Visual Analytics Fundamentals: Creating Compelling Data Narratives with Tableau

Visual Analytics Fundamentals: Creating Compelling Data Narratives with Tableau

by Lindy Ryan
Released June 2023
Publisher(s): Addison-Wesley Professional
ISBN: 9780137957002

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Book description

Master the Fundamentals of Modern Visual Analytics--and Craft Compelling Visual Narratives in Tableau!

Do you need to persuade or inform people? Do you have data? Then you need to master visual analytics and visual storytelling. Today, the #1 tool for telling visual stories with data is Tableau, and demand for Tableau skills is soaring. In Visual Analytics Fundamentals, renowned visual storyteller and analytics professor Lindy Ryan introduces all the fundamental visual analytics knowledge, cognitive and perceptual concepts, and hands-on Tableau techniques you'll need.

Ryan puts core analytics and visual concepts upfront, so you'll always know exactly what you're trying to accomplish and can apply this knowledge with any tool. Building on this foundation, she presents classroom-proven guided exercises for translating ideas into reality with Tableau 2022. Youll learn how to organize data and structure analysis with stories in mind, embrace exploration and visual discovery, and articulate your findings with rich data, well-curated visualizations, and skillfully crafted narrative frameworks. Ryan's insider tips take you far beyond the basics--and you'll rely on her expert checklists for years to come.

  • Communicate more powerfully by applying scientific knowledge of the human brain

  • Get started with the Tableau platform and Tableau Desktop 2022

  • Connect data and quickly prepare it for analysis

  • Ask questions that help you keep data firmly in context

  • Choose the right charts, graphs, and maps for each project--and avoid the wrong ones

  • Craft storyboards that reflect your message and audience

  • Direct attention to what matters most

  • Build data dashboards that guide people towards meaningful outcomes

  • Master advanced visualizations, including timelines, Likert scales, and lollipop charts

This book has only one prerequisite: your desire to communicate insights from data in ways that are memorable and actionable. It's for executives and professionals sharing important results, students writing reports or presentations, teachers cultivating data literacy, journalists making sense of complex trends. . . . practically everyone! Don't even have Tableau? Download your free trial of Tableau Desktop and let's get started!

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Table of contents

  1. Cover Page
  2. About This eBook
  3. Halftitle Page
  4. Title Page
  5. Figure Credits
  6. Copyright Page
  7. Pearson’s Commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
  8. Contents at a Glance
  9. Contents
  10. Preface
    1. Three Core Takeaways
    2. What You’ll Learn in This Book
    3. Who This Book Is For
    4. Assumptions
    5. Why Tableau?
    6. Installing Tableau Desktop
    7. How to Use This Text
    8. Supporting Materials
    9. Contents of This Book
  11. Acknowledgments
  12. About the Author
  13. Chapter 1. Welcome to Visual Analytics
    1. A Visual Revolution
    2. The Evolution from Data Visualization to Visual Data Storytelling
    3. A Brief Look at the State of the Industry
    4. From Visual to Story: Bridging the Gap
    5. Summary
  14. Chapter 2. The Power of Visual Analytics
    1. The Science of Storytelling
    2. The Power of Stories
    3. Summary
  15. Chapter 3. Getting Started with Tableau
    1. Using Tableau
    2. Why Tableau?
    3. The Tableau Product Portfolio
    4. Getting Started
    5. Installing Tableau Desktop
    6. Connecting to Data
    7. Adding and Replacing Data Sources
    8. Basic Data Prep with Data Interpreter
    9. Navigating the Tableau Interface
    10. Understanding Dimensions and Measures
    11. Summary
  16. Chapter 4. Keeping Visual Analytics in Context
    1. Context in Action
    2. Exploratory Versus Explanatory Analysis
    3. Structuring Visual Analytic Stories
    4. Audience Analysis for Storytelling
    5. Summary
  17. Chapter 5. Fundamental Data Visualizations
    1. The Bar Chart
    2. The Line Chart
    3. Pie and Doughnut Charts
    4. The Scatter Plot
    5. The Packed Bubble Chart
    6. The Tree Map
    7. The Heat Map
    8. Summary
  18. Chapter 6. Fundamental Maps
    1. Summary
  19. Chapter 7. Design Tips for Curating Visual Analytics
    1. Visual Design Building Blocks
    2. Color
    3. Color Effects
    4. Pre-attentive Colors
    5. Important Color Considerations
    6. The Truth About Red and Green
    7. Lines
    8. Formatting, Shading, and Banding
    9. Shapes
    10. Summary
  20. Chapter 8. Structuring Analytics for Storytelling: Prep, Dashboards, and Stories
    1. Basic Data Prep in Tableau: Data Interpreter
    2. Storyboarding Your Visual Analytics
    3. Summary
  21. Chapter 9. Beyond Fundamentals: Advanced Visualizations
    1. Timelines
    2. Bar-in-Bar Charts
    3. Likert-Scale Visualizations
    4. Lollipop Charts
    5. Word Clouds
    6. Summary
  22. Chapter 10. Closing Thoughts
    1. Five Steps to Visual Data Storytelling
    2. The Important Role of Feedback
    3. Ongoing Learning
  23. Appendix A. Tableau Services
    1. eLearning
    2. Instructor-Led Training
    3. Tableau Help
    4. Tableau Community
    5. Tableau Knowledge Base
  24. Index

Product information

  • Title: Visual Analytics Fundamentals: Creating Compelling Data Narratives with Tableau
  • Author(s): Lindy Ryan
  • Release date: June 2023
  • Publisher(s): Addison-Wesley Professional
  • ISBN: 9780137957002