Business Intelligence Tools

Part 4 — Decomposing Document Properties

This series has covered decomposing tables and connections, data functions, and data wrangling.  This week, it moves to decomposing document properties.  I have intentionally broken document properties out separately because there are so many different places they can be used.   If you are just tuning in, here are links to the previous posts in the series.

 Intro to the Series

Decomposing Data Tables & Connections

Decomposing Data Functions

Decomposing Data Wrangling

As usual, each post in the series will be broken down into four sections.

  1. Quick and Dirty (Q&D)
  2. The Extended Version
  3. Documentation
  4. Room for Improvement
In previous posts, both the Q&D and Extended Version sections presented 3 – 5 different questions. Q&D questions were simple in nature, while the Extended Version dug deeper.  In this post, the questions are the same for both sections.  The difference between the two is where you will go to answer them.  The Extended Version will involve more digging.  The Documentation section will provide examples of how to document just like the last post.  Lastly, Room for Improvement looks at a project from the standpoint of making it better. So, let’s get started.

Understanding Document Properties

Now, the most important questions to ask and answer about doc properties are these:

  1. Which types of doc properties are being used?
  2. Are all of the doc properties used?
  3. Are any parts of the project broken because document properties were deleted?

Before we get started on answering these questions, I want to lay out a few critical pieces of information on doc properties.

  1. Types of doc properties in Spotfire
  2. Locations where doc properties can appear
  3. Syntax used to reference doc properties

Types of Document Properties

There are 7 types of doc properties available in Spotfire.  I have included an example of each.

  1. Label
  2. Input field
  3. Input field multiple lines
  4. Drop down
  5. List box
  6. List box multi-select
  7. Slider

Locations Where Document Properties Appear

Doc properties can be engaged in the following areas within a DXP.

  1. Text Areas
  2. Data Functions
  3. Calculations
  4. IronPython and JavaScripts
  5. Visualization Properties

Now, a good place to develop an understanding of doc properties is the Edit menu > Document Properties > Properties tab.

This dialog will show all doc properties in the DXP, including default properties created by the application (MaxMissingTimeParts, FiscalYearOffset).  This list will tell you exactly how many doc properties exist in the DXP.  Use it as a checklist while walking thru the project.  Unfortunately, this dialog fails to detail the type of doc property or where it is used.  This is also where you will delete unused document properties if necessary.

Doc Property Syntax

Expressions reference doc properties in 2 ways.  You will see different syntax depending on how the document property is being used or the type of value in the doc.  In the screenshot below, I inserted the same doc property as a value and again as text to demonstrate the difference.

Quick and Dirty

The Q&D section will focus on text areas, data functions, and scripts because it’s very easy to click thru a project and see document properties engaged in these areas.

Right-click on a text area and select Edit HTML. All document properties in a text area (even hidden ones) appear on the right-hand side of the dialog with the type in parenthesis.

JavaScripts also appear in the menu to the right of the text area.  Select each one and click Edit to look for doc property references.  In order to find doc properties used in IronPython scripts, go to Edit > Document Properties > Scripts tab and look at each script individually to find where doc properties are used.  I don’t have a project handy with an example, so no screenshots for this one (SORRY!). I do have an example of a doc property used in a data function.

Go to Edit > Data Function Properties > Edit Parameters and look for document properties in each input or output parameter. This doc property works with an expression in a data function.

Extended Version

Now, for the Extended Version.  It is much more time consuming (although not difficult) to find doc properties used in calculations and visualization properties.  For calculations, go to the Edit > Column Properties > General tab.  Scroll toward the bottom of the list (calculations are appended below imported columns) and keep an eye out for the document property syntax.  There really isn’t a better way to do this.  In theory, you could delete one document property at a time and look for ‘False’ in the IsValid Column Property, but that seems like overkill.  Perform this task one table, one column at a time.

Next, doc properties can run deep in visualization properties.  Anywhere you can right-click and either Set from Property or write a Custom Expression, doc properties can be used.

In this example, a drop-down property control sets the categorical axis. You must right click and look at the expression to know.

This includes most submenus in the properties dialog.  Pay particular attention to data limiting (in the Data menu), Colors, Lines & Curves, and Show/Hide Items.

I will admit that finding all possible references to document properties can be extremely time-consuming.  If in doubt, leave the doc property in and/or save versions of the project as you go.


The screenshots below came from a PPT documentation I assembled for a large project with a LOT of document properties.  The text areas, data functions, IronPython scripts, visualization properties, and calculations all contained doc properties.  Documenting usage became necessary to gain a comprehensive understanding.

First, list out all the document properties.
Create a matrix showing where utilized.
Map interaction with data functions. This maps the object name in the code to the doc property name.
List where used in calculated columns.
Note which page includes doc property references and their type.

Room for Improvement

Lastly, here are a few questions to ask and answer that will improve the project.

  1. Would renaming document properties make their purpose easier to understand?
  2. Can you delete unused doc properties?
  3. Would adding document properties improve the flexibility of the project?

Unfortunately, Spotfire does not allow you to rename document properties.  To rename them, you must essentially create a new document property.  I only “rename” document properties when completely rebuilding a project. I recommend removing unused document properties.  If you delete, do a quick walk-thru of the project after each removal to ensure nothing has broken. Lastly, you might be able to improve the flexibility of a project by adding document properties.  For example, if visualizations have show/hide rules or color rules that are currently hardcoded, you could replace the hard coding with a document property reference to make them more dynamic.


Wow, that was a long post.  Now, you can see why I chose to break doc properties out on their own rather than including with another post. I hope you now have a much more comprehensive understanding of where document properties can be used in a DXP.  They are one of the standout features of the application.  If anyone from TIBCO is reading this, it would be great to have functionality within the application to track down usage of document properties.

Spotfire Version

Content created with Spotfire 7.12.

1 thought on “Part 4 — Decomposing Document Properties

  1. Pingback: Part 7 - Decomposing Visualizations and Data Limiting - Data Shop Talk

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