TDS-C01 Tableau Desktop Specialist Questions and Answers

you can change the data type of a field from the Data Source tab by clicking on the drop-down menu of the field or by clicking the data type icon of the field. You cannot change the data type of a field from the Data pane or by selecting and holding the field.

According to the official Tableau documentation:

Depending on the version the extract was created in, Tableau extract files can have either the .hyper or .tde file extension. Extract files are a local copy of a subset or entire data set that you can use to share data with others, when you need to work offline, and improve performance. For more information, see Extract Your Data.

Explanation

A bullet graph is a variation of a bar graph developed to replace dashboard gauges and meters. A bullet graph is useful for comparing the performance of a primary measure to one or more other measures. Below is a single bullet graph showing how actual sales compared to estimated sales.

Explanation

Follow along:

1) Drag Assortment and Year ID (choose Discrete Month) to Columns shelf, and Sales to the Columns Shelf.

For sales, click on the pill -> choose Quick Table calculation -> Year over Year growth.

The view should now look like:

It is clear that October with -55.3% had the lowest Year on Year growth.

In Tableau, you can change the font of a worksheet title by double-clicking directly on the title in the view, which opens a dialog box where you can format the text, including changing the font. Another method is to use the Format menu; from there, you select "Title and Caption," which opens the Format Title pane on the left side of the screen, where you can change the font and other formatting options for the worksheet title.

According to the Tableau Desktop Specialist Exam Guide, one of the exam objectives is to “Sort data in a visualization”. The guide also states that “You can sort data in a visualization from three locations: the Worksheet menu, an axis, or a field label” (page 15).

To perform a union in Tableau, the tables must have a related field with matching data types, and they must have the same number of fields. This allows the tables to be appended vertically in the data source. Different names or tables from different connections do not affect the ability to union the tables.

**IMPORTANT QUESTION AND EXPLANATION, PLEASE READ**

3 ways to group data -

1) Marks

2) Labels

3) Dimensions shelf.

*IMPORTANT*

If we Group the data by selecting the marks, then they remain separate marks in the view and then have the same colour. Also, a new group is created in the Dimensions shelf. Example -

Using the sample superstore dataset, first plot a bar chart showing sales for each sub-category:

Here, if we Select Phones, Chairs and Storage by selecting the MARKS (Bars), and then group them:

They remain seperate marks (BARS) but are grouped by the same colour.

Now, if we didn't do this, and rather grouped by selecting their Labels (Names):

Then they no longer remain separate Marks (bars) but are rather consolidated into a single Bar:

Finally, we can group directly from the Dimensions shelf as follows:

Now choose Phones, Chairs and Storage and Click Group:

You will now automatically have a new Dimension as follows:

You can change the scope of a reference line by choosing one of the following options: Per Pane, Entire Table, or Per Cell. The scope determines how many reference lines are added to the view and how they are calculated. Per Pane adds one reference line for each pane in the view. Entire Table adds one reference line for the entire table in the view. Per Cell adds one reference line for each cell in the view

Using the Sample superstore as a reference:

1) Let's plot a bar chart showing SUM(Quantity) for each Segment:

2) Right click on the x-axis (Segment):

Notice we don't have an option to edit the axis, only header. This is because only continous values form the AXIS.

3) Similarly, right click on the y-axis (Quantity):

Now we have the option to edit BOTH the axis and the header.

This is a tricky question. We are talking about story POINTS, and not entire stories in the question.

To create a story, lets say I have a blank story with 1 dashboard and 1 worksheet.

I can simply drag the dashboard into the view to create a new story point.

Now, if I try to adjust the worksheet beside it in this same view, I cannot. See below:

The only option available is to replace the existing view. Therefore, the answer is NO since they both cannot be added.

Read more about stories in Tableau: https://help.tableau.com/current/pro/desktop/en-us/story_create.htm

In Tableau, you can rename a field directly in the Data pane by clicking and holding on the field name until it becomes editable, allowing you to type a new name. Alternatively, you can use the drop-down menu associated with the field in the Data pane and select the "Rename" option. Both methods provide a quick and easy way to change the name of a field without affecting the underlying data structure. The "Format menu" and "Replace References" option do not apply to renaming fields.

Explanation

If you answered this question quickly and correctly, you're well prepared for the exam! Most students stumble while creating a Dual axis chart, so go ahead and give yourself a pat on the back!

