Last week IBM issued the 10.1 release of Cognos TM1, its Windows-based in-memory OLAP database. This new release has serval new features that will help users to get more out of large and/or complex data sets.
The software, which was previously developed by Applix, features a 64-bit in-memory database that is very good at consolidating, viewing, and editing enormous volumes of multidimensional data, particularly data used for budgeting, forecasting, and performance analysis. IBM obtained TM1 five years ago in its $5 billion acquisition of Cognos.
With version 10.1, IBM has added a new desktop client called Cognos Insight (do not confuse with Business Insight) that facilitates data exploration and collaboration among groups of users. The software presents a drag-and-drop dashboard interface that allows users to explore the data from their reports or spreadsheets. Data that's manipulated by the users are translated back into OLAP members automatically. IBM introduced Cognos Insight with last fall's release of Cognos 10, and shipped the software earlier this month.
Other new features include a new performance modeler, better management of the TM1 environment through its operations console, a more distributed architecture for better scalability and interactivity, better conformance to Dimensionally Modeled Relational (DMR) and non-DMR models, and expanded language support. Worth a try!