1.

How to handle missing data while reading raw data files in the preparation phase for visual
analytics? Justify with examples.

Handling missing data is an essential step in the Prepare phase of visual analytics. It ensures data
quality and improves the accuracy of visual interpretations and statistical results.

Common techniques to handle missing data:

 Remove missing values:

o Used when the number of missing records is small and won’t impact analysis
significantly.

o Example: Dropping rows where customer age is missing in a marketing dataset.

 Imputation:

o Replacing missing values using statistical methods such as mean, median, mode, or
predictive modeling.

o Example: Filling in missing “income” values in a customer dataset using the median
income of similar records.

 Placeholder values or flags:

o Assigning special values (like “Unknown”) or adding a binary column to indicate

missing data.

o Example: Setting missing “region” fields as “Unknown” and creating a

“region_missing” column with 0 or 1.

 Forward or backward filling (common in time series data):

o Example: If January sales are missing, use December's sales figure as a proxy.

 Domain-specific logic:

o Use business rules to infer values.

o Example: If 'Order Status' is missing but 'Shipping Date' exists, status can be inferred
as “Shipped”.

In SAS Visual Analytics, during the Prepare phase, users can clean and calculate new data items
using the interface or with data transformation scripts.

2. What is visual analytics? Explain its features.

Visual analytics is the science of analytical reasoning supported by interactive visual interfaces. It
enables users to explore complex datasets through visual means to derive actionable insights.

Features of Visual Analytics (as per SAS Visual Analytics):

 Interactive Dashboards & Reports: Users can drag and drop elements, filter data, and drill
down into insights.

 Auto-charting: Automatically selects the best chart type based on data.

  Exploration of Big Data: Handle and visualize data of any size, even in-memory, with high
performance.

 Advanced Analytics Integration: Use statistical models, forecasting, and machine learning
with ease.

 On-the-fly Hierarchies: Dynamically create and explore data hierarchies.

 Multi-device Access: View reports from web browsers, mobile apps, or MS Office add-ins.

 Collaborative Sharing: Share interactive reports and dashboards with others in the
organization.

3. List different job roles who use visual analytics and explain briefly.

Visual analytics is used by multiple roles within an organization, each with distinct responsibilities:

1. Analyst / Report Designer:

 Prepares datasets, explores patterns, and builds dashboards or reports.

 Leverages built-in analytics to discover trends and share findings.

2. Data Administrator:

 Manages data sources, ensures data quality, performs data transformations.

 Responsible for preparing clean, reliable datasets for visual analysis.

3. IT Administrator:

 Manages deployment, user roles, and system configuration.

 Ensures performance and security of the visual analytics platform.

4. Information Consumer / Business User:

 Views and interacts with dashboards and reports.

 Uses insights for decision-making but does not create visualizations.

5. SAS Administrator:

 Maintains SAS environments, user permissions, and metadata access.

 Controls access to data and tools based on organizational policies.

These roles collaborate within platforms like SAS Visual Analytics, where each user type has role-
based capabilities tailored to their function.

Theory
UNIT 4
UNIT 5
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TABLUEA

🔹 Sorting in Tableau

Sorting helps organize and analyze data more efficiently. In Tableau, sorting can be applied to dimensions, and there are
two main types:

1. ✅ Computed Sorting

 Definition: Automatic sorting applied through the Sort dialog box on an axis.

 Options:

o Sort Ascending or Descending

o Sort by a field (e.g., Sales, Discount)

 When to use: When sorting based on field values like numbers or dates.

🧪 Example:

Using the Sample-Superstore dataset:

 Sort subcategories by Discount.

 Use Order Date and Subcategory as dimensions.

 Subcategories appear in descending order of discount per year.

2. ✋ Manual Sorting

 Definition: Drag-and-drop sorting to change the order manually.

 Purpose: Useful for user-defined visual preferences, not based on field values.

 When to use: When the sort order is subjective or doesn’t follow data values.

