Customer Reviews

Business Objects XI: Web Intelligence XI Course

5 star:		(4)
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1 star:		(2)

 

 

It really doesn't get better than this folks! I'm so impressed with this Web Intelligence XI Course. It is a very clear and concise approach to learning a tool that can be very complicated for some. I've had a few years of experience developing analytical reports using other tools and I've never learned so much about report development in such a short period of time and without having to spend a lot of money. The reason I purchased this course is precisely because I needed to learn the tool within a week of an upcoming project. I didn't want to deal with having to read through cumbersome 2-inch+ hard to read manuals that are out there. The Web Intelligence XI course in this book doesn't just teach you how to create reports but it also covers best practice in dealing with real business scenarios. I am a lot more confident working in the upcoming project than I was a week ago.

The reading in combination with the video tutorials is like having a personal trainer next to you...but it's even better than that. For instance, if there was a particular task that I wasn't too clear on or was having problems figuring out, I just instantly set the video back to go over the task as many times as I needed.

I also took advantage of playing with the actual tool the author has available as an optional service. For an additional fee, the author, Robert Schmidt, has setup an online sever where individuals can actually use the Web Intelligence XI product online just as one would us it at their workplace but from home. Because BusinessObjects XI is an expensive enterprise software that requires professional installation and configuration, it's usually not feasible for one to have it readily available (unless you have access of the tool from work or other means). Having access to the tool from home has been of great benefit for me to acquire the hands-on experience of the product. To tell you the truth, the benefits of using the actual thing are priceless. I feel that having access to the WEBI is a wonderful added value to the training manual. The videos in the CD are fabulous but being able to actually get the hands-on experience and understanding and going over the smallest little details are priceless. Overall, I would highly recommend the use of this course for individuals needing to learn Web Intelligence XI in a short period of time. As I mentioned before, I know it would have taken me a lot longer to learn this application if I had been using some other form of reference.

I bought this book hoping that it would help me to learn Business Objects XI. This book has plenty of helpful examples. Many of the examples are supported by videos that came on the CD. The videos have to be access through a presentation, which was a little awkward. I later found a way to access the videos directly on the CD by opening them in the Videos directory. The presentation looked good, but I think I won't use it, maybe someone could teach a class with it. I do not own Business Objects, but I was still able to practice with the examples on Schmidt Ink's web site. For $40, I can use the site for one day. This was very helpful and worth the money. Buying this book was a good experience for me and I would recommend it to anyone to learn Business Objects.

Our company is in the process of upgrading to BusinessObjects XI. I gained valuable BusinessObjects information from a previous book that I purchased by Robert D. Schmidt, so I thought I would purchase another book to help me with the learning curve of a new version. The best part about the book is the database that is provided to help the user work through the key concepts that are covered in the book. As in the first book that I read, this book also offers valuable tips and explanations that people in our company do not have the time to share. I would recommend this book to any level of BusinessObjects user. I had a question about one of the exercises, so I thought I would email the author to try to gain clear understanding. I received a personal, prompt response from the author within the same business day! I was very impressed with the author's commitment to help his readers gain as much as possible from his books.

Do not be fooled by the other reviews. They are written by the author and the publishing company. This book contained print outs of a powerpoint slide presentation. That is all. Extremely vague. Powerpoint presentation appeared to be a last minute task by the author.
This book is NOT for beginners, Intermediate, or Advanced Crystal Report Writers. It is good to help my firewood burn faster or get my charcoal BBQ started. Nothing else. Stay away.

It shortened my learning curve.
The lessons in movie format on the companion CD are so efficient !
Heard the same author is about to publish a Universe Toturial, hope it has the same format. It will be the first book focus on universe.

What impressed me is Robert's teaching/presentation skills, he knows how to make thinks look easy.

Thanks Robert for sharing your BO intelligence with us !

I was very disappointed with this book.

I was overwhelmed while reading of the feeling that someone who may know this topic well, had spent an afternoon dictating and transcribing his lecture into a word document then shipped it off to a publisher hungry to have SOMETHING on the subject available to potential buyers.

The sheer number of poorly worded phrases, incorrect spellings, and outright unclear thoughts was staggering.

If you're looking for a book which has 1/2 the page taken up with a slide from a power point presentation, and then a few sentences describing the slide (in many places, nearly verbatim reading the slide), this might indeed be the book for you. I, however, have wasted money and valuable time with this poor choice.