You can create a selector in a variety of different ways, depending on what the target and source are, as well as personal preference for a particular interface. The following table helps you choose between the methods. Full directions for all these methods are provided in the Desktop Help.
If targets are automatically maintained in the layout, attribute and metric selectors automatically target all Grid/Graphs and panel stacks that are in the same panel or document section as the selector. You do not need to manually select the targets. You must always select targets for panel selectors, regardless of whether targets are automatically118 Methods to create a selector © 2012 MicroStrategy, Inc.
maintained. To target another selector, automatic target maintenance must be disabled. Alternatively, you can keep automatic target
maintenance if you can place the target selector on a panel in the same document section as the source selector; the source selector will automatically target that panel stack. For more information on automatically maintaining targets, including how to enable and disable it, see Automatically maintaining targets for selectors, page 134.
To Create a New Selector... Do This...
With a panel stack as the target.
Right-click the panel stack and select Insert Panel Stack Selector.
Note that you cannot use check boxes with a panel stack, since check boxes allow multiple selections and multiple panels cannot be displayed simultaneously.
With a Grid/Graph as the target and metrics as the source.
• In Desktop, insert a selector. Change the action type of the selector to metrics, as described below this table. If targets are not
automatically maintained, specify the Grid/Graph to use as the target.
• In Web, right-click the word Metrics on the Grid/Graph and select Create Selector Control.
With a Grid/Graph as the target and elements as the source.
• In Desktop, insert a selector. Specify the attribute, custom group, or consolidation to use as the source, as described below this table. If targets are not automatically maintained, specify the Grid/Graph to use as the target.
• In Web, right-click the attribute, custom group, or consolidation on the Grid/Graph and select Create Selector Control.
That filters a metric’s values. Insert a selector. Change the action type of the selector to metric condition, as described below this table. Select whether to display the selector as a slider or a qualification which the user completes to filter the metric's values. Specify the metric to use as the source. Select whether to filter the metric’s values, rank, or percent rank. If targets are not automatically maintained, specify the Grid/Graph to use as the target. For descriptions of these options, see Creating selectors that filter metric values, page 123.
With an attribute as the source.
Right-click the attribute in the Datasets pane and select Create Selector.
If targets are not automatically maintained, the new selector does not have a target. Therefore, you must specify the Grid/Graph or panel stack to use as the target, as described below this table.
© 2012 MicroStrategy, Inc. Methods to create a selector 119
You can also use an attribute on a Grid/Graph as a selector that targets a panel stack or another Grid/Graph. If a user clicks an attribute on the first Grid/Graph, the target changes to displayThat is formatted differently in Flash Mode and becomes interactive when a user hovers the cursor over it. An example is the Fish Eye Selector, which magnifies the item that is hovered over, while the remaining items are minimized and displayed in the
background of the selector.
For an example, see Creating a Fish Eye Selector, page 214.
Click the Selector icon in the toolbar, and then select Fish Eye.
Next, click in the Layout area to add the selector.
The default action type is Select Elements, although you can change it to select metrics or panels.
If targets are not automatically maintained, the new selector does not have a target. Therefore, you must specify the Grid/Graph or panel stack to use as the target, as described below this table.
The Fish Eye style is viewable only in Flash Mode in MicroStrategy Web. By default, it is displayed as the Listbox style in other modes and views; to change that, select a different DHTML style.
That updates a dynamic text field on a panel stack.
Insert a selector. Specify the attribute for the source. If targets are not automatically maintained, the new selector does not have a target.
Therefore, you must specify the panel stack to use as the target, as described below this table.
With a specific style. Do one of the following:
• From the Insert menu, point to Selector, and then choose the style from the list.
• Click the arrow next to the Selector icon on the toolbar, and then choose the style from the list.
Next, click in the Layout area to add the selector.
The default action type is Select Elements, although you can change it to select metrics or panels.
If targets are not automatically maintained, the new selector does not have a target. Therefore, you must specify the Grid/Graph or panel stack to use as the target, as described below this table.
With the same style as the last selector you added.
Click the Selector icon in the toolbar. Click in the Layout area to add the selector.
The default action type is Select Elements, although you can change it to select metrics or panels, or metric condition.
If targets are not automatically maintained, the new selector does not have a target. Therefore, you must specify the Grid/Graph or panel stack to use as the target, as described below this table.
That filters another selector. Insert the target selector (the one to be filtered by the source selector).
If you want to keep automatic target maintenance, ensure that the target selector is on a panel in the same document section as the source selector (the selector that affects the target).
Insert the target selector. Specify the attribute for the source. If you want to select the targets manually, disable automatic target maintenance, then select the target selector and target Grid/Graph or panel stack.
To Create a New Selector... Do This...
120 Methods to create a selector © 2012 MicroStrategy, Inc.
information for only that attribute. For more information, see Enabling Grid/Graphs as selectors to control other Grid/Graphs, page 183.
After you create a new selector, you can use the Property List or Properties dialog box to change any settings, such as style or action type, of the selector.
For example, the default DHTML style of a new selector is a drop-down list, which may not always suit your needs. If automatic target maintenance is enabled, you cannot change the targets of the selector in either interface. You can disable automatic target maintenance for the entire layout in the
Properties dialog box, if you desire. For more information about automatic target maintenance, including the effects of enabling or disabling it, see Automatically maintaining targets for selectors, page 134.
The Property List is the easier method to use, as it is displayed on the same screen as the Layout area. The target selection mode, described in the next section, allows you to quickly and easily choose the target of the selector.