🧪 Example:

You manually move the "Home Office" segment below "Consumer", even if Home Office has lower sales — to highlight it
or match a presentation flow.

🔹 What is Filtering in Tableau?

Filtering is the process of removing unwanted values or limiting data displayed in your visualizations. Tableau supports
simple filters (e.g., categories) and advanced filters (e.g., context filters, calculations).

✅ Three Types of Basic Filters in Tableau:

1. Filter Dimensions

 Used on: Dimension fields (categorical data like Region, Category, Product Name)

 Purpose: Filter based on specific items or categories.

🧪 Example:

 Dataset: Sample - Superstore

 Task: Show profit for each Sub-Category by Ship Mode

 Action:

o Drag Sub-Category to Rows

o Drag Profit to Columns

o Drag Sub-Category to Filters

o Exclude categories like Labels and Storage

✅ Result: Visualization shows profit excluding these two sub-categories.

2. Filter Measures

These filters are applied on the measure fields. Filtering is based on the calculations applied to the measure fields.
Hence, while in dimension filters you use only values to filter, in measures filter you use calculations based on fields.

 Used on: Numerical or aggregated data (like Sales, Profit, Quantity)

 Purpose: Filter using calculations, e.g., "greater than X", "less than Y".

🧪 Example:

 Dataset: Sample - Superstore

 Task: Show subcategories with average profit > 20

 Action:

o Add Ship Mode and Sub-Category to view

o Add AVG(Profit) to Filters

o Choose “At least 20” in the filter settings

✅ Result: View now only includes subcategories with average profit over 20.

3. Filter Dates

Tableau treats the date field in three different ways while applying the date field. It can apply filter by taking a relative
date as compared to today, an absolute date, or range of dates. Each of this option is presented when a date field is
dragged out of the filter pane.

 Used on: Date/time fields

 Purpose: Filter using:

o Relative Date (e.g., last 7 days)

o Absolute Date (e.g., 1 Jan 2024)

o Range of Dates (e.g., Jan to March 2023)

🧪 Example:

 Dataset: Sample - Superstore

  Task: Show profit over a specific date range

 Action:

o Drag Order Date to Columns

o Drag Profit to Rows

o Drag Order Date to Filters and select Range of Dates

o Pick desired date range and click OK

✅ Result: View shows profit trends for the selected date range.

🔹 Quick Filters in Tableau

Quick Filters are filters that can be added directly to the worksheet using a right-click on any dimension or measure. They
offer fast, interactive ways for users to filter data without opening the full filter dialog.

✅ How to Access Quick Filters:

 Right-click a field (dimension or measure) → Show Filter

The filter then appears on the right-hand side of the worksheet for interactive selection.

🔄 Types of Quick Filters and Their Purposes

Filter Name Purpose

Single Value (List) Select one value at a time from a list

Single Value (Dropdown) Select one value from a dropdown list

Multiple Values (List) Select one or more values from a list

Multiple Values (Dropdown) Select one or more values from a dropdown

Multiple Values (Custom List) Search and select one or more values manually

Single Value (Slider) Use a slider to choose a single value (mainly for date/numeric filters)

Wildcard Match Filter values that match a pattern (e.g., starts with “A”)

🧪 Example: Wildcard Filter

Dataset: Sample – Superstore

Task: Show sub-categories that start with the letter A

Steps:

1. Drag Sub-Category to Rows

2. Drag Sales to Columns (you’ll get a bar chart)

3. Drag Sub-Category to Filters pane

4. Use Wildcard Match → Type a*

✅ Result: Only sub-categories starting with “A” (like “Accessories” and “Art”) are displayed.
🧼 Clearing a Quick Filter

To remove a filter:

 Right-click the field in the Filters pane

 Select Clear Filter

This will remove the applied filter and show all data again.

Context filter

The normal filters in Tableau are independent of each other. It means each of the filter reads all the rows from the
source data and creates its own result. However, there may be scenarios where you might want the second filter to
process only the records returned by the first filter. In such a case, the second filter is known as dependent filters
because they process only the data that passes through the context filter. Context Filters serve two main purposes.

