Quick hands-on: Tableau adds shapefile, KML & GeoJSON imports for custom maps

Tableau has significantly expanded its custom mapping capabilities in version 10.2, allowing for importing your own geospatial files in GeoJSON, shapefile, KML and MapInfo formats. I finally had a chance to take Tableau 10.2's GIS functions for a spin, and it's a welcome addition.

If you're a Tableau user and upgraded to 10.2, you probably noticed that "Spatial file" is now an available data connections. Importing a geospatial file works the same as any other data source -- you pick the file, make a few decisions, and import.

I started with a shapefile of information from the U.S. Census Bureau that had both geometry and data -- somewhat easier than trying to merge geospatial info with a separate data file. I chose median earnings in major occupation categories by Congressional District (and then did some research to determine that column B24021027 was median earnings for Computer and mathematical occupations).

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