We may need to reuse the same data sources times and again in one project. We may need to clone a data source in different workbooks. Helas, there is no copy-n-paste option for data sources. (Submitted a feature request and please upvote it if you like it.)

Saving a data source is an available option. But you may not want to have the connection information saved in a local tds file for security reasons. I feel copy-n-paste is a better option in many ways.

The hassle is in repetitively filling the same credentials for a database or finding the same path to a data file. In a previous post, I described how to clone a data source in the same workbook. Now how to recreate the same data source in another workbook?

Here is a trick to save the hassle.

1.Open a new worksheet in workbook A.
Assume the data source of interest is in workbook A already. We want to have it in workbook B as well.

2.Drag "Number of Records" of the data source in question to the canvas
3.Copy the sheet 
Right click the sheet tab and copy.
4.Paste it into workbook B 
Right click the new sheet button or any sheet tab. You will see "Paste Sheet" option.
Now you have the data source in the new workbook! You can then edit the data source to use a different table or to join a few tables. What is cloned is the connection, the required credentials and the server address. You can change to a different table by editing that same connection.

All the above can be made easier if we have a copy-n-paste option! So please upvote it.

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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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