What's New in KNIME 2.8

Highlights

New Powerful R Integration

R (Interactive)

This is a new category in KNIME Labs!

It replicates most of the nodes already available in the R category.

However, the R(Interactive) nodes execute R code interactively meaning that you can evaluate the script (and the table or view it creates) from within the dialog.

The nodes also come with syntax highlighting in the R editor and with the possibility to create and use code templates. New is also the ability to pass workspaces from node to node so that you modularize your R scripts better.

R Source (Table)

This is a new node in the R category!

It is an R based reader node for a diversity of data types as supported by existing R libraries: SAS, SPSS, Stata, XBase, ….

Open Street Maps

OSM nodes

This is a new category in KNIME Labs!

The OpenStreetMap (OSM) extension enables the user to render geographic points of interests (e.g. locations of IP addresses) onto a map (http://www.openstreetmap.org). The world map (including the points of interest) can either be interactively explored (OSM Map View-node) or directly rendered into an image (OSM to Image-node).

Error Handling

Try-Catch Blocks

This is a new full category under “Flow Control”!

The Try-Catch nodes are used to build a functional block around a series of nodes that can potential fail during execution such as a file reader or a database connector. The Try node starts the block; the Catch node ends the block and continues normal execution even if the sub workflow within the block failed.

The Catch node has two input ports. In case some node fails in the branch connected to the upper port, the branch connected to the bottom port takes over and provides the output data for the try-catch block.

There many Try-Catch blocks possible, catching errors on data, flow variables, DB, and generic ports.

Data Manipulation for Time Series

Lag Column

This is a new node!

This node shifts a column up by P (P=Lag interval) rows or by 1, 2, …, L-1 (L=Lag) rows.

If the selected column is a time series and has been sorted with ascending time, this node lags (embeds) the time series L-1 steps in the past for time series analysis.

Improved Excel Integration: now supporting multiple sheets!

XLS Reader Improved performance in the XLS Reader node. It should be now much faster in preview and execution.
XLS Writer The configuration window of the XLS Writer node has changed considerably. There are now more options for a more flexible creation of an excel file. New option to open file after writing New option to write data on multiple sheets Columns to write can be selected Supports images
XLS Sheet Appender This is a new node! It works similarly to the XLS Writer node. It just appends content to an existing Excel file instead of creating a new excel file.
Read XLS Sheet Names This is a new node! It returns the names of the sheets in an Excel file.

New Nodes

QuickForms

Single Selection Input QuickForm

This QuickForm provides single selection radio buttons to insert a flow variable value into the workflow with a QuickForm GUI.

The radio buttons can be displayed horizontally or vertically.

Multiple Selection Input QuickForm

This QuickForm provides multiple selection checkboxes to insert a flow variable value into the workflow with a QuickForm GUI.

The check boxes can be displayed horizontally or vertically.

Data Manipulation

Many2One(PMML) / One2Many(PMML)

Now there is PMML support for the traditional Many2One and One2Many nodes in the Data Manipulation/PMML category

Column Appender

This is a simplified Joiner using the RowID as joining key.

Text Processing

Meta Info Extractor

This node extracts the document meta-information

Meta Info Inserter

This node inserts the document meta-information

Wildcard tagger

This node assigns tags to terms based on dictionary, where entries can contain wild cards or regular expressions.

Pharma Filter

This node filters text based on a new Pharma Tag Set

General Tag Filter

This node performs general text filtering based on a tag set or on a list of tags

NGram Creator

Creates word or character based N-grams. The N value can be specified in the dialog, as well as the output format.

Delete Files

Deletes files from file system.

Create Directory

Creates a new directory on file system.

URI Port to Variable

Produces URI path at the output port as flow variable.

Export Rendered Images in Data Views

Renderer To Image

This node converts the rendered content of an existing column into SVG or PNG images.

Other noteworthy Improvements

Data Mining

PMML Ensembles

PMML Support for Ensemble nodes

Database

JDBC Drivers

Common JDBC Database Drivers are now distributed with database nodes.

DB nodes

All DB nodes now have a time zone option to manipulate date/time/timestamp values upon persistence.

Data Manipulation

Ungroup

This node now support multiple columns. You can ungroup many columns at the same time.

String Replacer

The String Replacer node now supports also regular expressions and special characters replacement, like ‘*’, empty, or ‘?’

DateTime

Time Generator

Now it can also produce current data/time at output port.

GUI

Data Table and Specs Table View: column sorting

Interactive sorting in Data Table View and Specs View only possible now with CTRL-key down to avoid accidental sorting or with menu selection.
Transposed layout possible for data tables (via table specs)
Long column Headers can break into multiple columns (via table specs)

Misc

Math Formula

Configuration window has been simplified
Access now to flow variables as well in math editor
Now can also return integer values
Simplified interface

Zip/Unzip nodes General better file support for zip/unzip nodes Tar.gz and tar.bzip are now also supported
Download/Upload from List This node produces now an output table with transfer status for each file and with an option to continue if a file transfer has failed.
URL nodes URL nodes now support: knime:// protocol ftp: protocol special characters in URL path.
CSV Reader New options in configuration window: skip first lines limit rows