To create a dual axis chart for the problem mentioned:

1) Drag Product Type to the column shelf, and Sales and Profit to the Row shelf:

2) Now, to focus on 2013, drag Date to the filter shelf and select only 2013:

3) Now, click on the Profit pill in the Rows Shelf, and select dual axis:

4) Now, in the marks shelf, choose Sales, and change the chart type to bar. Similarly, for Profit, change the chart type to Line.

Now the chart looks like this:

Now we change the Profit chart type to line:

5) Finally, we synchronise the axis as follows: Right click on the axis, and choose 'Synchronise axis'

And, our final view and answer is:

Explanation

A geographic role associates each value in a field with a latitude and longitude value.

Assigning a geographic role based on the type of location (such as state versus postcode) helps ensure that your data is plotted correctly on your map view. For example, you can assign the City geographic role to a field that contains a list of city names.

To assign a geographic role to a field:

In the Data pane, click the data type icon next to the field, select Geographic Role, and then select the geographic role you want to assign to the field.

When you assign a geographic role to a field, Tableau adds two fields to the Measures area of the Data pane: Latitude (generated) and Longitude (generated).

These fields contain latitude and longitude values and are assigned the Latitude and Longitude geographic roles. If you double-click each of these fields, Tableau adds them to the Columns and Rows shelves and creates a map view using the Tableau background map.

Explanation

You can show trend lines in a visualization to highlight trends in your data.

To add trend lines to a view, both axes must contain a field that can be interpreted as a number. For example, you cannot add a trend line to a view that has the Product Category dimension, which contains strings, on the Columns shelf and the Profit measure on the Rows shelf.

However, you can add a trend line to a view of sales over time because both sales and time can be interpreted as numeric values.

Explanation

When you connect to a data source, Tableau automatically separates date fields into hierarchies so you can easily break down the viz. You can also create your own custom hierarchies. For example, if you have a set of fields named Region, State, and County, you can create a hierarchy from these fields so that you can quickly drill down between levels in the viz.

Explanation

As the question mentions, we need to create a SET with the following conditions -> Choose only those customers whose Sales > 30,000

1) Right click on customer name --> Create --> Set

2) Let's Name the Set - Customer>30k ( you can name it anything you want :) )

Select USE ALL, and then move to the CONDITION TAB:

3) In the Condition Tab, Choose BY FIELD -> Select Sales -> Sum -> Greater than 30000 , and click OK

4) You should now have a new Set in the Data Pane as follows:

5) Drag this set to the rows shelf, and click on SHOW MEMBERS IN SET. Now drag Sales to the Column Shelf.

6) Click on the Show Mark Labels, and Sort ascending icons as shown:

7) Voila! We have our answer:

c

When creating a date filter in Tableau, anchor refers to the date in a relative-date filter to which you anchor a unit of time. A relative-date filter is a type of filter that allows you to dynamically filter data based on a range of time relative to the current date or a specific date. For example, you can use a relative-date filter to show data for the last 7 days, the next 3 months, or the current quarter1 To create a relative-date filter, you need to specify the following options: The date field that you want to filter. The unit of time that you want to use for the filter, such as days, weeks, months, quarters, or years. The range of time that you want to show relative to the anchor date, such as last, next, this, or to date. The anchor date that you want to use as the reference point for the filter. You can use the current date or a custom date as the anchor date1 For example, if you want to create a relative-date filter that shows data for the last 3 months from January 1st, 2022, you would select the following options: Date field: Order Date Unit of time: Months Range of time: Last 3 Anchor date: Custom (01/01/2022) 1 The other options are not valid definitions of anchor when creating a date filter in Tableau. The mid-point in the range of displayed dates is not related to the anchor date, but rather to the center of the axis that represents the date field. The date in a range-of-dates filter to which you anchor units of time is not correct, because a range-of-dates filter does not use an anchor date, but rather a start and end date that can be fixed or dynamic. The latest date in the data source that can be found is not related to the anchor date, but rather to the maximum value of the date field in the data source2

We can use scatter plots to visualize relationships between numerical variables!

In Tableau, you create a scatter plot by placing at least one measure on the Columns shelf and at least one measure on the Rows shelf (Total 2 minimum). If these shelves contain both dimensions and measures, Tableau places the measures as the innermost fields, which means that measures are always to the right of any dimensions that you have also placed on these shelves. The word "innermost" in this case refers to the table structure.

 ( Simple Scatter Plot)

 (Matrix of Scatter Plots)

A scatter plot can use several mark types. By default, Tableau uses the shape mark type. Depending on your data, you might want to use another mark type, such as a circle or a square. For more information, see Change the Type of Mark in the View.

To create a scatter plot, follow the steps below:

Distribution Pane

Explanation

This is the Analytics pane! Read more from the official documentation below:

According to the Tableau Desktop Specialist Exam Guide, city, country, and airport are three geographic roles that you can assign to a field. Address and time zone are not geographic roles in Tableau.

When creating a group by selecting headers in a Tableau view, the newly created grouped dimension replaces the original dimension field on either the Rows or Columns shelf. This grouping action aggregates the selected headers into a single group, and this new group dimension is automatically placed in the view, replacing the original dimension. This functionality allows for more simplified and customized categorization within the data visualization, enhancing the ability to analyze and interpret data according to specific groupings.

Discrete measures and discrete dimensions appear blue in Tableau. Discrete fields are those that have a finite number of distinct values, such as names, categories, or dates. Discrete fields are usually used to create headers or labels in the view. Blue fields indicate that the field is discrete. Continuous measures and continuous dimensions appear green in Tableau. Continuous fields are those that have an infinite range of possible values, such as numbers or ratios. Continuous fields are usually used to create axes or color gradients in the view. Green fields indicate that the field is continuous1

Explanation

Follow along:

1) Drag Assortment and Year ID (choose Discrete Month) to Columns shelf, and Sales to the Columns Shelf.

For sales, click on the pill -> choose Quick Table calculation ->  Year over Year growth.

The view should now look like:

Layout containers let you group related dashboard items together so you can quickly position them. As you change the size and placement of items inside a container, other container items automatically adjust

Explanation

VERY IMPORTANT QUESTION FOR THE EXAM, PAY ATTENTION

1) To find the number of days between order date and shipping date, we will make use of a calculated field:

In the data pane, click on the dropdown arrow, and choose create calculated field.

Let's name this calculated field "ShippingDelay" (you can name it anything you want :) )

2) Use the DATEDIFF() function, and pass it the arguments as follows:

'day' depicts that we want to calculate the number of DAYS between the two dates. The first argument is 'start_date' which is the ORDER_DATE (day the order was placed), the second argument is 'end_date', which is the SHIP_DATE (date the order was shipped). So by subtracting as follows: SHIP_DATE - ORDER_DATE, we can find the delay in shipping.

Click OK.

3) You should now have a new measure as follows:

4) Phew! The hard part is done! Now let's filter by Market to include only LATAM:

5) Drag Country to the view, and the new calculated field 'ShippingDelay' to SIZE on the Marks Shelf as follows:

*You can also click on Show Text Labels to be sure that you're choosing the Largest value*

Clearly, Mexico has the highest Shipping Delay!

In Tableau, a story is a sequence of visualizations that work together to convey information. You can create stories to tell a data narrative, provide context, demonstrate how decisions relate to outcomes, or to simply make a compelling case.

A story is a sheet, so the methods you use to create, name, and manage worksheets and dashboards also apply to stories (for more details, see Workbooks and Sheets). At the same time, a story is also a collection of sheets, arranged in a sequence. Each individual sheet (worksheet or dashboard) in a story is called a story point.

When you share a story —for example, by publishing a workbook to Tableau Public, Tableau Server, or Tableau Online—users can interact with the story to reveal new findings or ask new questions of the data.

Important question!

Explanation

The computer on which you are installing or upgrading Tableau Server must meet the minimum hardware requirements. If the Setup program determines that your computer does not meet the following requirements, you will not be able to install Tableau Server.

These minimum requirements are appropriate for a computer that you use for prototyping and testing of Tableau Server. They apply to single-node installations and to each computer in a distributed installation.

Names and Categories would be mostly used as dimensions (categorical data).

Profit and measures contain quantitative data and would be more suitable for Measures!

Explanation

This question is directly from the Official Tableau Desktop Specialist exam guide.

Since we are talking about the AVERAGE home values for the United States in 2016, the question is directly offering us a hint that the answer has something to do with aggregation and that too the values tell us that we're working with MEASURES.

Date part and Date values don't really make much sense given the question, and neither does geography.

Therefore, the answer naturally is "An aggregated measure".

Dragging a continuous date value to the Rows shelf in Tableau results in a green pill on the Rows shelf, indicating a continuous field. It also results in a quantitative axis being displayed on the visualization. Continuous fields are used to create axes on charts and can represent a range of values smoothly. This is opposed to discrete date values, which would be represented by a blue pill and typically show headers or labels rather than a continuous axis.

Explanation

Beginning in version 10.5, when you create a new extract, it uses the .hyper format instead of the .tde format.

Extracts in the .hyper format take advantage of the improved data engine, which supports the same fast analytical and query performance as the data engine before it, but for even larger extracts.

Although there are many benefits of using .hyper extracts, the primary benefits include the following:

1) Create larger extracts: You can create extracts with billions of rows of data. Because .hyper extracts can support more data, you can consolidate .tde extracts that you previously had to create separately into a single .hyper extract.

2) Create and refresh extracts faster: While Tableau has always optimized performance for creating and refreshing extracts, version 2020.3 supports faster extract creation and refreshes for even larger data sets.

3) Experience better performance when interacting with views that use extract data sources: Although smaller extracts continue to perform efficiently, larger extracts perform more efficiently.

Explanation

If you chose 111,060 you were SO close to the correct answer but made a small mistake - you didn't change the aggregation to AVERAGE! This is one of the common mistakes many test takers make, so keep this in mind.

To reach the correct answer, follow the steps below:

1) Draw Assortment to the Column shelf, and drag Year to the Rows Shelf. Then Drill down further on Year to accomodate Quarters and Months as well!

Although this seems enough, DON'T FORGET to change the aggregation like in the next step, which will completely change the values!

The correct answer as you can see is 1,461 - Sales for Harware Assortment in 2017 Q4, October

Yes, due to the nature of blends, there are some conditions as follows from the official documentation that must be kept in mind while working with blends:

In addition to handling calculations slightly differently, there are some limitations on secondary data sources. You may not be able to sort by a field from a secondary data source, and action filters may not work as expected with blended data. For more information, see Other data blending issues.

Explanation

Sets are custom fields that are created within Tableau Desktop based on dimensions from your data source. They are subsets of your data, which can be created manually or computed. Either dimensions or measures can be used to determine what is included or excluded from a set using conditional logic, but to CREATE a set we use dimensions.

Reference : https://interworks.com/blog/rcurtis/2016/10/26/tableau-deep-dive-sets-introduction-sets/

Explanation

Stacked bar charts will usually have lesser number of bars compared to a normal bar chart:

Normal bar chart - 9 bars

Stacked Bar Chart - 3 bars

We can easily see a 'part-of-a-whole' methodology being used here as well - we are seeing the breakdown of Segments within each Category.

To easily visualize trends over time - This is the definition of a line chart.

To visualize each discrete category using a separate bar - This can be accomplished using a simple bar chart, why use a stacked one?

A bullet graph is a variation of a bar graph developed to replace dashboard gauges and meters. A bullet graph is useful for comparing the performance of a primary measure to one or more other measures. Below is a single bullet graph showing how actual sales compared to estimated sales.

We can create a Bullet graph with just 2 measures! This method requires the LEAST number of fields possible to create this type of chart.

The best way to tackle such questions in the exam is to click the "SHOW ME" button on top right, and hover over the chart we want to create.

In our case, it is a Bullet graph.

Therefore, we need 2 measures at least to create this chart, and 0 or more dimensions.

A histogram is a chart that displays the shape of a distribution. A histogram looks like a bar chart but groups values for a continuous measure into ranges, or bins.

The basic building blocks for a histogram are as follows:

Demo :

Explanation

Yes! It is possible to duplicate a field and add it to more than one hierarchy. Right click and choose duplicate.

Explanation

You can export the data in a Tableau data source, including all or part of the records from your original data. Alternatively, you can export only the portion of data used to generate the view.

Since the question mentions the data used to build the view, we'll focus on that :

*Export data in the view to Microsoft Access or .csv*

Export the data that is used to generate the view as an Access database (Windows only) or .csv file (Mac only).

1) In Tableau Desktop, select Worksheet > Export > Data.

2) Select a location and type a name for your Access database or .csv file.

3) Click Save.

4) If you're on Windows, the Export Data to Access dialog box displays to give you the option to immediately use the new Access database and continue working in Access without interrupting your work flow.

When exporting a view as an image in Tableau, the default export includes everything that is currently displayed in the view, with Tableau applying its own styling, including fonts. The default format for an exported image is PNG, which is a raster-based file format that captures all visual elements as pixels. PNG is widely used for its lossless compression and is suitable for detailed images like those produced by Tableau. Unlike vector-based images, PNGs do not embed fonts, and the image quality remains consistent when the image is viewed on different platforms, which makes it ideal for inserting into documents like Microsoft Word.

The benefits of using a live connection over an extract include:

B: A live connection ensures that the data in the workbook is as up-to-date as the database itself, providing fresher data compared to a static extract which is updated at intervals.

C: A live connection queries the database server directly, which means it uses the server's memory and processing power rather than relying on the client computer's resources.

A live connection does not necessarily require less network overhead (A) as it may continually send queries over the network, and it is not always faster than an extract (D) because extracts can provide quicker response times for complex queries or large datasets.

The following showcase how you can show mark labels. Using the Sample Superstore dataset:

1) Let's create a Bar chart showing the sales for each sub-category:

2) Now you can show labels by:

2.1) Click on Show Mark Labels Icon in the Toolbar ( easiest )

2.2) Drag Sales to the Text icon in the Marks Card:

2.3) Click on Analysis -> Show mark labels from the Tableau menu bar:

Explanation

Yes! We get different color palettes. They are:

*From the official Tableau documentation*

To change the color for a value

1) Click on an item on the left, under Select Data Item.

2) Click a new color in the palette on the right. In Tableau Desktop you can hover over a swatch to identify the color.

3) Repeat for as many values that you want to change.

4) In Tableau Desktop, click OK to exit the Edit Colors dialog box. In Tableau Server or Tableau Online, simply close the dialog box.

AND

For a scatter plot view in Tableau, you can add reference lines and trend lines as part of the analytics options. Reference lines can be added to a visualization to mark certain values or to provide context, such as an average line across a scatter plot. Trend lines, on the other hand, are used to show the relationship between two variables in the view, indicating the general direction or pattern of the data points in a scatter plot.

To apply bold text formatting to rows or columns independently in Tableau, you should use the Rows tab or the Columns tab on the Format Font pane. This approach provides control over the formatting of text within individual rows or columns. By selecting the appropriate tab (Rows or Columns), you can apply formatting settings, including bold text, to only the selected rows or columns. This is a crucial feature for enhancing the readability and visual appeal of specific parts of a Tableau worksheet, allowing for emphasis on particular data points or categories.

Explanation

Relative date filters dynamically update to show a time period relative to when you open the view, such as the current week, the year to date, or the past 10 days. Relative date filters make it easy to create views that always show the most recent data.

Step 1: Drag a date field to the filter shelf

Right-click (control-click on Mac) and drag a date field from the Data window to the Filters shelf. In the Filter Field dialog box, click Relative Date, and then click Next.

Step 2: Select a time unit

In the Filter dialog box, click Relative dates, and then select the unit of time for the filter. For example, to show only the three most recent weeks, select Weeks.

Here, you can clearly see that the default date is TODAY

Explanation

It is possible to join a maximum of 32 tables in Tableau!

Treemaps use automatically generated sizes that cannot be resized by using the Marks card. A treemap is a type of visualization that shows hierarchical data as a set of nested rectangles. Each rectangle represents a dimension member and its size is proportional to a measure value. Tableau automatically calculates the size of each rectangle based on an optimal aspect ratio for readability and comparison. You cannot manually adjust the size of each rectangle by using the Marks card or any other option in Tableau10 The other chart types do not use automatically generated sizes that cannot be resized by using the Marks card. Pie charts use angles to show proportions of a whole, not sizes. Histograms use bins and frequencies to show distributions of a measure, not sizes. Area charts use filled areas to show trends over time or categories, not sizes. You can adjust the size of these chart types by using the Marks card or other options in Tableau

You should save a workbook as a PDF document if you need paper copies of the workbook. A PDF document preserves the layout and formatting of the workbook, and can be easily printed or shared. Saving a workbook as a PDF document is not necessary or useful in the other situations1

To access bolding options for the text in a tooltip in Tableau, you can:

Select Tooltip on the Marks card, which allows you to edit the tooltip for the specific marks.

Select Worksheet on the menu, and then Tooltip, to open the tooltip editor for the worksheet.

Right-click on the Field and select Format, which lets you format the text including bolding options in the tooltip.

Of course! As an example, see below:

1) Using the Sample Superstore data, let's plot a bar chart showing the Sales for each Category:

Observe that we have 3 marks - Each bar in a bar chart is called a mark. Similarly, each point in a scatter plot is also a mark , and so on for all charts.

1 row by 3 columns means that clearly on the y-axis (Sales), we have only a single mark - a single continous axis, but 3 different marks (Technology, Furniture and Office supplies ) on the x-axis.

2) Now let's add subcategory to the view as well (another dimension):

Observe that the number of marks has increased - i.e the number of Bars.

Also, notice we now have 1 row and 17 columns. Simply because 1 row = Sales (on the y-axis), and on the x-axis, we have 17 different columns (i.e product sub categories!!)

Scaled is NOT a valid size options when creating Dashboards in Tableau!

After you create a dashboard, you might need to resize and reorganize it to work better for your users.

Data blending is performed on a sheet-by-sheet basis and is established when a field from a second data source is used in the view. To create a blend in a workbook already connected to at least two data sources, bring a field from one data source to the sheet—it becomes the primary data source.

Switch to the other data source and use a field on the same sheet—it becomes a secondary data source. An orange linking icon will appear in the data pane, indicating which field(s) are being used to blend the data sources.

According to the official Tableau Documentation:

To read more about Data Blending, click on THIS link.

Explanation

Follow along to reach the correct answer:

1) First, drag Date to the Column shelf and Profit to the Rows shelf. We need to see the 2 consecutive months over this two year period (2012-2013) so this tells us we need to work with continuous dates:

Click on Date in the Column shelf and convert it to continuous month :

2) Now, click on the Profit pill in the Rows shelf, go to quick table calculation and choose Percent difference:

3) Finally, click on the Show mark Labels icon:

4) We finally have our view, and clearly, 10 Months have a NEGATIVE percent difference:

Replace References: 

When you successfully connect to a new data source, all worksheets in the workbook that previously referred to the original data source now refer to the new data source. If the new data source does not have the same field names as the original workbook, the fields become invalid and are marked with an exclamation point . You can quickly resolve the problem by replacing the field’s references.

For example, say you have a workbook connected to a data source that contains a Customer Name field. Then you edit the data source to point to a new data source that has all the same data but instead of Customer Name, the field name has been changed to Name. The Customer Name field remains in the Data pane but is marked as invalid. To make the field valid, you can replace the references, which means you can map the invalid field to a valid field in the new data source (for example, Customer Name corresponds to Name).

Read more at : https://help.tableau.com/current/pro/desktop/en-us/howto_connect.htm

The option to create bins in Tableau is available for numeric fields. Bins allow you to group a series of numeric values into larger segments, which can simplify analysis and help in creating histograms or other visualizations that show the distribution of data. For example, you can create bins to group ages into categories like 0-10, 11-20, etc.

Explanation

A histogram is a chart that displays the shape of a distribution. A histogram looks like a bar chart but groups values for a continuous measure into ranges, or bins.

According to the official documentation, the following are the requirements for using relationships:

1) When relating tables, the fields that define the relationships must have the same data type. Changing the data type in the Data Source page does not change this requirement. Tableau will still use the data type in the underlying database for queries.

2) You can't define relationships based on geographic fields.

3) Circular relationships aren't supported in the data model.

4) You can't edit relationships in a published data source.

5) You can't define relationships between published data sources.

6) Your workbook must use an embedded data source for you to be able to edit relationships and performance options in the Data Source page in Tableau Online or Tableau Server.

Unioning is the correct answer!

From the official documentation:

For example, suppose you have the following customer purchase information stored in three tables, separated by month. The table names are "May2016" , "June2016" and "July2016."

Tables that you drag to the logical layer of the Data Source page canvas must be related to each other. When you drag additional tables to the logical layer canvas, Tableau automatically attempts to create the relationship based on existing key constraints and matching fields to define the relationship. If it can't determine the matching fields, you will need to select them.

If no constraints are detected, a Many-to-many relationship is created and referential integrity is set to Some records match. These default settings are a safe choice and provide the most a lot of flexibility for your data source.

Explanation

TWBX is all in one. It contains viz, info needed to build the viz, and a copy of the data source. It doesn’t contain extracts of the data but can contain both live and data extracts. Best if want to eliminate the barrier of data access.

Create a .twbx with file-based data sources

1) Select File > Save As.

2) Specify a file name for the packaged workbook in the Save As dialog box.

3)Select Tableau Packaged Workbooks on the Save as type drop-down list.

4) Click Save.

5) The default location is the Workbooks folder of the Tableau repository. However, you can save packaged workbooks to any directory you choose.

The following files are included in packaged workbooks:

--> Background images

--> Custom geocoding

--> Custom shapes

--> Local cube files

--> Microsoft Access files

--> Microsoft Excel files

--> Tableau extract files (.hyper or .tde)

--> Text files (.csv, .txt, etc.)

By default, both field names are present in the Union, but contain several null values!

When field names in the union do not match, fields in the union contain null values. You can merge the non-matching fields into a single field using the merge option to remove the null values. When you use the merge option, the original fields are replaced by a new field that displays the first non-null value for each row in the non-matching fields.

You can also create your own calculation or, if possible, modify the underlying data to combine the non-matching fields.

For example, suppose you have the following customer purchase information stored in three tables, separated by month. The table names are "May2016," "June2016," and "July2016."

Table Description automatically generated

A union of these tables creates the following single table that contains all rows from all tables.

Now suppose a fourth table, "August2016", is added to the underlying data. Instead of the standard "Customer" field name, it contains an abbreviated version called "Cust."

The calculated field formula LEFT("Sales Data", 5) will correctly produce the output "Sales" from the string value "Sales Data". The LEFT function in Tableau returns the specified number of characters from the start of the string. Here, the first 5 characters of "Sales Data" are "Sales".

Explanation

From the official Tableau website:

Explanation

Yes! To concatenate fields, they must be of same data type. However, there is a workaround which we can use - Type casting. See below:

Here, State and City are Strings, but Postal Code? Nope. It's an Integer. So we can simply use the STR() function to convert it into a String, and hence the entire equation becomes valid!

A URL action is a hyperlink that points to a web page, file, or other web-based resource outside of Tableau. You can use URL actions to create an email or link to additional information about your data. To customize links based on your data, you can automatically enter field values as parameters in URLs.

Hierarchies in Tableau allow users to drill up and down to explore data at different levels of detail. By setting up a hierarchy, users can navigate through levels of the hierarchy to analyze data at each level, from the highest summary down to the finest detail.

In Tableau, the two elements that can have their values changed by using a dashboard action are Sets and Parameters. Dashboard actions can be configured to modify the values within a set or a parameter, allowing for interactive and dynamic changes in the visualization based on user interactions. For example, selecting a specific data point in a dashboard can trigger an action that updates a set or changes the value of a parameter, which in turn can alter the displayed data or the appearance of visualizations within the dashboard.

Explanation

You can add a reference line to any continuous axis in the view.

To add a reference line:

Drag Reference Line from the Analytics pane into the view. Tableau shows the possible destinations. The range of choices varies depending on the type of item and the current view.

In a simple case, the drop target area offers three options:

Explanation

Whenever we want to add actions to a Dashboard, we can trigger then in the following 3 ways:

1) Select

2) Hover

3) Menu

Hover is best for highlighting, select for filtering. Menu action is added to the tooltip and user can decide whether to run that action or not (best for URL actions)

According to the Tableau Help, a highlight table is “a cross-tabulation that uses color to encode values”. The help also states that “Highlight tables use the Square mark type” (page 1).

Explanation

A Pareto chart is a type of chart that contains both bars and a line graph, where individual values are represented in descending order by bars, and the ascending cumulative total is represented by the line.

On the primary axis, bars are used to show the raw quantities for each dimension member, sorted in descending order.

On the secondary axis, a line graph is used to show the cumulative total in percent format.

According to the official Tableau documentation:

You can perform two actions when you join tables from multiple connections: add a data source filter and create an extract. A data source filter is a filter that you can apply to the data source before it is loaded into Tableau. This can help improve performance and reduce the amount of data in the view. A data source filter can be applied to any data source, including those that use cross-database joins2 An extract is a snapshot of data that is stored locally on your computer or on Tableau Server. An extract can also improve performance and enable offline analysis. You can create an extract from any data source, including those that use cross-database joins3 You cannot perform the other two actions when you join tables from multiple connections: create a union or use a stored procedure. A union is a method for combining data by appending rows of one table onto another table. To union your data in Tableau, the tables must come from the same connection. You cannot union tables from different data sources or connections4 A stored procedure is a set of SQL statements that can be executed on a database server. Tableau does not support using stored procedures as part of a cross-database join. You can only use stored procedures with some single-connection relational data sources, such as Microsoft SQL Server, Oracle, or PostgreSQL5

Explanation

THIS IS A VERY IMPORTANT QUESTION

To answer this question, you need to understand Tableau's Order of Operations. See below and remember this always:

Explanation

To reach the correct answer, follow these steps:

1) Drag Order Date (Discrete Year) to the Column shelf, and Region to the Row Shelf as shown:

2) Drag Profit to Text in the Marks Shelf as shown:

3) Click on Analysis as shown -> Totals -> SELECT ROW GRAND TOTALS

The following will be the final view:

You could also Filter by Region to only Focus on Canada, but that's your choice:

THEREFORE,

2012 = 4,888

2011 -> 2014 = 17,817

Explanation

You can create a group to combine related members in a field. The icon associated with a group is a paper clip!

