Tableau Dates: Complete Introduction -Date Part vs Date Value, Discrete vs Continuous, common charts

[@ni12907]

Hi sqlbelle, I really want to thank you today for making these amazing tutorials and teaching us such valuable information. You videos contributed so much to me getting a new JOB as a DATA VISUALIZATION ANALYST in the midwest region in US. I hope to connect with you on LinkedIn. I went through all of your videos before my interview ❤️. Thanks again!

[@sqlbelle]

Wow, Nishi, that is amazing news! I am so happy for you! That is a wonderful news, thank you so much for sharing! :) And yes please do connect on LinkedIn!! 😊

[@wandererlion2699]

@@sqlbelle What is your linkedin profile name? Do you mind sharing? Thank you.

[@sarasong6019]

This is the most comprehensive explanation of dates of Tableau I ever saw. Thank you!

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you Sara, glad to hear you found it useful 🙂

[@paragkar8885]

When I watch your videos, I can't stop getting amazed each time I do. Many thanks for all your efforts.

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you so much for your kind comment, Parag. Much appreciated!

[@DM-og1iy]

Incredibly easy to follow/understand. I'm on the sideline waiting for on-going maintenance of a dashboard to be handed off to me, and needed a way to get up and running with the program --- this has been by far the best resource online to date. Thank you very much, and please keep up the great work!

[@deepasarojam4425]

Awestruck!! I learned a lot from this series on Dates,. Thank you Donabel for posting these videos.

[@sqlbelle]

So glad to hear, Deepa :)

[@mensamapees4686]

I wish I will never stop watching your videos. Your explanations are excellent. Please keep doing these videos. Thank You

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you Mensa for your comment and support. Much appreciated.

[@derekbelyea]

Very thorough exposition on a topic that is not immediately obvious to new Tableau developers. Looking forward to more like this one.

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you Derek!

[@shraddhaw1537]

simply brilliant !!!! grateful that i found your videos; they're amazing..& so are you!!!!

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you Shraddha! Glad you found them helpful!

[@br31woodlands69]

Level of detail in this video is outstanding. Thank you.

[@vijayarjunwadkar]

Simply WOW! How I wish I could learn so much and so well about dates in Tableau before! Thanks a ton! Looking forward for many more such videos from you! Keep up the great work! 😊👍👏

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you Vijay, glad you found the video informative!

[@Tauhid214]

You are a jam in presenting Tableau topics swallowable

[@rajeevguj]

Must watch for all. Got many things cleared. Thank you. God bless. Keep up good work.

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you Rajeev, I am so glad you found it useful! 😀

[@MissFSimoes]

Thank you for sharing your extraordinary talent with us!! You're amazing!

[@brendensong8000]

Very clear and concise! Love your teaching and in-depth knowledge of the Tableau! Thank you for sharing!!!

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you Brenden!

[@deepasarojam1433]

Thank you Donabel for this video. DATES was so confusing for me and this is a packed video helped me with the gap in my understanding. You really have a crisp way of teaching.

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you so much for sharing your feedback, Deepa! So happy to hear you found the video helpful :)

[@eddyjo3259]

This is again a valuable explanation. Thanks a lot Donabel !

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you Eddy 😀

[@RamMukesh86]

Awesome! Watching your videos on your Chanel is like preparing for interview. Anyone can crack the interview if watched all videos.

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you Mukesh. That would be wonderful if the videos helped in interviews 😀. Thank you for your support!

[@englishladylady6919]

Your explanation is enlightening me all the time. Best teacher . Thank you so much !

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you Englishlady 🙂

[@ashishroshan5946]

Hi Sqlbelle, Thanks for such a descriptive video on dates in tableau.

[@SebAnt]

Absolutely brilliant!! The analogy with the Lego parts and ball of yarn reinforces the concepts 👏🏼👏🏼

[@jagank7812]

The Demonstration was just outstanding, thanks a lot for taking the time to make these concepts extremely easy for us to understand

[@kumarshivam7137]

seriously literaly in love how u explain ..thank you so muchj

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you Kumar!

