MicroStrategy ONE

Defining Media widgets

Requirements for Media widgets

The Media widget allows you to present a variety of media such as video, audio, images, or website content on your Report Services (RS) dashboard. You can include media in the widget to provide background information about data or instructions on how to use the RS dashboard. You can also use the Media widget to enhance the look and feel of an RS dashboard. In the following RS dashboard, the Media widget in the top left corner shows a company's CEO addressing his employees on important trends in the latest figures.

image\ebx_531305518.gif

By default, the video plays automatically when the document is opened. (This preference is determined by the document designer, as explained in To create a Media widget). A document analyst can, at any time, pause, rewind, stop, or replay the video in the Media widget.

One of the primary purposes of the Media widget is to present supplemental information about the data on an RS dashboard. For example, a regional manager can record a video that summarizes quarterly sales and discusses the significance of the data in a sales dashboard. Analysts can then view the RS dashboard in the context of this additional information and commentary.

The Media widget can also be used for instructional purposes. For instance, a document designer can include audio or video files that explain how to use an RS dashboard. Analysts can use this information to focus on key data and take advantage of the RS dashboard's interactive features, allowing them to work with the RS dashboard more efficiently.

Additionally, you can display HTML content from a website in the widget. For example, you can display a section of your internal corporate website that contains a business presentation. Website content that is refreshed frequently, such as numeric indicators on system usage, can also be useful media to present in the widget.

To create a Media widget, you must specify the media file to play in the widget. The media file used in the widget can come from an online source or be stored locally on your machine or remotely on the corporate network. The media is presented automatically when the RS dashboard is loaded. It can also be displayed on demand by selecting the Play button in the widget or by selecting a specific attribute, document, or dataset.

You can also configure the Media widget to play a media file based on the attribute, document, or dataset report selected in the RS dashboard. For example, select a quarter in the document, and a manager's video about the revenue for that quarter is displayed. Similarly, you can choose a region to play a video about the performance of the stores in that particular region. For more information about playing a media file automatically when a specific attribute is selected in the RS dashboard, see Viewing media related to a specific attribute, document, or dataset.

You can export an RS dashboard containing a Media widget into a Flash file, so that users can view the widget and interact with it off-line, without a connection to MicroStrategy Intelligence Server or MicroStrategy Web Server. To ensure that the Media widget can play the media file off-line, the file name for the media file must be specified without a path. The media file must be stored in the same folder as the Flash file. When specified this way, the media file is not accessible when the RS dashboard is viewed online. For more information about Flash files and how to export RS dashboards, see Exporting RS dashboards to Flash for stand-alone use.

Requirements for Media widgets

Unlike some other widgets, the Media widget does not require attributes or metrics on the Grid/Graph that contains the widget, unless you define the widget as a target of an attribute selector in the RS dashboard. For details, see Viewing media related to a specific attribute, document, or dataset.

The Media widget can only play and display the file formats listed in the following table.

Media Type Format

Video

  • .swf

  • .flv

Audio

  • .mp3

Graphic

  • gif

  • .jpg

  • .png

  • .svg

To use a graphic, video, or audio clip that is available on your network, ensure that the file has the required view or access privileges. In addition, if your machine is running Microsoft Windows 2003 SP2 (R2) and Microsoft Internet Information Services (IIS) 6, you must add .flv files to the Multipurpose Internet Mail Extension (MIME) types in IIS Manager. For instructions and more details, see Configuring IIS 6 in Microsoft Windows 2003 SP2 (R2) to display Flash video.

Only specific HTML tags are supported by the Media widget. These HTML tags include the following:

  • Anchor tag (<A>)

  • Bold tag (<B>)

  • Break tag (<BR)

  • Image tag (<IMG)

  • Italic tag (<I>)

  • List item tag (<LI>)

  • Paragraph tag (<P>)

  • Underline tag (<U>)

The following HTML tags are not rendered in the widget, but content within the tags is displayed.

  • <TABLE>

  • <TR

  • <TD

  • <DIV>

  • <FONT>

The <FONT> tag may be removed if it contains a CLASS attribute within it, for example,
<font class="header">Welcome</font>.

The following HTML tags and any content within the tags are not rendered in the widget:

  • <SCRIPT>

  • <STYLE>

  • <SPAN>

To create a Media widget

  1. Open a document in the Document Editor. (How?)

  2. Insert a Grid/Graph into the document, if one is not already in the document. For a procedure, see Displaying reports in documents: Grid/Graphs.

  3. Right-click the Grid/Graph to turn into a widget, and select Properties. The Properties dialog box opens.

  4. Click the Widget tab.

  5. From the Widget drop-down list, point to Flash, and then select Media. In Flash Mode in MicroStrategy Web, the Grid/Graph displays as a Media widget.

  6. You can change the Alternative Display property, which determines how the widget looks in PDF View in MicroStrategy Developer, in Interactive Mode and View Mode (DHTML) in MicroStrategy Web, and when exported to Excel and PDF. The widget can display as a placeholder or as a Grid/Graph, or can be hidden. For more information, see Determining how a widget is rendered in non-Flash modes.

