Omniscope Legacy User Guide - Table of Contents

The user guide has been replaced by the video tutorials and the remaining pages are being migrated into the knowledgebase.  Please bear with us as we remove and rearrange these remaining pages.

Learning to Use Omniscope 

The contents of this User Guide are searchable and navigable using either the links below or by using the left-hand User Guide navigational menu.  You can use the custom search field at the top right of any page to enter specific commands, terms or phrases and find all references in the Forums, this User Guide, and the KnowledgeBase (which contains moretechnical articles of potential interest to IT support and DBAs/developers).

For a printed version of the entire User Guide or any section, click on ‘printer friendly version’ at the bottom of the first page you wish to print, then use your browser Print function. If available, choose 'PDF' as the printer from your browser to obtain a PDF file version. Alternatively, you can download the prepared PDF files posted here, although they will not aways contain the very latest version of all the pages.

 Printable User Guide       User Guide (PDF) (21 MB)   Training Guide (PDF)

Getting Started

Overview - this is a simple, one-page overview of key Omniscope functionality illustrating typical tasks in 10 steps; install Omniscope, prepare data, load/import data from a spreadsheet, check the data types, explore/check the data, display the details, add/change views, create report tabs, add links, and save the configured Omniscope files for distribution to others.
Installation - describes the Omniscope installation process on Windows. Details regarding non-Windows installations, rollouts to administered desktops and network installation options, etc. are covered in the KnowledgeBase.
Activation and de-activation - illustrates how to activate new installs, refresh activation for version upgrades, and de-activate prior to re-building or moving machines.
Welcome Screen - if no data file is open, branded Omniscope installs display a welcome screen with useful links to learning resources and other settings.
Demo files - every installation contains many fully-configured demonstration files illustrating key features and uses of Omniscope. Consult this page to lfind links to more detailed or specialised demos most relevant to your own data sets and intended uses. See also Case Studies
Training Guide - recommended 6-phase approach with printable checklists outlining the sequence of specific 'best-practise' steps in detail. Print this section and follow the checklists. Downloadable versions are available for use as outlines for structuring training sessions.

Using the free Viewer

The free Viewer enables navigation, filtering and printing using Omniscope files prepared by others, including the demo files included with Omniscope. You can display or send this direct link to this chapter to your file recipients together with your IOK files:  http://www.visokio.com/using-viewer
Viewer Main Toolbar - introduces revealing and using the navigational icons/buttons available on the Main Toolbar, which may be hidden (or in some cases displayed on the Sidebar) on some tabs of the files you receive.
Using the Sidebar(s) - covers the basics of selecting and filtering using the Sidebar(s) which are usually displayed on most tabs of the files you receive.
Tabs and Views - navigating presentation/report tabs and using views for filtering and producing screenshots and printed views.
Welcome Screen - closing a file in the free Viewer reveals the Welcome Screen, from which other files and features can be accessed. This screen is not displayed when deploying files using Omniscope Online and the unbranded version of the free Viewer.
Printing - Omniscope can print static images of views, single or multiple tabs, to a printer or in common file formats like PDF and PowerPoint
Using Omniscope Online - Omniscope Online is a version of the free Viewer that can be deployed from a link in a web page to users' machines using Java Web Start technology. Both branded and unbranded versions of the free Viewer are available, although use of the unbranded version requires the Enterprise Server Commercial Publisher.

Importing Data

DataManager (2.6+) - the DataManager workspace is a highly-visual drag and drop interface for defining import, assembly, transformation and various output and distribution options as repeatable flows with defined data refresh options.

New file - Populating your own small file by typing in imaginary (or real) data is an excellent way to get started with Omniscope. Open blank table and type or cut-paste data into cells. You can also cut-paste tabular data sets from documents or web pages to provide a starting point. 
Open file - importing data from spreadsheets and other types of data files, maintaining links to source data
Open map - introduces the Map View and various ways of adding maps and geographic coordinates to your data sets.
Database connections - Using either ODBC or JDBC protocols, Omniscope can establish and refresh direct connections to relational database tables and reporting views using the Database Connection Wizard wizard, which can import the results of any SQL statement that returns a table.

Connectors - connectors enable data import, refresh and synchronise features for data hosted on popular remote 'cloud computing' SaaS platforms, including e-mail folders, collaborative online data services like Google spreadsheets, general-purpose application platforms like Salesforce/Force.com, free information sources like Google Analytics as well as traditional subscription data 'feeds' like Bloomberg.There are also options to gather data about folders of files on your network, and import/export image collections in Omniscope file format. Click on the links below for more detailed sections on each connector.

Merge data - the Merge Data wizard makes it easy for anyone to assemble and update data sets from disparate sources. An Omniscope can have any number of files as sources, and all merges are repeated on every refresh.

Adding Images - Explains the process for associating folders of images (image sets) with your files and referencing them for display in various views. Omniscope can associate more than one image with each record (row), and can associate more than one image set with a file, either embedded or for delivery via the web. If multiple images are available for some records, slide show mode can display a sequence of these images for each record selected.
Refresh options - explains options for refreshing data from linked sources, including the Automatic refresh option, and how to unlink and re-link Omniscope files from/to source data files, including other Omniscope files. Using Omniscope IOK files as 'datamart' source files permits many 'personalised' Omniscope files to be distributed and auto-refreshed from the same central Omniscope file, itself typically being refreshed more frequently on the server from the data warehouse.

