required to connect to the data.
Tableau Data Extracts (.tde) leverage Tableau’s proprietary data engine. When you create an extract, your data is compressed. In versions prior to V8.2, if your data source is from a file (Excel, Access, text), Data Extracts add formula functions that don’t exist in those sources – including Count Distinct and Median. Beginning with V8.2, the Data Extract is no longer necessary to gain these functions because connections using the newer optimized connection create a local temporary extract automatically.
If you are publishing workbooks via Tableau Server, Data Extracts provide an effective way to separate the analytical load Tableau generates from your source database.
Tableau Packaged Data Source (.tdsx) files provide a means for publishing data extract files (.tde) or any filed-based data to Tableau Server. The Data Server can then be scheduled to refresh these files at regular intervals automatically.
Tableau Reader
Tableau Reader is a free version that allow users to consume Tableau Desktop Reports without the need for a paid license. To make files consumable by Tableau Reader, save your workbook as a Tableau Packaged Workbook (.twbx) file.
Tableau Online Help
I hope that while reading this book, you have Tableau Desktop running nearby and go to it often to work on examples, explore other options, and access Tableau Online Help (TOH). TOH is an excellent repository of information that is frequently updated by experienced practitioners. If something in this text isn’t making sense to you, try searching the TOH for another perspective on the topic.
Introducing the Tableau Desktop Workspace
This book is intended as a supplement (not a replacement) for Tableau’s online manual. If you are running Tableau Desktop while you are reading, you should try pressing the F1 key in Windows or Shift+Command+? on the Mac and take a look at the online manual. Go to the Tableau Help menu and select the Watch Training Videos option. This will take you to Tableau’s training and tutorials website. Watch the introductory video and review the numerous training videos that are sorted by topic. Most of them range from 3 to 20 minutes in length. Using the training videos in combination with this book will jumpstart your Tableau learning and deepen your understanding of more advanced skills.
In the remainder of this chapter, you learn the basics of Tableau’s workflow and user interface.
New Workspace Design
Tableau Desktop Version 8.2 and earlier versions included a Start page that contained a workspace for connecting to data sources, saving data sources, and saving frequently used workbooks. The Start page also included links to videos and sample workbooks.
The Start page in Tableau Desktop Version 9 has been improved to include more links to training and idea resources. Tableau has also made it easier to search the growing number of data sources that you can access. All of the examples in this text reflect Version 9. The figures were created using an iMac or MacBook Pro unless specifically noted otherwise.
For those readers using the Windows version, the menus, functions, and location of controls are virtually identical. The only differences relate to the ways that Windows and OS X handle menu positioning and keyboard shortcuts. A detailed explanation of the differences between the two operating systems is outside the scope of this text. The biggest difference between the Windows and Mac editions relates to the number of connectors available. The Windows edition has more connectors at this time. See Appendix B for a complete list of connections.
Go to Appendix C to see a complete listing of Windows and Mac keyboard shortcuts. You can also search the Tableau manual to find the latest list of keyboard shortcuts.
Using the Start Page Controls Effectively
If you are accustomed to working with spreadsheets or other analysis tools, learning Tableau’s desktop environment will be a breeze. If you have no familiarity with database terminology or spreadsheets, you can still be using Tableau effectively within a few hours.
Tableau’s Start page has been redesigned in Version 9 to provide more convenient access to your data, workbooks, and learning resources for new users. The new design of the Start page should also be more appealing to experienced users because it provides convenient access to Tableau’s web content and to interesting public content features such as the Tableau Public Viz of the Week.
The Start Page
Open Tableau and you are presented with the Start page displayed in Figure 1-4.
Clicking the small tableau logo displayed in the upper left allows you to toggle between the Start page and the Tableau sheet workspace. Think of the Start page as the control center and the sheet workspace as your building environment. The Start page is divided into three sections from left to right.
• Connect pane
• Open pane
• Discover pane
Figure 1-4: Tableau Start page
In the Connect pane, you connect to several kinds of data sources. The Open pane in the center of the screen displays your nine most recently opened workbooks. It also provides options for connecting to your work files or to sample workbooks provided by Tableau. The Discover pane provides links to training videos, the Tableau Public Viz of the Week, and other links including Tableau’s blog, company news, and the popular Tableau user forum.
If you want to follow along in Tableau, select and open one of the saved data sources that are provided. Alternatively, go to this book’s companion website (see Appendix F for the address), download the Chapter 1 sample file, and use the File menu option in the Start page to open the sample workbook. This will allow you to see the actual sheets used to create the figures in this chapter.
The Connect Pane
The Connect pane provides convenient access to data stored in files on your computer, data stored in databases, and sample data sources provided by Tableau, as well as to frequently used data sources that you have saved for easy access.
In a File
Look on the top-left side of the Start page right below the Connect heading. This area includes options for connecting files available to you, including Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Access (Windows only), Statistical files, and Text files.
To a Server
You must be using Tableau Desktop Professional to have access to the To a Server connections. If you are using Tableau Desktop Personal edition, you can’t connect to data sources in this area. If you are using Tableau Desktop Professional, you should see five connections, starting with Tableau Server. At the bottom of this group of connections is an additional option to connect with more server data sources. Clicking “more servers” will expose more server connection types to a variety of databases and web services.
The order in which server connections appear in this area will change depending on which server connections you use most frequently. In Figure 1-4, Google Big Query appears just below Tableau Server because I’ve been using that data source recently. The order that connections appear on your connection pane will be different.
Saved Data Sources
At
