MEMBER (dimension, index)

Description:

This function returns the name of the indexed member in the dimension. Members are numbered 1...n.

Syntax: MEMBER (dimension, index)

• Dimension : is the name of the dimension from which you want to access members. The dimension may belong to a cube or it may independently reside in the database. Its members are all accessed by a reference.
• Index : is the index number of the member in a dimension. This index number should correspond to the member name that you want to access. Members in a dimension are numbered beginning from 1 till "n" in the order they are created or re-arranged.

Remarks

• Both arguments are compulsory.
• If you specify a number instead of a text value or a text value as a number for any of the parameter then the function would return an error which is-#VALUE.

Example

The MEMBER function can be used in any database where you want to access the member name / names from a given dimension at a given index and this member name is either used as a reference in a formula or it is used to populate a value into another member.

This function returns the name of the member corresponding to the index number as the result of the function.

=MEMBER ("Time", 9)	-returns the 9th member in the dimension named "Time" in the database where the formula is written.(Value : "Month_9")
=MEMBER ("Version", 2)	-returns the 2nd member in the dimension named "Version" in the database where the formula is written. ( Value : "Budget")
=MEMBER ("Accounts", 3)	-returns the 3rd member in the dimension named "Accounts" in the database where the formula is written. (Value : "Gross Sales")

 

Note: A number supplied within double quotes is taken as a string parameter.

 

Let us take the example of a database in PowerOLAP where we have dimensions which member names are to be accessed for referencing them in a formula or they are to be accessed to get the member name as a value and assign that value as fact data to another member. We shall use this example in this case to populate a value into a cube that uses a member name from a specified dimension at a given index as a fact value to populate its own members within its own dimension. The member name from one dimension becomes the fact data for another member in another dimension and the value is pulled from one through to another, with the use of the "MEMBER" function. A text value is returned as the result for the MEMBER function. Even if the member name is a number, it is returned as such however its format is taken as text characters.



The formula above writes values into the "Company" cube to the "Company Info" dimension into the member named "Company Name" by creating the appropriate value for this member, based upon the parameters that are given as input to this function, which is the "Dimension" name and the index of the member name given here as the number "1". The function acquires the 1^st member from the dimension "CompanyInformationDetails" given as the other parameter to the function and the result is the member name and the result is returned and populated as a fact data value in the "Company Name" member.