About file types

A developer creates a BIRT design file using Actuate BIRT Designer Professional or Actuate BIRT Studio, and publishes the file. Running a design job updates data and generates a final document format, for example, an Adobe PDF, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Word, or BIRT document file.

Users interact with the data and format of BIRT document files using browser-based tools such as Actuate Interactive Viewer. Users schedule these files for conversion to a final document. BIRT documents embed their data into the file to avoid additional database queries.

Data object files contain one or more data sets and data cubes. There are two types of data object files, a data object design file or a data object store file. Data object design files do not contain data but make queries on demand to their data sources.

Administrators can cache this data as data object store files to avoid on-demand queries of external databases and to ensure that multiple dashboards use the same data. Data object store files support multiple versions. A data architect creates data object files using BIRT Designer Professional, and publishes the file to the Encyclopedia volume.

Users launch the browser-based BIRT Data Analyzer tool to create and view reports of multidimensional data for analyzing relationships and trends in business data.

Users can aggregate, categorize, create charts, and summarize this data. Cubes of data are contained within BIRT data object files built with the Actuate BIRT Designer Professional software or in BIRT data object store files created from an existing BIRT data object.

Dashboard files contain one or more dashboards built with various gadgets. Dashboards present data from BIRT documents, BIRT data objects, and external web-based sources for user analysis and interaction. Dashboards appear as a file or as a subscribed web page in Information Console.

Users can interact with dashboard data using charts, Adobe Flash objects, cross-tab gadgets and tables. Data selection gadgets enable users to filter multiple data displays at the same time.

A developer creates spreadsheet designs using Actuate BIRT Spreadsheet Designer, and publishes the designs as BIRT spreadsheet document or executable files.

Spreadsheet executable files retrieve data directly from a data source, ensuring that every generation of a report contains the most current data. BIRT spreadsheet documents embed their data into the file to avoid additional database queries.

A BIRT information object is a pre-defined SQL query that retrieves and optionally caches data from external databases. A data architect creates an information object using BIRT Information Designer, and publishes the object. A developer uses an information object as a data source for document designs.

BIRT design files that use an information object as a data source to request new or cached data from the information object. The developer makes this choice when building the document design. An information object file and query output file can create an ad hoc report using the browser-based Actuate Query Wizard tool.

These reports contain multidimensional data for analyzing relationships and trends in business data. It is possible to aggregate, categorize, create charts, and summarize this data. Cubes of data are built using the Actuate Cube Designer software or with cube profiles.

A developer creates Actuate Basic report designs and reusable components using Actuate e.Report Designer Professional. The developer publishes the designs as report document or executable files.

Report executable files retrieve data directly from a data source, ensuring that every generation of a report contains the most current data. Report documents embed their data into the file to avoid additional database queries.