This document summarizes the Q&A portion of a webinar on the new features in Cognos 11.1.6. Questions covered topics like which version will be long term support, whether R is supported, requirements for processing capacity, plans for a mobile app, and availability of new table and cross tab features. The responses provide details on Cognos roadmap and plans, supported capabilities in 11.1.6, and best practices for certain features.

1. Q&A: Cognos 11.1.6
New Features Demo
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This slide deck is from the webinar Cognos 11.1.6 New
Features Demo
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4. Cognos 11.1.6 New Features Demo Q/A
4
Q: Any idea which 11.1.x version will end up as the IBM long-term support
release?
A: IBM is targeting an early Q3, 2020 release of 11.1.7 for long-term support.
Q: Is R supported in Cognos 11.1.6?
A: Yes, the R runtime will just be another feature in the existing Jupyter
support.
Q: Compared to Cognos 11.0.11, does 11.1.6 require more processing
capacity?
A: The sizing used for Cognos 11.0.11 should still be relevant for sizing
11.1.6. Some of the new services are more memory intensive, so more
memory is better on the report server instances.

5. Cognos 11.1.6 New Features Demo Q/A
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Q: Is a Cognos mobile app on the horizon?
A: Yes, the mobile app is targeted for Cognos 11.1.7, which should be
sometime in early Q3, 2020.
Q: Are the new table and cross tabs in Cognos 11.1.6 available in dashboards
or reports or both?
A: The new table and cross tab controls are available in both reporting and
dashboard.
Q: Is the expand and collapse feature available in Report Studio in Cognos
11.1.6?
A: Yes

6. Cognos 11.1.6 New Features Demo Q/A
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Q: Where do I access the data table, Excel or report?
A: In the demo we show a list control in a report; however, the data can come
from any supported source.
Q: Am I able export to Excel using the data tables in Cognos 11.1.6?
A: No, the new data table doesn't export to Excel or PDF in this initial release
because it's a JavaScript based object which requires a browser to render
technically. Going forward, IBM has put server-side rendering of this data table
as a high priority. This includes output to PDF and Excel and maintain
expand/collapse that gets converted to a native Excel expand/collapse feature.
It will be a large amount of work which may not fit within a single release.
Q: Is the data table available in dashboard in Cognos 11.1.6?
A: Yes.

7. Cognos 11.1.6 New Features Demo Q/A
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Q: Does the browser side caching refer to the user’s local machine memory
in Cognos 11.1.6?
A: Yes, this means that the data set for the controls will be downloaded and
cached on the client machine in the browser cache.
Q: We would like fast interactive dashboards, what would you recommend
we use, data modules, Dynamic Cubes, Power Cubes or Active Reports?
A: IBM has no plans to drop support for Framework Manager; however, its
investment is in data modules. Most modeling tasks can be done in data
modules. IBM is working on closing the last few remaining gaps between FM
and data modules. The browser side caching in the demo should help the
responsiveness when you are interacting with the visualizations.

8. Cognos 11.1.6 New Features Demo Q/A
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Q: Our vendors are suppling us APIs to get to our data. Cognos cannot
create a connection to an API. Is there anything on the IBM roadmap to
change this?
A: IBM is adding support to connect to a REST endpoint as a data source.
This is targeted for Cognos 11.1.7.
Q: Is Salesforce as a data server supported in Cognos 11.1.6?
A: Salesforce as a data source is supported on-premise today. It is targeted
to be supported on Cloud in Q3, 2020.
Q: In the demo, is OLAP the cube source?
A: Yes.

9. Cognos 11.1.6 New Features Demo Q/A
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Q: What is the release date for Cognos 11.1.7?
A: IBM is targeting the release for early Q3, 2020.
Q: When will it be possible to expand/collapse the navigation paths in data
modules?
A: This will be available in Cognos 11.1.7.
Q: Are there any changes in the admin console or Framework Manager in
Cognos 11.1.6?
A: There are no significant changes to Administration and there are no
changes at all to Framework Manager.
Q: Does the expand/collapse in Cognos 11.1.6 work with Dynamic Cubes?
A: Yes, it will work for any supported OLAP source.

10. Cognos 11.1.6 New Features Demo Q/A
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Q: Does the AI assistant work for Power Cubes data source and packages
CQM or DQM or only with data modules in Cognos 11.1.6?
A: Currently, the conversation assistant works for relational packages and data
modules. IBM is working on extending it to support OLAP and DMR sources as
well.
Q: Does the AI assistant feature for create a dashboard in Cognos 11.1.6 look
at a user's access and present data that the user has access to?
A: Yes, the conversation assistant will always honor the permissions and
access rights granted to the user.
Q: is it possible to apply conditional formatting (also hide) to a footer/header in
the data table in Cognos 11.1.6?
A: This is possible in reporting, but not yet in dashboard.

