Interface overview (data pane, shelves, canvas) in Tableau - Cell-by-Cell Formula Trace

Sample Data

Sample sales data by region used to demonstrate Tableau interface components.

Cell	Value
A1	Region
A2	North
A3	South
A4	East
A5	West
B1	Sales
B2	1000
B3	1500
B4	1200
B5	1300

Formula Trace

SUM([Sales])

Step 1: [Sales] values: 1000, 1500, 1200, 1300

Step 2: SUM(1000, 1500, 1200, 1300)

Cell Reference Map

     A       B
  +-------+-------+
1 |Region | Sales |
  +-------+-------+
2 |North  | 1000  |
3 |South  | 1500  |
4 |East   | 1200  |
5 |West   | 1300  |
  +-------+-------+

[Sales] column (B2:B5) is referenced for SUM calculation.

The formula references the Sales column cells B2 to B5 from the data pane.

Result

     A       B       C
  +-------+-------+-------+
1 |Region | Sales | Total |
  +-------+-------+-------+
2 |North  | 1000  |       |
3 |South  | 1500  |       |
4 |East   | 1200  |       |
5 |West   | 1300  | 5000  |
  +-------+-------+-------+

Total sales of 5000 is shown in the canvas area as the result of SUM([Sales]).

The canvas shows the total sales value 5000 calculated by summing the Sales column.

Sheet Trace Quiz - 3 Questions

What does the Data Pane in Tableau show?

A The list of fields and data columns available for analysis

B The final visualization output

C The shelf where you drag fields to filter data

D The menu for exporting reports

Key Result

SUM([Field]) adds all values in the specified data field to produce a total.