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How AI Decision-Making is Improving Enterprise Outcomes
- List the unused data sources: Data sources imported in a workbook but not used are highlighted by the new feature. The developer can remove these data sources from the data source list to make the workbook faster.
- List of unused fields or data columns: Just like the data sources, workbook optimizer also highlights the data columns not used across the workbook. Removing these at the data source level can help improve the overall performance of the workbook.
- List of sheets not used in the dashboard: It is a common practise that developers tend to create sheets not used in the final dashboard. This creates unnecessary clutter and makes the dashboard slower. The workbook optimiser feature gives a list of such sheets which the user can delete to optimise the performance of the workbook further.
- Highlights lengthy calculations: The feature provides a list of calculations which are too complex and in turn reduce the performance of the dashboard. Simplifying a few of these can improve performance to a great extent.
Ask Data Phrase Builder: This feature is available on Tableau Server and Tableau Online
Add field would look like as shown in the below screenshot:
Customize View Data: This feature is available on Tableau Server, Desktop and Tableau Online
This feature enables to reshape the tabular data behind your visualisation in the View data interface. One can create new columns, remove columns from the default view, change the order and sort the data using this feature. This reshaped data can also be exported as csv file to be shared with the team.
Change the root table: This feature is available on Tableau Server, Desktop and Tableau Online
Managing multiple data tables becomes easier and flexible with this new feature. One can swap any table to be the root table with a single click. This allows one to change the layout of the table quickly, reshape the data with a different root table and delete a specific table without deleting child nodes. For e.g., let us assume a user had to create a data source for an analysis using 3 tables namely ‘customers’, ‘orders’ and ‘returns’. The user creates the data model such that ‘customers’ is the root table followed by ‘orders’ and ‘returns’. But after performing some analysis the user realises that ‘orders’ should be the main root table. In such cases the user would have to re-create the data again from scratch but with the new ‘Swap with root table’ feature user can do the changes with a few clicks.
Parameter Enhancements in Tableau Prep
In version 2022.1 Tableau Prep is adding even more places where one can use parameters in the flow as well as user enhancements. Now, one can:
- Get a list of all the parameters in one place rather than finding them in the flow. One can delete these parameters directly from the parameter window rather than to find it in the flow first.
- Include parameter names in exported output files.
- Include parameters in SQL scripts that you run before or after writing the flow output to a database. Include parameters in worksheet names when writing the flow output to Microsoft Excel.
- 1. Improvements in Esri Data Connector
- 2. Addition of new Accelerators
- 3. Added connectors to connect to more data sources
Tableau 2022.1 is coming soon and includes new functionality and capabilities that will help IT admins, developers, analysts, and business users alike. Let us deep dive into some of the useful new features it has to offer across various Tableau products.
Workbook optimizer: This feature is available on Tableau Server, Online and Desktop
It provides insights on making the Tableau workbook efficient. Some of the suggestions provided by the new feature include:


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So, whenever I open the workbook or the extract is refreshed, Tableau displays the unique values within the range specified, giving more control over the parameter values displayed.
Multiple Marks Layer Support for Maps
This is an exceptional feature to bring multiple spatial layers and context together to better understand and analyze geospatial data and map views. I will be able to include multiple marks layers from a data source to map visualizations and enhance the geospatial analysis. I can present more context in a single map view and perform further analysis with this feature.
Block Comments in Calculations
Block comments is a simple yet one of the most useful features for me, which Tableau has announced in 2020.4. I often used to add comments in complex calculations for easy understanding in future references. Earlier, only single-line comments were possible, limiting the description I could add. But from now on, I can add comments of any length to calculation windows with block comments by simply starting the comment with /* and ending with */.
What makes it unique is that the new multi-line block comment feature is consistent with other popular programming languages. This feature is an example of Tableau’s on-going effort to provide its customers with an intuitive user experience.
Tableau Server
Web Authoring Enhancements
Starting from Tableau 2020.4, it is possible to author dashboards from the browser just like how we design it in Tableau Desktop. With this web authoring enhancements, I can include Highlight actions, Format Mark Labels, apply filters to worksheets, create fixed sets, and even create extract in my workbooks from the browser itself. I no longer have to make changes from Tableau Desktop and publish it to the server. I can directly do it from the browser itself.
Offline Map Support for Tableau Server
Rendering dashboards with maps is now faster compared to previous versions. Now, I can create maps using the offline map style in web authoring, ensuring the performance of map views in Tableau Server. Offline map support is a great deal for organizations with strict internet access restrictions, assuring that map view access to all its users.
Tableau Server Management (TSM) Improvements
Tableau Server Administration activities like installation, upgrade and backup are now easy like never before. I can retry installation or upgrade from the last checkpoint in case of an unexpected issue or error during installation or upgrade, saving my efforts to obliterate tableau server.
Backups can be performed twice as fast as previous versions, and I can monitor the progress with the new progress bar giving visibility into what step the backup is on and how much time is remaining.
Backups can also be scheduled using TSM command starting from 2020.4 and that is awesome. I no longer need to prepare batch script and depend on the windows task scheduler to schedule the backups on regular intervals; instead, I can schedule it with just a single command.
Multiple Key Activation on Tableau Server Prior to TSM Initialization
During Tableau Server installation, it is now possible to activate multiple license keys prior to TSM initialization. I will be able to save a lot of time by eliminating the need to restart after the installation is completed to activate multiple licenses and experience a smoother installation.
Analytics Extension for Tableau Online
The power of the Analytics extension is now unlocked in Tableau Online too. The feature was already available in Tableau Server, and it helped us dynamically perform advanced analysis with models and functions in R, Python and other platforms.
Analytics extension in Tableau Online significantly enhances the scope of using Advanced Analytics by the common users.
Merge Duplicate External Assets
Earlier, the Database or Table with similar names used to appear as multiple assets within Tableau Catalog. But, the new feature helps me to merge those multiple assets into a single one. I can manage assets easily and keep an organized view of External assets by merging the common ones.
Tableau Prep
Tableau Prep Builder in the Browser
Prepare the data for visualizations from anywhere using a browser! Starting from 2020.4, Tableau is bringing the data prep process into one integrated platform on the web. Now I can easily prepare and manage prep flows from anywhere using a browser.
Conclusion
Tableau is progressively evolving as a single platform for data preparations, visualization, and collaboration with every update and version release.
Author : Firdous Maqbool
Images Courtesy : Tableau