With all of the buzz (which was well deserved) around Qlik Sense recently, people ask more and more about what is happening with QlikView. Here”s what you need to know about their lastest release.

Is Qlik still working to improve it?
Will Qlik continue to support QlikView in the future?
Should I just abandon ship with QlikView and move over to Qlik Sense?
Yes, Yes and No!

I, like many, have anxiously waited to hear news about QlikView 12 and in tune with the holiday season, Santa did not disappoint. Qlik just released QlikView 12 and it is now available for download via Qlik’s website.

Here are the 5 things you need to know about QlikView 12:

I) Better, Faster, Stronger (Back-End) Engine

Qlik swapped out QlikView’s old engine in favor of a “۲.۰” version of the QIX engine that currently powers Qlik Sense. This means a modern, newer back end providing better compatibility across both View and Sense data models, improvements on performance (specifically wide tables), and better data indexing while also offering a seamless upgrade from QlikView 11 to 12.

Everything about this makes sense; the move towards deeper Qlik platform compatibility has definitely been anticipated and is very welcomed for developers working across the two platforms. This also means that future improvements to either View or Sense will improve the other, so less headache between platform differences (see #2 below) and more capabilities to utilize both platforms harmoniously.

II) Integration of Qlik Data Market

One of my favorite features of Qlik Sense is the Qlik DataMarket, the easy to use “data as a service” provided by Qlik to pull a very comprehensive library of data sets from trusted providers, such as weather, demographics, census data sets, etc. Before now, if you wanted to use this data outside of Sense, you had to store the data out to a QVD file and subsequently load the QVD into QlikView. Not anymore. The connector is available to download immediately and can be accessed like any other database provider within the QlikView load script.

III) Easier Access to RESTful APIs

Going even further with enhanced connectivity to external data sets, QlikView now easily integrates with RESTful API connectors. With this connector, also available for download from Qlik’s website, users can now connect directly to data providers and other contact management systems that offer a RESTful API. Think Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and a number of other web-based data services providers. This means you no longer need an extension or other applications to access this data; you can pull it directly in through the edit script.

Oh, and it’s also available for Qlik Sense!

IV) A Better Mobile Experience

For those that consume QlikView content via mobile devices, frustration can occur when you try doing something that you ordinarily do within the same dashboard on the Access Point. I’ve definitely been there.

With QlikView 12, many of these frustrations will go away. Qlik has worked very hard to improve the mobile experience make working between Access Point and the mobile version feel very natural.

Here are some of the things you’ll now be able to do on mobile:

    Create objects
    Move, copy or resize objects
    Change object properties
    Swiping to scroll
    Long Press to access the “right click” menu
    Send to Excel via mobile device
    New menu for additional options

Mobile functionality continues to be a hot trend in the BI universe and this enhancement helps Qlik improve its mobile offerings and keep up with future needs. As someone hoping to get a new Microsoft Surface for Christmas, this will be a very welcome update.

V) Forward Thinking Improvements to Security

In our ever-changing BI landscape, security needs and requirements continue (and will continue) to change. To meet this current demand and keepthe future in mind, Qlik included more than 100 security improvements to QlikView 12, including better encryption, better client request handling and improved XML parsing. Qlik’s goals in this attempt are to “future-proof” QlikView and provide the ability to consistently keep up with the pace of best practices changing within the industry down the road.

While the overall enhancements aren’t as cosmetically stunning as when Qlik Sense was released, I’m extremely excited and can’t wait to really sink my teeth into QlikView 12. The improvements in connectivity to outside data sets alone makes this release one of my favorites, as the ease opens up more opportunities to find unique ways to integrate common data sets within current business situations. I hope everyone else is as excited as I am!

Here is another QlikView 12 blog from Qlik that has some how-to videos that you may find helpful.