SAS launches Visual Analytics to organise Big Data

SAS has announced the launch of Visual Analytics, a new in-memory platform to help self-service business users analyse and visualise Big Data inexpensively.  

Part of the SAS High-Performance Analytics family, the new business intelligence (BI) solution allows users to visually explore Big Data at the speed of sight and share fresh insights via the web or iPad, said the firm.

The solution combines analytics, in-memory architecture, data exploration, Hadoop support and information-delivery options, including the iPad. According to SAS, it is the only in-memory engine designed specifically for business visualisation of Big Data on inexpensive, non-proprietary hardware.

SAS Visual Analytics offers:

• SAS LASR Analytic Server - clients communicate with SAS LASR Analytic Server for calculations on the data resident in-memory, producing remarkably fast results
• The Hub - a central location to launch the various elements of SAS Visual Analytics
• Mobile - a tool for viewing reports, connecting to servers and downloading information on the go
• Explorer - an ad hoc data discovery and visualisation tool to explore and analyse data
• Designer - used to create standard and custom reports and dashboards
• Environment Administration - used by administrators to manage users, security and data

SAS CEO Jim Goodnight said: "SAS Visual Analytics helps business users to visually explore data on their own. But it goes well beyond traditional query and reporting. Running on low-cost, industry-standard blade servers, its high-performance in-memory architecture delivers answers in seconds or minutes instead of hours or days.

"The core of SAS Visual Analytics – our innovative SAS LASR Analytic Server – speeds data exploration and visualisation. This in-memory analytic engine will extend across our software product portfolio, seamlessly applying 35 years of SAS analytics innovation to big data assets. Add its publish-to-mobile capability and graphic visualisation, and there’s nothing that compares to SAS Visual Analytics."

Server components run on Red Hat or SUSE Linux, and the mobile client is available for the iPad from the iTunes App Store. Other mobile devices are expected to be supported in the future.