[@ni12907]

I always click on like button before I start your video 👍👍👍

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you Nishi! I hope you will find it informative 😀

[@gasundry12]

Excellent tutorial. Best clarification on date part vs date value.🎉🎉🎉

[@timothydrolet3041]

Thanks!

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you Timothy!

[@equiwave80]

I am very thankful to have found your channel. Your videos are excellent for reinforcing the Tableau concepts especially tricky ones like Date fields. Words are not enough to appreciate your efforts for the Data Community!!! 👍👏👌

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you for such a generous and wonderful comment, Deepak. I appreciate it. I am happy you finding them helpful! I saw your posts on LinkedIn - they're very helpful. I look forward to learning more from you as well :)

[@bhawnamongia4955]

OMG such a thorough chapter...wonderful...God bless You 😃

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you Bhawna!

[@anil_ind]

Another excellent tutorial and very well explained. Thank you.

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you Anil! Happy to hear you found it helpful!

[@agermoune]

Another great Video - glad I took time to watch it. There always new tips to learn from your channel! Keep it up

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you abderrahim, I am glad to hear you found some new tips 😀

[@pavan3229583]

This is the one of the best video which gives beautiful explanation about the date part and date value which i have so confusion. Your explanation helped me a lot. Thanks for creating this tutorial. It helps me a lot.

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you Pavan! Glad to hear you found it helpful!

[@phuong121288]

Hi, I want to say thank you so much for this. Your tutorials are amazing.

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you for sharing your comment Phuong, I appreciate it. Glad to hear you found the video helpful.

[@sowjanyakake5720]

Just Amazing!! The level of detail in each of the concepts is just crystal clear which builds confidence in beginners like me.. Thank you so much for the valuable content.

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you so much for your kind note Sowjanya! I appreciate it.

[@youmunna6452]

Loving your teaching and your favorite...

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you You! :)

[@dipankarbose4070]

Your videos are very informative...Looking forward to many more such videos from you... thank you so much...

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you Dipankar, happy to hear you found the video informative!

[@Ravit20]

Very insightful 🙂

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you Ravit! I like your new pic!

[@piyushpathak7311]

It's very helpful mam keep uploading these type videos..

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you Piyush!

[@AdrianaPerez-ev5cj]

Excellent tutorial. I learned a lot. Thank you!

[@sqlbelle]

I am so glad to hear you found it helpful, thank you Adriana!

[@graceqin5024]

This is a very helpful video. It explained to my confusion in a systematical way! Notes for myself: How to get just date instead of the modeled Year/Quarter/Month/Day? - right click and drag the pill - chose date (discrete)

[@Data_Mom]

Super video and easy explanation. Thanks a ton for creating these awesome videos.

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you Pooja, glad you are finding them helpful!

[@aniketsawant4830]

Thank you for so much! Crisp and Clear!

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you Aniket!

[@ushasuresh81]

Yet another Very informative video about Tableau Dates... Thank you 😊

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you Usha!

[@Universe-xg7ou]

Very informative presentation. Appreciate!! Thank you so much again!!

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you, I am glad you found it informative!

[@b9821]

DATEs in Tableau sometimes behaves unusual and developers should know how and learn the tricks to use it effectively...this is an awesome tutorials.. Definitely there is always a great take away from ur Vids...i have mostly viewd all of ur vids ..its a grt learning and a refresher too.. Plz keep sharing ur Data Adventures.. Arigatōgozaimashita 😊

[@sqlbelle]

Hello Binod, thank you so much for your note!! I am so happy you found it to be a great refresher, and yes I agree that dates can get pretty confusing in Tableau especially if you are just starting out. Thank you for your support! 😀

[@PatrickBateman12420]

I agree on the awesomeness of the video. However, dates are tricky in programming languages e.g., Python or R as well.

[@MrStark-zy6cd]

Thank you so much for your great work. A very detailed and informative video.

