2010 Features (Tablix, Gauge)

03-11-2010, 9:18 AM

Do you have any projections for when you will be supporting the VS 2010 reporting features? Specifically, I am looking at Tablix and Gauge. Everyone has really been looking forward to these features in 2010 since their preview in SQL Reporting.

Thanks.

Re: 2010 Features (Tablix, Gauge)

03-11-2010, 11:04 AM
We plan to implement Tablix in the next major release barring any technical difficulties. Don't have a time frame for this release yet.

A gauge is not a great data visualization tool and we do not plan on introducing it into the product. We have implemented a replacement which is the bullet chart. Bullet charts provide all the functionality of a gauge in a more informative and clear manner.

Re: 2010 Features (Tablix, Gauge)

03-11-2010, 3:21 PM
That's good to hear about the Tablix.

I'm not sure what you mean about a gauge not being a good data visualization tool. I don't think you can argue that it isn't clear; someone can't live in the world today and not understand something like the radial "speedometer" gauge. You can argue that a gauge isn't information-dense, but data visualization is not about getting the most information into the least space. It's about getting the most comprehension. And you or I may not consider a gauge to be very valuable, but we are not the ones specifying what users want in their reports.

I have looked at the Bullet graph you have, and it is definitely not as clear as a speedometer or even a thermometer. Those look like real-world objects, so users already know how to interpret them. Your Bullet does not have that advantage. For instance, which direction is "better" on the bullet? But the biggest problem with your Bullet for me is that it makes the report incompatible with the MS report viewer. The fact that DD is compatible with MS is it's biggest selling point for me.