Impromptu Admin 7.1 on W2K - can't create queries

[DrSimon]

I've been trying to install Impromptu 7.1 Admin on a Windows 2K PC. As far as I can see it's the most recent build (7.1.339.0). I can open catalogs and run existing reports but if I open the Query window, my PC just hangs. I've uninstalled and reinstalled twice and tried another PC; I've used our own catalogs on a server and also the Cognos sample catalog on the local drive but it makes no difference. Anyone else seen this and solved it?
Simon Rouse

 

[drlex]

Simon,
I've not seen this behaviour before, but wonder if it might relate to access/configuration manager. Have you fully set and applied the relevant configuration on the PC?
lex

 

[flex13]

What type of video driver/ graphics card are you using?

 

[CognosProfessional]

Simon,
I had this same problem, and it was just that the printer wasn't connected on the server. Details...

This behavior may be caused by the setting for the default printer not being
set, or if the default printer has been changed and is no longer available.
In the control panel set up a default printer and restart Impromptu. Retry.

Try using a different printer driver; when in page layout, print preview or
printing a report it is the printer driver that controls what you see.

To determine if the current printer driver is causing this issue, perform
the following steps:

1. In the Control Panel, open Printers
2. Add the Generic Text Only Printer Driver
3. Mark it as the default printer driver
4. Open Impromptu
5. try the report and hotfile.

It it does not error, it could be the default printer driver you have set.

CP

 

[DrSimon]

Thanks Folks. For once the Cognos helpdesk came up trumps with this, but I don't understand why. You need to have a local printer defined. I have multiple printers defined but only one was 'local' (on a TCP/IP port), however it wasn't the default. When I made it default the problem disappeared. If Cognos let me know the reason for this I'll post it.
Simon Rouse

 

[DrSimon]

Thanks CognosProfessional - our messages crossed over and you were right. Here is the reply from Cognos to my request for an explanation:
The default for a report is page layout (view) and therefore Impromptu looks for a printer driver.
Isn't really a problem once the reports are created.
There is a problem, even if the default printer is set, if the network printer is unavailable.
This doesn't really explain why the code checks for the printer that early in the process. But for all that Cognos produce a pretty good set of tools compared to some others and I suppose we have to live with minor difficulties.
Simon Rouse

 

[griffindm]

Simon,

The underlying problem is the Impromtpu is very much a WYSIWYG development tool and relies greatly on the fonts and driver of the computer's printer in order to predict how the report will appear. If you have no printer defined, or the printer is unavailable, a series of less than desireable effects become clear.

This can also cause problems when you develop a report for a particular printer and then someone else runs the report without that printer defined on their computer. The results can include having columns wrap over to extra pages laterally, as well as poor choices for font substitution.

Regards,

Dave Griffin


The Decision Support Group
Reporting Consulting with Cognos BI Tools
"Magic with Data"
Want good answers? Read FAQ401-2487 first!

http://www.decisionsupportgroup.com

 

[DrSimon]

Yes Dave, I accept that in a WYSIWYG environment a driver needs to be defined for the reasons you give. However why does it have to be available? If the driver itself is accessible, so is the WYSIWYG information. The problem would obviously arise when trying to print, but why should that stop you creating, running and saving a report? After all, the printer is only one of the many possible Impromptu output devices. I don't IWR (yet) - does that suffer from the same restriction? Even the much maligned Microsoft software works without this restriction.
Anyhow, thanks as always for your comments
Regards
Simon Rouse

 

[benbotektips]

As a corrolary, I got zapped by the printer problem, on another issue. My .imr reports would slow down to a crawl, a query that used to take a minute would take an hour. After several unsuccessful fixes, I noticed the printer driver was slightly a different version than the printer I had set up. I uninstalled the printer, re-installed with the EXACT driver from the HP website, and <Presto>, .imr running back to normal. If your .imr starts misbehaving suddenly, apparently the printer & driver are the 1st places to look.

 

[DrSimon]

That's very interesting benbotektips. Thanks