Visualisation Success with Tableau


KISs - Keeping it Simples

Because no-one is stupid


What is Datawonders?

Take a look around the net, there are some really great sites dedicated to helping you communicate your data, with any tool, and there are some really cool sites, dedicated to helping you get the edge on your Tableau visuals some of my favourite contributors include:




So how does Datawonders differ? What makes it special?

Well, this is my space for one, but most importantly like the above mentions, and the number of awesome developer sites scattered across the net, I too just want to help you on your Tableau journey, however, I have a very different background to many of the other contributors:

"Coming from an analytical background, moving to data and then big data engineering before uniting both disciplines in visual business intelligence, first with Excel, then QlikView, before settling on my favourite - Tableau"
And I'm not a fan of single-message info-charts

All of my work is centred on creating dashboards that (mostly business) users love to use, I love multi-perspective immersive and interactive dashboards, where collections of charts are brought together to help users understand how that tiny crumb of data impacts the bigger picture.

But, despite working with some fairly large data-sets (in excess of 10 trillion rows and 200+ columns), the one element that is always at the front of my mind when building is: Performance, because lets face it, no matter how great your dashboard is, no user will be happy waiting more than 10 seconds for it to render.

So when I set to work on a new piece, my first five questions tend to be: 

  • Where is the data?
  • How much data is there, and will I need to build and optimise a new table and or warehouse - not the usual first question most analysts ask
  • Who are your audience
  • What is the final presentation medium (as much to Tableau's chagrin, static PowerPoint decks are still preferred over Tableau Server)
  • What's the story: Are we only presenting static / 1-dimensional data, or are we looking for a more immersive experience?

Bottom line:

Many sites dedicated to Tableau, usually only cover one aspect, how to do that awesome chart.

Datawonders' purpose is different from the many wonderful sites out there: Sure I shall show you the how, but also I will explain the why (or the why not as is sometimes the case), and help you to understand the architecture behind the scenes.

With more than a decade of both using Tableau (every version since v4 in September), and teaching Tableau (all versions from v5 since June 2010), this site aims to help you, not just learn Tableau basics, but also the architecture, to help you create charts your users will LOVE to use.

Can I modify the Performance Recorder template?
Steve Martin posted on Feb 26, 2025
Yes you can The template file isn’t altogether useful, I mean, whilst it does help, it could be a lot, lot more informative. And modifying is as simple as editing the template file in Tableau. But where is it? In the Tableau directory of course 048-windows.png C:\Program Files\Tableau\<your Tableau version>\Performance 046-apple.png /Library/Tableau/<your Tableau version>/Performance
Where Can I Find the Bookshop Data?
Steve Martin posted on Feb 25, 2025
Heard about Tableau’s Bookshop dataset but unsure about where to download it from? From Tableau of course. You can find everything you ever wanted to know about it and its downloads direct from Tableau here. https://help.tableau.com/current/pro/desktop/en-us/bookshop_data.htm (Unless the link is moved or deleted) But, the only available downloads tend to be either a large Excel workbook, or a bunch of pre-defined Tableau data sources. And so,…
Configure the Preferences File Like a Pro
Steve Martin posted on Mar 16, 2024
Have you ever played with the Preferences file: Preferences.tps? I mean, really played with it? Sure, everyone knows about using the preferences file to add custom palettes, Tableau even describe how to do that in the knowledge base, what I’m talking about is, the other stuff, the non-documented functions. C’mon, you don’t think the Preferences file exists to solely add palettes to the tool did you?…
Question: Why does the editing experience of Web Auth differ so much from Tableau Desktop?
Steve Martin posted on Feb 14, 2024
And why also does my dashboard often render so very differently on Cloud/Server compared with Desktop? Ah, that old chestnut. This isn’t the first time either of those problems have been encountered, but you’ll be pleased to hear that this problem doesn’t only affect Tableau - no way, not by a long shot. Qlik Sense users for example also faced the same problem, right up until QlikTech moved Qlik Sense to web auth only, where all the problems seemingly disappeared overnight. Why?…
Deploying Tableau Server to Linux - A Survivors Tale
Steve Martin posted on Nov 30, 2023
To the Linux user - I apologise, I think its plain to see, that I’m a fan of the safety net that MS has built in Windows Have you ever deployed Tableau Server to a Windows Stack? I mean actually deployed the server, rather than spin-up a pre-configured image from either Tableau Cloud, or those available in Amazon Web Services, MS Azure, Alibabba or Google Cloud Platform. Regardless as to whether you have or you haven’t,…

Can't get enough visualisation? Me Neither. Check out these other great links for inspiration:

My Tableau Public Profile

Of course I want to sell myself: See some examples of my work at the Tableau Public site

See me at Tableau.comAnd I help out on the forums as every contributor should.
Tableau PublicMuch of Tableau Public is infochart style, but don't let that put you off
Qlik GalleryWhoever said ideas cannot be shared? Sure, Tableau and Qlik function differently, but what is important is the end result right?
DatapineCame across this site a while ago, sure, its for another Tableau alternative, but they do have some great dashboards for inspiration
Juice AnalyticsSimply the best resource for data analytics and visualisation, and an absolute Godsend for any person in the analytics industry, regardless of skill-level




Feeling up to a challenge?

Pop on over to Workout Wednesday