Editing Data

Editing Cell Values - the Table View permits you to edit values in data sets at individual cell, value or column level using familiar keyboard shortcut commands
Rows & Columns - adding and deleting rows and columns, setting column orders, configuring row height etc.
Dates & times - specifying and changing the format of data stored in your source files as imported Omniscope date & time values.
Tokenized data - use this data sub-type option when you need more than one value/image in the same cell of a given row, i.e. to enable filtering with one-to-many relationships in 'flat' data sets, or to display multiple images per row of data.
Time Series - Omniscope stores repeated observations over time as rows (not columns). Consult this section if you plan to create time-series displays from your data set.
De/Re-pivot - Omniscope includes powerful functions for changing the orientation of data in the files, such that rows become columns, or columns become rows.
Edit/Add Map Coordinates - Omniscope enables you to add or edit geographic coordinates associated with a map manually. Use this approach to check your geographic coordinates, add missing coordinates, and refine the coordinate columns in your data set by referencing highly detailed online mapping resources
Data entry - see the Details View to learn how this view can be configured as a data entry screen that can be displayed on any tab. 

Functions Guide

Omniscope enables you to define evaluated Formula fields (columns) which calculate the values to display using the values in other fields (columns). Omniscope formulae can also incorporate variables, user-defined ranges of assumed values specified in terms of maximum, minimum and default values. Formula fields are defined using standard functions using the same syntax as for Excel. Functions available for use in constructing formulae include a library of special Omniscope SUBSET and older DATASET functions that operate across one or more entire columns of data sets. Example formulae useful for accomplishing common tasks are also illustrated in this section.

Managing Data

Provides detail on configuring the filter/query devices displayed on the Side Bars with the Devices and Tools Side Bar drop-down menus, using the functions available on the filter/query devices, and the commands accessible by right-clicking on the devices.

View Details - Explains the options for displaying some or all the values associated with individual records or selected groups of records - the Details pop-window, the Side Bar details display options and the Details View. The highlighting function, which shows the position of selected records in all open views, is explained and illustrated. Automatic record cycling and slide show image displays that provide file recipients with automatic, unattended 'tours' of the data are also covered.

Exploring Data

Aggregating Data - most Omniscope View Toolbars include an Aggregation drop-down dialog which enables you to define an aggregated transformation of the underlying granular data set, and also define the aggregation functions to be applied across the aggregated values in each field (column). Each view on any given tab can use a different aggregated view as defined by the settings on each View Toolbar Aggregation drop-down

Guide to Views - details the commands and options available for each of the different views in Omniscope. Visit the top page, or lick the links below to go directly to the section relating to a specific view. View Toolbar commands common to most Views are documented here.

Configuring Files

Adding Links - Explains the process for adding local links, using pre-configured links to free web services and creating custom web links launched by clicking on specific cells/values in your files.

Reports & Presentations

Adding & Styling Text - Free-form text, links, and images not in the data set can be added to Report files as text tabs, and can be added to any view tabs as Titles and Annotations. Explanitory text can also can be added to views windows by editing view headers and displaying view footers. Any number of Content Views can be added to any tab and sized to complement the other views.  Each Content View can contain styled text, links, images and formula-driven dynamic text.

Managing Layouts -

Edit Layout Modes -

Using Styles -

Create Reports - Introduces the process of creating and modifying Reports Pages, the Reports Navigator, the importance of committing or reverting changes to Report Pages, how to exit Reports Mode and using various menus for managing all the Report Pages already configured in a given file.

File Appearance - Highlights a few of the more commonly used options for branding the overall appearance of a given file using Cover and Back information pages together with your own corner logos, etc. Options for adding your corporate identity to installations of Omniscope itself, simplifying display menus, and adding banner advertising displays to Omniscope files are also referenced.

Creating DataPlayers - DataPlayers are exportable, data-bearing, interactive Flash 'dashboard' .SWF files which can be created, refreshed and exported from Omniscope to web pages and documents such as PowerPoint, Excel, PDF ...with full interactivity. This section explains how to create, combine and export many different, highly-configurable DataPlayer view types using the DataPlayer View of Omniscope.

Save & Export Files

File Security Options - Omniscope files can be saved with extensive file security options controlling who can open Omniscope files, for how long and under what circumstances. 'Layered' security options are available for securing data against unauthorised copying (not even cut-and-paste) and for implementing highly-secure deployment options such as domain locking and/or 'walled gardens'.

Commands Reference

Commands Reference - summarises the Main Toolbar command menus and provides links to documentation for current and previous versions. Use the links below to go directly to the command menu of interest.
Main Toolbar - documents the icons and options located in most Layout modes on the Main Toolbar to the right of the command menus.

Version 2.5: | File | Data | Tab | Layout | Toolbars | Settings | Help |
   (click links above to go directly to the Commands Reference page)