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iX Engineer
Write a query on your data, turn it into interactive charts, arrange the charts into dashboards, and put dashboards in order as a story. Everyone sees live numbers, filtered the way they need.
What it is
iX Engineer is where you build your own analysis. It has four parts that fit together: a Query asks a question of your data, a Chart draws the answer, a Dashboard arranges several charts on one page, and a Story shows dashboards one after another like a slideshow.
Whoever opens a chart or dashboard gets current data, and always only the data their own access allows.
Key features
- Queries with a colour-coded editor, a list of the tables you can use, and a one-click Run that shows the first rows and the columns it found.
- Variables inside a query: put {{region}} where a value should be chosen, and wrap optional conditions in [[ … ]] so they disappear when nobody picks a value.
- 29 chart types: bars, bars and lines, pyramid, radar, lines, areas, waterfall, calendar heatmap, pie, donut, rose, funnel, treemap, histogram, box plot, scatter, bubble, heatmap, parallel coordinates, correlation matrix, sunburst, tree, flow (Sankey), network, a map of Iran by province, number card, gauge, table, cross-tab and heat table.
- Switch a chart to another type in one click. Your columns carry over wherever they fit.
- Calculate without leaving the chart: sum, average, count, distinct count, minimum, maximum, median, spread, percentiles, grouped by date (day, week, month and more), sorted, limited to the top N.
- Bars and areas can be grouped, stacked or 100% stacked. Labels show numbers or percentages, in a colour that stays readable.
- Charts can offer viewers their own controls: change the chart type, group by another column, split by a second one, pick another measure or calculation.
- Click actions: filter the page, drill down level by level, open another chart in a pop-up, or follow a link.
- A dashboard designer on a 12-column grid, with undo and redo, keyboard moves, and a preview that works like the real thing.
- Dashboard filters (drop-down, multi-select, date range and more) that narrow every chart that has the column, or only the charts you pick.
- Saved filter sets: keep “my usual view” for yourself, or publish one as the default for everyone.
- Download any chart as PNG, JPG, vector SVG, spreadsheet or CSV. Dashboards work on phones: the grid stacks in reading order.
- Share queries, charts, dashboards and stories with named people as viewers or editors, or with everyone who uses iX Engineer.
- Use any saved chart as a live chart in the Presentation Panel. Edit the chart once and the slides follow.
Getting started
1. Write a query
- 1Open iX Engineer from the sidebar, choose Calculator, then Queries, then New query.
- 2Name it, choose a database you can read, and write a SELECT. Press Run (or Ctrl/⌘ + Enter) to see the result.
- 3Save. The columns it returns are what charts can use.
2. Build a chart
- 1Choose New chart and pick the saved query it is built on.
- 2Pick a type. The chart draws straight away from sensible defaults.
- 3Use the Data tab to choose the category, the split and the calculation. Use Look, Filters, Viewer and Click to polish it.
- 4Name it and Save.
3. Design a dashboard
- 1Open Designer and choose New dashboard.
- 2Click elements (titles, text, cards, tabs, buttons) and charts to add them, or drag them onto the page.
- 3Move and resize them by dragging, with the arrow keys, or by typing Column, Width, Row and Height.
- 4On the Filters tab add a filter. Press Preview to try it, then Save.
To present dashboards in order, put them in a Story. See the Stories guide.
Common tasks
Let viewers choose a value
Add a variable to the query, such as WHERE region = {{region}}. In the Variables box give it a label, a type (text, number, date, date range, yes/no) and, if you like, a list of choices taken from a column or typed by you.
Filter a whole dashboard
Open the dashboard’s Filters tab and choose Add a filter. It starts from a column of your data. Choose which charts it applies to, or leave it empty for all of them. Viewers see it at the top of the page.
Save a default view
Set the filters the way you like, open the default-filters menu above them and save. Keep it for yourself, or make it the default for everyone who opens the dashboard.
Share
| Role | May |
|---|---|
| Viewer | Open it, use the filters and controls it offers, and download. |
| Editor | Also change its content. |
| Owner | Also change who can see it, share it and delete it. |
Access
Access to iX Engineer is granted in four independent parts. Each one includes opening whatever is shared with you.
| Part | What you can do |
|---|---|
| View | Open what others shared with you, use its controls and download. |
| Calculator | Write and save queries, build and share charts. |
| Designer | Build and share dashboards. |
| Story | Build and share stories. |
Ask your administrator to switch on the parts you need. You can hold Designer or Story without Calculator.
Tips and limits
- A query is one SELECT of up to 3,000 characters.
- Charts read up to 5,000 rows of a query. Summarise large tables in the query, or let the chart calculate for you.
- A dashboard holds up to 120 elements.
- When a variable is empty, the optional [[ … ]] block around it is left out.
- If a chart shows a message instead of data, you probably lack access to its database. Ask the owner or your administrator.