Using Comments in Tableau

Data

Using Comments in Tableau

by Tim Costello
//

There’s something you can do to make your data easier to work with in Tableau, and I bet you’re not doing it. I love sharing this tip when I teach Tableau. Right-click on any dimension or measure in the Data pane and choose Default Properties > Comment. You’ll be presented with a text editor where you can enter notes and comments about this field.

Default Properties > Comments” width=”354″ height=”116″ /> </p>
<h2>Creative Uses for Comments</h2>
<p>This is a great place to put the formula for a calculated field with some notes about why you created it and how it should be used. You can describe a dimension here and help people understand what it represents. Or, maybe you can put a note to let people know how to use a measure and what the default aggregation should be (sum, min, max, average, etc.). I like to add comments to calculated fields as they change over time to show when the changes happened and what the previous versions of the calculation were.</p>
<h2>Format Your Comments</h2>
<p>Notice the formatting options? Pick the right font, format the font (bold, italic, underline) and maybe add a color to call out an important detail. Pretty soon, you’ll have something that’s not only functional but is also nice to look at!</p>
<p><img decoding=

When you’ve finished editing your comment click “OK.” Now, whenever you hover your mouse over that field, you’ll see a tooltip pop up to display your comment!

Complete Comment

More About the Author

Tim Costello

Analytics Consultant
3 Reasons Why You Should Want a Data Warehouse I hear a lot of reasons people avoid a data warehouse: It takes too long to build, data warehouse projects are expensive and often end ...
My Speaker Idol Talk from SQL PASS Summit 2014 Tim Costello shares his Speaker Idol talk from SQL PASS Summit 2014. Speaker Idol is a speaking contest among 12 of the sharpest SQL ...

See more from this author →

InterWorks uses cookies to allow us to better understand how the site is used. By continuing to use this site, you consent to this policy. Review Policy OK

×

Interworks GmbH
Ratinger Straße 9
40213 Düsseldorf
Germany
Geschäftsführer: Mel Stephenson

Kontaktaufnahme: markus@interworks.eu
Telefon: +49 (0)211 5408 5301

Amtsgericht Düsseldorf HRB 79752
UstldNr: DE 313 353 072

×

Love our blog? You should see our emails. Sign up for our newsletter!