The Measures of the model are the different options available to the user for analyzing values stored in the cube. They represent the quantity of a given element of the Dimension and can be obtained directly from the Data Source or calculated from them.
Depending on the cube being analyzed, Measures can include a diverse range of concepts such as prices, physical units, quantity of invoices, and average volume. You can also define Measures representing value's scales, or the number of times a given value appears.
If there are hierarchical Dimensions in the Model, each Measure indicates what the corresponding Aggregate mode is; that is, how the value of the highest element of the hierarchy should calculate, based on the value of the lowest level.
There are two types of measures:
- Basic: Measures taken directly from a data sources field
- Derived: Measures calculated from basic measures through the application of calculation expressions
You can use the Measure Format dialog in the General pane to format the results, specifying for example, the number of decimals, alignment and color of negative values, currency symbols, etc. The end-user has the ability to modify this predefined values from the O3 Browser.