If you or your colleagues are spending time updating spreadsheets with the latest data, you should download and try out the free BIRT Spreadsheet Designer (formerly known as Actuate e.Spreadsheet Designer). In the webinar we discuss and demonstrate how this free of charge product can help you automate the tedious task of updating Excel spreadsheets with the latest data, thus not only saving your time for more important tasks, but also eliminating the errors associated with handcrafting spreadsheets. For more info: http://www.actuate.com/resources/assets/?articleid=19215

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Actuate Corporation © 2008
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Actuate Corporation © 2008
Mihail Mihaylov, Actuate Corporation
Pierre Richer, Actuate Corporation
Save Your Time and Eliminate Headaches:
Automate Spreadsheet
Production with the Free
BIRT Spreadsheet
Designer

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Actuate Corporation © 2008
Agenda
Automate Spreadsheet Production with the Free BIRT Spreadsheet Designer
• Pervasiveness of Excel
• Challenges with handcrafted
spreadsheets
• Demo – the BIRT Spreadsheet Designer
advantage
• Benefits
• Deployment options
• Questions and Answers

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Actuate Corporation © 2008
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Actuate Corporation © 2008
Excel - World’s most popular BI tool
• 400+ million Excel users
- Gartner, Forrester, Microsoft
• 57% of report consumers prefer to
receive reports in Excel
- Forrester
Spreadsheets drive business processes
• Budget Variance, Period Close,
Commissions etc.
• 50% to 80% of enterprises use
standalone spreadsheets for critical
applications
- Forrester
Excel Spreadsheets are Used Everywhere
… and on the Increase
Excel is here to stay!
Excel will be used more
and more at the tactical
and operational levels for
reporting and analysis
Forrester

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Actuate Corporation © 2008
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Actuate Corporation © 2008
The Many Issues with Manual Excel Reports
“Previously, getting the
project summaries took up
to four days just to get
information to the finance
people. It could be two
weeks before the relevant
information was fed to the
individual project
managers – half way
through the new month!”
Atkins Corp
88% of business critical
spreadsheets have errors
Prof. Raymond Panko
Database
Cut and
paste or
import as
CSV
Manually
created and
updated
Emailed
Decision Makers
Spreadsheet
Creation/Update
Emailed

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Actuate Corporation © 2008
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Actuate Corporation © 2008
Product Demonstration
Save Your Time and Eliminate Headaches
Real World Example
Automating Spreadsheet Production
with the BIRT Spreadsheet Designer

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Actuate Corporation © 2008
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Actuate Corporation © 2008
BIRT Spreadsheet Generates
Amazing Spreadsheets
Cell locking
Pivot tables
Data filters
3D live charts down
across
3-D matrix workbooks
VBA
macro
support

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Actuate Corporation © 2008
Benefits
Free BIRT Spreadsheet Designer
Saves Time - Eliminates Errors - Easy to Use - Free

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Actuate Corporation © 2008
Benefits
Free BIRT Spreadsheet Designer
Saves Time - Eliminates Errors - Easy to Use - Free
• No more time wasted updating
spreadsheets with the latest data
• Automates even the most complex
spreadsheets

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Actuate Corporation © 2008
Benefits
Free BIRT Spreadsheet Designer
Saves Time - Eliminates Errors - Easy to Use - Free
• No more time wasted updating
spreadsheets with the latest data
• Automates even the most complex
spreadsheets
• Report design abstraction separates
Excel logic from data

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Actuate Corporation © 2008
Benefits
Free BIRT Spreadsheet Designer
Saves Time - Eliminates Errors - Easy to Use - Free
• No more time wasted updating
spreadsheets with the latest data
• Automates even the most complex
spreadsheets
• Report design abstraction separates
Excel logic from data
• Excel-like and approachable by any
skilled Excel user

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Actuate Corporation © 2008
Benefits
Free BIRT Spreadsheet Designer
Saves Time - Eliminates Errors - Easy to Use - Free
• No more time wasted updating
spreadsheets with the latest data
• Automates even the most complex
spreadsheets
• Report design abstraction separates
Excel logic from data
• Excel-like and approachable by any
skilled Excel user
• Available as free download. Can be used
indefinitely by any number of users

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Actuate Corporation © 2008
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Actuate Corporation © 2008
Sharing Reports
Actuate web interface
Custom web app with
links to BIRT
Spreadsheet reports

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Actuate Corporation © 2008
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Actuate Corporation © 2008
Flexible Deployment Options for Any App
Embedded Enterprise ReportingWorkgroup Reporting
BIRT iServer
Express
BIRT Spreadsheet
Engine
BIRT
Deployment Kit
BIRT
iServer
BIRT Information Console (Actuate Web Interface)

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Actuate Corporation © 2008
How to Get Started
Website:
www.actuate.com/spreadsheetreporting
• Product Information
• Download of Free BIRT Spreadsheet Designer
• Trial Downloads of Deployment Products
• Demos
• Tutorials
• Forums
• Documentation
• Examples
• Analyst White Papers
• Customer Case Studies
Learn more now
For more information
or to schedule a
demo, contact
Actuate:
info@actuate.com
sales@actuate.com
Phone
1-800-914-2259