Category: Tableau

Top 5 Data Visualization Tools on the Market

On By Ben Larson Ph.D.In Analytics, Qlik, Tableau, VizualizationLeave a comment

Data visualization is an essential aspect of data analysis and communication. Data visualization tools enable users to transform data into charts, graphs, and other visual representations that are easier to understand and interpret. In this article, we will look at some of the top data visualization tools available in the market.

Photo by Luke Chesser on Unsplash

Tools are listed in no particular order

1. Tableau

Tableau is a powerful data visualization tool that enables users to create interactive dashboards, reports, and charts. It has a user-friendly interface, which allows users to drag and drop data to create visuals quickly. Tableau is known for its robust features, including data blending, mapping, and real-time collaboration. It also has a vibrant community, which makes it easy to find resources and solutions to any challenge.

2. Power BI

Power BI is a popular data visualization tool developed by Microsoft. It enables users to create interactive dashboards and reports that can be shared across an organization. Power BI has a user-friendly interface and offers a wide range of features, including data modeling, forecasting, and natural language processing. It also integrates seamlessly with other Microsoft products like Excel, SharePoint, and Teams.

3. QlikView

QlikView is a business intelligence tool that enables users to create interactive visualizations, reports, and dashboards. It has an intuitive interface that allows users to drag and drop data and create charts and graphs quickly. QlikView also offers advanced features like data modeling, association analysis, and collaboration capabilities.

4. D3.js

D3.js is a data visualization library that allows users to create custom visualizations using web standards like HTML, CSS, and SVG. It provides a high degree of flexibility, allowing users to create unique visualizations that match their specific needs. D3.js has a steep learning curve, but its versatility and customization options make it a favorite among developers.

5. Google Data Studio

Google Data Studio is a free data visualization tool that enables users to create interactive reports and dashboards. It integrates with Google Analytics and other Google products, making it easy to gather and analyze data. Google Data Studio also offers collaboration capabilities, allowing teams to work together on reports and dashboards.

Conclusion

In conclusion, data visualization tools play a crucial role in helping organizations make sense of their data. The tools mentioned above are just a few of the many available in the market. When choosing a data visualization tool, it’s essential to consider factors like ease of use, features, and cost. Ultimately, the right tool will depend on the specific needs of your organization.

Intro to Tableau: Line Chart: 3 or More Measures

On By Ben Larson Ph.D.In Tableau, VizualizationLeave a comment

 Note:

If you do not currently have Tableau, you can download a free version at: https://public.tableau.com/s/

Downloads:

Download Practice Excel File Here: School Lunch

 

Line Chart: 3 or More Measures

This lesson is a continuation of an earlier lesson. If you are already familiar with Tableau, feel free to continue on. Otherwise, check out my first Tableau lesson: Line and Bar Charts

If you want to add 3 or more measures to a line chart, you need to take a different approach than in regular charts.

Import the Data

Select Excel from the Connect menu and select the school lunch excel file you have downloaded.

If you are continuing on from the Line and Bar Charts lesson, you can skip this step, your data is already loaded.

tableauIntro1

Create a New Worksheet

Click the New Worksheet icon found on the bottom of your screen.

tableauIntro3

Drag Year to Columns and Measure Values to Rows

tableau3ormorel1

  1. Get rid of Sum(Number of Records) by dragging it back into Measures
  2. While holding down Ctrl drag Measure Names from the Dimensions slot to Color

tableau3ormorel2

And there you have it. 3 Measures in one chart.

tableau3ormorel3

 

 

Intro to Tableau: Dual Axis Charts

On By Ben Larson Ph.D.In Tableau, VizualizationLeave a comment

 Note:

If you do not currently have Tableau, you can download a free version at: https://public.tableau.com/s/

Downloads:

Download Practice Excel File Here: School Lunch

 

Dual Axis Charts

This lesson is a continuation of an earlier lesson. If you are already familiar with Tableau, feel free to continue on. Otherwise, check out my first Tableau lesson: Line and Bar Charts

Import the Data

Select Excel from the Connect menu and select the school lunch excel file you have downloaded.

If you are continuing on from the Line and Bar Charts lesson, you can skip this step, your data is already loaded.

tableauIntro1

Create a New Worksheet

Click the New Worksheet icon found on the bottom of your screen.

tableauDual1

Drag Year from Dimensions and Free from Measures into Columns and Rows respectively. You should now have a line chart. (if not, refer to Lesson 1 for troubleshooting tips)

tableauintro4

Now, drag Full Price into Rows. You should now notice you have two graphs. Free up top and Full Price on the bottom.

tableaudual2

Now you could just stop there. You do have both Measures graphed. But this really isn’t the best way analyze this data. It is hard to do a good comparison this way.

Dual Axis

For better analysis, we are going to create a Dual Axis Chart.

