Tableau Desktop Pocket Reference: Essential Features, Syntax, and Data Visualizations

✍ Scribed by Ryan Sleeper

• Publisher: Oreilly & Associates Inc
• Year: 2021
• Tongue: English
• Leaves: 162
• Category: Library

✦ Synopsis

In a crowded field of data visualization and analytics tools, Tableau Desktop has emerged as the clear leader. This is partly due to its ease of use, but once you dive into Tableau's extensive feature set, you'll understand just how powerful and flexible this software can be for your business.

With this handy pocket reference, author Ryan Sleeper (Practical Tableau and Innovative Tableau) shows you how to translate the vast amounts of data you've collected into useful information. Tableau has done an amazing job of making valuable insights accessible to analysts and executives who would otherwise need to rely on IT. This book quickly guides you through Tableau Desktop's learning curve.

You'll learn:

• How to shape data for use with Tableau Desktop
• How to create the most effective data visualizations
• Core concepts including discrete versus continuous
• Must-know technical features including filters, parameters, and sets
• Key syntax for creating the most useful analyses
• How to bring it all together with dashboards
• And more

✦ Table of Contents

Copyright
Table of Contents
Preface
Conventions Used in This Book
Playfair Data TV
O’Reilly Online Learning
How to Contact Us
Acknowledgments
Chapter 1. Tableau’s Product Ecosystem
Tableau Products
Tableau License Model 
Tableau Version Updates
Chapter 2. Shaping Data
Common Data Layout
Ideal Data Layout
How to Reshape Data
Chapter 3. Connecting to Data
Data Models
Live Data Connections Versus Data Extracts
Data Source Versus Extract Filters
Data Types
Chapter 4. Tableau Terminology
Data Pane
Fields
Shelves
Marks Card
Columns, Rows, and Chart Types
Chapter 5. Dimension Versus Measure
Using Measures
Using Dimensions
Making Classifications
Chapter 6. Discrete Versus Continuous
Visualizing Discrete and Continuous Options
Changing Discrete and Continuous Options
Chapter 7. How to Make a Bar Chart
Creating a Bar Chart
Introducing Aggregation in Tableau
Combining Measures and Dimensions to Glean Insight
Chapter 8. How to Make a Line Graph
Tableau Line Graph Defaults
Using the Show Me Feature
Adding Context to a Line Graph by Encoding Marks
Formatting Tips for Line Graphs
Chapter 9. How to Make a Scatter Plot
Visualization Level of Detail
Getting Started with the Analytics Pane
Closing Thoughts on Chart Types
Chapter 10. Filters
Types of Filters
Options for Scaling Filters
Understanding Tableau’s Filter Order of Operations
Data Source and Extract Filters
Chapter 11. Calculated Fields
Basic Calculated Fields
Aggregate Calculated Fields
Row-Level Calculated Fields
Table Calculations
Level of Detail Calculations
Chapter 12. Parameters
How to Make a Parameter
How to Use Dynamic Parameters
Popular Use Cases
Using a String for Dimension Member Highlighting and/or Filtering
Using a Float for Scenario Playing
Using a Dynamic Parameter for Date Filtering
Chapter 13. Sets
How to Create Sets
Practical Use Cases
Sets as a Filter
Sets as a Dimension
Sets within Calculated Fields
Sets as a Highlighter
Chapter 14. Dashboards and Distribution
The Dashboard Pane
Choosing the Layout and Size of a Dashboard
Dashboard Sheets and Objects
Tiled, Floating, and Hybrid Objects
The Layout Pane
Dashboard Actions
Distributing Dashboards
Tableau Server or Tableau Online
Tableau Public
Tableau Packaged Workbook
PDF
PowerPoint
Images
Conclusion
Index