Business intelligence as code: build fast, interactive data visualizations in SQL and markdown
Overview:
Business Intelligence as Code is an open-source tool called Evidence that offers a code-based alternative to traditional drag-and-drop business intelligence platforms. By generating reports using SQL and markdown files, Evidence streamlines the process of querying data sources and rendering visualizations and components on a website.
Features:
- Code-Based Approach: Utilizes SQL statements within markdown files to query data sources.
- Markdown to Website: Generates a website from markdown files, showcasing query results through charts and components.
- Templated Pages: Allows for the creation of multiple pages from a single markdown template.
- Control Structures: Supports loops and if/else statements to customize the display of information to users.
- Ease of Installation: Offers an Evidence VSCode Extension for easy installation and project setup.
- Cloud Hosting: Provides Evidence Cloud for secure project hosting, with self-hosted options available as well.
- Community Engagement: Invites users to join the Evidence community through Slack channels and contribute to the project.
Installation:
To install Evidence, follow these steps:
- Download the Evidence VSCode Extension.
- Open the Command Palette (F1) and enter “Evidence: New Evidence Project”.
- Click the “Start Evidence” button in the bottom status bar.
- Visit the documentation for other installation options, such as CLI, Docker, and more.
Summary:
Business Intelligence as Code tool, Evidence, revolutionizes the generation of reports by seamlessly integrating SQL queries and markdown files to produce visual representations of data. With features like templated pages, control structures, and easy installation options, Evidence offers a user-friendly and community-driven approach to business intelligence.
