Creating a Dataset from a File
You can import data from an external file, such as an Excel spreadsheet or comma-separated-values file, into a new dataset. The data columns in the dataset will be exposed as dimensions or measures that you can use in stories.
Context
First, the source data is analyzed, and then the data is shown with proposed dimensions for the new dataset. You then refine the proposal by specifying dimension types and fixing any data-quality problems.
The workflow to create a new dataset from a file is:
- Import a source file.
- Decide whether data columns are used as measures or dimensions.
- Cleanse your data and fix any mapping or data quality problems.
Data files can be in your local file system or in your network. The source data can be an Excel spreadsheet (.xlsx) or a delimited text file (.csv or .txt). If you import data from Microsoft Excel, and if the data is saved in separate sheets in the Excel workbook, either you can choose which sheet to import (if from a local file system) or the first sheet is automatically imported (from a network file).
Procedure
Next Steps
After importing the raw data, continue with data preparation before completing your dataset: About Adding Data to a Story.