Setting up a Multilingual Reporting Environment

You can create reports that show data in more than one language and use different regional settings. This means that you can create one report that can be used by report consumers anywhere in the world.

The samples databases provided with IBM® Cognos® software store a selection of text fields, such as names and descriptions, in more than 25 languages to demonstrate a multilingual reporting environment.

Here is the process for creating a multilingual reporting environment:

• Use multilingual metadata.

  The data source administrator can store multilingual data in either individual tables, rows, or columns.

• Create a multilingual model.

  Modelers use Framework Manager to add multilingual metadata to the model from any data source type except OLAP. They add multilingual metadata by defining which languages the model supports, translating text strings in the model for things such as object names and descriptions, and defining which languages are exported in each package. If the data source contains multilingual data, modelers can define queries that retrieve data in the default language for the report user.

  For more information, see the IBM Cognos Framework Manager User Guide.

• Create multilingual maps.

  Administrators and modelers use a Microsoft Windows operating system utility named Map Manager to import maps and update labels for maps in Report Studio. For map features such as country or region and city names, administrators and modelers can define alternative names to provide multilingual versions of text that appears on the map.

  For more information, see the IBM Cognos Map Manager Installation and User Guide.

• Create a multilingual report.

  The report author uses Report Studio to create a report that can be viewed in different languages. For example, you can specify that text, such as the title, appears in German when the report is opened by a German user. You can also add translations for text objects, and create other language-dependent objects.

  For more information, see the IBM Cognos Report Studio User Guide.

• Specify the language in which a report is viewed.

  You can use IBM Cognos Connection to do the following:

  • Define multilingual properties, such as a name, screen tip, and description, for each entry in the portal.
  • Specify the default language to be used when a report is run.

    Tip: You can specify the default language on the run options page, in the report properties, or in your preferences.

  • Specify a language, other than the default, to be used when a report is run.

  For more information, see the IBM Cognos Connection User Guide.

The data then appears in the language and with the regional settings specified in

• the user's Web browser options
• the run options
• the IBM Cognos Connection preferences

Any text that users or authors add appears in the language in which they typed it.