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you Mr Stark! Glad you found the video to be informative! 🙂

[@sherifsalem8097]

What a great explanation! Thanks a lot

[@bharatkankate196]

Great content with crystal clear explanation, keep posting more videos on tableau admin part also.

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you! Glad to hear you found it helpful!

[@wandererlion2699]

Thanks for your nice explanation of dates. You also have a beautiful voice. ❤️

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you :)

[@ramyayellapu574]

Your a Truly a good mentor. I really feel like putting a comment and appreciate you for your effort and knowledge sharing with us. You really stressed on many topics where many people doesn't stress much. I loved your playlist to get full in depth knowledge about tableau. I'm now so confident that i learnt many things which i'm not aware before. Your truly Amazing and sweet 💛

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you so much Ramya!

[@shubhampawar8506]

That's what I wanted 🙌...thanks a Lot ❤️🙏

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you Shubham!

[@kishoredubbasi9780]

WOW You really Awesome Teacher.... What i can give you....... I just watching full ads with out skipping for your channel support.....Thank you

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you so much Kishore. Really appreciate the kind note and thoughts :)

[@magnumbi8396]

Fantastic lesson! Thx

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you :)

[@peterparker4358]

Nice one ❤️ learned something new again today , will remeber always the difference between datepart and datevalue😁 love ur content always

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you, as always, Peter! 😀 Glad there was something new you got from this video :)

[@jraj2380]

Very nice video Mam.. clarified many of my doubts regarding date functions. Thank you so much for making very informative videos.

[@dxwallace55]

Same comment as I gave you twice before, you explain things very clearly.........

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you Doug!

[@AhmerJamil]

Amazing job done!!

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you Ahmer!

[@michafabich9213]

learnt a lot from this

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you Michal.

[@maheshbarma]

really vary useful one. thank you

[@sqlbelle]

Glad to hear, Mahesh! Thank you for your comment, much appreciated!

[@rasikadhanapala5354]

Supper explanation. Thank you so much

[@maseedilyas203]

Been waiting for this video ❤️

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you Maseed! 😀

[@janagamasanthosh1087]

nice explaination lot of thanks...pls do more videos on scenario based interview questions in tableau...i will be wait for your videos...thank you

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you Santhosh!

[@datafancy1361]

Really mind blowing !

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you

[@gudiatoka]

21:41 helper function

[@bozhou1454]

16:21 It looks like Tableau changed something. When right-click dragging 'order date' onto the view, the 'drop field' shows all the signs are the calendar signs, no more '#' sign and 'calendar+clock' sign.

[@CaribouDataScience]

Thanks was hellpful!!

[@englishladylady6919]

Thank you so much. Can we face cohort analysis in tableau certified associate exam?

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you for your support! Yes, there may be a question on cohorts where LODs may be asked.

[@atifahmad8466]

Hi Outstanding, the content you posted has been very helpful. Can you please make a video on SSO(single sign on) authentication for tableau server/online including active directory part as well.

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you Atif!

[@davidjackson7675]

Thanks, that was really helpful. What is be Exact Date function for?

[@sqlbelle]

By default when you drag dates they will be aggregated to some degree, for example at the yearly level, the quarter, the month etc. The exact date is if you want to use or display the exact date as it appears in your data source

[@nallelybalderasacatitla9102]

you are awesome, thanks you so much

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you Nallely :) I appreciate your comment!

[@havefundrawing]

Such a great explanation for dates! I always wondered if I used DATEDIFF to find a previous quarter, if tableau would pull all years with that quarter number. Now I know for sure it will. So to find data from the same quarter last year, do I just have to do 2 DATEDIFF calculation, first find the year difference and then find a quarter difference to ensure I’m only getting data from last year? Or is there a better way to do that?

[@sqlbelle]

Hi! It may depend on how your data and visuals are structured. Table calculations may be another easy way to do it. You can use table calc functions (like LOOKUP) to look up past values and do another calculation (difference, % difference etc). If your data does have multiple fields with dates, then DATEDIFF can help. These are great questions and I have been thinking of adding a video with specifically these (YTD vs Last YTD, YoY, MoM etc)

[@havefundrawing]

@@sqlbelle Actually I just double checked my workbook. It does pull the correct quarter even when I don't specify the year. So I guess DATEDIFF is smart enough to recognize the date value even though theoretically it only asks for date part.

