The solution has what is called a mainframe product. It runs on any operating system: Windows, Linux, whatever. Their history goes back to the 60s. While they were on the mainframe they basically invented a core language, or their own scripting language. That language has been used since the 60s and is in all of their products, so if you get to a command line prompt, you can do pretty much anything. Tools like Tableau, Crystal, SAP, and BusinessObjects don't have this scripting language, so they expect you to do everything through SQL. A lot of the tools out there are GUI or ETL-based, but you can do all of that within this core language. 

The solution can read and write 500 different types of outputs. You can read and output an XML file. You can write output takes in Excel or CSV files and you can write out to databases. All of that is built in.

Another thing they do that's a little bit unique is that you can read a file and then put out a hold file, which is a temporary file in its own binary format. When you're doing very complex inner and outer joins on SQL, you don't know if the data is right or if your filtering is correct. In WebFOCUS, you can go off to table A, do something, put it out to a temporary or permanent file, then go to table B, do a bunch of stuff, put out a file, and then join the two hold files. You can join up to 32 different files simultaneously in one run, which is a unique feature that I haven't seen in any other tool.

They have a scheduling product called ReportCaster that is rock solid. It works, and it can do load balancing, so if you have tons of schedules on the first week of the month, it can kick off multiple clients to run simultaneously and off they go.  If you're into a mainframe product, they're unique. You may not think they can run TCP/IP on a mainframe, but they do.

It is a versatile tool. Now, since they got bought out by TIBCO, there's more of a push on the GUI front end and analytics. 

WebFOCUS goes beyond just dashboards. It's also used for operational reporting, making it crucial for mission-critical systems. In fact, a core strength is that it's not "just" a BI tool; it can be used to build complete applications.

It is the best tool because of its all-in-one nature. Data integration, ETL, data migration, everything is handled within the same platform. Then, on the front end, it offers portals, reporting, distributed analysis, and more.

For customers who have data in the right structure and right format, the WebFOCUS Designer tool is very powerful. It allows them to create self-service reporting applications.

It stands out for its ability to work across different platforms, support mainframe data, offer cloud integration, automate report scheduling, and provide a robust scripting language. It also excels in generating large, customizable PDF reports and offers versatile output format options. Its multiple report design methods make it a versatile choice for organizations with various reporting and analytics needs.

The features that I have found the most helpful is the WebFOCUS portal and InfoAssist. The portal allows users to display information in multiple containers that when combined, paint the perfect picture of the organization. InfoAssist places reporting power in the hands of the power user.

We like using Report Caster with our applications. We just started using Report Library, which will help the users look into one product.

The simply intuitive end user experience, as well as the data animation/visualization features of Information Builders Incorporated’s (IBI's) Business Intelligence (BI) system (a la Hans Rosling, of TED Talks) are a high priority for us.

Additionally, the drag and drop functionality that IBI does better than any of its competition takes away a lot of the custom graph and report work previously delegated to the folks in IT or in Finance. Leaders using IBI can quite easily do it themselves. This is a big win for both IT and it's end users because better graphs and more well thought out reports are the result, along with more time for the IT leaders to focus on their primary area of expertise, IT systems.

Reporting canvas makes it easier to put reports together quickly. Meta data canvas allows us to create complex relationship once to be used often.

Learning RSTAT and will be implementing a model hopefully soon. Pull a lot of data for analysis autonomously.

The most valuable feature is building ad hoc reports.

We use WebFOCUS AppStudio and Report Caster. WebFOCUS is very flexible to use, and a quick learning tool for new developers. So it's easier to bring a developer on board.

All features are very helpful and easy to use. End users can see their data in more meaningful ways.

The WebFOCUS info assists and Excel base quick data, it provides information at times when it is needed.

• Great connectivity with databases
• Great visualization
• Great to promote personal BI through Infor Assist +
• Ability to run your reports in disconnect/passive mode
• Great location and mobile intelligence.

All features are awesome and helpful in so many ways. Predictive analytics is a great tool. ReportCaster is cool too.

Web App Studio, and write a report via SQL or using report writer. I can write SQL using developer and export the state to app studio.

There are many ways to build custom reports. We also like the data quality to profile our data to get quality data for reports.