Right click on the Y Axis of the bottom chart and select Dual axis

tableaudual3

Now you have both measures on one graph.

tableaudual4

If you look closely at the Left and Right Y-Axis’s, you will notice they are not the same. This could skew how someone would interpret this data.

To fix this, right click on the Right Y-Axis and select Synchronize axis

tableaudual5

Finally, since both of your Y-Axis match up, you don’t need them both. Right click on the Right Axis again and uncheck Show header.

Previous > Lesson 1

Next > 3 or More Measures

 

Intro to Tableau: Line and Bar Charts

On By Ben Larson Ph.D.In Tableau, VizualizationLeave a comment

 Note:

If you do not currently have Tableau, you can download a free version at: https://public.tableau.com/s/

Downloads:

Download Practice Excel File Here: School Lunch

 

Lines and Bar Charts

Start Tableau

When you start up Tableau, the first thing you need to do is select a data source.

tableauIntro1

In this case, select Excel and choose the file the you downloaded above (schoolLunch.xls)

Once loaded, the Data Source Page will open up.

a. Data Source File

b. Shows Sheets in the file (there is only one sheet in this particular file)

c. Shows data.

tableauIntro2

The Data

In this example, we are looking at the number of kids receiving Free, Reduced Priced, and Full Price lunches at American public schools from 1971 to 2015.

Line Chart

Start by making a new sheet

tableauIntro3

A Quick Note About Dimensions and Measures:

Notice on the new sheet that the columns from your imported Excel sheet have been placed into two boxes on the left of the screen: Dimension and Measures. Think of Dimensions as Factors or Labels. While Measures are columns you would perform calculations against (adding, averaging, etc). 

Drag Year from Dimensions and Free from Measures into Columns and Rows respectively.

tableauintro4

The line graph should appear automatically. If not, follow the next steps:

First, make sure your Row variable says SUM(Free) — this means we are summing up all numbers in the Free column— If it doesn’t, hover over the measure until a small downward arrow appears. Then go to Measure and select Sum.

tableauIntro5

If you don’t have a line chart, go to Marks and select Line from the drop down menu

tableauIntro6

Bar Chart

Now, go to Marks again and select Bar. Your chart will change over to a bar chart. Try a few of the other options like Area and Shape.

tableauIntro7

Next Lesson: Dual Axis Charts

 

 

 

 

Tableau: CPI Food Prices 2013-2015

On By Ben Larson Ph.D.In Tableau, VizualizationLeave a comment

cpifood

This visualization (made using Tableau) shows the CPI (Consumer Price Index) for common food items. While 2014 was bad year for staples such as dairy and meat, 2015 showed a nice recovery. The main exception being eggs. Look at the massive increase in egg prices caused by the bird flu epidemic of 2015.  **note the purple dot represents the 20-Year Historical Average.

Link to Tableau workbook: Workbook

Data found at USDA website: data link

HTM: Visualizing Inspection Schedule Balancing

On By Ben Larson Ph.D.In Tableau, VizualizationLeave a comment

PM’s can be a real resource drain, especially on the heavy months. That has been one thing that has always confounded me as long as I have worked as an HTM professional (or Biomed  — the name keeps changing). I have never understood why you would have one month with over 1000 scheduled inspections and only 200 scheduled inspections in another month.

The problem is, balancing the workload is a tedious job, sifting through pages of work order lists and moving schedules around. However, if you don’t feel like going cross eyed staring at all of that small text, try giving data visualization a try.

pmSchedule

This graph above(produced using Tableau) shows the scheduled work order load for an imaginary hospital. Note that each color block represents a separate department.

pmSchedule1

Mousing over each colored block provides a fly out showing the Department and record count. You can go here to try the interactive visualization out for yourself: Click here to interact

Looking at this visualization, it is easy to see where departments can be quickly moved around to balance the load. This visualization, if connected to your database, can also become part of a dashboard – allowing you to keep an eye on the work load and prevent it from become unbalanced as departments open and closed and equipment comes and goes.

Now the final data model I created takes more into account than simply the number of records. Using historical data, I add a timing factor to each inspection (this takes into account that the inspection of a diagnostic ultrasound machine will take more time than the inspection of an IV pump). I also add in a personnel factor (if you only have one technician qualified to work on imaging equipment vs 8 technicians for standard patient care equipment, the imaging technician’s time should be weighted to represent that).

Tableau: Free and Reduced School Lunch Program

On By Ben Larson Ph.D.In Tableau, VizualizationLeave a comment

This visualization depicts Free, Reduced, and Full priced lunches served by the the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) in United States Public and Private Non-Profit Schools.

school

The sharp rise Free lunches, in conjunction with the sharp decline in Full priced lunches since 2008 hints that the effects of the 2008 economic recession are still being felt.

school1

Visualization can be found at: Link to Tableau Worksheet

**Data taken from Data.gov: Link to Data File