11. Cognos 11.1.6 New Features Demo Q/A
11
Q: Are there new features for data modules when moving content between
UAT and production in Cognos 11.1.6?
A: No, there are no new features moving content between UAT and production.
Q: On the Cognos 11.1.6 AI, if I log off and then log back in a week later will it
display what I had when I logged out?
A: No, the ML is not session specific.
Q: Can data modules be created from SQL object (hand-written SQL)?
A: Yes, a table can be created in a module using a hand coded SQL statement.
Q: Is Jupyter Notebooks supported on Microsoft servers?
A: Yes, Jupyter Notebooks are supported on Windows 10.

12. Cognos 11.1.6 New Features Demo Q/A
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Q: Can Cognos 111.6 use SPSS as a data source?
A: There is a capability in SPSS to export a table and generate a Framework
Manager package. Beyond that, you could generate a CSV file of an output
from SPSS and use that as an input to Cognos.
Q: Does Cognos 11.1.6 have integration with Infosphere IGC (similar to WKC)?
A: Yes, IBM still supports business glossary and lineage for reports.
Q: Are there plans to add more control of whitespace, text sizing and other
formatting options to the existing widgets in dashboard in Cognos 11.1.6? We
find that many of the widgets require a lot of space to be useful with our data.
A: Yes, IBM continues to improve the overall authoring experience in
dashboard with every release.

13. Cognos 11.1.6 New Features Demo Q/A
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Q: Have AI improvements been made in Cognos 11.1.6?
A: Yes, IBM continues to make ongoing performance improvements to this
process.
Q: Can we add our own custom content in the IBM Knowledge Center
besides what ships with Cognos 11.1.6?
A: This is not available in 11.1.6, but IBM is exploring this feature.
Q: Is it possible for me to see a report preview in Cognos 11.1.6?
A: There is a live authoring mode in report that will show what everything will
look like as it is being built.
Q: What is the difference between the Users and Explore licenses?
A: The Explore license gives you reporting.

14. Cognos 11.1.6 New Features Demo Q/A
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Q: Does Cognos 11.1.6 have parameterized filtering in dashboard?
A: No, phase one of parameterized prompts is coming to data modules in
Cognos 11.1.7.
Q: How difficult is the upgrade from a prior Cognos 11.1 version to Cognos
11.1.6?
A: The move from 11.x to this 11.1.6 version should be very
straightforward.
Q: Does the data table expand/collapse functionality in Cognos 11.1.6
support Excel format?
A: Currently this is not supported in Excel outputs. However, you can use
Excel sheets as a data source for reports and dashboards.

15. Cognos 11.1.6 New Features Demo Q/A
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Q: Are there any feature or support changes for Active Reports and Power
Cubes in Cognos 11.1.6?
A: No, there are no changes for either Active Reports or Power Cubes.
Q: Is there a slider widget in the Active Reports dashboard of Cognos 11.1.6?
A: No. However, this has been logged as an enhancement request. IBM
recommends you add your vote to the request so that the priority can be
raised.
Q: Will the slides for this presentation be available on the Senturus website?
A: Yes, you can download the presentation from our website at
https://senturus.com/resources/cognos-11-1-6-new-feature-demos/. You can
also get the recording and answers to all the question on the same page.

16. See the demos
To view the video recording and download the slide
deck go to https://senturus.com/resources/cognos-11-1-6-
new-feature-demos/
Visit our website to access our library of free BI
knowledge resources including events, blogs, demos,
whitepapers, other on-demand webinars and our
dashboard gallery https://senturus.com/senturus-
resources/
16

17. Cognos 11.1.6 New Features Demo Q/A
17
Q: Is Red Hat 8 supported in Cognos 11.1.6?
A: Yes.
Q: Are there any updates to printing a multi-tab dashboard in Cognos 11.1.6?
Can dashboards be scheduled to update, saved as a PDF and be emailed?
A: No, dashboards are meant to be interactive, so there is no capability to
schedule them. For cases where scheduled outputs are required, we would
recommend using a report.
Q: Is it possible to show/hid and customize the look of a filter dock in Cognos
11.1.6?
A: The filter dock will still be at the top of the screen, but you will have the
option to hide it by default. IBM is looking at ways to allow users to customize
the look of the filter dock.

