Open Source BI solutions have many advantages over traditional proprietary software, from offering lower initial costs to more flexible support and integration options; but, until now, there has been no comprehensive guide to the complete offerings of the OS BI market. Writing for IT managers and business analysts without bias toward any BI suite, industry insider Lyndsay Wise covers the benefits and challenges of all available open source BI systems and tools, enabling readers to identify the solutions and technologies that best meet their business needs. Wise compares and contrasts types of OS BI and proprietary tools on the market, including Pentaho, Jaspersoft, RapidMiner, SpagoBI, BIRT, and many more. Real-world case studies and project templates clarify the steps involved in implementing open source BI, saving new users the time and trouble of developing their own solutions from scratch. For business managers who are hard pressed to indentify the best BI solutions and software for their companies, this book provides a practical guide to evaluating the ROI of open source versus traditional BI deployments.

1. The differences between general OS and commercial open source2. Commercial open source options3. Implications for users4. The business benefits and challenges of OS for BI5. Selling a BI OS project to the business6. Evaluating ROI and TCO7. Developing a cost benefit analytics8. Complementary solutions - OS DI, databases, etc.9. Technical considerations10. Integration and data preparation11. Working within an OS environment12. Development steps and considerations13. Required skill sets14. Challenges15. Technical benefits