OlapCube

OlapCube is a software that provides a simple and powerful solution for data analysis. The tool allows users to create local cubes, which are files with .cub extension, from data stored in relational databases including MySQL, PostgreSQL, Microsoft Access, SQL aServer, SQL Server Express, Oracle, and Oracle Express. With OlapCube Reader, you can explore the resulting cube or utilize Microsoft Excel to create rich, customized reports.

The OLAP cube, which consists of numeric facts called measures that are categorized by dimensions, is a data structure that enables fast analysis of data. This arrangement overcomes a limitation of relational databases which are not suitable for instantaneous analysis and display of large amounts of data. While it excels in recording transactions, report-writing tools for such databases are slow when summarizing the entire database. OLAP cubes act as extensions to the two-dimensional array of a spreadsheet, enhancing data analysis processes by various dimensions.

For instance, a company could analyze financial data by product, time-period, city, type of revenue and cost, and actual data versus a budget. Each of these additional methods of analyzing data are known as dimensions, and could be summarized using a hierarchy. A financial analyst seeking to pivot data could display cities down the page and all products across the page, as well as identify trends for a specific period, version, and type of expenditure. In turn, parent-child relationships consolidate members under parent classifications, which are aggregated by another parent. Simply put, May 2005 could be summarized into Second Quarter 2005, which would then be aggregated under the Year 2005.

Overall, OlapCube provides a valuable software solution for data analysis with its ease of use, ability to generate flexible and customized reports, and efficient handling of relational databases.