18. Cognos 11.1.6 New Features Demo Q/A
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Q: Are there any changes in CAFE in Cognos 11.1.6?
A: No.
Q: Is Watson Explorer included in the Cognos 11.1.6 license?
A: No, IBM is not embedding Watson Explorer in this release.
Q: Is AI available for Framework Manager packages (including DMR) and not
only for data modules in Cognos 11.1.6?
A: The AI conversation assistant will work with relational FM packages. DMR is
coming along with OLAP.
Q: Can we conditionally render a column in the data table in Cognos 11.1.6?
A: Not yet, this is targeted for the Cognos 11.1.7.

19. Cognos 11.1.6 New Features Demo Q/A
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Q: Do AI features exist in languages other than English in Cognos
11.1.6?
A: The conversation assistant is English only at this point. IBM is working
on extending this to additional languages. The natural language
generation capabilities and predictive capabilities are available in all
supported languages.
Q: Will Framework Manager still be supported in Cognos 11.1.6 or will
we need to migrate to data modules?
A: IBM has no plans to drop support for Framework Manager and your
packages will still be supported. For new projects, we recommend you
use data modules.

20. Cognos 11.1.6 New Features Demo Q/A
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Q: What are the pros and cons to upgrading to 11.1.6 if we’re on-prem
compared to Cognos cloud?
A: All the new features shown in the webinar are available on-premise as
well as on cloud. The best deployment option for your organization will
depend on your use cases and requirements. Cloud is a great
deployment option and can allow you to spin up new projects quickly.
Q: Are there any updates to the ability to use non-standard/custom maps
in Cognos 11.1.6?
A: For geographical maps, the out-of-the-box Mapbox capabilities is what
is supported. For non-geographical maps, or schematics, those are
available in dashboard and reports as of Cognos 11.1.6.

21. Cognos 11.1.6 New Features Demo Q/A
21
Q: What are the pros and cons to upgrading to 11.1.6 if we’re on-prem
compared to Cognos cloud?
A: All the new features are available on-premise and cloud. The best
deployment option depends on your use cases and requirements. Cloud is a
great deployment option and can allow you to spin up new projects quickly.
Q: Are there any updates to the ability to use non-standard/custom maps in
Cognos 11.1.6?
A: For geographical maps, the out-of-the-box Mapbox capabilities is what is
supported. For non-geographical maps, or schematics, those are available in
dashboard and reports as of Cognos 11.1.6.
Q: Is object security available in Cognos 11.1.6?
A: Yes.

22. Cognos 11.1.6 New Features Demo Q/A
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Q: Do we need to migrate to data modules soon?
A: IBM has no plans to ask users to migrate their existing packages to
data modules.
Q: Is there a way for us to automate a schedule refresh to uploaded Excel
files using Jupyter Notebooks?
A: You can schedule a Jupyter Notebook to execute a project, but there is
no way today to schedule the refresh of an uploaded file from a local
workstation.
Q: When will it be possible to use report(s) or report queries as a data
source in dashboards?
A: IBM would like to know there is a need, so let them know you are
interested by logging an RFE.

23. Cognos 11.1.6 New Features Demo Q/A
23
Q: What version of Python and R package support is available in Cognos
11.1.6, can we update the packages?
A: A complete list of supported platforms and versions for Cognos 11.1.6 is
at:
https://www.ibm.com/software/reports/compatibility/clarity-
reports/report/html/prereqsForProduct?deliverableId=F01712C041ED11E
A818B9B5C0D21C36D#sw-7
Q: Does Cognos 11.1.6 (or 11.1.7) install cleanly over 11.0.13?
A: Yes, you can install Cognos 11.1.6 over Cognos 11.0.13.
Q: Does data table in report in Cognos 11.1.6 support data modules?
A: Yes, you should be able to use any supported data source.

24. Cognos 11.1.6 New Features Demo Q/A
24
Q: Can we add custom visualizations to the dashboard in Cognos 11.1.6?
A: Yes, you can add custom visualizations to dashboards.
Q: Are there any improvements for downloading a dashboard to PDF?
A: Yes, IBM has made performance improvements to downloading a dashboard
to PDF.
Q: Does Cognos 11.1.6 support report directly from a data set?
A: You would need to create a data module for the data set.
Q: Are there plans to decommission Dynamic Cubes?
A: Dynamic Cubes are still supported; IBM has no immediate plans to enhance
them.

