Data Types and Operators in Tableau

Data Types and Operators in Tableau

Data Types in Tableau

• In Tableau, data types define the nature of the values stored in fields and columns.
• Understanding data types is crucial for proper data analysis, visualization, and manipulation within Tableau.  
• Automatic or Dynamic Data Type :
  • Tableau automatically assigns data types to fields based on the data source and its inferred structure. However, users can manually override data types as needed.
• Data Type Conversion:
  • Tableau allows users to convert data types as per need within calculated fields or during data preparation using functions like INT(), STR(), DATE(), etc.     

(A) Some common & broad categories of data types supported by Tableau are:

1. Numeric Data Types: These include-

• • Integer (Whole Number): Represents whole numbers without decimal points.
  • Float (Floating-Point Number): Represents numbers with decimal points.
  • Decimal: Precise numeric values with fixed decimal precision.

2. String Data Types: These include-

• • String (Text): Represents text or alphanumeric characters.
  • Char (Character): Fixed-length character string.
  • Varchar (Variable Character): Variable-length character string.

3. Date and Time Data Types: These include-

• • Date: Represents dates without time information.
  • DateTime (Date and Time): Represents both date and time information.
  • Time: Represents time information without dates.
  • Timestamp: Represents date and time with timezone information.

4. Boolean Data Type: These include-

• • Boolean (Logical): Represents true or false values.

5. Geographic Data Types: These include-

• • Latitude: Represents the latitude coordinate.
  • Longitude: Represents the longitude coordinate.
  • Geographic Role: Tableau provides specific geographic roles for geographic data, such as country, state, city, etc.

6. Other Data Types: These include-

• • Binary: Represents binary data, such as images or files.
  • Object: Represents any data type that cannot be classified into other specific types.

(B) Additional Data Type in Tableau:

• • Discrete vs. Continuous:
    • In Tableau, data types can be further categorized as discrete or continuous.
    • Discrete data types represent distinct, separate values (e.g., integers, dates), while continuous data types represent a range of values (e.g., floats, time durations).

Operators in Tableau

• In Tableau, operators are symbols or keywords used to perform specific operations or comparisons on data in expressions, calculations, or conditions.
• These are some of the commonly used operators in Tableau. They are used in calculated fields, filters, and other expressions to perform calculations, comparisons, and logical operations on data.
• Some common operators used in Tableau are as follows:-

1. 1. Arithmetic Operators:
      • Addition (+): Used to add two values together.
      • Subtraction (-): Used to subtract one value from another.
      • Multiplication (*): Used to multiply two values.
      • Division (/): Used to divide one value by another.
      • Modulus (%): Returns the remainder of the division of one value by another.
   2. Comparison Operators:
      • Equal to (=): Compares two values for equality.
      • Not equal to (<> or !=): Compares two values for inequality.
      • Greater than (>): Checks if one value is greater than another.
      • Less than (<): Check if one value is less than another.
      • Greater than or equal to (>=): Checks if one value is greater than or equal to another.
      • Less than or equal to (<=): Checks if one value is less than or equal to another.
   3. Logical Operators:
      • AND: Returns true if both conditions are true.
      • OR: Returns true if at least one of the conditions is true.
      • NOT: Negates the result of a condition.
   4. String Operators:
      • + CONCATENATION: Concatenates two or more strings.
      • CONTAINS: Checks if a string contains a specified substring.
      • STARTSWITH: Checks if a string starts with a specified prefix.
      • ENDSWITH: Checks if a string ends with a specified suffix.
      • LIKE: Performs a pattern match comparison on strings.
   5. Date & Time Operators:
      • DATEDIFF: Returns the difference between two dates.
      • DATETRUNC: Truncates a date to a specified level of granularity (e.g., year, month).
      • DATEADD: Adds a specified interval to a date.
   6. Aggregate Operators:
      • SUM(): Returns the sum of a set of values.
      • AVG(): Returns the average of a set of values.
      • MIN(): Returns the minimum value in a set.
      • MAX(): Returns the maximum value in a set.
      • COUNT(): Returns the count of non-null values in a set.
   7. Set Operators:
      • UNION Combines two sets of data
      • INTERSECT Returns the intersection of two sets of data
      • EXCEPT Returns the difference between two sets of data
   8. Conditional Operators:
      • IF Conditional statement that returns one value if a condition is true and another value if it’s false
   9. Case Statement:
      • CASE Statement is used for conditional logic similar to the switch-case statement in programming languages
   10. Table Calculation Operators:
       • WINDOW_SUM: Calculates a sum across a specified window of data.
       • RUNNING_SUM: Calculates a running sum of values in a specified order.