Table and Matrix Layouts in Power BI

Summary: Inforiver offers the flexibility to deliver tabular reports in multiple layouts in Power BI, including the Pivot Table layout in Excel that many users are familiar with.  

We often prefer tabular reports over charts in Power BI when 

(a) we have a need to display multiple records, or 

(b) when we have a larger number of dimensions & measures that need to be displayed at once. 

Inforiver supports the following 5 types of tabular report layouts in Power BI. 

1. Hierarchy

2. Outline 

3. Table 

4. Stepped 

5. Drilldown 

All the above are accessible from the Home -> Layout menu item.

Let’s take a quick look at each of them. 

1. Hierarchy 

By default, Inforiver delivers data in a hierarchical, expand/collapse-enabled format. Note that ragged hierarchy support is provided out-of-the-box without the need to write any code

2. Outline 

The Outline layout is similar to the Hierarchy layout except that each dimension is captured in a separate column. 

By default, the Excel-like 'ruler' is enabled for this layout (seen above the first row & before the first column). The ruler is used to easily resize or select specific rows and columns as you do in spreadsheets. You can hide this ruler by de-selecting the ruler icon on the toolbar. 

3. Table 

The table option shows categories in a tabular format, without any expand-collapse hierarchies for rows.  

This layout allows us to sort based on any dimension first (e.g.,) Category – something that is not possible in Hierarchy or Outline layouts. 

4. Stepped 

The Stepped layout is similar to the Outline layout but with the addition of an additional Total row for each category member.

5. Drilldown 

The drill down layout lets you explore one branch at a time in the hierarchy. This is also an ideal option when you have a huge volume of rows. 

Inforiver also allows you to customize all the above layouts when you have multiple measures. These options are available at the bottom of the Layout menu. We will explore this in one of our upcoming posts.