Visual Analytics with Tableau

Chapter 7Advanced Analytics: Trends, Forecasts, Clusters, and other Statistical Tools

In Tableau Desktop, you can run statistical analyses with only a few clicks. Tableau's advanced analytics tools include distribution bands, trend lines, forecasts, and clustering. With these tools, you can tackle analytical questions that cannot be answered with simple descriptive visualizations. But they don't return simple summary tables as results; instead, as Tableau is primarily a visual analytics tool, the output is added to the charts you create.

In addition to the built‐in analytics tools, it is possible to integrate Tableau with different programming languages for more sophisticated, customized analytics projects. This integration of Python, R, and MATLAB will be covered in the second half of this chapter.

By the end of this chapter, you will be able to:

• Answer complex statistical questions using the Tableau Analytics pane.
• Show trends, clusters, and forecasts based on your data.
• Use the integration of the programming languages Python, R, and MATLAB for more advanced analyses.

OVERVIEW OF THE TABLEAU ANALYTICS PANE

Tableau's advanced analytics tools can be found in the Analytics pane, which sits behind the Data pane on the left side of the screen. The tools are grouped as follows:

Summarize:

• Constant Line: Adds a line to the chart, intersecting the axis at a fixed value of your choosing—see the “Constant, Average, and Reference Lines” section.
• Average Line: Adds one or several ...