Spotfire 12.4 makes it easier to use Actions in external systems through input validation and also includes improvements for information services and data wrangling in the web user interface. See the

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Data Access

Improved logging in Information Services

A number of improvements have been done to Information Services logging in recent releases to allow administrators to more easily monitor the usage and do trouble shooting:

• Data source name is now logged when a connection fails.
• Data source name is now logged along with the SQL query.
• Number of rows processed when executing an Information Link is now logged.
• New configuration option to set the maximum number of stored procedure input rows to log.

JDBC data source template validation

You can now more easily validate a JDBC data source template by using a command line tool that performs a test connection to an external data source with the settings specified in the data source template. The test can help you assess if the data source template is valid, and if it is compatible with the data source and JDBC driver, before you add the data source template to the Spotfire configuration.

TIBCO ODBC drivers for Apache Spark SQL, Apache Cassandra, and MongoDB

The TIBCO Drivers package, which includes ODBC drivers for Apache Spark SQL, Apache Cassandra, and MongoDB, is removed. The drivers are no longer included with Spotfire.
If you use any of these drivers for accessing data in Spotfire today, you should switch to using different drivers as soon as possible. As you prepare to migrate, you can continue using the TIBCO ODBC drivers that you have already downloaded, but no new versions will be released to address potential issues. See the release notes for further information about this.

Data Wrangling

Data canvas sidebar

The new data canvas sidebar allows accessing data tables and data functions more easily than ever before. Quickly switch between data tables, access data functions, and navigate through your data with ease.
Open the data canvas and look for the new sidebar on the left-hand side of the screen where all data tables in your analysis, along with any data functions in use are displayed. You can collapse or expand the sidebar as needed to maximize your working space.
This feature is particularly useful for those who work with a large number of datasets, as it allows to quickly switch between tables and functions without having to navigate through multiple menus.

 

Column description from data in analysis flyout

You can add and view columns descriptions directly from the data in analysis flyout to easily document the purpose and meaning of data columns, making it easier for you and others to understand your analysis.
Simply open the data in analysis flyout, select a column and navigate to the Data tab where you can enter a description for that column.

Visual Analytics

Column from marked for web authors

Web authors can change visualization axis to column from marked data, making it easier than ever to create interactive visualizations that change what column is used for an axis depending on what is marked in different visualizations.
For instance this makes it possible to create a visualization that is connected to a data table, in such a way that when clicking on the table, the axes of the new visualization will change to show the values of a specified cell in the table.

Analytics Apps

Easier to use external actions through type support

When configuring or running an external action, you will now get more suitable UI controls for each parameter depending on data type. For example, you might see predefined drop-down lists, check boxes, and numeric input controls in addition to text input fields. This makes it easier for people using the analysis to know what type of input is expected and it reduces the likelihood of issues when an action is run.