I have written a few blogs recently on the subject of data scaffolding. Let me make a summary of them.

Data scaffolding is a technique to artificially create a data structure for the purpose of visualization. It will either reshape the original data or blend multiple data sources in such a way for better visualization.

The technique is pioneered by Tableau Zen Master Joe Mako.

The general methodology is as follows
1.Create a table of pure dimensions to act as the primary data source. It sets up the structure necessary for visualization.
2.Create measures from secondary data sources by blending.

There are two major use cases for scaffolding: Data Reshaping and Data Blending

Data Reshaping: single data source
The original data structure is altered through the scaffolding, such as unpivoted, for better computation or better visualization.

Scaffolding Video Lecture by Joe Mako
Data Reshaping via Scaffolding

Data Blending: multiple data sources
In the regular blending, there could be data loss in secondary data sources, because it's kind of like a left join.

In many cases, no one data source is more primary or secondary than the other sources. Thus we need a third party to act as the primary to all the actual data sources. This third party is a data scaffolding that is created artificially.

Blending Data Via Multi-Dimensional Scaffolding
Lossless Data Blending via Scaffolding
Blending Dates via Scaffolding

Examples of Scaffolding around the web:
Facebook Jeopardy: Create a Single Sheet Waterfall Chart in Tableau
GOOGLE ANALYTICS IN TABLEAU: BLENDING DATA FROM MULTIPLE ACCOUNTS
Basic Monte Carlo Simulations in Tableau


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Jake and I collaborated on a dashboard. He told me that he learnt a way to create an in-place help page in Tableau. He first saw it at a conference somewhere and couldn't recall who the speaker was. So I am blogging here about it but the credit goes to somebody else. If anyone knows who the original creator is, leave a comment below.

The key idea is to float a semi transparent worksheet on top of the dashboard, where a help text box is strategically placed on top of each chart. This way, we can explain how to view each chart and what data points are important, etc. This worksheet is collapsible by a show/hide button. 

Below I would like to show how this worksheet can be constructed.

1. Sheet with a single data mark.

  • Double click the empty space in Marks panel and add two single quotes. Make the null pill a text label. This creates a single null mark.
  • Set the view as "Entire View"

2. Create an show/hide button

  • Go to the target dashboard
  • Drag a floating vertical container to the dashboard, making it cover all the area of interest.
  • Drag the Single Null Mark sheet and drop it into the above container. Hide the sheet title.
  • Create an open/close button for the container and place the button at the top-right corner.

3. Add annotations

  • Format the sheet background opacity as 70% in the layout manager             
  • Select area annotations and place them anywhere of interest. 
  • Write help text and format it to highlight important messages.  
  • The text can serve as functional guide and/or insight guide.

Here is an example. Feel free to download the workbook and explore. Click the "i" button at the top-right corner to view the in-place help. 

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