Details on Data Table Properties – General

Option

Description

Data tables

Lists the data tables available within the document. The names of the data tables in this list are the names that will be shown in the data table selectors, in the legends of visualizations, etc.

You cannot have two data tables with identical names in the same analysis.

Rename...

Allows you to change the display name of the selected data table.

Refresh Data

Reloads the data from the source. This is a way to refresh the data while analyzing, without having to reload the entire file. See Embedded or Linked Data? for information about what a refresh does with embedded data.

You can select to refresh data With Prompt which allows you to edit transformations or import settings before the refresh or Without Prompt which uses the latest settings.

Tip: If you want to reload multiple data tables simultaneously, you can instead select File > Reload Data on the main menu.

Note: If a data table is loaded on demand or calculated using a data function you need to click OK in the Data Table Properties dialog to actually start the data refresh.

Delete

Removes the selected data table from the analysis. Any visualizations that use the deleted data table will become invalid.

Set as Default

Sets the selected data table to be the default data table. This means that the selected data table will be used when new visualizations are created.

You can always change the data table to use in a specific visualization from the Data page in Visualization Properties or from the Data table selector in the legend.

Store Data

Defines how you want data from the selected data table to be stored when saving the analysis.

   Embedded in analysis

Use this option to embed the data from the selected data table in the analysis. By embedding all data in the analysis file it will be self-contained with data. This allows you to share the analysis with others who do not have access to the same databases you do, or who need to use their laptops offline.

   Linked to source

Use this option to link the data from the selected data table to the original data sources. This is useful when data is updated or changed from time to time. For example, if you create an analysis file that gets its data from a database that is updated each night, then the linked option allows you to open the analysis file and have it automatically show the latest numbers. It will still use the visualizations and settings you already set up, but base them on the updated data. Also, data might take up lots of space so you might not want to embed a copy of a large data table if you can access it from another data source.

Note: Make sure that all people who are going to use the analysis also have permissions to access the linked data. If you use this option to create an analysis file which is linked to a source file on your local computer, other people might not be able to open the file.

      Prompt for new settings before loading

Select this check box if you want to see the import settings or any available prompt steps for the selected data table when you open the analysis. If the check box is cleared, the last used settings will be applied.

Key columns for linked data

If specified, lists the columns that have been specified to define an identifier for all rows in the selected data table.

Key columns are used to identify rows when markings, tags or bookmarks are saved with a linked data source. However, there is no guarantee that a selection always can be reapplied even if key columns are specified since a selection of a visualization item might include references to other columns than the key columns.

Edit...

Opens the Select Key Columns dialog where you can specify the columns to use to create a unique identifier for all rows in the selected data table.

Type of data

Displays the type of data source.

Settings...

If applicable, opens a dialog where the data source settings can be modified. If the data table is the result of a calculation (for example, a data relationships calculation), then the dialog for calculating the data table is opened again. For information links that are loaded on demand, the load method settings can be changed.
Note: Not available when the selected data table consists of data from more than one data source.

Filters

[Not applicable for in-database data tables which are always managed manually with regards to filtering.]

   Create automatically for all columns

Use this option for an automatic addition of one filter for each column in the (internal) data table.

   Manage manually

Use this option to disable the automatic creation of filters and allow manual creation or deletion of filters.

Show in visualization data table selectors

Select this check box to show the data table in the axis selectors of visualizations.

Clear the check box to hide reference tables that should not be used in the analysis. For example, if you create intermediate tables that are used to produce other data tables, you may want to hide those "temporary" data tables from all visualization views.

Cache calculated columns

Select this check box if you want calculated columns in the selected data table to be cached in the analysis file. This option may be useful if your analysis contains time-consuming calculations and the underlying data is only updated occasionally. Calculated columns where the original data has changed will be recalculated when opening the analysis, but if no changes are done, the cached results are used in the analysis.

Clear the check box to always recalculate the calculated columns. This option can be used to reduce the file size of the analysis file.