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BIRT 360 works great to show data visualizations as interactive charts, graphs, tables as well as any BIRT content. But did you know that you can also use it to display your existing (non BIRT) content in a gadget? If your content is available through a URL link you could use it to display it in a HTML 360 gadget. The HTML gadget also allows for embedding HTML, CSS and Javascript content directly into it.
Here is a short video that demonstrates how you can display an e.Report in BIRT 360 dashboard gadget. It uses both URL and embedded HTML approaches to showcase the capability of the gadget. The following devshare article provides more details on how to formulate URL's for these approaches.

Like every other BIRT 360 gadget you can customize it for auto refresh, change dimensions, show/hide scroll bar, show/hide border and header. Furthermore, gadgets can link to each other so that information from one gadget can change the information displayed in another gadget (see my previous blog post). This brings interactive experience to an otherwise static content.
BIRT 360 is available as an option within BIRT iServer. Download your free evaluation copy of BIRT iServer and give it a try.

In version 11 Actuate has introduced a new dashboard application (called BIRT 360) that enables you to create your own dashboards without requiring IT intervention. This application is built as an extension to end user browser application (called Information Console) for BIRT Server and is based on the popular Google gadget framework. This allows third party Google Gadgets to be used with BIRT repots to create visually rich mashups.
Depending on the type of data and level of user interaction you want to provide, these dashboards could be operational or analytical. Operational dashboards are typically suitable for continuous monitoring of KPI's and supports interaction and drill down on individual KPI to answer any specific business question.

Analytic dashboards are suitable for visual data exploration combining a set of filter and slicer gadgets with a set of KPI's that you could use to uncover trends and perform root cause analysis.

Both type of dashboards enables you to create visually rich, dynamic dashboard using a simple web browser interface. Here is a summary of some of the key features offered in the dashboard along with a quick video for each:

• Creating and sharing dashboards - The dashboard frame allows you to use predefined dashboards, create your own dashboards and share with other users. See Video
  
• Create and sharing BIRT Gadgets - You can build new gadgets and add to the library so that they can be discovered and consumed by other users of the system. See Video
  
• Using data visualization gadget - These gadgets allows you to visualize your data as charts, gauges, tables and crosstab. See Video
  
• Data selection gadgets - These gadgets let you source input parameter data from BIRT Objects and present it in the form of lists, combo box, check box, radio button, slider, calendar etc. You can have other gadgets to update information based on selections made in these gadgets. See Video
  
• Parameter gadget - This gadget displays parameter as a new selector gadget and is derived directly from the parameters defined in BIRT report. See Video
  
• Import third party gadgets - BIRT 360 is a browser based zero foot print application based on the popular Google Gadget framework that enables it to leverage third party Google Gadgets to create mashup applications. See Video
  
• Mashup gadgets - You can link gadgets in the dashboard with other gadgets and create compelling visualizations. See Video
  
• Interact with a gadget - You can maximize the gadget to interactively analyze and modify BIRT reports within the browser environment. See Video

Download a free evaluation copy of Actuate 11 and get a 360 degree view of your data in dashboard.

Ashwini Verma