Friendly Names and Translations
We define names for our tables and columns following the guidelines defined in our company. we might even adhere to international naming conventions. Still, nothing promises us the names we give our DB objects will be comprehensible to our customers.
And this is where SSAS steps in - Analysis Services enables you to give alternative names to your dimension attributes in the following two ways:
- Translations may be given to: dimensions, dimension attributes, user hierarchies, measures, measure groups and to many other objects. The translation usually appears in a separate tab called (surprise) "Translations". This tab enables us to define and manage several translations for the currently selected object. This way, we can create a cube and publish it to customers all over the world, giving each of them the chance to view the object with a caption in their native language. Microsoft gives you the ability to customize a translation for each and every language.
- FriendlyName is a property of a view or table or of a column. We can edit the FriendlyName property in Data Source View Designer, in the Tables or Diagram pane, by clicking the table, and then in the Properties window. You may choose to display either the data source names or the friendly names of objects. We can only create one FriendlyName property for each object.
Translations do NOT affect the names of objects (dimensions, measures, etc.), just their captions. MDX queries use object names so they are not affected by translations. FriendlyName, on the other hand, does appear in MDX queries. Even more so, if you refresh your DSV and your table has changed, SSAS seems to "forget" the friendly name you gave your table (though still leaving the FriendlyName you gave the column itself).
It sounds like I just tried to sell you translations now didn't it? Well, let me tell you then that I'm still switching from translations to FriendlyName! How's that you may ask?
Well, truth be told, my customers are currently viewing my cube through a viewer which doesn't support translations (the joke's on me no doubt)... as with other viewers out there, mine is not compatible with all the new things in SQL Server 2005. And so, some features are not working when I use translations, whereas with friendly names they are!
This means I get the shorter end of the stick as I need to write MDX queries with Hebrew in them – ahhhhhhhhhh!! The shock, the horror… Looking on the brighter side, I guess I should console myself, as my users are only from Israel and so I only need one language to move to (which is why I can use FriendlyName and not translations). Maybe if I move to England everything will be simpler ;) …