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Tableau Desktop is a data visualization software. Researchers use it to create static or interactive infographic views of datasets, present and share them in different ways: in print, via social media, and embed in blog and website.
Getting Tableau software
Tableau Desktop is installed on computers in SFU Burnaby Library Lab 2105.
Tableau Public is a free limited version of Tableau Desktop for users to create and share visualization online. As soon as a workbook is published to Tableau Public, the visualization is accessible by anyone on the internet, so be sure to only use data that is suitable for a public audience.
SFU services and support for Tableau and visual analytics
The SFU Library Research Commons offers two regular workshops which orient users to Tableau: an introductory session, and a more advanced session. If you are interested in booking a workshop for your class or research group, please email digital-scholarship@sfu.ca.The Vancouver Institute for Visual Analytics (VIVA) provides in-depth assistance with a research project. Visual analytics consultations are typically 30 - 60 minutes and are available to researchers from any discipline. To book a consultation, please email viva@sfu.ca.
Upcoming workshops and registration
Jupyter notebook: An Introduction to Interactive Reproducible Research
A Jupyter notebook is an application which can be used to produce interactive computational narratives containing code (e.g., R, Python, Julia) and formatted text (e.g., paragraphs, formulas). Jupyter notebooks are a powerful open source tool for scientific computing and can be used to clean, visualize and analyze data as well as showcase models and simulations, while also facilitating sharing results with the scientific community.
By the end of this workshop you will be familiar with the Jupyter environment and will be able to define, test and run functions, run a Python-based simulation and create an interactive narrative which can be shared with colleagues.
Requirements
- Bring your own laptop
- Comfort with Python programming language (or other programming languages)
- Install Python 3.7 and Jupyter notebooks (the easiest way is via Anaconda)
Required libraries
- pandas
- numpy
- matplotlib
Upcoming Workshops
| Dates | Location |
|---|---|
| Tuesday, October 22, 2019 - 1:00pm to 4:00pm | Burnaby, SFU's Big Data Hub (Applied Science Building - Flexible Meeting Room ASB 10908) |
An Introduction to Using Tableau for Data Visualization
Tableau is a data visualization tool that is being used to help analyze data and illustrate the patterns and insights behind them. This interactive workshop will introduce researchers or students to Tableau Public, a free access version of Tableau.
Requirements:
- No prior experience with Tableau is necessary.
- Participants will need to bring their own laptop preloaded with the latest version of Tableau Public
Upcoming Workshops
| Dates | Location |
|---|---|
| Thursday, October 31, 2019 - 10:00am to 12:00pm | Burnaby, Bennett Library, Rm 7010, Research Commons |
Got Data? Use R for Data Visualization
Upcoming Workshops
| Dates | Location |
|---|---|
| Tuesday, November 5, 2019 - 1:00pm to 5:00pm | Burnaby, Bennett Library, Rm 7010, Research Commons |
Data visualization with Tableau: The painless, programming-free way to build charts and graphs
Tableau is a data visualization tool that can help you analyze your data and illustrate the patterns and insights behind them. This interactive workshop will introduce researchers to Tableau Public, a free access version of Tableau.
- connect datasets to your Tableau workbook;
- create a variety of basic chart types (including bar charts, line graphs, and maps);
- use Tableau's built-in analysis features, like reference lines, trend lines and calculated fields; and
- publish and share publication-quality interactive charts and graphs.
- This workshop is not catered. You will get a 60-minute break at approximately half way through the session.
- This workshop was previously split into two Research Commons workshops: "An Introduction to Using Tableau for Data Visualization" and "Doing More with Tableau for Data Visualization". If you have taken both of these Research Commons workshops, then you will find the material redundant.
Upcoming Workshops
| Dates | Location |
|---|---|
| Wednesday, November 6, 2019 - 12:00pm to 5:00pm | Vancouver, Harbour Centre, Rm 7400 |
Resources for learning Tableau
Resources from Tableau
- Tutorial with screenshots: Tableau Starter Kits
- Watch free training videos
- Register to attend live online training
- Learn best practices for different tasks and analysis topics in the Tableau Whitepapers collection
- Search the Tableau Knowledge Base for quick answers
- Ask questions on the Tableau Community Forums
Lynda.com Online Training Library (SFU account required)
- Tableau Essential Training [beginner level]
- Tableau 10: Mastering Calculations [beginner level]
- Tableau 10 for Data Scientists [intermediate level]
- Integrating Tableau and R for Data Science [intermediate level]
Further resources
- Here is a list of ebooks on Tableau from the SFU Library
- George Mason University Libraries has a comprehensive guide on data visualization
- Alberto Cairo is an experienced data visualization journalist and designer -- check out his blog.