 Improves performance − If you set a lot of filters or have a large data source, the queries can be slow. You can
set one or more context filters to improve the performance.

 Creates a dependent numerical or top N filter − You can set a context filter to include only the data of interest,
and then set a numerical or a top N filter.

🧪 Example: Top 10 Sub-Categories in Furniture

Dataset: Sample – Superstore

✅ Goal: Show only the Top 10 Sub-Categories by Sales, but only for Furniture.

🔧 Steps:

Step 1:

 Drag Sub-Category to Rows

 Drag Sales to Columns (you’ll get a horizontal bar chart)

 Drag Sub-Category again to the Filters shelf

Step 2:

 Right-click the Sub-Category filter → go to Top tab

 Choose: By Field → Top 10 by Sales (Sum)

✅ Now shows Top 10 subcategories overall

Step 3:

 Drag Category to Filters

 In the General tab, select only Furniture

🛑 At this point, Tableau still shows the Top 10 overall, then filters down to only Furniture sub-categories — which might
show fewer than 10 items.

Step 4:

 Right-click the Category: Furniture filter

 Choose Add to Context

✅ Now, Furniture is a context filter, so Tableau first limits the data to Furniture only, then applies the Top 10 filter within
this filtered subset.

Tableau - Condition Filters

One of the important filtering options in Tableau is to apply some conditions to already existing filters. These conditions
can be very simple like finding only those sales which are higher than a certain amount or it can be a complex one based
on a certain formula. The conditions can also be applied to create a range filter.

Step 1:

 Drag Segment and Sales to the Columns shelf

 Drag Sub-Category to the Rows shelf

 Choose the Horizontal Bar Chart (if not automatically selected)

🔹 You now see Sales per Sub-Category, split by Segment

Step 2:

 Drag Sub-Category again to the Filters shelf

 Right-click the filter → select Edit Filter

 Go to the Condition tab

 Choose:

o By field

o Sales

o Sum

o Condition: greater than or equal to (≥) 100,000

✅ Result: The view now displays only those Sub-Categories whose total Sales ≥ 100,000, across all Segments.

Top filters

the Top option in Tableau filter is used to limit the result set from a filter. For example, from a large set of records on
sales you want only the top 10 values. You can apply this filter using the inbuilt options for limiting the records in many
ways or by creating a formula. In this chapter, you will explore the inbuilt options.

🔧 Steps:

Step 1:

 Drag Sub-Category to the Rows shelf

 Drag Sales to the Columns shelf

 Choose Horizontal Bar Chart for better readability

🔹 Now, you see Sales bars for all sub-categories

Step 2:

 Right-click on the Sub-Category field in the Filters shelf (or drag it there if it isn’t yet)

 Select Edit Filter

 Go to the Top tab

 Choose:

o By field

o Enter 5

o Select Top 5 by Sum of Sales

✅ Result: Tableau now shows only the top 5 Sub-Categories based on highest total sales.

🔹 Filtering in Tableau: Overview

Filtering is a core part of data analysis and visualization, allowing users to focus on relevant subsets of data. Tableau
provides powerful, flexible filter options for both dimensions (categorical data) and measures (numerical data).

✅ Creating Filters

➤ How to Create:

1. Drag a field (dimension or measure) to the Filters shelf (above the Marks card).

2. Right-click on the filter and select Edit Filter to customize.

📊 Filters for Measures (Numeric Fields)

When you drag a measure like Sales to the Filters shelf, Tableau provides numeric filtering options:

Filter Type Description

Range of Values Include values within a min–max range

At Least Include values greater than or equal to a value

At Most Include values less than or equal to a value

Special Filter by Null, Non-Null, or All Values

🧪 Example:

 Drag Sales to Filters shelf

 Choose At Least → enter 5000

 ✅ View now includes only records where sales ≥ 5000

📁 Filters for Dimensions (Categorical Fields)

Dimensions are fields like Category, Region, Product, etc. When used as filters, Tableau offers these options:
Filter Type Description

General Select specific values (e.g., East, West, Central)

Wildcard Use patterns (e.g., Ele* to match Electronics, Elevators, etc.)

