The Create Date-Time Dimension wizard calendar templates determine the hierarchical structure of members in the date-time type of dimension. For all calendars, you must select a date-time dimension name, the calendar type, the first day of the week, and the beginning and ending dates for which you want to build date-time dimension members. You also must select time depths, which determine the calendar member hierarchy. The year time depth is required for all calendars. The availability of other time depths depends on the calendar type and other time depths selected. For example, semester and trimester time depths are mutually exclusive.
If a time depth is selected, the wizard creates, within each year, a member for each instance of that time depth. For example, if the month time depth is selected, 12 month members are created in the hierarchy under each year. A naming rule indicates a naming pattern for each member, which includes a number for the relative position within its year ancestor. For example, in the Gregorian calendar shown in Figure 162, Sample Date-Time Dimension with Linked Attributes, the month members follow a default naming pattern that includes the month number such as “Month 4 of Gregorian Year 2008.”
Note: | When selecting naming rules for time dimensions, it is possible to create duplicate members. This can cause the create date-time dimension procedure to fail unless the outline is set to allow duplicate member names. If the outline is not set to allow duplicate member names, you must avoid duplicates. |
Depending on the calendar template and chosen time depths, you may need to define year, month, or period characteristics (semantic rules) such as period starting or ending dates, week count, or how months or weeks are grouped within their parent members. These characteristics affect the rules by which members are built and named. For some calendars, availability of year, period, or month semantic rules is dependent on other year, period, or month options selected. See “Create Date-Time Dimension Wizard—Select Calendar Hierarchy Panel” in Oracle Essbase Administration Services Online Help.
The Create Date-Time Dimension wizard provides templates for the following calendar types: