The questions you need to ask are -
1.) What kind of users do I support?
2.) How many are developing/updating report content?
3.) How many are running/viewing existing reports?
4.) How technically capable are the users?
CRYSTAL REPORTS is the best tool for pixel-perfect reports that are going to be Printed/PDF-ed. It can go directly against multiple datasources, and can return results against pre-defined parameters. Those reports can also be easily embedded into applications via the SDKs. Downside - Report Developers need to have CR-knowledge and a solid understanding of the various databases.
WEB INTELLIGENCE is the best tool for "unstructured" reporting. It is dependent on a DEVELOPER having created a UNIVERSE for the users to access the underlying data. The UNIVERSE is a Meta-Data layer that "hides" all the database complexity from the end-user. The drag-and-drop web interface for WEB INTELLIGENCE allows end-users to create their own reports on-the-fly within the limits of what is available in the UNIVERSE. Downside - (1) the output methods for print and PDF are not as attractive as CR, (2) end-users can often get "lost" in a Universe no matter how much you simplify it.
In our environments, we give pre-defined Crystal Reports content to 95% of our end-users, and limit Web Intelligence to the 5% of analysts who actually need to create new report content "on demand". If a report is needed for executive sign-off or compliance purposes, it is ALWAYS a Crystal Report.