Condition Apply logic using aggregate measures (e.g., SUM(Sales) > 10,000)

Top Show Top/Bottom N records by a measure (e.g., Top 5 by Profit)

🧪 Example:

 Drag Sub-Category to Filters shelf

 Go to Condition tab → Set: SUM(Sales) ≥ 100000

 ✅ View now shows sub-categories meeting that condition

🧹 Editing & Clearing Filters

➤ To Edit a Filter:

 Right-click on the filter in the Filters shelf → choose Edit Filter

➤ To Clear a Filter:

 Right-click on the filter → choose Clear Filter

✅ This restores the visualization to include all values again.

TABLUE CHARTS

⭐ How to Create a Basic Chart in Tableau (Step-by-Step)

1. Open a new sheet or go to an existing one.

2. Drag a field to the Columns or Rows shelf.

3. Choose the chart type from the Marks card or Show Me panel.

4. Drag fields to the Marks pane and drop them on Color, Size, Label, Tooltip, etc.

BAR CHARTS

A bar chart represents data in rectangular bars with the length of the bar proportional to the value of the variable.
Tableau automatically produces a bar chart when you drag a dimension to the Row shelf and measure to the Column
shelf. We can also use the bar chart option present in the Show Me button.

📊 Creating a Bar Chart in Tableau

🔹 Simple Bar Chart

 Dataset: Sample – Superstore

 Drag Profit to Columns

 Drag Sub-Category to **Rows`

 Tableau will automatically generate a horizontal bar chart

  If not, select Bar Chart from Show Me

🎨 Bar Chart with Color Range

 After creating the bar chart:

 Drag the Profit field to the Color section in the Marks card

 ✅ Bars will be shaded based on their value:

o Longer bars = darker color

o Negative values = different color

📚 Stacked Bar Chart

 Use the basic bar chart setup

 Drag another dimension (e.g., Segment) to the Color area in the Marks card

 ✅ This creates a stacked bar chart showing contribution by category (e.g., by segment)

Tableau - Line Chart

In a line chart, a measure and a dimension are taken along the two axes of the chart area. The pair of values
for each observation becomes a point and the joining of all these points create a line showing the variation
or relationship between the dimensions and measures chosen.

 Simple Line Chart (Line Chart 1):

 Dimension: Ship Mode (Drag to Columns shelf)

 Measure: Sales (Drag to Rows shelf)

 Choose Line chart from the Marks card.

 This chart will show the variation of Sales across different Ship Modes.

 Multiple Measure Line Chart (Line Chart 2):

 Dimension: Choose a dimension (e.g., Ship Mode or Order Date).

 Measures: Use two or more measures (e.g., Sales and Profit Ratio).

 This chart will display multiple lines for each measure, allowing you to compare the variation of each measure
across the chosen dimension.

 Line Chart with Labels (Line Chart 3):

 After creating a line chart, drop another measure (e.g., Profit Ratio) into the Labels pane in the Marks card.

 Choose Average as the aggregation method.

 This will label each point on the line chart with the average value of the new measure (Profit Ratio), allowing
for easy visualization of the values at each point.

Pie Chart
A pie chart represents data as slices of a circle with different sizes and colors. The slices are labeled and the numbers
corresponding to each slice is also represented in the chart. You can select the pie chart option from the Marks card to
create a pie chart.

Simple Pie Chart

Choose one dimension and one measure to create a simple pie chart. For example, take the dimension named region
with the measure named profit. Drop the Region dimension in the colors and label marks. Drop the Profit measure into
the size mark. Choose the chart type as Pie. The following chart appears which shows the 4 regions in different colors.

