Datasheet

Building the visual model
After the data you’re using is in memory, you can start building your visual
model. The visual model is essentially your dashboard in design mode. Much
like a PowerPoint slide, your visual model starts off as a blank canvas on
which you can add components. Components are those things that give your
dashboard its utility and purpose: charts, gauges, menus, tables, and so on.
The idea is to add individual components to your visual model, tying each
component to the data that you import.
Compiling and publishing the dashboard
After you’re happy with the functionality and look of your visual model,
Crystal Xcelsius is ready to compile it.
First, Crystal Xcelsius compiles your visual model to a SWF file format.
Compiling to a SWF file format ensures that your final dashboard plays back
smoothly on any screen size and across multiple platforms. In addition, this
ensures that your dashboard file size is small so as to not inundate your
users with gigantic 40MB files.
After your visual model has been compiled to a SWF file, it is then published
to a format of your choice. You can choose to publish your dashboard to
PowerPoint, Outlook, an HTML Web page, an Adobe Acrobat PDF file, or a
Macromedia Flash file. At this point, your dashboard is ready to share!
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Chapter 1: Introducing Crystal Xcelsius
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