Working with Indicator Data Regions
Indicators are minimal gauges that convey the state of a single data value at a glance. The icons that represent indicators and their states are simple and visually effective even when used in small sizes.
You can use indicators in your reports to show the following:
Trends by using up, flat (no change), trending-up, or trending-down arrows.
State by using commonly recognized symbols such as checkmarks and exclamation marks.
Conditions by using commonly recognized shapes such traffic lights and signs.
Ratings by using common recognized shapes and symbols that show progress such number of quadrants in a square and stars.
Although indicators can be used by themselves in dashboards or free-form reports, they are most commonly used in tables or matrices to depict data in rows or columns. The following diagram shows a table with a traffic light indicator that conveys year to date sales by sales person and territory.
.gif "Report with indicators in table rows")
Reporting Services provides built-in indicator sets and indicator icons, but you can also customize individual indicator icons and indicators sets to suit your needs.
To learn more about indicators, see the following topics in the Report Builder 3.0 documentation on msdn.microsoft.com:
How to: Change Indicator Icons and Indicator Sets (Report Builder 3.0)
How to: Set and Configure Measurement Units (Report Builder 3.0)
How to: Specify the Size of an Indicator Using an Expression (Report Builder 3.0)
How to: Include Indicators and Gauges in a Gauge Panel (Report Builder 3.0)