Drill-Down Pie Chart

You can choose a dimension with hierarchy and as you go deeper into the hierarchy, the chart changes reflect the level of
the dimension chosen. In the following example, we take the dimension Sub-Category which has two more levels -
Manufacturer and Product Name. Take the measure profit and drop it to the Labels mark. The following pie chart
appears which shows the values for each slice.

Tableau - Scatter Plot

As the name suggests, a scatter plot shows many points scattered in the Cartesian plane. It is created by plotting values
of numerical variables as X and Y coordinates in the Cartesian plane. Tableau takes at least one measure in the Rows
shelf and one measure in the Columns shelf to create a scatter plot. However, we can add dimension fields to the scatter
plot which play a role in marking different colors for the already existing points in the scatter graph

1. Simple Scatter Plot (Scatter 1):

 Goal: Visualize the relationship between Sales and Profit, categorized by Sub-Category.

 Steps:

o Drag Sales to the Columns shelf.

o Drag Profit to the Rows shelf.

o Drag Sub-Category to the Label area in the Marks card.

 Result: Each point represents a sub-category, showing how it performs in terms of sales and profit.

2. Scatter Plot - Color Encoded (Scatter 2):

 Enhancement: Add color to distinguish between sub-categories.

 Step:

o Drag Sub-Category to the Color area in the Marks card.

 Result: Each point has a unique color representing its sub-category, improving clarity.

3. Drill-Down Scatter Plot (Scatter 3):

 Advanced Feature: Add hierarchy to drill down for deeper insights.

 Step:

o Use a hierarchy (e.g., expand Sub-Category to show Manufacturer).

 Result: The scatter plot updates to show more granular data, such as profit and sales per manufacturer under
each sub-category.
 Tableau - Bubble Chart
Bubble charts display data as a cluster of circles. Each of the values in the dimension field represents a circle whereas the
values of measure represent the size of those circles. As the values are not going to be presented in any row or column,
you can drag the required fields to different shelves under the marks card.

1. Simple Bubble Chart (Bubble 1):

 Objective: Visualize profit by Ship Mode using bubble sizes.

 Steps:

o Drag Profit to the Size area in the Marks card.

o Drag Ship Mode to the Label area.

o Drag Ship Mode to the Color area.

 Result: Each bubble represents a ship mode, with size based on profit and color for category distinction.

2. Bubble Chart with Measure Values (Bubble 2):

 Enhancement: Display actual measure values (e.g., Sales) on the bubbles.

 Step:

o Drag Sales to the Label area.

 Result: Bubbles now show the sales figures, offering clearer quantitative insight.

3. Bubble Chart with Measure Colors (Bubble 3):

 Enhancement: Use shades of a single color to represent measure values.

 Step:

o Drag Sales to the Color area.

 Result: Bubbles are shaded by sales volume—darker for higher sales, lighter for lower.

Tableau - Histogram
A histogram represents the frequencies of values of a variable bucketed into ranges. Histogram is similar to bar chart but
it groups the values into continuous ranges. Each bar in histogram represents the height of the number of values present
in that range.

Tableau creates a histogram by taking one measure. It creates an additional bin field for the measure used in creating a
histogram.

1. Basic Histogram (Histogram 1):

  Objective: Visualize distribution of Quantity.

 Steps:

o Drag Quantity (a measure) to the Rows shelf.

o Open Show Me and select the Histogram chart type.

 Result: Tableau automatically bins Quantity values (e.g., 0–4811 range split into 12 bins), showing how many
entries fall into each range.

2. Histogram with Dimension (Stacked Histogram – Histogram 2):

 Enhancement: Add a dimension for more detail within each bin.

 Step:

o Drag Region to the Color area in the Marks card.

 Result: Each bar is color-coded by Region, showing how different regions contribute to each Quantity bin—a
stacked histogram.

HEAT MAP

 Heat Map: Heatmap is defined as a graphical representation of data using colors to visualize the value of the
matrix. In this to represent more common values or higher activities brighter colors basically reddish colors are
used and to less common or activity values darker colors are preferred. Heatmap is also defined by the name of
the shading matrix.

✅ General Steps to Create a Heat Map in Tableau:

1. Open Tableau and connect to a dataset (e.g., Sample - Superstore).

2. Drag one sheet of the dataset to the workspace.

3. Click on Sheet1 to open the Tableau worksheet.

4. You’ll see dataset dimensions and measures on the left.

5. Drag at least one dimension to Rows and another to Columns.

6. Choose “Heat Map” from the Show Me panel or the Marks card.

7. Drag a measure (like Sales or Profit) to Color on the Marks card to encode intensity.

🔶 Example 1: Basic Heat Map

 Select any two attributes, one in rows and one in columns.

 Choose Heat Map chart type.

 Drag a measure (e.g., Sales) to Color on the Marks card.

🔶 Example 2: Ship Mode vs Sub-Category (Color by Sales)

 Rows: Sub-Category

 Columns: Ship Mode

 Chart Type: Heat Map

 Color: Drag Sales to Color on the Marks card

  ✅ Result: Shows how sales vary for each sub-category based on ship mode.

🔶 Example 3: Sub-Category and Market vs Ship Mode (Color by Profit)

 Rows: Sub-Category and Market (use both to create a hierarchy)

 Columns: Ship Mode

 Chart Type: Heat Map

 Color: Drag Profit to Color

 ✅ Result: A more detailed heat map showing profit differences across sub-categories, markets, and shipping
modes.

 Tableau - Waterfall Charts

Waterfall charts effectively display the cumulative effect of sequential positive and negative values. It shows where a
value starts, ends and how it gets there incrementally. So, we are able to see both the size of changes and difference in
values between consecutive data points.

Tableau needs one Dimension and one Measure to create a Waterfall chart.

✅ Steps to Create a Waterfall Chart:

Step 1: Basic Bar Chart Setup

 Drag Sub-Category to the Columns shelf.

 Drag Sales to the Rows shelf.

 Sort the bars in ascending order by clicking the sort icon on the axis.

 🔍 You now see a basic bar chart.

Step 2: Apply Running Total

 Right-click SUM(Sales) in the chart.

 Choose Quick Table Calculation → Running Total.

 Change the chart type to Gantt Bar from the Marks card.

 🔍 This converts your bars into positionable Gantt blocks, forming the structure for a waterfall.

Step 3: Create a Calculated Field for Negative Offset

 Go to the Analysis menu → Create Calculated Field.

 Name it: -sales

 Enter the formula:

plaintext

CopyEdit
-[Sales]

 Click OK.

 🔍 This field helps in sizing the Gantt bar correctly from its starting point.

Step 4: Apply the New Field

 Drag -sales to the Size shelf in the Marks card.

 🔍 Now, your Gantt bars will extend by the sales value, creating the Waterfall Chart.

Step 5: Add Color

 Drag Sales to the Color shelf in the Marks card.

 Optionally, set color ranges manually (e.g., green for increase, red for decrease).

 🔍 Now each bar is colored according to its sales value.

Tableau - Box Plot

The box plots are also known as a box-and-whisker plots. They show the distribution of values along an axis.
Boxes indicate the middle 50 percent of the data which is, the middle two quartiles of the data's distribution.
The remaining 50 percent of data on both sides is represented by lines also called whiskers, to display all points
within 1.5 times the interquartile range, which is all points within 1.5 times the width of the adjoining box, or
all points at the maximum extent of the data.

The Box Plots take one or more measures with zero or more dimensions.

Using the Sample-superstore, plan to find the size of profits for the respective category for each Ship mode
values. To achieve this objective, following are the steps.

Step 1 − Drag and drop the dimension category to the Columns shelf and profit to the Rows shelf. Also drag the
dimension Ship mode to the right of Category in Columns shelf.

Step 2 − Choose Box-and-Whisker plot from Show Me. The following chart appears which shows the box plots.
Here, Tableau automatically reassigns the ship mode to the Marks card.

