Patent ID: 7499935

Claim:
In an enterprise-wide system capable of defining data views for numerous aspects of an enterprise's operations, a method of determining what data to display within a data view instance, and how such information should be displayed, by using a simplified definition scheme accounting for multiple independent dimensions, the method comprising: receiving a request to display a data view instance, wherein the request is received from an access origin point within a graphical user interface; in response to the user request, identifying at least three elements corresponding to the request, including: an attribute set element corresponding to a set of data available for display within the data view instance; a user environment element corresponding to information about the user making the request for display of the data view instance; and an access origin element corresponding to the access origin point from which the request to display the data view instance is received; generating a data view definition for the data view instance, wherein generating the data view definition for the data view instance includes: accessing, from a multidimensional model having at least three independent dimensions that include at least an attribute set dimension, a user environment dimension, and an access origin dimension, a separate data view definition for each of the attribute set element, the user environment element, and the access origin element; combining and layering the data view definitions for each of the attribute set element, the user environment element, and the access origin element to form a data view definition for the data view instance and which corresponds to an intersection of the at least three independent dimensions at an instance corresponding to the attribute set element, the user environment set element, and the access origin element; identifying dynamic functionality using the data view definition for the data view instance, wherein the dynamic functionality is functionality which is selectively available in the graphical user interface based on the intersection of the at least three independent dimensions; and creating the data view instance using a unified data view and the data view definition for the data view instance, wherein the unified data view defines dynamic functionality available for all data view instances definable by the multidimensional model; and presenting the data view instance within the graphical user interface.