Databricks Model Execution in Excel with Exponam.Connect

24 May 2024:

Today, Exponam announced that Databricks Model Execution from within Excel is in private preview.  Enterprises can now make their models available to the entire organization – analysts, operations, finance, etc. – and anyone can access model generated data in Excel.  This is a milestone in the usage of Databricks Models.  For the first time, Machine Learning models are directly available to end users for business analytical and predictive use.

No Databricks knowledge is required.  No coding is required.

Users are guided via the Exponam.Connect UI to enter the correct input parameters for the model. The UI generates the correct custom function, populates it in Excel, and calls the Databricks model serving endpoint.  The user’s spreadsheet is immediately populated with the results of the model in Excel.

See more about Exponam.Connect

 

Table Discovery in Excel

New Feature Alert! – Enhanced Data Discovery

For Release 5/3/2024:

The Exponam.Connect Excel Add-in for Databricks now includes easy to use data discovery features for non-technical users.  This is in addition to the no-code, fast, and efficient data importing features which have been the products main feature since Databricks’ release of Delta Sharing.

Data table names are often not intuitive or meant for end-user ease-of-use.  Now, instead of seeing just table names and needing to look at the column data to see if it is the desired table, users in Excel see the table description and column information immediately.

“The new table discovery feature in Exponam.Connect further simplifies the business user’s journey in accessing enterprise data,” stated Roger Dunn, Exponam CTO.  “Non-technical users comprise the majority of data users within organizations.  We will continue to enhance features which make accessing and using data easy for non-technical business stakeholders.  Exponam.Connect is the first truly self-service data tool on the market for pulling data out of enterprise data lakes.”

New, Easier Excel Filtering in Exponam.Connect

Databricks partner Exponam now enables the easiest filtering of Databricks Data in Excel.

Right-click and you’re done!  Contextual filtering means filtering is now one step in Exponam.Connect Pro Excel Add-in for Databricks.  Of course, you can still filter by clicking the filter icon and setting your desired filter — but that is soooo 2020.

right-click to filter

Filter by Right-clicking on the data you want.

Databricks to Excel: Exponam.Connect or ODBC?

Recently, we evaluated the new Databricks ODBC driver.  We have compared and contrasted using ODBC vs Delta Sharing & Exponam.Connect for pulling data into Excel.

What we found was that Exponam.Connect is the ideal choice for business and technical users to pull data from Databricks into Excel. ODBC requires more technical expertise, has poorer performance, and lacks the UI and power features demanded in many business use cases.

 

We compared the two approaches across numerous dimensions – from usability to cost. Read the comprehensive comparison here.