Tableau - Tree Map

The tree map displays data in nested rectangles. The dimensions define the structure of the tree map and
measures define the size or color of the individual rectangle. The rectangles are easy to visualize as both the
size and shade of the color of the rectangle reflect the value of the measure.

A Tree Map is created using one or more dimension with one or two measures.

Creating a Tree Map

Using the Sample-superstore, plan to find the size of profits for each Ship mode values. To achieve this
objective, following are the steps.

Step 1 − Drag and drop the measure profit two times to the Marks Card. Once to the Size shelf and again to the
Color shelf.
 Step 2 − Drag and drop the dimension ship mode to the Label shelf. Choose the chart type Tree Map from Show
Me. The following chart appears.

UNIT 5
• Filters allow users to easily reduce or customize data displayed within a dashboard.

• Parameters often work like filters but can be customized by the dashboard designer to limit or direct user interaction.

• Actions are set up at the dashboard level to apply rules based on when and where a user clicks on an element in the
dashboard.

• Legends can be used to provide context and allow users to highlight specific data elements.

• Highlighters may be used to show linked data elements across multiple charts or tables.

✅ 7. Establishing Interactions

Interactivity is what makes a Tableau dashboard dynamic. You don’t want your dashboard to be a static report — you
want users to click, explore, and get answers.

🔹 Types of Interactions You Can Add:

1. Filter Actions

o Use Case: Clicking on a state in a map filters sales charts and KPIs to show only that state’s data.

o How: Dashboard → Actions → Add Action → Filter

o Benefits: Dynamic cross-filtering between sheets.

2. Highlight Actions

o Use Case: Hovering over a bar in a chart highlights that category across other visuals.
 o How: Dashboard → Actions → Add Action → Highlight

o Benefits: Reveals relationships in multi-chart views.

3. URL Actions

o Use Case: Clicking a product name opens its page on a website.

o How: Dashboard → Actions → Add Action → URL

o Benefits: Connects Tableau to external web resources.

4. Go to Sheet / Navigation Actions

o Use Case: Use a button to navigate from summary to detail view.

o How: Use Button object → link to sheet or dashboard.

o Benefits: Multi-page dashboard experience.

🔍 Example:

In the Coffee Chain dashboard:

 A map view lets you click on a state.

 All other charts (KPIs, trends) update to show data only for the selected state.

Bottom Line: Interactions make the dashboard more explorable, flexible, and engaging for the user.

✅ 9. Working with Tables

Tables are used in Tableau to display detailed, structured data, usually where summary charts aren’t enough.

🔹 Why Use Tables?

 Show exact values (e.g., Sales, Profit, Discount for each product).

 Enable sorting, comparison, and lookup.

 Add total rows or grand summaries.

🔹 Features You Can Add to Tables:

1. Text Labels: Add labels for clarity.

2. Conditional Formatting: Highlight cells with color based on values (e.g., profit < 0 in red).

3. Filters: Add filters on dimensions (e.g., Category, Region).

4. Sort: Enable sorting on any column (ascending/descending).

5. Top N Filters: Show only top 10 products, states, etc.

🔍 Example:

A table in the Coffee Chain dashboard might list:

Product State Sales Profit

Latte CA $12,000 $2,300

Espresso NY $10,500 $1,800

This is helpful for someone needing to see every record rather than just summaries or graphs.
Tip: Keep tables neat. Avoid large scroll-heavy views. Break into tabs or use filters.

✅ 10. Working on Links and Actions in the Dashboard

This is closely connected to interactivity but focuses on navigation and external linking within the dashboard.

🔹 Types of Links/Actions:

1. Navigation Button (introduced in Tableau 2018.3+):

o Use Case: Add a button that users click to go to another sheet or dashboard.

o Customizable: Can use images (e.g., logos or icons) instead of default arrow.

o How to Create: Drag “Button” object → Choose target → Customize text/icon.

2. Web Page Object:

o Use Case: Embed a live website (e.g., company homepage, product site) directly in your dashboard.

o How to Create: Drag “Web Page” object → Enter URL.

o Best For: Help pages, product details, news feeds.

3. URL Actions:

o Use Case: When a user clicks a product name, it opens that product’s page online.

o How: Add URL Action from Dashboard → Actions → Add Action → URL.

4. Filter Action as Navigation:

o Clicking on a chart (e.g., a state) can act like a link to bring users to another sheet that shows that
state’s details.

🔍 Example:

In the dashboard, a “Back to Overview” button could be placed on a detail view so users can easily navigate back.

Why it matters: These links improve flow, guide users through stories, and connect Tableau to the wider ecosystem.

✅ Summary Table:

Point Focus Purpose

7. Interactions Filters, highlights, dynamic responses Make charts respond to clicks & hovers

9. Tables Structured data view Show detailed row-by-row data

10. Links & Actions Navigation, URL integration Move between views or open websites

✅ 1. Designing Dashboards

A dashboard is a canvas in Tableau where you place multiple visual elements — like charts, maps, KPIs, filters — to
create a cohesive, interactive data story.

🔹 Why It Matters:

 Gives decision-makers a bird’s-eye view of performance.

 Allows quick exploration of large datasets.

  Turns raw data into insights.

🔹 Best Practices:

 Audience-first design: Execs need high-level metrics; analysts need granularity.

 Logical layout: Important metrics on top/left; details below/right.

 Clear visual hierarchy: Titles, subtitles, labels.

 Use tiled containers for structure and floating only when needed.

🔍 Example:

A dashboard showing:

 Total Sales (KPI)

 Sales by State (Map)

 Sales Trend (Line Chart)

 Filter by Market/Region

Tip: Use vertical containers to organize top-down flows and horizontal ones for side-by-side charts.

✅ 2. Creating a Simple Report

A simple report in Tableau refers to a single visualization (or worksheet) that focuses on a specific analysis.

🔹 Steps to Create:

1. Drag a Dimension (e.g., Category) to the Rows.

2. Drag a Measure (e.g., Sales) to the Columns.

3. Choose a visualization type from the “Show Me” panel (e.g., bar chart).

4. Format it (colors, labels, titles).

🔍 Example:

 Bar chart showing Sales by Sub-Category

 Line chart showing Profit over Time

These worksheets will be combined later into dashboards.

Goal: Keep it clean, focused, and easy to interpret.

✅ 3. Working with Graphs (Charts)

Graphs are the visual core of any Tableau dashboard — they help users quickly identify patterns, trends, and outliers.

🔹 Common Chart Types:

 Bar Chart: Comparisons across categories.

 Line Chart: Time series or trends.

 Scatter Plot: Relationships between two variables.

 Tree Map / Heat Map: Distribution and intensity.

 Pie Chart: Parts of a whole.

  Gantt Chart: Timeline or scheduling data.

🔹 Best Practices:

 Use color/size only when they add meaning.

 Avoid 3D or overly decorative charts.

 Tooltips enhance value without clutter.

🔍 Example:

 A Line Chart of monthly sales trends

 A Heat Map showing profit by sub-category and region

Tip: Always choose chart types that best match your analysis goal.

✅ 4. Working with Filters and Report Sections

Filters help you and your users focus on relevant data, while report sections help organize content visually.

🔹 Types of Filters:

 Extract Filters: Limit data before it's loaded.

 Data Source Filters: Apply at the connection level.

 Context Filters: Set primary filters.

 Quick Filters: Shown on dashboard for user selection.

 Relative Filters: Time-based (e.g., last 30 days).

🔹 Organizing Sections:

Use containers to:

 Create KPI sections

 Place trends below summaries

 Keep filters on the side or top

🔍 Example:

 KPI section (top)

 Chart section (middle)

 Map/table section (bottom)

 Market filter on the right

Goal: Keep dashboards clean, modular, and focused on user navigation.