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7 reasons to start the “Data Visualization with Tableau” Blog

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This blog is actually an extension of my primary/original Data Visualization blog at: http://apandre.wordpress.com/ and I will try to post about Tableau-based Visualizations here rather than on original Data Visualization blog. This new blog I called “Data Visualization with Tableau” (or Tableau7 for short) for 7 main reasons:

  1. Only Tableau with its Tableau Public Web Service allows to use its product and publish it on (Tableau-hosted) public servers for free and with unlimited number of simultaneous users and for unlimited period of time. Tableau Public Service allows only datasets with less then 100000 rows and only flat files as Data Sources. Tableau Public is ideal for blogs and it is a main reason I decided to start this blog as an extension of my primary blog. Closest to Tableau Public is another great piece of software – Spotfire Silver which allows to have a free 1-year trial for personal account with only 10 concurrent users – but that is not good enough for blog.
  2. Tableau provides the free desktop Tableau Reader, which allows server-less distribution of Data Visualizations with full Desktop experience (which is much better then experience with Web-based visualizations) and an unlimited size of datasets (and ability to take advantage of Tableau’s 64-bit in-memory Data Engine). No competitors provides free desktop reader as of today. Tableau Reader shares with Tableau Public the natural limitation that visualized data can not be refreshed in real-time and republishing is required for that.
  3. Tableau’s Mindshare in Data Visualization became one of the largest during 2011, thanks to Tableau Public, Tableau Reader and it feels even among LinkedIn population. The “Data Visualization Poll” http://apandre.wordpress.com/2011/08/17/dv-poll/ I held in the fall of 2011 (with 800+ participants) gave the win to Tableau with 38% of votes, while Spotfire got 25% and Qlikview got 21% of votes. Similar poll http://linkd.in/f5SRw9 I had almost a year ago at LinkedIn had 1340 participants and Spotfire won it with 34% of votes, Tableau and Qlikview got 23% each. My own (subjective) comparison of 4 best Data Visualization technologies indicated that Tableau is the leader too, see it here: http://apandre.wordpress.com/2011/12/18/dv-comparison-2011/
  4. Tableau’s Year-over-Year growth (100% or more) keeps outpacing other Data Visualization vendors, even the super-successful Qliktech.
  5. Tableau has the widest and most diversified support of Data Sources compare with the competition.
  6. Tableau is the only vendor among leading Data Visualization vendors who supports SQL Server Analysis Services and PowerPivot’s multidimensional Cubes as Data Sources.
  7. Of course the 7th reason is that Tableau version 7.0 will be released soon in 2012…