[@sqlbelle]

@@havefundrawing hmm, just be careful. It may be because you have another datepart for year. But datepart wont pull the datevalue. The behavior of your workbook may change depending on what's in your view.

[@havefundrawing]

@@sqlbelle I just checked with superstore data it's the same result. I think DATEDIFF recognizes the value. I'm in accounting, so I always have calculated field for "PQ amount" and "PQPY amount". And my formula is DATEDIFF between the data date and the parameter of the current quarter, make the DATEDIFF based on quarter, either equals to 1 or 4 to get PQ or PQPY data. I remember now what tripped me up was one time I used DATEDIFF on year=1, thinking it'll give me PQPY, but it gave me the entire year regardless of the quarter I'm in. That part makes sense now that I watched your video. Still doesn't quite explain how it knows the correct quarter to pull though. But you're right, it's just something I have to always double check for surprising results.

[@tomix7777]

Amazing video, as usual. Since I am working on a project that involved dates function I was wondering if I could as the following question. I have a data set that has daily apartment rental data that I would like to visualize by month. However, sometimes the dates of the daily rental will overlap the month. I am trying to plot total rented days during a given month that I obtain using DATEDIFF function that takes the difference between 'from date' and ‘to date’. The problem I run into is when I have two rental such as: - one from June 3rd to June 6th (3 days in total) - and the second rental from June 11th through July 18th (37 days in total). - this rental overlaps two months When I try to plot it as a line based on the ‘from date’ Tableau interprets it as 40 days of rental in July which looks silly on the chart. Would you know a solution to this problem?

[@nikhithcheavi1665]

Hi, You made learning Tableau very easy. Thanks for that. I have a doubt. The weekly slope chart for Technology shows a downward trend, but when its rolled back up to the 'year', it shows an upward trend. How is it possible considering all these weeks sum up to make an year? Regards

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you for your kind comment, Nikhith. Regarding your question - please note that with a slope chart, we are not displaying a "trend" line. The slope chart simply retains the first point and last point and connects them with a straight line. The slope chart in this example does not sum up the totals. This is why we have to be careful when using the slope chart, and articulating what the chart is showing. It's really to show "where we started" and "where we are now" - just those two points and not the history in between. Does this explanation help? Here is another reference for slope chart if it's helpful: academy.datawrapper.de/article/152-how-to-create-a-slope-chart#:~:text=A%20slope%20chart%20(also%20called,end%20point%20of%20each%20line.

[@nikhithcheavi1665]

@@sqlbelle Got it. Thanks a lot for clarifying.

[@johnm8342]

Thanks for showing the drop-down option on date... I'm so not used to using right click... is there an accessibility feature, just curious?

[@rajashekarn2000]

Nice Explanation...Can you please make a video on Parameter action with user cases?

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you Rajashekar, I hope you found the video useful. And yes, one of the videos I plan to create is with parameters and parameter actions 🙂

[@tableau179]

Thanks, sqlbelle - comprehensive as always. One thing that frustrates me is when I use the Datename function - whilst custom formatting dates - the viz is always alphabetically sorted - All Aprils followed by Augusts / Decembers etc. Any way round this? I typically use: DATENAME('month',[Date])+" "+STR(YEAR([Date])) - to return April 2019 (as an illustration)....

[@sqlbelle]

Hello, One thing you can try is instead of doing the calculation, if possible, is to use the dates and use the custom formatting. For example: 1. In a new worksheet, drag the date field. By default this gives you discrete date part. 2. Click on the pill dropdown, and change this to month date value (should be the one that has the May 2015 example on the side) 3. Click on the pill dropdown again, and change to discrete 4. Click on the pill dropdown > Format .. and under Custom use something like "mmmm yy" Tableau will still see this field as a date and not a string, and will sort correctly. Please give this a try. I'd love to know if this will work for you. Donabel

[@tableau179]

@@sqlbelle Thank you! Yes, I am aware of this option - but, what I should have mentioned is that this is part of a Period to Date aggregation parameter - Hence, I proceeded with the CF to return the dynamic "mmm-yy" which leads me to my dilemma - the year & quarterly calculations are perfect -pasting my calculations FYR - hope you can suggest some tweak for month return? Thanks! CASE [PTD] WHEN 'YTD' THEN STR(YEAR([Date])) WHEN 'QTD' THEN STR(YEAR([Date]))+ ' '+"Q" +DATENAME('quarter',[Date]) when 'MTD' THEN DATENAME('month',[Date])+" "+STR(YEAR([Date])) END

[@tableau179]

Was able to figure it out ==>LEFT(DATENAME('month',(IF [Parameter] THEN [Date] END)),3)+ ' ' + RIGHT(DATENAME('year', (IF [Parameter] THEN [Date] END)),2)

[@sumitchhabra2419]

Hi, I love the way you explain stuff, just one request. Please include the file as well so that we can practice what you are teaching.

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you Sumit! I am organizing the files and will be posting them on my website as well as the descriptions of the videos.

[@sumitchhabra2419]

@@sqlbelle Thanks a lot for considering my request. 🙏

[@milenaparra2363]

Hi sqlbelle, wondering if you can help us how to create bucket of interbals of time. weeklyu, monthly, daily, quarterly and yearly? thanks in advance

[@rxmendxmen567]

Can you also do a similar video about "Maps". I would especially be interested in spatial functions like buffer and distance and cool ways to apply them ! :)

[@sqlbelle]

That's a great idea! Our team had a project that focused on the mapping piece (and that was before the new features in the new version that could have been so handy then!). Thank you Simon 🙂

[@R.Beasley]

Hi, sqlbelle. Thanks for the tutorial. The FY for my company starts Dec 29th, and FM starts every 29th on the calendar. Is there a way for Tableau to recognize this and allow for a continuous FM or FY?

[@mazeenmuhammed]

Hi Sqlbelle, I was trying to find out the names of the customer for each product with highest sales for that particular product. I wanted to display it as a label. I got the solution but i wanted to know a particular difference. calc field : [ max prod sale ] a) {FIXED [Prod]: MAX( {FIXED [Cust], [Prod]: SUM([total])} )} vs b) MAX( { FIXED [Cust], [Prod] : SUM( [total] ) } ) when I use a) with {fixed prod : MAX( IIF({ FIXED [Cust], [Prod]: SUM([total]) } = [max prod sale],[Cust],NULL) )} i get the right answer but with b i get the wrong answer. could you tell me how are the two things different?

[@sqlbelle]

Hello Mazeen, One difference I can see with your calculations is your use of MAX. In the first one, you are using a fixed MAX which means it will not be affected by your layout, dimensions, dimension filters, measure filters. The second one, you use the usual aggregate MAX() which follows Tableau's default behavior, so it could be affected by. Also the first one is the max per product, while b is the max of the subtotal by product and customer (so it's more granular. I assume this gives you a lower number?) Hope this helps. Donabel

[@monikareddy326]

I would like to calculate 60 day revenue from the date field present in dataset. Not last 60 days. For ex: I have two year of historical data (1997,1998). I would like to calculate 60 day rolling revenue. for every 60 days I want to calculate revenue. Please help me in finding the answer.

[@sqlbelle]

Hello Monika - how are you planning to display this info? There may be a few ways to do this depending on the display or requirement. Core calculation may look like this: DATEADD('day', 60, [Order Date]) You may be able to take advantage of: - table calculation, using moving calculation, possibly with 60 day partitions, or - LOD expression and basically summing up numbers that fall in the date range

[@dragonmurali21]

Hi Donabel Santos, you are amazing.. how to contact you..?

[@sqlbelle]

Thank you Murali, happy to connect on LinkedIn. There should be a link in the About section.