New Features of SQL Server 2014 Data Explorer ForExcel

Data Explorer is a new feature in SQL Server 2014 that will be released soon. With this feature, self-help business intelligence in enterprises will become more flexible and thus lower the threshold for business intelligence.

Data Explorer Preview for Excel provides a new way for self-service Business Intelligence to discover, integrate, and extract Data. If you are still unfamiliar with it, the following five points will show you how to improve your data processing methods in Excel.

With Data Explorer, you can:

1. Data discovery

Data Explorer introduces the concept of Data retrieval in Excel (not a simple document search. In other words, you can search for public data in Excel. In Excel, you can obtain rich and interactive data. After you find the desired data, you can import the data to your Excel Workbook by simply clicking the mouse.

The following is an Excel file for retrieving data about "the largest city in Europe.

2. Extensive data source connections

Data Explorer supports connections to many Data sources, including simple text Data and complicated Hadoop Data.

Text data includes:

• Text based sources (plain Text, CSV)

• XML

• Excel files

• Access Database

• Folders (treats files in a folder as a table)

• Webpage data sources support:

• Tables on the webpage

• Web APIs/JSON

• OData

Relational engine, including:

• SQL Server, Windows Azure SQL Database, and SQL Server PDW

• Oracle

• Teradata

• DB2

• MySQL

• PostgreSQL

Other data sources, including:

• Windows Azure Marketplace

• SharePoint Lists

• Active Directory

• Hadoop

• Windows Azure HDInsight

• Facebook

More data sources will be added to the official team later. If you want to obtain support for a data source, you can contact the official team directly.

3. Merge data from multiple data sources

Data Explorer makes Data integration between different Data sources easier. The following shows how to integrate product tables in OData feed with supplier Data tables from text files.

4. More efficient data sorting and conversion

In Data Explorer, it is easy to organize Data and derive new Data based on existing Data. All of this can be achieved through simple split and sort operations, and more complex operations, such as reverse perspective, can be achieved through a few simple click operations.

With the UI operation, you can achieve most conversions. You can also use the Data Explorer Language to make full use of the powerful functions and expressiveness of Data Explorer.

The following describes how to convert data through menus in the UI operation table. The following public area allows you to reference formulas and write custom expressions.

5. Refresh data at any time

Data Explorer query is a simple expression. You can import Data from the Data source and organize the Data through several simple steps. This means that these queries can be refreshed in real time as needed. There is a link on the query Panel, through which you can update the data in your workbook to the latest.

Let's take a look at Data Explorer. I also think that you will like it. If you have any questions or feedback, you can also browse the Data Explorer forum in addition to leaving a message below:

Http://social.msdn.microsoft.com/Forums/window