Functions work on statistical information from a data mining model. Use these MicroStrategy data mining functions within the Data Mining Services interfaces and techniques, rather than manually defining the values and parameters for these functions.
Date and Time Functions provide date and time information, such as current date, the day of the week of a particular date, and so on.
Financial Functions provide many standard financial calculations.
Internal Functions include banding functions, which are used to differentiate the data displayed on a report, and pass-through functions like ApplySimple.
Logical Operators contain IF or NOT.
Math Functions contains more complex functions than the simple operators found in the Basic functions category. This category includes exponential, logarithmic, and trigonometric functions.
Null/Zero Functions determine how nulls and zeros are displayed on a report.
OLAP Functions are relative functions, such as rank, running sum, moving average, and so on.
Rank and NTile Functions are very similar to OLAP functions in behavior. The primary difference is that in the Rank family, <Sortby uses only metrics, not attributes.
Statistical Functions include a wide range of functions that let you perform statistical analysis on your data.
String Functions work on text strings, performing tasks such as trimming and concatenating.
Metric Templates help you quickly and easily create certain types of metrics.

Once you locate the function or operator to add to the metric, select it in the bottom pane and click Next to continue creating the metric.

The Select a Function or Template dialog box is displayed when:

You create a new metric. To access the dialog box, on the home page, click New Metric . The Select a Function or Template dialog box opens. For full steps to create the metric, see How to Create a Metric.
You insert a function into your metric formula. When you access the dialog box by clicking the Insert Function icon in the Formula Editor, you select the function to use in the metric formula. For steps to create a metric, including steps to insert a function into the metric formula, see Metric Formula Editor.

Introduction to Functions and Template Dialog Box

Related Topics