The icon shown is used to add a new Dashboard! From the official documentation:

According to the Tableau Desktop Specialist Exam Readiness, to create a calculation that returns a customer name followed by a comma, a space, and then the customer’s age, you should use the formula [Customer Name] + “,” + STR([Age]). This is because you need to concatenate strings using the + operator, and convert the numeric field [Age] to a string using the STR() function.

No, by default, animations are not enabled in Tableau.

We can animate visualizations to better highlight changing patterns in your data, reveal spikes and outliers, and see how data points cluster and separate.

Animations visually transition between filter, sort, and zoom settings, different pages, and changes to filter, parameter, and set actions. As visualizations animate in response to these changes, viewers can more clearly see how data differs, helping them make better informed decisions.

When you author animations, you can choose between two different styles: simultaneous or sequential. Here are examples of each type.

1) Simultaneous animations

The default simultaneous animations are faster and work well when showing value changes in simpler charts and dashboards.

2) Sequential animations

Sequential animations take more time but make complex changes clearer by presenting them step-by-step.

To Animate visualizations in a workbook:

1) Choose Format > Animations.

2) If you want to animate every sheet, under Workbook Default, click On. Then do the following:

For Duration, choose a preset, or specify a custom duration of up to 10 seconds.

For Style, choose Simultaneous to play all animations at once or Sequential to fade out marks, move and sort them, and then fade them in.

3) To override workbook defaults for a particular sheet, change the settings under Selected Sheet.

 You can use the Color legend to access options to change a dimension’s color palette, in addition to the Marks card. The Color legend shows the colors assigned to each member of the dimension in the view. You can right-click on the Color legend and select Edit Colors to open the Edit Colors dialog box, where you can change the color palette, assign specific colors to dimension members, or edit the color transparency and border6 The other options are not valid ways to change a dimension’s color palette. Edit in Shelf is a feature that allows you to edit the fields on the Rows or Columns shelves by typing directly on the shelf. It does not affect the color palette of the dimension7 The Format menu allows you to change the appearance of various elements in the workbook, such as fonts, borders, shading, alignment, etc. It does not have options for changing the color palette of the dimension8 Edit Caption is a feature that allows you to add or edit a caption for a worksheet or dashboard. It does not affect the color palette of the dimension

When the Physical Tables option is selected for an extract in Tableau, an individual table is created for each physical table in the extract. This means that the extract will include a separate table for each underlying table in your database, maintaining the database's structure within the extract. This can be useful when you need to preserve the original granularity of the data or when working with certain database optimizations.

According to the Tableau Help, headers are “labels that identify the different parts of your view”. The help also states that “Headers are created when you place a discrete dimension on Columns or Rows” (page 1).

From the data pane, simply right click on the dimension, choose geographic role, and then select the appropriate role as follows:

Explanation

GDP / Population = GDP Per Capita

Here Sum is a function, / and + are operators. On the bottom there are comments.

To create a stacked bar chart in Tableau, you can drag a second dimension to the Color shelf on the Marks card. This action will segment the bars already present in the chart by the new dimension, stacking the segments on top of each other within each bar. This is a common method to add additional layers of detail to a bar chart and effectively compare parts to a whole across categories.

Explanation

If you chose 2, then you were very close but probably didn't plot the actual Percent Difference on your view. ( One of the marks is just over the line).

Firstly, Drop the Week ID onto the column shelf, and convert it to continuous since we need both Year and Quarter as mentioned in the question.

2) Next, Drop assortment to filters shelf so that we can focus on Electronics!

3) This should be your view now. Click on the Show Mark Labels icon as shown:

The final view is as follows, with 3 points below 0 ( i.e negative )

By default, the shape that a Heap map uses is a "Square". See below:

THIS IS A VERY IMPORTANT QUESTION

Aggregation is an important concept to consider when creating calculated fields. A calculated field for SUM([Profit]) / SUM([Sales]) will give you a very different answer than [Profit] / [Sales], even though both formulas are valid.

If you do not provide the aggregation within the calculated field, Tableau will calculate the equation for every record ( row ) in your analysis, then aggregate the answers for all of the rows together when the calculated field is added to the view.

In simple terms, if specify the aggregation such as SUM, what Tableau will do is that it will first calculate the sum of the Profit column ( say x ), then calculate the sum of the Sales column ( say y ), and then simply apply x/y ---> This is what we expect! Perfect!

BUT, if you don't specify the aggregation, it will go to every single ROW, perform Profit / Sales, and then aggregate the answers calculated for each row. This is simply NOT what we wan't!

An example: