Tableau Desktop Foundations Practice Test

Renaming a field in Tableau only changes the friendly name that Tableau displays inside the workbook (and any other workbooks or data source files that reuse the renamed metadata). All worksheets in the workbook immediately reflect the new field name, but the actual column name in the source database or extract is left untouched. Therefore, there is no need to refresh data or modify the database itself. The change is purely a metadata adjustment within Tableau.

Tableau supports cross-database joins in either live or extract mode. When you join a single SQL connection with a file-based connection such as Excel, the data source stays live; Tableau automatically decides at query time whether to execute the join in the SQL database (by loading the file data into a temporary table) or in the Hyper engine. Because the connection is already live, Tableau does not prompt you to create a permanent extract. Blending is unnecessary because both tables reside in one data source, and a single data source cannot mix live and extract modes.

Showing a field as a filter places an interactive control (such as a dropdown, slider, or checklist) on the dashboard. Viewers can then choose one or more values and Tableau re-queries the data source, redrawing every worksheet that uses the filter-exactly meeting the requirement to "dynamically restrict" the view. A data highlighter only emphasizes marks without hiding the others, animations affect visual transitions but not filtering, and a parameter control would require an additional calculated field before it could filter the view, making it a less direct solution.

The correct method for adding an existing worksheet to a dashboard is to drag it from the list of sheets in the Dashboard pane (typically on the left) and drop it onto the dashboard canvas. Another valid method is to double-click the sheet in that same list. Dragging a data field onto the canvas creates a new worksheet within the dashboard, rather than adding an existing one. The 'Dashboard > Add Sheet' menu option does not exist. Right-clicking a worksheet tab at the bottom of the workbook provides options for managing the sheet itself (like renaming or deleting), not for adding it to a dashboard.

When you Ctrl-select (or Shift-select) the individual marks in the view, Tableau activates the paper-clip icon on the tooltip/context menu. Choosing Group (or right-clicking the selection and selecting Group) creates a discrete group field that immediately replaces the selected marks with one combined member in the chart and writes a new group dimension to the Data pane. Grouping from headers can achieve the same result, but only if the headers-not the axis-are selected. Creating a set or a combined field does not create a grouped dimension; bins are limited to numeric, continuous fields, so they cannot group string categories.

When a user double-clicks a field with a geographic role, such as 'State', Tableau automatically generates 'Latitude' and 'Longitude' fields and places them on the Rows and Columns shelves. It also adds the 'State' field to Detail on the Marks card to create a map with a point for each state.

DATEDIFF returns the number of date boundaries crossed, so the difference between two identical dates is 0. To include both the start and end dates in the count, you add 1 to the DATEDIFF result. Therefore, adding 1 to DATEDIFF('day',[Order Date],[Ship Date]) produces an inclusive day count. The other expressions either reverse the arguments (producing negative values), omit the +1 (exclusive of one date), or subtract 1 (making the result too small).

The correct answer is that the original column name in the Excel file remains unchanged. Renaming a field in the Tableau Data pane is a metadata change that only affects how the field is displayed and labeled within the Tableau workbook. It does not alter the column name in the original data source file.

A relationship is created in the logical layer by positioning one logical table on top of, or next to, another. This drag-and-drop action opens the Edit Relationship dialog where matching fields, cardinality and referential integrity can be set. Converting to a union, editing blend relationships through the Data menu, or joining tables in the physical layer do not build a logical-layer relationship, so they will not provide the desired aggregation control.

The correct answer is a Story Point. In Tableau, a story is a sequence of visualizations that convey a narrative. Each individual sheet within that story is called a story point. A story point can contain a worksheet or a dashboard. A worksheet is a single view, and a dashboard is a collection of views, but neither is the sequential component used to build the story itself. An Action is an interactive element, like a filter or highlight, and is not used to structure a narrative sequence.

The correct answer is the Analytics pane. In Tableau, the Analytics pane contains pre-built, drag-and-drop analytic objects like totals, reference lines, and forecasts. To add totals, drag the 'Totals' object from the Analytics pane and drop it on the 'Row Grand Totals' or 'Column Grand Totals' options that appear in the view.

• The Data pane contains the fields from your data source, such as dimensions and measures, used to build the initial visualization.
• The Format pane is used for adjusting visual aesthetics like fonts, colors, and borders.
• Totals can also be added via the 'Analysis' menu at the top of the application, but the Analytics pane provides a direct, visual, drag-and-drop method.

An extract is a snapshot of the source data stored in Tableau's columnar, compressed in-memory engine. Because queries run against the local extract, they no longer rely on the remote database for processing, which can improve speed and reduce load on the warehouse. A live connection, by contrast, always pushes every query to the underlying database, so it never benefits from Tableau's in-memory performance gains. Live connections do keep data instantly up to date, preserve database-level row security, and allow Custom SQL editing just as extracts do, but none of those features are gained specifically by creating an extract.

A combined axis chart is created by placing multiple measures on the same axis so they share one set of headers and scale. In Tableau Desktop, you do this by dragging the second measure directly onto the existing axis until the cursor shows a double-ruler icon; dropping it there combines the two measures on that axis. Dragging Profit to the Rows shelf produces a separate pane, not a combined axis. Converting Profit to discrete and placing it on Color simply changes bar color encoding. Choosing Dual Axis builds a dual-axis chart with two independent axes, not a combined axis chart.

Mapping data requires telling Tableau what kind of geographic entities the field contains. Choosing Geographic Role > State/Province assigns the correct role to the string values, displays the globe icon, and unlocks map capabilities. Merely renaming the field does not guarantee recognition, converting to a number removes the needed text values, and Data Interpreter does not set geographic roles.

The correct answer is to right-click the legend and select 'Hide Card'. This is a direct and common method for removing a legend from the view. The 'Analysis' -> 'Legends' menu is primarily used to show legends that have been previously hidden. Dragging the legend to the 'Filters' shelf is not a valid action for hiding it. The 'File' menu does not contain options for controlling the visibility of worksheet components like legends.

The correct answer is .twbx. A Tableau Packaged Workbook (.twbx) is a single zip file that contains the workbook (.twb) along with any supporting local data sources, such as data extracts (.hyper), Excel files, or background images. This format is the best way to share work with others who do not have access to the original live data source.

A .twb file only contains the structure of the workbook, its sheets, and dashboards, along with the connection information for the data source; it does not contain the data itself. A .tds file is a Tableau Data Source file, which is a shortcut for connecting to data and contains connection information and modifications, but not the actual data or the workbook's visualizations. A .hyper file is a Tableau data extract, which is a local, compressed copy of a dataset, but it does not include the workbook's visualizations or dashboards.

Export to PowerPoint creates a static representation of the workbook. Tableau generates one slide per selected sheet or dashboard, embedding a snapshot image that reflects the data's current filtered state. Interactive capabilities-such as clickable filters, highlighting, tooltip exploration, or web‐embedded links-are removed because PowerPoint cannot host Tableau's interactivity. Therefore, an analyst will receive non-interactive images only. Options describing live interactivity or hyperlinks surviving the export are incorrect, while options limiting the export to just data tables are also wrong.

The correct answer is to assign an alias. Aliases in Tableau are used to provide an alternative name for a specific value, or member, within a discrete dimension. This is the most direct way to correct misspellings or standardize names for display purposes without altering the underlying data. Renaming the data field would change the name of the entire 'Region' column, not the values within it. While creating a calculated field or grouping values can achieve a similar result, they are less direct. A calculated field requires writing a conditional expression, and grouping is typically used to combine multiple distinct members into a larger category, creating a new field.

When two continuous measures are placed on the Columns and Rows shelves without additional fields, Tableau automatically builds a scatterplot. The Marks card switches to the Circle mark type, displaying each data point as a circle positioned by its Sales (x-axis) and Profit (y-axis) values. Other mark types-such as Line, Gantt Bar, or Text-are only selected by default when the shelf arrangement suggests time-series, duration, or text tables, respectively, so they would not appear in this scenario.

Tableau assigns a field to Dimensions when the values are categorical labels that define how the data can be sliced or grouped. Customer ID is an identifier that distinguishes one customer from another; it does not represent a quantity that should be summed, averaged, or otherwise aggregated. Although the field is stored as numbers, its analytical role is qualitative. Numeric fields that convey quantitative size, amount, or magnitude-such as Sales or Profit-are placed in Measures because they are aggregated by default. The alternative statements are inaccurate: Tableau does not default numeric fields to Dimensions, does not silently convert them to text, and the number of distinct values does not determine whether a field is a dimension or measure.