Considerations

When designing a dashboard, remember the following considerations:

When a user makes comments about an indicator, the comments are tied to that indicator. Any comments made about the indicator in one dashboard might be inappropriate for that indicator in another dashboard.
Font settings are stored with the dashboard and not the indicator. These settings must be set for an indicator in each dashboard that uses it.
(When using a template only) When the SAS BI Dashboard draws the indicators within a dashboard, the indicators are wrapped into rows or columns based on the width or height specified for the individual indicators and the dimensions of the template. For example, if a dashboard has ten indicators with a width of 180 pixels each, the total required width for the dashboard is 1800 pixels. If the dashboard is only 1000 pixels wide, then two rows of indicators appear. If the first indicator is 900 pixels wide, then three rows of indicators appear.

Note: The indicator width is specified when you define the display settings for an indicator. For more information, see Specify the Height and Width of the Indicator.

Because a KPI indicator can contain multiple gauges, special considerations apply when adding KPI indicators to a dashboard:

A single KPI indicator that contains multiple gauges manages its horizontal alignment correctly. But if there are several indicators, each with only one dynamic gauge, you might need to manipulate the heights of the various dynamic gauges to correctly align the indicators.

This problem often occurs when the title of one indicator has two lines of text and the adjacent indicators have only one line of text. The extra line of text causes the indicator to be positioned farther down the page than the rest of the indicators in the row. By setting the height for that one indicator to less than the heights of the others, you can align the entire dashboard correctly.
(Dynamic gauge styles only) You can use disproportionate dimensions to create extra white space around a gauge.
(Dynamic gauge styles only) A KPI indicator width that is less than the dynamic gauge width causes scroll bars to appear in the dashboard. If you want the indicators to wrap correctly, ensure that the KPI indicator width is larger than the dynamic gauge width.
(Dynamic gauge styles only) A dynamic gauge grows to fill the space as long as the gauge image scaling remains 1:1. The gauge is always centered in the available space. For example, a dynamic gauge that is 100x200 does not grow, and white space is added around the gauge until the dimensions are at least 200x400.For more information about gauge size, see Customize a KPI Indicator.
Gauge styles with a fixed size can cause the KPI indicator to flow outside its boundary box. The box is still shown at the original size, but the gauges extend outside the box. If you add more indicators to the dashboard, the gauges in the KPI indicator that extend outside the boundary box are obscured. The results can be difficult to read and this situation should be avoided.