Currently I receive a lot of questions about NetWeaver 2004s. NetWeaver 2004s only answers part of the questions, especially because the BI link isn't working.The BI part of NetWeaver 2004s is quite interesting because there are a lot of new features. It isn't really a minor release, so if you want to start a BW project in Q4/05 or Q1/06 you should take a look at the features.
A presentation of preliminary capabilities is shown at service.sap.com/bi -> SAP NetWeaver 2004s -> BI Capabilities.
Here are some of the more interesting features from my personal point of view.
- New modeling capabilities enabling highly flexible data modeling (new DataStore object types, remodeling)
- Enhanced and graphical transformation capabilities
- Model-driven BI application building using the new BEx Web Application Designer
- The BEx Report Designer; a newly developed tool that allows you to create formatted reports
- Conversion to pdf format and enhanced printing options options for BEx Web queries, Web applications, and reports
- Excel-based application design with the new BEx Analyzer
- The new, web-based Planning Modeler is the single point of entry for the creation of all planning applications. All planning models created using business planning are seamlessly integrated in one common database sharing the same metadata, master data and transaction data
- Planning functions allow preparation and validation of plan data according to the needs of every specific planning level
- Planning Application Execution: Business planning utilizes BEx features for data entry, instant analysis of the impact of plan changes and for visualization of the plan-actual comparison leveraging the central BI database
I hope you enjoy the presentation. Now I'm waiting for the Sneak Preview of NW 2004s to enjoy the new features. (But maybe I get a small ramp-up before).