  7. Click OK to return to the document.

    • Enable Flash Mode for Web

    • You must enable Flash Mode in the document so that you and other users can view the widget in Flash Mode in MicroStrategy Web.

  8. From the Format menu, select Document Properties. The Document Properties dialog box opens.

  9. On the Document tab, in the Available display modes list, select the Flash check box.

  10. You can specify that this document always opens in Flash Mode when it is initially opened in Web. To do this, select the Default radio button next to Flash.

  11. Click OK to return to the document.

  12. Save the document.

    • Specify the media content to display in the widget

    • You must specify the media content that the widget displays. You can also specify the play frequency options for the widget.

  13. Open the document in Flash Mode in MicroStrategy Web.

  14. Right-click the widget and select Properties. The Properties dialog box opens.

  15. On the General tab, from the Content Type drop-down list, choose the type of media to present by selecting one of the following:

    • Video

    • Audio

    • Web Content

    • Image

    Only specific video, audio, and image file formats are supported in the Media widget. For a list of supported formats, see Requirements for Media widgets.

  16. Specify the location of the content in the Default Feed field, as described below:

    • If the media is stored on a network location or website, specify the network location of the file or website's URL using the following format: http://www.example.com/

      Folder paths in the form of \\computer_name\videos\South.swf cannot be used to define a Media widget.

    • To display media for a specific attribute, document, or dataset, specify a dynamic path that includes the name of the object. For more information and examples, see Viewing media related to a specific attribute, document, or dataset.

      Use a + character to include a space between words. For example, http://www.example.com/videos/.

    • If the Media widget will be exported to an MHT file in an RS dashboard, specify just the file name, without a path, such as South.swf. For more information about exporting RS dashboards, seeExporting RS dashboards to Flash for stand-alone use.

      If the file name is specified without a path, the Media widget can display the file off-line in an MHT file but cannot access the file to play it online.

  17. If you selected Web Content as the Content Type and the Web content is located on a different Web domain than the one used for MicroStrategy Web, select the Use Proxy check box.

  18. Select the Play Frequency tab.

  19. To display the Play button in the widget, select the Show play buttoncontrol check box.

    If the Play button is not displayed, the media cannot be controlled by the user.

  20. To play the media file automatically when the RS dashboard is loaded, select the Auto Play on Start check box.

  21. From the drop-down list, select Continuous Play (Loop) to play the video continuously in a loop or select Play Once to play the video only once.

  22. Click OK to apply the changes.

For information on formatting a Media widget, see Formatting Media widgets.

Define the path in Adobe Flash Player

If the Media widget will not play the media file in MicroStrategy Web after you have followed the procedure above, define the path of the media file through Adobe Flash Player, as described below:

  1. Open the Adobe Flash Player Settings Manager at http://www.macromedia.com/support/documentation/en/flashplayer/help/settings_manager04.html.

  2. Click the Global Security Settings tab.

  3. Select Add location from the Always trust files in these locations drop-down-list.

  4. Enter the path of the media file, such as http://www.example.com/SalesVideos/ or D:\media files.

  5. Click Confirm to save the path.

Configuring IIS 6 in Microsoft Windows 2003 SP2 (R2) to display Flash video

If your machine is running Microsoft Windows 2003 SP2 (R2) and Microsoft Internet Information Services (IIS) 6, you must add .flv files to the Multipurpose Internet Mail Extension (MIME) types in IIS Manager. If you do not modify the MIME types in IIS, the Media widget cannot function properly in this environment. A procedure to add the flv files is included below. If your machine is operating in a different environment, this procedure is not required.

The third-party product(s) discussed in the procedure below is manufactured by vendors independent of MicroStrategy. MicroStrategy makes no warranty, express, implied, or otherwise, regarding this product, including its performance or reliability.

To add .flv files to the MIME types in Microsoft IIS 6

This procedure is only required if your machine is running Microsoft Windows 2003 SP2 (R2) and Microsoft IIS 6.

  1. From your Windows Start menu, select Control Panel, and then select Administrative tools. The Administrative Tools window opens.

  2. Double-click Internet Information Services (IIS) Manager. IIS Manager opens.

  3. Expand the (local computer) folder, expand Web Sites, and then expand Default Web Site.

  4. Right-click MicroStrategy, and select Properties. The MicroStrategy Properties window opens.

  5. On the HTTP Headers tab, click the MIME Types button in the MIME Types area. The MIME Types dialog box opens.

  6. Click New. The MIME Type dialog box opens.

  7. In the Extension text field, type flv.

  8. In the MIME Type text field type video/x-flv.

  9. Click OK. The MIME Type dialog box closes.

  10. Click OK. The MIME Types dialog box closes.

  11. Click OK. The MicroStrategy Properties window closes.

  12. Restart IIS.

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