One interface to rule them all...

Data Warehousing our Library data

Our Dashboard

2013 Ball State UniversityBall State University Libraries

University Library800,000+ physical assets5 levels + 2 branch librariesMultiple departments fulfilling dozens of

servicesDedicated technology department

Our environment

“Factories” with informative “widgets”

Custom Reporting to answer detailed questions

Where are we now?

Our DeanWe are collecting some amazing statisticsWhat we don’t know, can hurt usAnecdotes and estimating can misleadSave time (i.e., $$$!)Share & democratize informationGet money / funding

Why we built...and why you should, too!

PHPCSS / CSS3Databases / Publically available APIs

MySQLMSSQLFacebookGoogle Analytics

JavaScriptjQuery & jQueryUI

How is this possible?Techniques / tools brought together

factories (name, anyone_access, has_reporting, has_data_entry, default_color)

widgets (factory, description, anyone_access)user_factory_permissions (factory, user,

can_view_all_widgets, view_reports, data_entry)user_factory_preferences (factory, user, order,

show_or_not, show_on_load, color)user_widget_permissions (widget, user)user_widget_preferences (widget, user, order,

show)user_widget_favorites (user, widget, timestamp)

WARNING

Overkill

Proceed only if you like LEFT OUTER JOINs!

DB Structure (in progress)(beyond factory-specific tables)

PHP Code: echo “<div class=‘factory’>”;echo "<h3>DMR Factory</h3>";

include(“dmrPieces.php”); echo "</div>"; wash...rinse...repeat...or write a functionDrawback

Output (most likely) will wait until final factory completes (in sequence)

First Attempt

Each factory has its ownQuery to find significant figure(s)Output the content in HTML chunks

MetricDescriptionLong description, tables, and/or graphsHelpTimestamp for how current the metric / widget is

Basic layout:<div class=‘widget’> <h1>[Metric]</h1>

<div class=‘brief’>Description</div><div class=‘extra_info’>Long description</div>

</div>The rest is ‘formatting’ handled by CSS

Picking up the pieces (files)

The simplest form jQuery code:$.get(“someFactoryPieces.php“, function(widgets) { $(".someFactory").html(widgets);});

Advantages:Factories are displayed ASAPGraceful failure

Take two – AJAX via jQuery

Knowing what to featureAdoption – YMMVTraining / educationA widget for everything is overwhelmingExplaining caveats; what exactly is being

counted?Managing user permissions with fine granularitySpeed / System PerformanceInitial investment (time/resources)Data migration

Challenges

Ensure top-down managerial interest, need, and involvement (across-the-board if possible)

Seek out what is important to your organization

“Good help” is hard to [write]...but importantInvite others “in charge” of factories to

create the metricsPatienceTimestamp your data

Insights / Tips for success

And/or further show and tell!

Questions