Alteryx Designer Desktop Knowledge Base

Sometimes large amounts of data can 'overwhelm' a tool or process in your workflow and make it appear like it is stuck or frozen.  This was the case recently when a user attempted to pass 7 million rows of data to a CASS tool.  Splitting these records into smaller chunks makes the process run much quicker. 

Alteryx for Excel Users

Alteryx for Excel Users

Alteryx for Excel Users

How To: Read XLS files – with several tabs that contain diacritics Information

This article will walk you through how to install a macro, so that it can be accessed from the tool palette in the Designer.

Troubleshooting the error: XmlParse Error (2): the element Configuration is not properly closed.

This article is part of the CS Macro Development Series. The goal of this series is to communicate tips, tricks, and the thought process that goes into developing good, dynamic macros.

You're working on your gazillionth Formula tool and "Jeff" from Quality Assurance sends you an email that the margin of error for your process has been restandardized. It's not 0.122 anymore but 0.121. Then the horrible reality sets in - you're going to have to go back through all of your formulas and update that one.. stupid.. little.. number.

This article is part of the CS Macro Development Series. The goal of this series is to communicate tips, tricks, and the thought process that goes into developing good, dynamic macros.

Guide to currency

Alteryx can use the Run Command Tool to run Powershell scripts and perform any Powershell specific commands. Note that in order to run PowerShell scripts you must make sure you have scripting enabled. You should consult with your IT department to see if you are allowed to enable this functionality.\n  

Are you tired of your boring old workflow? Just sitting there in your Designer, slacking off?

The attached macro will use the Field Info Tool and a formula to calculate the Excel column letter, e.g., for 755th field, the returned letters would be "ACA."

I recently set up an app that got me One Step Closer to Alteryx Nirvana. Check it out!

Ever needed to learn how to use an Iterative macro? This article walks you through the process with a basic mathematical problem highlighting how the data moves through the macro and loops back to continue processing.

An R macro for parsing PDFs with images!

The TS Factory tools can build time series models and forecasts for multiple sets of historical data groups, without the need to separate them.  This is their relationship to the batch macro.

How To: Combine Date Ranges with a Macro This module (and embedded batch macro) will provide a comprehensive timeline or date range(s) using multiple, overlapping date ranges.      The macro converts date ranges into spatial objects in order to use the spatial functions in Alteryx to group overlapping or adjacent ranges. This ensures that ranges A and C get are grouped together when A and C do not overlap but both A and C overlap range B (and so forth for larger chains of ranges).           It also allows for “jumping” a user-determined number of days in order to combine regions that do not overlap but are within a specified number of days of one another.      

Business Problem: Thematic maps are often used to display data geographically with colored or shaded themes, but sometimes users wish to see the data differently. For this purpose, dot density mapping has become a frequently requested feature for map rendering in Alteryx. Dot density creation is possible with the inclusion of the spatial function within the formula tool. This function, ST_Random Point, will randomly disperse a point within a given polygon. Utilizing this tool, anyone can create a macro to produce the data required to generate a dot density map. Actionable Results: Easily create dot density thematic maps Overview: It can often be convenient to view thematic maps as clustered points. This type of visual output is a logical and accurate representation of data occurring in a non-continuous distribution. Vertical: Any Key Tools Used: Formula Tool (ST_Random Point spatial function), Generate Rows Required Input: As inputs, the Dot Density macro requires two fields: geography with an associated value and a configuration of the number of dots per value. Determining the appropriate number of dots per value may require some trial and error to produce desirable results. Knowing the min, max, and median values associated with the base geographies would help you to determine and optimal dots per value. This coupled with the size of dots on the map will greatly affect the aesthetic of the mapping.  

Business Problem: When creating custom Tree questions in Alteryx, the Module or Macro designer will typically use the “Custom File/Database” mode of the tool. This is a great option because of the ease with which the data can be arranged to populate a great Tree question. Handling the Action side of a Tree question can sometimes be a little challenging, and the goal of this macro is to streamline that process.   Overview: Consider for a moment the following example where the user has selected “Blue Whale” from the Tree. Would you like just the record for “Blue Whale”, or would you like the parent records from that selection? Depending on your choice in the Tree Processing Macro, you can receive the following outputs from the tool.   What if we had selected “Whales”, how would you like to handle the child records from that selection? The Tree Processing Macro makes it is easy, as it will return all of child records for you automatically.   The macro is designed to reside in the .yxwz from which the user will interact with the Tree Question. The same file that is referenced in the Tree Question should also be present as an Input tool. This Input tool will populate the connection to the “D” (Data) input of the Tree Action Macro. The “T” (Tree) connection will be populated by a connection from a Text Input tool. As every Question has an accompanying Action, your .yxwz's Action will update the Text Input tool.         The Tree Action Macro has two configuration settings; the first defines whether you wish to exclude branches as records in the output. The second setting allows you to define the key length. Apart from these settings, the Tree Action Macro will take care of the rest.   I have provided a sample Analytic App that details the use of the Tree Action Macro, and the difference between including branches as records and excluding them.