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Creating a master measure by typing the expression

When you are working with an app, you can create master measures so that they can be reused. You can add complex expressions by typing the expression into the expression editor.

  1. Click Edit Edit sheet in the toolbar.

    The assets panel opens on the left-hand side.

  2. Click Master items.

  3. After Measures, click Create new.

  4. Click Expression in the Expression field to open the Add expression dialog.

  5. Type the expression directly in the expression editor (the main window).

    The field names you use in the expression are checked, and the syntax of the expression is validated.

    Tip noteAs you type in the expression editor, the expression is validated continuously. If there is an error, you see a hint about what is incorrect in the lower left-hand corner. Additional error information may be available by clicking the icon next to the hint.

    Each line in the expression editor is numbered and syntax highlighting is used.

    Tip noteYou can open the online help with the full description of how to use the current function by double-clicking the function name in the expression editor and pressing Ctrl+H on the keyboard. This feature becomes available after having entered the first parenthesis of the expression after the function name, and only when using a computer with a keyboard.
  6. Click Apply to close the Add expression dialog.

    Now you need to add some descriptive data for the measure.

  7. Type a name for the measure.

  8. Type a description for the measure (optional).

    If you do not add a description and then link a glossary term to your master item as a definition, the term definition will be used in the description.

  9. If you want to specify a color, click Arrow down in the color drop down and select a color through one of the following methods:

    • Click one of the colors in the palette.
    • Type a 6 character color code in the Hex input field.
    • Click Show options at the bottom of the dialog, select a color in the color wheel, and optionally adjust the saturation slider.
  10. Add tags (optional).

  11. Optionally, if you have access to a glossary, link the measure to a glossary term.

    Linking terms to master items

  12. Under Number formatting, you can choose:

    • Auto
    • Number
    • Money
    • Date
    • Duration
    • Custom
    • Measure expression

  13. Click Create.

The measure is now saved in the Measures category in the master items, and you can use it in visualizations.

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