25. Cognos 11.1.6 New Features Demo Q/A
25
Q: Can we connect to Azure DevOps Server in Cognos 11.1.6?
A: A complete list of supported data sources for Cognos 11.1.6 is at:
https://www.ibm.com/software/reports/compatibility/clarity-
reports/report/html/prereqsForProduct?deliverableId=F01712C041ED11EA818
B9B5C0D21C36D#sw-7
Q: Can we do OData query as a data source in Cognos 11.1.6?
A: Not yet, this is a roadmap item, so expect to see it in the future.
Q: Are there any enhancements for Active reports in Cognos 11.1.6?
A: There are no changes to Active Reports in this release.
Q: is Event Studio still supported in Cognos 11.1.6?
A: Yes, Event Studio is still supported.

26. Cognos 11.1.6 New Features Demo Q/A
26
Q: When will crosstabs be able to expand/collapse?
A: No date has been set yet, but it’s on the roadmap.
Q: Is Query Studio supported in Cognos 11.1.6?
A: Query Studio is still supported. IBM plans to deprecate Query Studio at some
point in the future and will provide plenty of notice before doing so.
Q: Since Cognos 11.1.7 will be a lift-time support version does that mean the
next version after that will be Cognos 11.2?
A: Yes, 11.1.7 will be the last release in the 11.1 stream. IBM hasn’t decided
what the next version numbering will be.
Q: Is there a predictive analytics tool in Cognos 11.1.6?
A: IBM added forecasting to dashboard in 11.1.4 so it is available in 11.1.6 too.

27. Cognos 11.1.6 New Features Demo Q/A
27
Q: Can we integrate Azure SQL Server with Cognos 11.1.6 integration?
A: A complete list of supported data sources for 11.1.6 is at:
https://www.ibm.com/software/reports/compatibility/clarity-
reports/report/html/prereqsForProduct?deliverableId=F01712C041ED11EA818
B9B5C0D21C36D#sw-7
Q: Is there a recommended amount of RAM or CPU for Cognos 11.1.6?
A: There is a sizing guide available for download from the Cognos Analytics
community. In terms of memory, 16 GB is the minimum requirement, but 32 GB
would be recommended for heavier workloads. With the exception of the client
tools (Framework Manager) all of the capabilities in Cognos are accessed via
the browser. Therefore, any standard workstation or laptop with a supported
browser is sufficient to use Cognos. All processing is done on the server slide
or at the database itself, not on the client side.

28. Cognos 11.1.6 New Features Demo Q/A
28
Q: Is Active Reports still available in 11.1.6? Will Active Reports be
eventually deprecated?
A: Yes, Active Reports is still supported in 11.1.6. IBM is working on a
replacement for Active Reports and the MHT file format.
Q: On which release we can expect web service as a data source?
A: IBM is adding support to connect to a REST endpoint as a data source,
it is targeted for 11.1.7, Q3, 2020.
Q: Does the roadmap for Cognos 11.1.6 include bringing in data
quality/score, like what we have in Watson Analytics?
A: Yes, this is on the roadmap.

29. Cognos 11.1.6 New Features Demo Q/A
29
Q: When will data sets become more robust to support multiple queries and
filters?
A: IBM recommends logging an RFE for this to ensure it is aware of the
desired use cases.
Q: Can custom visualizations be exported to PDF in Cognos 11.1.6?
A: Not currently, but this is planned for a future release.
Q: Is IBM planning to roll out a custom ML model that we can create and train
our users for?
A: IBM has no immediate plans to let users bring their custom ML models
directly into the Cognos. However, it will continue to strengthen the integration
with Jupyter Notebooks and Watson Studio to allow users to use work they
have done in those platforms.

30. Cognos 11.1.6 New Features Demo Q/A
30
Q: Is there support for editing a portlet (10.2) in future releases?
A: You can edit portal page portlets today using the legacy administration
interface that is still in the box with Cognos 11.1.6. IBM has no plans to
enhance that functionality as it is included strictly for backward compatibility
purposes.
Q: Is it possible to export to Excel in Cognos 11.1.6?
A: Yes, reports can be exported in Excel.
Q: Are there plans to include the ability to export to Excel with Pivot tables in
the future?
A: IBM recommends you log an RFE for this.

31. See the demos
To view the video recording and download the slide
deck go to https://senturus.com/resources/cognos-11-1-6-
new-feature-demos/
Visit our website to access our library of free BI
knowledge resources including events, blogs, demos,
whitepapers, other on-demand webinars and our
dashboard gallery https://senturus.com/senturus-
resources/
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